Infants and Primary
Infants
Our Infants building is a busy and noisy place to be at the moment with classes eagerly rehearsing their performances for our SMArt and Drama Night coming up in Week 9. There is lots of excitement building with some rehearsals moving to the hall as well as making of props and talk of costumes all happening. We are all looking forward to the night! Please keep an eye out for costume requirements for different classes. These will be as simple and easy to source as possible, but if you are unsure or having difficulty with any part of this, please reach out to your child’s teacher.
All students across our school have been helping improve our playground and learning areas by picking up after themselves and collecting rubbish at the end of each break time. It is pleasing to see our Infants area looking so presentable and cared for and our students becoming more conscious of doing the right thing when packing up after lunch.
As always, please contact your child’s teacher if you have any questions or concerns about things happening at school.
Ms Mem Brougham
Assistant Principal Infants (relieving)
Kindergarten
Kindergarten students have enjoyed our focus on narratives and re-enacting and role-playing various parts of different stories. They had a great time being ‘Clancy and Millie’ and building ‘very fine dwellings’ before trying to blow them down just like in the story. We have read many Fairy Tales over the past fortnight but haven’t been able to agree on just one favourite.
We have also been exploring patterns; finding out what makes a pattern, identifying the core, continuing patterns and creating our own using natural materials, shapes, colours, music and our bodies. We have also looked at growing and shrinking number patterns. A highlight of the last fortnight was making ‘Fruit Pops’. This required us to read and follow a recipe and we did a great job of this as they were delicious!
In the coming fortnight, Kindergarten students will be learning more about characters in stories through the books, ‘No! Never!’ by L Hathorn and ‘The Invisible Boy’ by T Ludwig. We will continue working through our sounds and applying these to our reading and writing. In mathematics, our focus will be on making and using equal groups, and creating ‘fair shares’, the beginning skills for multiplication and division.
Ms Mem Brougham
Kindergarten Teacher
Assistant Principal Infants (relieving)
1/2 Class
In Week 5, students in 1/ 2 began looking at text orientation in English through reading the text, ‘Pearl Barley and Charlie Parsley’. We have been making test-to-self connections, considering how we relate to the characters in the story and comparing similarities and differences between the two main characters. Year 1/ 2 have been working extremely hard over the last few weeks to develop complex sentences confidently.
In mathematics, students have been looking at patterns, such as shrinking and growing patterns, determining the next part of the pattern, and linking this with some musical percussion. Next fortnight consists of looking at making equal groups.
Our creative and performing arts sessions have mostly been a focus on practising and refining our dance for Smart and Drama Night, however, we have also had the opportunity to consider other elements of performing arts such as music and drama. Students were delighted to be able to listen to Mr. Jones and Sorubi play some songs on the piano for us. We have been reading a story in English that follows the rhythm of ‘5 Little Ducks’ and have enjoyed changing the lyrics to match the script from the book.
Year 1 students engaged in the Phonics Screening Check in Weeks 5 and 6. This check was to help us determine where students may require some revision or consolidation in their reading as they read real words as well as nonsense words. We have a wonderful new helper in our class, Carmel, who will be able to support us in reaching our phonic goals. Carmel will also be supporting 1/ 2 this term with some mathematics goals as well as helping our young writers in our English lessons.
Events coming up:
- Father’s Day Stall (Thursday 31 and Friday 1 September 2023)
- SMArt and Drama Night (Wednesday 13 September 2023 - Week 9). Can families begin thinking about costumes please? To match the theme of the song, I would like to ask students to dress in country/ earthy colours. These can include browns, greens, yellows (as I think of the beautiful wattles out at the moment), and oranges and reds. Please don’t buy things for this- I can imagine that each child will have something in their wardrobe they can wear. A note will follow...
