What an incredible term!

As we reach the end of another busy and rewarding term, it is wonderful to reflect on just how much learning, growth and adventure we have shared! Our exploration of Power has taken us in many directions. We have investigated the power of democracy, strengthened by our engaging incursion ‘Democracy and Me’ and explored the power of coding and technology during our fantastic excursion at Scienceworks.

Back in the classroom, our mentor texts have encouraged us to think deeply about the many ways power can be used, shared and challenged, while providing rich opportunities to develop our reading, writing, vocabulary and comprehension skills.

Our learning has also extended well beyond the classroom. We enjoyed a glimpse into the future during our visit to Warrandyte High School, where students experienced a taste of secondary school life, and we have embraced plenty of opportunities to be active, work as a team and challenge ourselves through athletics and Hooptime, along with our shining stars who performed at Victoria’s State School Spectacular.

It has certainly been a term full of learning, new experiences and memorable moments. Our students should feel incredibly proud of all they have achieved and the enthusiasm and determination they have brought to each opportunity. With so much packed into the term, there are plenty of tired faces around the classrooms this week, and we think we can safely say that everyone is more than ready for a well-earned holiday!

We hope all of our Wonga families enjoy a wonderful, restful break and return refreshed and ready for our final term together.

Literacy

We will finish up using The Day the Crayons Quit as our mentor text to explore persuasive writing. Through the colourful and very opinionated voices of the crayons, students will investigate how writers can use strong arguments, convincing reasons, supporting evidence, emotive language and rhetorical questions to influence their audience.

We have examined how each crayon used its voice to persuade Duncan that something needs to change, before applying these techniques to their own writing. This has connected with our exploration of Power, demonstrating that our words and voices can be powerful tools for expressing our ideas, standing up for what we believe in and inspiring change.

WHAT CAN YOU DO AT HOME:

Persuasive writing can be practised through everyday conversations. Encourage your child to convince you of something – perhaps why they should choose the family movie, have a particular meal for dinner, stay up a little later or choose the weekend activity. Challenge them to give three strong reasons and support each reason with an example or explanation.

Spelling & Grammar

This week in PHORMES, students are exploring how suffixes are added to base words to change their meaning or grammatical function. We are focusing on consonant suffixes such as -ly, -ness, -less and -ful, and vowel suffixes including -ing, -ed, -es, -er and -ous, as well as -s.

Students are learning that the spelling of a base word can sometimes change when a suffix is added. We are practising important spelling rules such as doubling the final consonant (run → running), dropping a final silent ‘e’ before a vowel suffix (hope → hoping), and changing ‘y’ to ‘i’ in words such as happy → happiness. We are also investigating when the base word remains unchanged, as in hope → hopeless, care → careful, quick → quickly and play → playing.

Understanding these patterns helps students recognise how words are constructed and gives them strategies for accurately spelling unfamiliar and increasingly complex words.

Maths

Developing quick and accurate recall of times tables is an important foundation for mathematical learning. Strong multiplication facts help students solve problems more efficiently and support learning across division, fractions, decimals, measurement and more complex calculations. Regular practice builds fluency and confidence, allowing students to focus their thinking on solving the problem rather than working out basic facts. Please continue to encourage your child to practice their times tables regularly by saying them out loud, writing them down, or through quizzing.

Multiverse on Mathletics and Hit the Button (website) can be a fun interactive way to practice and strengthen number fact knowledge and work towards automaticity.

Grade 3 – Patterns incorporating addition and subtraction

Students have been exploring number patterns involving addition and subtraction. They have been investigating how patterns grow and change through doubling, halving and skip counting by 2s, 5s and 10s as well as identifying the rule within a pattern, predicting what comes next and using their understanding of number relationships to explain their thinking.

Through these activities, students are strengthening their number sense, mental computation and ability to recognise patterns, all of which provide important foundations for the processes of multiplication and division.

