Curriculum Matters
Foundation
Meet Our Mindful Monsters!
This term, our Foundation students have been developing their understanding of emotions and learning strategies to help them regulate their feelings when needed. Through our Mindful Monsters program, students have explored how to recognise different emotions in themselves and how to respond in positive and helpful ways.
Students were introduced to a range of Mindful Monsters, each teaching a different regulation strategy. They practised techniques such as mindful breathing, tensing and relaxing their muscles, and listening carefully to the sounds around them to help bring their focus back to the present moment. These strategies help students build emotional awareness, resilience, and confidence in managing everyday challenges.
After learning about the different Mindful Monsters and the skills they teach, students had the opportunity to design their very own monster using the first letter of their name. The classroom was filled with creativity as students created unique monsters and shared the special regulation strategies their monsters could help them remember.
We are proud of the way our Foundation students are learning to recognise their emotions, understand their feelings, and develop a toolbox of strategies to support their wellbeing both at school and at home.
Excursion to the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne
Our Foundation students recently enjoyed a wonderful excursion to the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne.
Throughout the day, students had the opportunity to explore the beautiful gardens and learn more about the natural world around them.
Students participated in hands-on activities that encouraged them to observe plants, animals, and the environment closely. They used their senses to explore nature, discovered the different features of living things, and learned about how plants and animals depend on each other to survive. Students also enjoyed creating clay creatures, adding natural items from the gardens to make them more interesting. Students explained the special features of their creatures and what would help them survive in the environment.
The excursion provided a valuable opportunity for students to connect their classroom learning with real-world experiences. It was wonderful to see their curiosity, enthusiasm, and excitement as they explored one of Melbourne's most beautiful outdoor learning environments.
A big thank you to our parent helpers for supporting us on the day and helping to make the excursion such a memorable experience for our students.
Level 1
💙 Father’s Day Fun
The Level 1 students were very excited to visit our Father’s Day Stall this week! They loved choosing special gifts for their dads and other important people in their lives.
The students also enjoyed getting creative with some Father’s Day craft, putting lots of care and effort into making something special to take home.
We hope all of our Level 1 dads and special people have a wonderful Father’s Day! 💙
During our literacy sessions, we have been enjoying two much-loved stories, Pig the Pug by Aaron Blabey and Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler.
Both stories have provided wonderful opportunities for the students to explore characters, settings, rhyme, vocabulary and important messages about friendship and kindness.
After reading the book, the students became book reviewers!
They shared their opinions about the story, characters and illustrations and explained whether they would recommend the book to a friend.
Level 2
This fortnight, level 2 students have delved into the world of poetry, exploring the structure and features of haiku and cinquain poems.
They have had opportunities to create poems both independently and collaboratively in small groups, experimenting with words, syllables and descriptive language to express their ideas creatively.
In Maths, we have been learning about division through equal sharing.
Students have been practising sharing objects equally between groups and using this understanding to solve division problems.
To put our learning into practice, students have embarked on a Picnic Adventure Project! Students are planning their own picnic by choosing the foods they would like to bring and deciding how many people will be attending. They are then using their division skills to work out how their food can be shared equally between everyone at the picnic.
This has been a fun and practical way for students to apply their mathematical thinking to a real-world situation.
Level 3
This fortnight, the Level 3s celebrated this year’s Book Week!
We had lots of fun dressing up as our favourite characters, discovering new books and exploring the library with a book hunt. It was an awesome opportunity to see what books our friends would recommend and discover different genres that we might like to try out.
We also took some time to practise our reading fluency.
We took turns reading aloud to a partner, focusing on our accuracy, speed and expression. It was fantastic to see the improvements we made when we focused on reading just as the author intended.
We are becoming more confident readers every day!
Level 4
Our Level 4 students have begun their Future Innovators Inquiry Project, where creativity, problem-solving, and innovation take centre stage.
Throughout this term, students will identify real-world problems and design inventions that aim to make a positive difference. Using the Design Thinking Process, they will investigate challenges, brainstorm solutions, create prototypes, and refine their ideas based on feedback.
Students are using a variety of recycled and repurposed materials to construct prototypes of their inventions. From cardboard boxes and plastic containers to bottle caps and other reusable items, students are discovering how everyday materials can be transformed into innovative solutions while reducing waste.
As part of the project, students will participate in an exciting "Shark Tank" style presentation, where they will pitch their inventions to an audience. They will showcase their design journey, explain the problem they identified, share how they developed their solution, and demonstrate their prototype. Students will also have the opportunity to justify their design choices and explain how their invention could benefit others.
The students are continuing to welcome more Parent guest speakers learning about their work places.
Stay tuned to see which of our Future Innovators wins Shark Tank.
Level 5
Level 5 Reader’s Theatre 🎭🐷
To celebrate Book Week, our Level 5 students had an awesome time showcasing their creativity and teamwork through modified Three Little Pigs Reader’s Theatre performances, tying in perfectly with our classroom door decorations!
Students put their own creative spin on the scripts, even showing off their poetry skills by writing and performing original raps as part of their plays. After plenty of rehearsing, each group performed for their peers, with the top three groups earning a spot in the final performance.
It was fantastic to see so much confidence, humour and creativity on display!
Level 6
Whole School Fair!
The Level 6 students have been working tirelessly in the lead-up to our School Fair on Wednesday 9 September, and we couldn’t be more excited for the big day!
Prizes are being prepared and they are looking AMAZING!
With an incredible line-up of stalls including a Spa Day, Nail Salon, Footy Challenge, Chocolate Coin Toss, JP Racing Push Carts, Teacher Dunk Tank, Pie in the Face, Carnival Games, Bracelet Making, Bake Stalls and MANY MORE… we are set for an unforgettable day of FUN, laughter and excitement!
Most importantly, all proceeds from the School Fair will go towards supporting Monash Children’s Hospital, helping make a difference to children and families in our community.