Round the classes
Reception class: Jess
During Reconciliation week, our class looked at how Aboriginal people lived amongst nature. They would use natural resources to build homes, make tools, have fires and cook food.
We spent time outside in nature, making pretend fires, grinding rocks and bark to make food and students even used pallets to create shelter and beds. It was wonderful to watch the receptions working together and taking risks in moving logs and pallets around. Students were problem-solving and using their knowledge of Aboriginal history to help them guide what they needed to survive in nature.
Our class enjoys hands-on learning, with valuable life lessons. We even used shaving cream on our tables to create patterns, to practise our handwriting and in the process to clean our tables. We are working hard at teamwork and respect. Students are beginning to understand that if we all work together we get things done quicker, and if we take care of our resources, they last longer and we get to enjoy them.
Reception class: Kelly
We have continued our phonics with the k, ck and j sounds. Our handwriting is coming along well and just for a bit of extra challenge, the children had to come up with as many 'ck' words as they could. We have continued our recount writing. The children can now copy either On the weekend, Yesterday or Saturday into the writing books. We have moved from the teacher writing what they did on their books, to the children recalling what they did and the teacher recording it on a whiteboard for them to copy.
We have finished our pattern topic in maths. The children have learnt what a pattern is, what a unit in a pattern looks like, how many elements are in a pattern and can repeat a pattern. We have looked at shapes, sizes and colours.
We had our first transition visit this Wednesday and it was wonderful to see the children help them transition into the classroom.
It has been lovely to see how well the children interact with each other in Creative Activity Time. Play is such a wonderful way for the children to engage socially, problem-solve, be creative and communicate their ideas to others.
This week Jess' class joined us for a 'how to draw activity'. Our focus was drawing an axolotl. It was wonderful to see the students listen so attentively to the step-by-step instructions. Once completed they had to upload it onto Seesaw and then use the recording voice to explain the process.
Year 1 class: Jaya
What a busy 2 weeks of learning we have had! Week 5 brought much excitement as we celebrated Reconciliation Week. The students were eager to engage in different experiences where they were given opportunities to recognise, appreciate and learn about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander history and culture. In our classroom, we have continued to use our symbol stones to create stories to share with one another.
In Literacy learning, we have been continuing our practice of the sounds ‘ow’, ‘oa’, ‘-le’, ‘ar’ and ‘a’. Following on from our learning about adding the suffix ‘-ing’ onto the end of base words, we explored how ‘-ed’ changes words to past tense. It was a challenge learning that ‘-ed’ can sound like a ‘d’, ‘t’ and ‘ed’. This is something that we will continue to practise lots and lots.
We have been loving our Bond Blocks program in Maths. It has been wonderful to see growth, even after only 2 weeks. Students have begun to pick up on the terms and language used around how numbers can be partitioned into parts. The students have been engaging responsibly with the resources and ensuring that the kits are well looked after. We are looking forward to seeing what comes next.
Creative Activity Time allows the class the opportunity to pursue learning in an area of interest whilst having creative freedom. The class have been positively engaging with one another, exploring new friendships and working collaboratively on intricate and innovative building creations. Some students have been keen to play schools and practise their writing whilst others choose to build and make. We love sharing this time together.
Year 2 class: Samantha
In literacy, our focus has been on persuasive text structure and the use of modal verbs. Persuasive texts are designed to convince the reader of a particular point of view, and learning how to structure these texts effectively is a crucial skill. We've been practising how to state our opinions clearly and support them with strong reasons. To help us understand this better, we've read some familiar stories like 'The Gingerbread Man' and 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears'. These tales have been great for identifying how characters express their desires and opinions, and we've used them as inspiration for our own writing. On Thursday, we enjoyed our second Big Write for Term 2 on the topic 'lunchtime should be longer'. The students had many interesting opinions on this topic. We wonder what our family and friends' thoughts are on longer lunchtimes.
In maths, we've embarked on an exciting journey into the world of fractions. We kicked off the week with a fun 'pretend class party', where we figured out how to share party food equally. This practical activity helped us understand the concept of fractions in a tangible way. Our learning intentions for this unit include:
1. Recognising and describing one half as two equal parts of a whole.
2. Representing and identifying part-whole relationships of halves, quarters, and eighths in various contexts.
The students are enjoying learning how to divide things up and seeing how fractions are used in everyday life.
Our digital technology lessons have been all about creating 'algorithmic art'. Using the Sketches School app, we have learned to follow specific instructions to create art pieces. This activity not only enhances our understanding of algorithms but also improves our listening skills and ability to work collaboratively with partners and peers. The students are thrilled to see how precise instructions can lead to beautiful artwork.
Friday was a special day as our entire school celebrated Pyjama Day! The whole class came to school in their comfiest pyjamas, and we spent the day sharing stories and staying warm and cozy. It was a wonderful way to end the week, filled with laughter and relaxation. Enjoy your weekend everyone and thank you for your ongoing support this term.