WHAT CAN YOU DO AT HOME:

Help your child build confidence with number patterns through quick, everyday activities. Practise skip counting forwards and backwards by 2s, 5s and 10s, starting from different numbers – (not always zero) Challenge them with quick-fire doubling and halving questions such as “Double 16” or “Half of 38”. You could also create a mystery pattern, such as 23, 28, 33, 38…, and ask your child to identify the rule and continue the pattern.

Grade 4 – Decimals

Students are extending their understanding of decimals to two decimal places, exploring the value of tenths and hundredths. They are reading, representing, comparing and ordering decimals, while making connections between fractions and decimals. They are also applying their place value knowledge to solve problems and explain their mathematical thinking with increasing confidence.

WHAT CAN YOU DO AT HOME:

Money is a fantastic way to practise decimals. Encourage your child to read and compare prices such as $4.75 and $4.57, work out which is greater and explain why. Look through shopping catalogues or receipts together and ask them to order prices from smallest to largest, calculate the difference between two amounts, or add several items together.

You can also challenge them with questions such as, “Which is greater: 3.6 or 3.56? How do you know?”

CBL (Challenge Based Learning)

Our Challenge Based Learning (CBL) Big Idea is Power.

As we work towards our CBL Challenge, students have continued developing their coding skills through Swift Playgrounds. Our focus has been on consolidating their understanding of coding language and basic commands, while learning how to sequence instructions accurately. Students have been challenged to think logically about how to move from a specific starting point to an end point, testing their code, identifying errors and adjusting when things don’t quite go to plan. These experiences are building important skills in problem-solving, persistence and computational thinking as students prepare to apply their learning to our CBL Challenge.

*** If you haven’t yet downloaded Swift Playgrounds onto your child’s device, we would greatly appreciate your support in doing so. Having access to the app will allow students to continue practising and exploring their coding skills both at school and at home, building confidence as they progress through the activities. Thank you for helping us make the most of this exciting learning opportunity!

Wellbeing

SWBPS

Through our SWPBS program and token system, we continue to recognise and celebrate students who demonstrate positive work habits, respectful relationships and safe behaviours, helping to create a supportive learning environment where everyone can thrive.

This week in Respectful Relationships, our focus will be on friendship, supporting others and seeking help. Students will explore strategies they can use when a friend may be experiencing a difficult time, including listening with care, showing kindness, checking in and knowing when it is important to seek support from a trusted adult. We will discuss that being a good friend doesn’t mean having to solve someone else’s problems, but rather noticing, listening and helping them connect with the right support.

This learning will connect beautifully with our recognition of R U OK? Day last week, where we celebrated the importance of friendship and looking out for one another. Students reflected on the power of simply asking “Are you OK?”, being a thoughtful listener and making sure everyone feels valued, included and supported within our Wonga community.

Kitchen Garden 

We continue to rely on the support of our wonderful parent helpers to ensure this program is safe and successful. We also warmly welcome help from extended family such as grandparents, aunts, and uncles. If you or a family member can spare some time to support the program, the sign-up link is:

https://signup.com/go/kLsQDpy

We post our recipes on Showbie for students who would like to recreate the amazing dishes they make in our cooking classes.

Please use the Showbie code below if your child would like to access these recipes:

9JYVE

INFORMATION & REMINDERS

GRADE 4 CAMP – Phillip Island 14th -17th October

Thank you to the families who have already returned their child’s Medical Information Form. If you have not yet done so, please return the completed form before the end of Term 3 to assist us with our planning. When completing the form, please ensure that the year of your child’s most recent Tetanus vaccination is clearly recorded in the appropriate section.

HOLIDAYS

If your family is planning a holiday during the school term, we kindly ask that parents communicate this directly with their child’s teacher, rather than relying on students to pass the information on. A quick email letting us know the dates your child will be away is all that is needed and helps us plan for their absence and return to learning.

Thank you for helping us stay informed and ensuring clear communication between home and school.

Reminders

-hats on 1st September – all students are required to have a hat at school, ‘No Hat No Play’

-please help support your child to make sure their iPad is charged and ready to use each day

-please download the app Swift Playgrounds onto your child's device to support our CBL coding

Wellbeing Hub