From the 3/4 Classrooms
We have had a wonderful start to the school year in Team 3/4, settling into our classroom routines and building a strong, respectful and connected learning community.
Start Up:
The first weeks of Term 1 have focused on helping students feel safe, confident and ready to learn. A key part of this has been learning about Acknowledgement of Country and what it means to be on Wurundjeri land. Students explored the difference between a Welcome to Country and an Acknowledgement of Country, learned about the natural features of our local area, and created their own class Acknowledgement.
We also investigated the Eastern Kulin Seasonal Calendar, identifying the seasons of Biderap and Iuk and linking them to weather patterns and our own birthdays.
Another focus of our Start-Up Program has been building emotional awareness and positive relationships. Through the Zones of Regulation, students learned to identify and name their emotions, recognise facial expressions, and understand how different feelings affect behaviour and learning. They created class displays and played games to practise sorting emotions into zones. We also explored help-seeking strategies through role plays and scenarios, learning how to decide whether a problem is small, medium or serious and when it is important to ask an adult for support.
We have also spent time learning about how to stay safe and responsible online. In our e-Safety lessons, students discussed positive and negative online experiences, learned about our school’s Acceptable Use of Technology Agreement, and talked about how to make conscious, respectful choices when using devices at school and at home. These conversations are helping students become thoughtful digital citizens.
Building a positive classroom culture has been another important part of our Start-Up Program. Students worked together to create shared classroom rules based on our rights to learn, feel safe and be treated with respect. They explored what these rights look like in action through discussion and role play.
We will also start to introduce our Learning Assets and what it means to be a “good learner.” Through games, design challenges and group tasks, students will practise being researchers, thinkers, communicators, self-managers and collaborators.
Together, these experiences have helped students build strong relationships, understand expectations, and feel proud to be part of our classroom and school community.
English this term:
Our writing focus this term is persuasive texts. Students are learning how to:
- Understand and use persuasive text structures
- Experiment with strong language choices and persuasive devices
- Strengthen sentence structure
- Develop clear arguments supported by convincing reasons
By the end of the unit, students will be able to craft well-organised persuasive pieces aimed at influencing their reader.
Our mentor text this term is Our World: Bardi Jaawi – Life at Ardiyooloon. This colourful and engaging text takes students into the lives of children in a remote Indigenous community on the Dampier Peninsula in Western Australia. Through this text, students will:
- Make connections to their own lives and other stories
- Explore plot, character, setting and theme
- Examine text structure and organisation
- Investigate the grammar and vocabulary used by the authors
Maths this term:
In Maths, we are beginning the year by strengthening our understanding of place value, which is essential for all future mathematical learning. Students will:
- Revisit whole-number place value
- Work with numbers beyond 10,000
- Develop additive thinking through addition and subtraction
- Explore elements of space and measurement
These skills will support more complex mathematical thinking as the year progresses.
Integrated Studies this term:
This term’s inquiry topic is “Our Dynamic Community.” Students will investigate:
- What makes a community dynamic
- How communities change over time
- Australian community change-makers and how they are recognised
- How health messages influence people’s choices
- Creative ways to help people become healthy, active community members
The unit will conclude with a Community Connections Course, where student groups design and lead an activity that promotes physical activity and connection within our classroom community.
Prepared by the Grade 3/4 teachers