Junior School

Prep

Our Prep students have settled into school life very well. They have formed some wonderful friendships and are continuing to develop positive relationships with their peers. We have also welcomed a new student, Bliss, to Prep E, and she has been warmly received by her classmates.

In Mathematics, students have been learning about numbers 1–4 and exploring measurement concepts such as long and tall, narrow and wide, and short and tall. They have particularly enjoyed creating and photographing their long constructions.

In Humanities, students are learning about families and developing their understanding of family roles and relationships.

In Literacy, students have been working with the sounds s, a, t, p, i and n, and are now beginning to blend these sounds together to form simple words.

Our buddy sessions with the Year 6 students have been a valuable experience, providing opportunities to build connections and foster a sense of belonging within the school community.

Overall, the Prep students are demonstrating a positive and enthusiastic approach to their learning and are thoroughly enjoying their time at school.

Lee-Ann Elmes

Prep Teacher

Year 1

In Year 1, we are currently learning about time. We have been exploring how to order the days of the week and the months of the year, understanding how God created time and seasons with purpose and rhythm. As it says in Ecclesiastes 3:1, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” We are learning that time is a special gift from God and that each day is an opportunity to grow and learn.

This week we enjoyed reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. The story helped us think about sequencing days, counting, and noticing change over time. We loved watching the caterpillar grow and change, and it reminded us of how we are growing too - learning new skills and becoming more independent each day.

Now that we are in Year 1, we are working hard to take greater care with our letter formation so that our handwriting can be clearly read by others. We are focusing on correct starting points and careful pencil control. It is wonderful to see the pride the children are taking in presenting their work neatly.

Another exciting milestone for our class has been the commencement of take-home readers and spelling lists. Nightly revision of reading and spelling is so valuable, as it reinforces the concepts we are learning throughout the week and builds confidence and fluency. Thank you for your continued support at home - it truly makes a difference.

Kerry Snook

Year 1 Teacher

Year 2

The Year 2 classroom has been busy and a hub of learning this week. We were so fortunate to have Mr Green come and help the students set up their Chromebooks - thank you Mr Green! It was the first time students have done this and they learnt how to create their own profile, enter in a password, sign in and out and were ready to go!

In the lead up to Valentine's Day, Year 2 children learnt about the history of the day and why it is celebrated. We discussed how there is no greater love than knowing the love of God and read how we should "put on love" from Colossians 3:14. The boys and girls made some painted hearts for someone they love and appreciate and wrote kind words of thanks to them.

Emily Hunter

Year 2 Teacher

Year 3

Year 3 has been doing some wonderful learning around how our amazing brains work and how a Growth Mindset helps us understand that we can learn anything when we commit to practise and discover the ways we learn best as individuals. Students explored the physiology of the brain and even created their own neurons out of plasticine, learning how connections grow stronger each time we practise a skill (you’ll see some fantastic neuron creations in the photos!).

Alongside this, we have been building our emotional awareness - learning how to notice emotions in our bodies, recognise when we might be becoming heightened, and practise strategies to help regulate ourselves. One of our favourite activities involved writing down our worries, then ripping or screwing them up and throwing them away as a powerful symbol of letting those worries go.

On Friday, we also visited the Year 4 - 12 Swimming Carnival at Aquazone. This was a great opportunity for our students to see what they will be part of next year, helping to ease nerves and build excitement for the future. It was lovely to spend some time cheering on our older peers and enjoying the atmosphere together!

Ang Hales

Year 3 Teacher

Year 4

Year 4 have had a wonderful start to the year and are learning to adapt to upper primary. They have been doing some fantastic learning in Maths. They have been learning about place value and addition and subtraction strategies. They had a fun time with a mini golf tournament on Tuesday, and then practiced their strategies with the scoring. Well done Year 4 on a great start to the year!

Naomi O'Brien

Year 4 Teacher

Year 5

Year 5 have started the year well. We've done lots of getting to know you activities which we've really enjoyed, and some beginning of the year testing which we've handled well,  striving to do our best.

In Science, we've started our unit on Survival, learning about what living things need to survive and we are currently designing experiments to test how removing one of the things plants need to survive affects it. 

In Humanities, we are learning about the government system in Australia and what a democracy is. In small groups, after lots of research and discussion, we all had to come up with our own definition of democracy. We hope you enjoy our Year 5 Definitions of Democracy:

Olivia, Maeve and Bronte wrote "Everyone has the right to vote and can have your own opinion and beliefs."

 

Edie, Gabbi, Tom and Alyra wrote "Democracy is a system of government where the people have the power. Australia is a democracy because we are allowed to exercise that power and vote."

 

Nika, Mossy, Evie and Luke O said "It means to be fair to others around you and to give everyone a chance. It also means to have good leadership."

 

Elektra, Molli, Luke V, and Claire said "Democracy is a fair way of voting that lets everyone's voice be heard. It helps everyone follow the law and be kind and fair to everyone."

 

Ethan, Sam and Rebecca P said "Gives everyone the chance they need no matter where they are from or who they are, to keep everyone safe and happy and to keep laws fair."

 

Theo, Rebecca A, Peter and Sebastian said "Democracy means to have fairness when we vote or do elections and to have equality in the power of government in political things."

I think these kids might do a better job at running the country than some of our politicians do.

Coral Robertson

Year 5 Teacher