Year 1/2 News

Welcome to a Wonderful Year in 1/2 – The Reef 

We have had a fantastic start to the new term, and it has been wonderful reconnecting with the children as they settle back into the classroom and re-establish their routines. Over the past few weeks, our focus has been on rebuilding positive learning habits, strengthening friendships, and helping students feel safe, confident, and ready to learn. 

Below is a snapshot of what we have been working on together in the classroom.

🌱 Wellbeing 

Student wellbeing continues to be at the heart of everything we do in 1/2 – The Reef. Over the past few weeks, we have been focusing on positive affirmations and learning how to feel proud of ourselves and our efforts. Students are discovering the power of encouraging self-talk and practising phrases such as “I can do hard things,” “I am a kind friend,” and “I am proud of my learning”. It has been wonderful to see students growing in confidence as they learn to believe in themselves and take pride in their progress, both inside and outside the classroom.

📚 Learning 

Literacy 

In Literacy, we have been focusing on retelling stories and sequencing events. Students are learning to clearly explain what happened first, next, and last using detailed and organised language. 

In Phonics, we have been practising the /oa/, /ow/, and /o-e/ sounds, and exploring the suffixes -er and -est to show more and most when describing adjectives. 

As part of our reading and writing work, students have been learning from the text The World’s Most Pointless Animal and using it as a model to understand how to write informative texts. Students are beginning to identify facts, organise information, and present their ideas clearly for the reader.

Mathematics 

In Maths, students have been building their understanding of place value through hands-on materials and visual models. They have been learning to recognise, represent, and explain numbers using tens and ones, and are practising reading, making, and breaking apart two- and three-digit numbers in different ways. These experiences are helping students develop a strong foundation in number sense and confidence when working with larger numbers. 

Students have also been exploring patterns by creating their own repeating and growing patterns using shapes, colours, numbers, and objects. They are learning to identify the rule of a pattern, continue it correctly, and explain their thinking. It has been wonderful to see students applying creativity while developing their mathematical reasoning skills. 

Swimming Program 

Over the past two weeks, students have participated in our swimming program, where they have been learning important water safety knowledge and developing key swimming skills. Through guided lessons, students practised safe entry and exit from the pool, floating, kicking, and basic stroke techniques. 

This program has helped students build confidence in the water while understanding how to stay safe in aquatic environments. We are very proud of the positive attitude, effort, and resilience students showed during their swimming sessions.