Year 3 class: Stephen and Troy
We have enjoyed collaborating with Sam’s year 2 students as part of our Aboriginal Education. This fortnight we re-visited Sorry Day and introduced another Indigenous perspectives story, Alfred’s War. We shared the stories and then made text to text connections, a process of identifying common themes, author messages and character analysis. This process deepened our understanding of past and current issues affecting Aboriginal people. Our next step is to re-visit these texts and look at the themes more closely.
We have also started learning about procedure writing. We have carried out some hands-on activities including:
- How to brush our teeth
- How to make a straw glider
- How to make a paper helicopter
The hands-on approach makes the process of writing the procedures easier as it puts things into a real-life context. Our focus has been on making sure the first word of each step in the procedures is a verb.
Year 4/5 class: Alex
This fortnight students have enjoyed Reconciliation Week. On Monday of Week 5 students participated in a range of activities celebrating Aboriginal and Torres-Strait Islander culture and the meaning behind reconciliation. On the Wednesday students were treated to a cultural dance performance incursion by David Booth and his sons.
This fortnight students put their editing skills to work in their writing. They read back over their Winter Solstice Big Write narratives with a careful examination of their ‘tightening tension scene’ for their boulder problem. They then spent time adding in rich descriptions of the five senses to place the reader in the action and paint a word picture, building up the tension in the story. Students then had a go at editing for spelling and then published their work with a final print and post to Seesaw.
In grammar students have been working on common homophones as we noticed in their writing that many students are confusing the spelling of words that sound the same but mean different things such as their, there and they’re.
This week in their Design and Technology learning students have been working in teams of three to follow the design process, sketching and drafting their designs for their Kids in Space project. They have been carefully taking their time to document their process in their design workbook.
In maths students have been reflecting on their progress toward their place value goals and are working on their skills in the area of addition.
Students have also been reflecting on their learning, goals and highlights of Semester One to write their comments which will be included in their reports at the end of this term.
Year 5/6 class: Sallie
We have been very busy with reconciliation activities. Everyone loved the cross age groups that circulated around the school with different teachers running a variety of activities to acknowledge local and national Aboriginal people past and present.
Henry has been focusing on fractions and all that that encompasses. Doing a kahoots challenge was a highlight! Our Roald Dahl assignments are nearly finished and look great displayed in our classroom. We have finally finished our geography assignments and it has been interesting seeing everyone's PowerPoint displays. Students had to compare an Asian destination with an Australian destination. We all have new places we would like to visit.
The students have been tasked with designing and creating something that would help the astronauts get in or stay in the "green zone". After weeks of brainstorming ideas, doing pros and cons for each idea groups decided on their best "invention". They then sketched their ideas and made a prototype from materials from home and school. These designs were featured during our assembly and the photo and write up of each group is featured below in this newsletter. The next step is use Makers Empire to design and print and 3D model of their creation.
One of the activities we did for reconciliation week was to design our own Acknowledgment of Country posters; so many different ideas and perspectives.
Last week we also spent time preparing for our class assembly. It was fun infusing a "space" theme into our assembly. Thanks to Chastity, Elsa, Anji and Jameson who were great compares.
Indonesian: Ibu Susan
We have been very busy in Indonesian lessons! The receptions have made harimau (tiger) door hangers and read a story all about animals living in the tropical rainforest. The year 1 students have completed sentences using Indonesian animal names and the year 2 students have made buku kecil ( mini books) using our focus words. The year 3s and year 4s have been practising using adjectives after the noun in short texts about animals. Sallie’s students are busy researching interesting facts about native Indonesian animals as well as completing translation and comprehension tasks.
PE: Emma and Troy
In physical education lessons this fortnight we have been refining our skills in striking objects with soft bats off a tee. Students have practised control whilst keeping their eye on the ball during a strike. They have focused on teamwork and leadership during games which they have demonstrated beautifully! - Emma
In PE lessons students have been learning the sport of netball. Our year two and three students have focused on developing fundamental movement skills required to play the game. These include throwing, catching and shooting. These have also been developing game sense skills through modified throwing and catching games focusing on ball movement into open space. The older students have focused on netball rules and game sense. Students have played modified games of netball including four corners and end zone. - Troy
State Cross Country
The state championship for cross country was held at Oakbank Racecourse. there were lots of people from different districts and private schools. We were sorted into teams with other people in the hills, the teams had roughly 5-6 people in them. the start was chaos as there was 150-200 people in each race. The boys under 11’s didn’t win anything but the girls under 12’s won a silver medal for fastest team to complete the race. - Innes Staniford
On Wednesday I went to state cross country competition at Oakbank Horse Racing Track. I participated in the 12-year-old girls 3km race. Our district team came second place out of 27 other districts across SA. In your age category, there were 225 people, and I came 63. I really enjoyed racing and think it was a great experience. - Ila Sanders
Kids in Space
THE E-Pod – Anji and Elsa
The E-pod is a cube shaped friend that helps you stay in the green zone, and helps with all your space needs. If you're bored and you have finished your work for the day, you might want to talk to your loved one. As the E-pod has a feature that it can sound exactly like your loved ones this would help calm you down and feel more at home. No matter what you say, the E-Pod will always have a response physically and mentally for you.
