Grade 4 Community News

Dear Year 4 Families,

It’s hard to believe we are already halfway through Term 3! Our Grade 4 students have settled well into the term and continue to demonstrate enthusiasm, resilience, and a positive attitude towards their learning. It has been wonderful to see their confidence grow as they take on new challenges and work collaboratively with their classmates. 

We would like to thank all our families for your continued support. Your encouragement at home, regular communication, and involvement in your child's learning are greatly appreciated and play an important role in helping our students achieve their best. We look forward to an exciting second half of the term and celebrating our students' ongoing growth and achievements.

Reading:

As we make our way through Term 3, our students have been thoroughly enjoying the class novel Storm Boy. 

Students have continued exploring Storm Boy and are now more than halfway through the novel. They have been analysing characters, exploring how key events shape the plot, and identifying language features such as similes and personification. During sentence-level writing lessons, students have also been practicing summarising and note-taking, learning to identify key information and record important ideas from the text.

As we continue reading, students will deepen their understanding of the novel by exploring character development, themes and the author’s use of language. They will use their notes to support further discussions and develop their comprehension and response to the text.

Writing:

In Writing, Grade 4 classes have been developing their skills in creating an Information Report about the Coorong. Drawing on their supplementary non-fiction reading lessons, students have used their own notes to build their knowledge on the Coorong’s environment, flora and fauna, and Aboriginal culture and connections to Country.

Students have now planned and drafted an introduction and three main body paragraphs, focusing on organising factual information, using clear paragraph structures, and including subject-specific vocabulary and supporting details. Over the coming weeks, students will plan and draft their conclusion paragraphs, then revise and edit to uplevel their writing, before publishing their completed Information Reports. We cannot wait to see their finished pieces!

Mathematics:

Over the next two weeks, students will continue strengthening their understanding of number, measurement, and problem-solving. In Mathematics, they will focus on solving vertical multiplication calculations and multi-step difference problems using efficient strategies. Students will also participate in a daily two-minute fluency practice to build their speed, accuracy, and confidence with number facts while developing their focus and concentration. Teachers will regularly monitor student understanding through ongoing formative assessments, while catch-up and extension sessions will provide opportunities to reinforce key concepts, address learning gaps, and extend students' thinking. 

Humanities: 

Over the next two weeks, students will explore the causes and motives behind British colonisation in Australia, including Britain’s need for a new penal colony after losing the American colonies, overcrowded prisons, and strategic and economic reasons for expansion. Students will also investigate the journey and arrival of the First Fleet, learning about the 11 ships, the challenges faced during the eight-month voyage, and the different experiences of convicts, marines, officials, and their families. Through discussions and activities, students will develop their understanding of how the arrival of the First Fleet marked the beginning of British colonisation and its significant impacts on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and the land.

Thank You:

Thank you for your continued support as we reach Week 6 of Term 3. It has been wonderful to see the students’ progress, enthusiasm and growth throughout the term so far. We look forward to continuing our learning journey together and making the most of the remainder of the term!

PLC 4