- Wellbeing Day (Thursday 14 September 2023 - Week 9) This term, our Wellbeing Day focus is that of regulating emotions. We will consider the ‘Zones of Regulation’, strategies to support us come out of the more negative zones and create opportunities for this learning to become integrated into every aspect of our day. A note has been sent home to inform families that we will be watching the movie ‘Inside Out’ on this day. It is rated PG and if you do not wish your child to view it, you need to return the note with these details. If we do not see a note, we will assume permission is given.
Emily Friend - Class Teacher
Primary
I would like to welcome Mrs Julia Corcoran into the Primary Faculty for Weeks 5-8 here at Boorowa Central School. Mrs Corcoran is currently studying Education at Charles Sturt University, and this is a practical placement for her. She will be spending the majority of her time in the 5/6 Class; however, she will be visiting other classes regularly to observe our fantastic teaching staff in action. Welcome to Mrs Corcoran and I hope that Julia will return to Boorowa Central School to teach when she graduates.
Unfortunately, we have seen many instances of behaviour review cards being handed out over the past two weeks. It is a significant concern that these cards are being handed out to our more senior students in Years 4, 5 and 6. Here at Boorowa Central School we value leadership’ and it’s timely that we re-focus on what makes good leaders and the influence we can have on others. It’s incredible to witness the effect that our older students have on our Infants friends, and it is an expectation that our leaders are modelling positive, inclusive and fair behaviours to all. This is the single most effective way of ensuring that all of our students enjoy school to the fullest and find success here at Boorowa Central School every day.
I look forward to seeing all families at SMArt & Drama Night on Wednesday 13 September 2023 from 6:00pm in the School Hall. Further information will be sent out soon regarding the event. The night will be recorded and available to order on the night. It’s always a significant highlight of the year for all of our students.
If you require any additional information or have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me via email: Jason.stuart3@det.nsw.edu.au
Jason Stuart
Assistant Principal Primary (Relieving)
4/5 Class
In an exciting exploration of financial literacy, our Year 4/5 students have been delving into the fascinating world of money and decimals. Through engaging and pragmatic learning experiences, they have been honing their skills in real-life problem-solving and developing a deep understanding of the concept of change. One of the highlights of this unit was the creation of their very own shop, where students had the opportunity to apply their knowledge in a hands-on setting. By handling physical currency and practising transactions, they gained invaluable experience in calculating and giving change, fostering a practical understanding of the value of money. The students' enthusiasm for this project was evident as they enthusiastically embraced the challenges and responsibilities of running a shop. They eagerly interacted with customers, calculated totals, and made accurate change, all while developing essential life skills. Well done to Year 4/5.
Paris Corcoran - Class Teacher
5/6 Class
The Year 5/6 students have had a very busy few weeks in the classroom, especially welcoming our Charles Sturt University student Mrs Julia Corcoran into the classroom as a student-teacher. Mrs Corcoran has been a great influence on the classroom, sharing insights about her own life and helping our students learn both inside and outside the classroom. Mrs Corcoran has been teaching science this week on a topic called ‘Matter Matters’ and she will continue to teach this over the coming month. This unit is all about the different states of solids, liquids and gasses – we’ve already conducted cool experiments!
In English, we have begun our novel study on Wonder by R.J. Palacio, and we have delved into the characters and the emotions that the main character August Pullman would feel starting school for the first time. In coming weeks, we will be writing letters, continuing to read and analyse the novel and finally we will write a number of assessable pieces including a book review, movie review, comparative study and personal reflections – lots to write!
In mathematics, we have finished our unit of the four operations and word problems and are now delving into data analysis and data reporting. Think pie graphs, arrays, tally marks, column and bar graphs. It’s interesting how often they pop up in real life and we need to be able to read and comprehend them! The next unit of learning in mathematics will be co-ordinates and mapping.
In creative arts, Mrs Crockett and I will be launching head-first into SMArt & Drama Night rehearsals, and we can’t wait. It will take patience, but it will all be worth it come showtime!
As always, please get in touch if you require any further information:
Jason Stuart - 5/6 Class Teacher
Assistant Principal Primary (Relieving)