Glasses and Gloves
Our solution to help astronauts stay in the green zone is to provide them with special glasses that you can watch movies and videos and see photos through. You can also see fidgets through the glasses and the gloves make it feel like it is actually there. If you want a fidget but don’t want to wear the glasses on your eyes you can rest them on your head and there is a projector that projects the fidget. It connects to your phone or any other device via Bluetooth. There is elastic on the glasses instead of the temples (the part that goes on top of your ears) that keeps them on when in zero gravity. They are stored in a simple glasses case. There are also headphones connected to the elastic. We have attached tape and a cotton ball on the bridge for maximum comfort when the elastic is pushing on your nose. This invention helps astronauts keep in the green zone by giving them an activity to calm them down and get them out of the blue, yellow and red zones. - Edith and Elodie
Contact Lenses with Special Connections
Jameson and I designed some contact lenses that connect to your normal television, video, and virtual reality games. We thought the astronauts would like these lenses to also talk to their family and friends. They can relax by playing games or watching television. They are small and easy to store and we made a special case so that when you want to play video games it turns into a controller. By Sammy and Jameson.
SOS Beacon – By Hamish and Kyle
We designed an SOS beacon that has different resources that you can select. The resources you could select include, fuel, water and food. It depends on the emergency that you are in as to what you might need. We thought this would help astronauts get to the green zone because they knew they were safe and had important things to use if any emergency arose. It also has flashing lights to attract attention. It is small and compact to store. – By Hamish and Kyle
Our Prototype - By Ben, Innes and Oscar.
Our prototype: is for fitness so you can stay fit and healthy in the ISS which helps people to stay or get in the green in the green zone.
Features: It is a 3D ring with bikes going around it. There is a TV that shows tracks that you can pretend to ride on so it feels like real life. It also has a page with stats on the TV. Every time you go over 50KM per hour or you're going downhill there are fans that blow on to you so it really feels like you are going really fast. It rotates slowly in one direction so it sucks you into the seat because it is designed in a thin cylinder with holes in the sides. It has a hole in the bikes where energy drinks spurt up when you need them.
Smart Plant
The smart plant is a plant with a sticker that works as a screen that monitors the plant’s health. It comes with special effects like music, Siri and Google. If the smart plant is healthy it will have a smiley face on the home screen. You can customize the home screen and you will find all control buttons on the bottom of the pot. There is a little dome that goes around the plant it makes carbon dioxide into fresh oxygen. There is a tube that you can suck the oxygen out of. It can also smell like different things to make you feel comfortable, relaxed and in the green zone. The smart plant is a great way to release your stress and generally make your mind happy and healthy. Another feature is that the dome can light up and change into different colours. Lena, Ila and Nilah.
Space Junk Collecting Astronaut
Our prototype is a space suit that the astronauts wear. It has an extremely strong magnet that attracts space junk from far into space. There is a magnetic bucket that is attached to the spacesuit, the astronaut will collect the space junk then put it in the bucket to then be disposed later on. This space suit helps to keep the astronaut remaining in the green zone because they are caring for space environment by cleaning out space junk and scrap metal and getting exercise. Kayla, Chloe & Ivy
Space Waitress Rabbit: Chastity, Stephanie & Jessica
The space waitress rabbit takes astronauts' orders for breakfast, lunch and dinner then cooks them big, delicious meals. The rabbit also cleans the astronauts' sleeping bags daily and does a bunch of cleaning to make sure the space station is very clean and tidy. The space waitress rabbit sweeps, mops and vacuums the floor in its free time.
Speaker Glasses
Do you ever feel like you don’t want to bring 2 things to space? Then speaker glasses are for you.This invention is better than bringing speakers and glasses because it saves space. All your friends will be amazed. The left button is to skip to the next song and the right button is to go back a song. All you need to do is get the App on your device. This would definitely help the astronauts remain calm and in the green zone. By Sophie and Kiara.
The Multi Button
Our group (Arlo, Callum and Tyson) decided that the astronauts on the space station need a calming environment to stay in the green zone. So for our design we created a button called The Multi Button that can change the gravity back to normal, which would give the astronauts a change and make it seem more like home. It also has buttons that use plugs to put relaxing scents and sounds into your ears and nose, there is also a, slide-out TV, a radio to call people and a slushy machine.
Veronica Hologram Watch
To help astronauts stay in the green zone, we created a hologram watch. It is a watch that can produce a hologram which can display books, movies and even a notes and sketchbook app! With lots of added widgets like a speaker to play music and a button to call your friends and family, our watch also has Veronica (space-approved Siri)! To help our watch fit in with the environment, the hologram projector is placed inside a galaxy-themed Saturn- shaped disc (with a ring) with straps attached to it so it can stay on your wrist. The hologram watch comes with a charging cord (that’s why there is a hole in the ring). The charging cord is compatible with all outlets on all rockets/shuttles. Ada and Harriet.