Curriculum News

English

In English this term we will be focusing on improving our comprehension skills, including sequencing events in texts, comparing and contrasting, points of view and finding directly stated information.  We will be exploring different phonological foci each week in Spelling, as well as improving our understanding of different aspects of grammar. In Writing, we will be concentrating on Writing to Persuade and to Entertain which will support our Inquiry Unit. This will also provide a scaffold of learning to support our Year 3 students with NAPLAN which is in Week 7 of the term.

Mathematics 

In Mathematics this term we will be collecting and representing data using everyday scenarios. Students will also be using the language of chance through our probability unit later in the term.  Within  Measurement, students will investigate ‘timetables’ and the notion of am and pm. In Number, students will continue to develop and extend their knowledge of Place Value Units. 

Inquiry/Religious Education 

Our Inquiry Unit for Term One is ‘Celebrations, Community and Remembrance’, where we will learn about Australian symbols and celebrations, including the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander symbols and  celebrations.  We will also learn about church symbols and celebrations, as well as the symbols and celebrations of different cultures.

In Religious Education  we will be learning about ‘Church and Community’ as we lead into Lent and the preparation for Easter. The Year 4 children will also begin their preparation for the Sacrament of Eucharist. We will be exploring Catholic celebrations, scripture that demonstrate our living faith. We will also identify who is in our Catholic community including faiths that share the same message. The students will reflect and put into action ways we can contribute to Mary of the Cross Parish.

Below is a basic list of our Inquiry unit Vocabulary that will be useful for discussion at home and throughout the term. 

celebration, ceremony, community, national, memorial, emblem, diversity, parade, food, costumes, culture, harmony, beliefs, religion, sacrifice, wreath, reconciliation, eucharist and related symbols, Easter, chronological, tradition, resurrection, intercultural, coat of arms, historical commemoration,  NAIDOC week, ANZAC Day, Australia Day, Queens Birthday, Labour Day.

Wellbeing

We will start the year by revisiting our ‘Show Me Five’ rules, with activities planned to focus on what behaviours are the core of each rule. We will also work with the children on Growth Mindset activities in developing a positive, resilient and persistent attitude/mindset to school and learning. In all the activities the important aspect is to ‘give it a go’ and that making ‘mistakes’ are part of learning.

We will also focus on 'Emotional Literacy'. This has an emphasis on the children's ability to understand themselves and other people, and the ability to understand and express feelings by revisiting the ‘Zones of Regulation’