Education News 

Dear families,                                                                                                           Maths Curriculum Action Team (CAT)            

We from the Maths Curriculum Action Team (CAT) would like to introduce ourselves. We are Jess, Lisa, Robyn, Hailey and Helen. 

We meet regularly throughout the year to discuss and plan for all things that is maths. Numeracy is necessary for everyday living. From daily activities like telling the time, cooking and setting the table to more difficult tasks such as understanding mobile phone plans, planning a trip, reading a map and understanding timetables. Maths is more than an app on a device, it is part of our everyday. If you want to read more about how you can support your child’s development and confidence, we have included a useful link below developed by the Victorian Education and training Department.   Also, as the days are becoming colder we have included a simple vegetable soup recipe that you and your child/ren might like to try at home. Happy cooking!               

Mathematics and numeracy at home | vic.gov.au (www.vic.gov.au)                                                                                                       

Cooking and baking help your child to:

• develop basic counting skills
• read a variety of numbers
• measure out quantities
• learn maths vocabulary such as units of measurement for both solids and liquids
• learn both imperial and metric measurements
• practise telling the time
• estimate how long things might take to cook. Does the cake need an extra couple of minutes in the oven?
• learn how to get to grips with reading a recipe, which will, in turn, help them with word problems in maths
• solve calculations such as halving or doubling amounts of ingredients.

Ingredients

1 teaspoon vegetable oil,1 onion, minced, 1 carrot, sliced into 1cm rounds1 stalk celery, sliced into 1cm pieces (may substitute peas, green beans, etc. as desired)1/2 (half) teaspoon salt, 1/4 (quarter) teaspoon black pepper, 1/4 (quarter) teaspoon oregano,1 zucchini or yellow squash, diced, 2 cups water or chicken stock (more as desired and )2 tablespoons tomato paste.                                                                                                 

Directions

Chop all vegetables before beginning to cook. If you have small (glass) bowls to separate each one after chopping, it makes for easier cooking. Pour oil into medium saucepan and turn heat to medium. Add onion and saute for about one minute, stirring frequently. Add chopped carrot and celery, sprinkle with salt, pepper and oregano - and continue to saute for another 2-3 minutes. Add squash and saute for another minute.

Pour water or broth over veggies, add tomato paste and bring to a boil. Stir well and lower heat. Simmer soup for about 15 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.