Year One

Dear Year One Community,

We did it! Term 2 is over and we are officially halfway through Year One. Can you believe it?!  The students have been very busy exploring different community helpers and learning new concepts through our Inquiry lens. 

Reading:

In Reading, students have continued their learning on summarising. We have delved deep into the strategy 'Somebody, Wanted, But, So, Then (SWBST).' In one lesson, students listened to a story and then completed a SWBST template with the class. In the next lesson, students listened to a story together but completed the template on their own. Afterwards, students chose their own fiction stories and completed the summary. 

In the last couple of weeks, we have also introduced some phonological awareness. We looked at syllables, rhyming words, and onset and rime; a syllable is a beat in a word, a rhyming word has the same sound at the end, onset is the first sound in the word, and rime is the sound following the onset. We will continue to explore these concepts in our Reading sessions throughout Term 3. 

See some of our rhyming activities below:

Writing:

In Writing, the Year One students have been working on information reports. We looked at the purpose and structure of them, before having a go and writing our own. 

Students researched facts about various community helpers and also used their own knowledge to write their information reports. 

We also continued our lessons on the English Language Conventions. In the last couple of weeks, students focused on simple and compound sentences. Students investigated what a sentence is (a complete thought or idea), what makes up a simple sentence (subject and verb), and how we can add details to make a compound sentence. 

Phonics has also been a weekly focus, where we explicitly taught our SMART spelling focus of the week. 

Mathematics

In Maths, students have extended their knowledge of subtractions. We used three strategies to solve simple subtraction problems: 

1. Draw & Cross It Out

2. Counting Back

3. Halves. 

Students practised each of the strategies using a range of different activities including solving worded problems, maths games, and open-ended investigative problems. The students did a marvellous job and many were encouraged to challenge themselves with two-digit numbers or try alternative strategies (such as the vertical algorithm). 

In the last week, the Year One students will explore the connection between subtraction and addition through 'Fact Families.' Students learned that addition and subtraction are opposite operations and if you know the answer for one number sentence, you can figure out the answer for the opposite one. 

Inquiry

Inquiry was probably the subject students enjoyed the most throughout the past few weeks. 

We are very fortunate to have had visits from the local police and firefighters. They both told the students what their role in the community was, what tools or resources they used, and what their uniforms looked like. Students were very excited and also got the opportunity to ask some questions. 

Students also continued their investigation of different community helpers. We looked at healthcare workers, such as paramedics, doctors, dentists, vets, and nurses. Students also learned what an emergency is, what to do in an emergency, how to be a 'Triple Zero Hero,' and what our responsibility is in a healthcare emergency.

In the last week, students got to choose their favourite community helper and showcase everything they've learned through a poster and mini-presentation. 

Reminders:

• Students are expected to bring their satchel to school every day filled with their take-home reading books, diary, and homework book.
• Students are expected to bring their iPad to school every day fully charged. 
• Late arrivals (8:40 am onwards) require a late pass from the office.
• If your child is absent, please ensure the reason is entered on XUNO; if you need support with this please reach out to the office staff or your classroom teacher.
• Students should be completing nightly reading and spelling as part of their Year One Homework Expectations. Please refer to SchoolBox for the updates. Homework is due every Friday. Students receive their spelling words in their homework books every Monday and will be tested every Friday. 

Kind regards, 

The Year One Team.