Learning Enhancement
Reading in the Junior Years
Over the past week, our Foundation students have been given take-home readers for the first time. This is an exciting milestone. We are looking forward to supporting the children through this time of their learning. As with all Junior year students, this will be enhanced by an adult reading with them each night.
How to Read at Home: Supporting Your Child’s Reading Journey
Reading is a skill that opens doors to lifelong learning, creativity, and success. In our classrooms, students engage with InitiaLit to develop strong literacy foundations. Each week, they bring home two kinds of books: an interest book and a decodable. Both play a vital role in building confident and capable readers!
Decodable Books: Building Skills Step by Step
These books are precious resources and align with what your child is learning at school, helping them practise the decoding of words using phonics. When reading a decodable, encourage your child to:
- Sound out words rather than guess
- Blend sounds together smoothly
- Reread tricky sentences for better understanding
Your support and patience make a world of difference—praise their efforts and celebrate their progress!
Each decodable contains information regarding how to read the book, additional practice sounds, ‘tricky words’ and sometimes, text features. You will also find questions and checks for understanding at the end of each book.
It is important to reread books throughout the week so that your child improves accuracy, fluency, comprehension and confidence.
We ask that the books read are signed off in your child’s Term Reading Diary after each time reading.
Caring for Books: Returning Before Receiving
Each book—whether an interest book or a decodable—has been carefully selected and is an investment in your child’s literacy journey.
To ensure that every student has access to quality reading material, it’s essential that books are returned before borrowing new ones. This way, we can keep our collections complete and ready for all children to enjoy.
How you can help: ✔ Check regularly that books are kept in a safe place at home. ✔ Return books on time to allow for another exciting read! ✔ Care for books as if they are treasures—because they are!
Interest Books and Library Books: Nurturing a Love for Reading
Interest books inspire curiosity, enjoyment, and discussion. These may be beyond your child’s independent reading level, but that’s okay! Try:
- Reading together and talking about the story
- Asking questions like, “What do you think will happen next?”
- Sharing your own thoughts or connections to the book
Even if your child isn’t reading every word on their own, they are developing comprehension and a love of storytelling, which are just as important.
Consistency Is Key
Set aside time each day—whether it’s a bedtime story or a quiet afternoon read. Show them that reading is a priority in your home, and they’ll carry that habit with them for life.
Thank you for partnering with us to create strong, enthusiastic readers!
Jen McKillop, Eloise Liddell & Jess Moodie
Library News
NATIONAL STIMULTANEOUS STORYTIME 2025
On Wednesday, 21st May, St Luke's took part in National Simultaneous Storytime, joining thousands of children across the nation to listen to a reading of The Truck Cat. This year’s chosen story, The Truck Cat, written by Deborah Frenkel and illustrated by Danny Snell, gave us some powerful lessons about the value of identity and connection whilst also reinforcing the importance of treasuring one’s uniqueness and embracing that of others.
The Truck Cat is a heartwarming children’s story that follows Yacoub, a young boy who moves to a new community, and Tinka, a stray cat who becomes his loyal companion. Through their adventures, the story explores the key themes of identity, belonging, and friendship. Yacoub and Tinka’s bond highlights the value of empathy and kindness, as they navigate the challenges of adapting to a new environment together.
It was a fantastic way to celebrate the joy of books and bring everyone together through reading.
BOOKCLUB
Issue 4 closes on Tuesday 10th June. Some orders have already been distributed, and others will arrive next week. We appreciate your continued support. Your rewards points help us provide new books for the children to enjoy.
We have been made aware that some parents have encountered a delivery fee when placing an order. We appreciate you bringing this to our attention. Please be assured that the $10 delivery fee should only apply if you miss the designated cut-off date. If you do encounter this fee when ordering, kindly contact us immediately so we can assist you and clarify the situation. We appreciate your cooperation and support.
Please remember that all payments must be made online through Loop. You can make payments by visiting scholastic.com.au/LOOP or by downloading the LOOP app.
OVERDUE LIBRARY BOOKS
Please remind your child to return any overdue library books. Currently, we have a total of 93 books that are overdue, and some students are eager to borrow these titles. Your cooperation helps ensure everyone has access to the books they are excited to read.
LIBRARY VISITORS
The arrival of Bluey, Bingo, Bandit and Chilli in the library has been a huge hit! The children's excitement is wonderful to see and truly brings the space to life. I wonder who will visit next!!! Book Week will occur next term from August 18th to 22nd, with the theme "Book an Adventure." We look forward to celebrating with exciting activities and events! More information to follow.
Nicole Keenan