Year 3 News
Reading
In Week 4, the Year 3 Cohort learned how to summarise fiction and non-fiction texts. They practised picking out the main ideas, important details, and leaving out extra, unneeded information. This helped them understand stories and facts better and explain what they read in a clear and simple way.
Week 5 was all about celebrating Book Week! Students read books from the CBCA 2025 shortlist and took part in fun activities based on the stories. They enjoyed drawing, writing, and talking about the books. It was a great week to share their love of reading and explore new stories together.
“For Book Week, I was dressed up as Alex from Minecraft. Saihaj did all of the cardboard building and I did all the painting.” - Sifat 3A
“I had my costume from a long time ago. I was Darth Vader for Book Week." - William 3A
“It took me 1 hour to make my costume for Book Week. I was Toothless.” - Hasan 3A
Writing
In week 4, students began learning about procedural writing. Years 3 students began by writing a step-by-step process that readers could follow to fold a paper airplane. It went very well! Students used very precise verbs and adverbs to explain in a very specific way how the airplane should be folded, and everyone was successful.
In week 5, students created their own pieces of procedural writing. They created instructions to make everything from peanut butter and jam sandwiches and a cup of milo to slime. Students fulfilled all of the expectations, from drafting to publishing.
“We had a lot of fun making it. My favourite part was when I completed it” - Saihaj, 3B
“My favourite part was publishing it, because I got you use PowerPoint” - Rohaan, 3B
Maths
This fortnight in Maths, Year 3 students have been busy building their mapping skills. They learned what maps are, explored their key features, and practised giving and following directions using cardinal directions and positional language. Students created their own maps of familiar places, adding a title, coordinates, a legend, and colour and then wrote step-by-step directions for others to follow. The highlight was swapping maps with partners and successfully navigating each other’s instructions, making it a fun and interactive experience!
“I like to write the directions for my map.” - Samrath 3C
“My map is so cool.” - Grace 3C
Inquiry
In week 4, Year 3 students explored how vegetation benefits humans. Students brainstormed how plants can be useful to us, and we came to this conclusion: plants provide us with oxygen, food, shade, building materials, and medicine. Students researched these topics, and put together a poster to express their learning. They then moved on to research the cultural practices of a culture that was not their own. In the fifth week, students used maths as a jumping-off point to use Australian maps. We found grid references, and played a game called Hit the Spot!
“I learned how plants help us; we learned a lot of information, and we got to work in partners” - Evelyn, 3B
“I liked Hit the Spot, especially guessing where the spots were” - Sia, 3B
Auslan - MARLISA
In Auslan, Year 3 students have been learning to sign different feelings, such as proud, silly, love, calm, and excited, while matching their facial expressions to the signs. They also revisited the alphabet and practised signing their first and last names, with some students even signing their friends’ names. It has been exciting to watch them start using their new signing skills to express themselves, share ideas, and interact confidently with their classmates.
“This is how you sign M.” - Manasseh 3C
“I know how to sign calm.” – Holly 3C
Social and Emotional Learning
This fortnight in SEL, as part of Bullying No Way Week, Year 3 students explored the theme “Everyone Belongs.” They reflected on what belonging means, such as feeling welcome, being kind, caring for others, and including everyone. Students also discussed the importance of having a place at school, being part of something, looking out for others, and supporting each other as a superpower against bullying. Through thoughtful conversations and a hands-on jigsaw activity, each student decorated a piece to represent themselves, showing that everyone is an important part of the class and that when everyone feels they belong, there is no place for bullying.
“Storm has the same sport as me.” - Christopher 3C
“I like seeing all the colourful puzzle pieces of others.” - Deepti 3C
Special Event - National Science Week
To celebrate National Science Week in Week 4, Year 3 students explored how light can be used as a form of communication.
Inspired by real-world science applications, such as using light signals to communicate from satellites to Earth, students were challenged to create their own code to send messages using a torch.
Through this hands-on, engaging task, students learned how to use light to share information and think creatively about how technology can solve communication challenges.
