Classroom News
Specialist Learning Overviews Term 3
PE in Term 3
Welcome back to another exciting term of Physical Education! We have plenty of fun, movement and skill development planned for all students from Prep to Year 6.
🏃♀️ Gymnastics for Everyone! 🤸♂️
The term begins with all year levels participating in a Gymnastics unit. Students will build confidence as they explore a variety of balances, rolls, jumps and movement sequences while developing strength, flexibility, coordination and body control. They'll also learn how to move safely and work cooperatively with others in a fun and supportive environment.
⚽ Prep – Year 2: Kicking Skills
After gymnastics, our younger students will focus on kicking, one of the key Fundamental Motor Skills. Through exciting games and engaging activities, students will develop their ability to kick for both accuracy and distance while improving balance, coordination and control. These skills provide an important foundation for many sports and active play.
🏏 Years 3 – 6: Striking & Fielding
Our senior students will move into a Striking and Fielding unit, where they'll develop skills used in sports such as cricket, softball and baseball. Students will practise striking techniques, throwing, catching and fielding while learning teamwork, strategy and decision-making through a variety of fun and challenging games.
We can't wait to see everyone staying active, challenging themselves and having fun throughout Term 3. Here's to another fantastic term of learning through movement!
LIBRARY NEWS TERM 3
Our library has an exciting term planned for Term 3. Students will participate in a range of engaging activities designed to promote a love of reading, spark curiosity, and inspire students to explore new books and authors throughout the term.
Pop the following events and dates into your calendar:
OLPS Book Week: Monday 24th - Friday 28th AUGUST
- Dress Up Day - Monday 24th August 9:10 am
- Book Fair - Tuesday 25th August - Monday 31st August
- Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge Ends - Friday 4th September 2026
Every year, as a school, we celebrate Book Week! It’s an opportunity for us to come together, to celebrate reading and books by Australian authors and illustrators. We share the value of reading and promote it as an enjoyable activity. The Children’s Book Council recommends the latest Australian releases, and we share and discuss these with the students during library/class sessions. The students give reasons for their favourite books and participate in the OLPS Book Week voting. These results will be displayed in the library and announced at the assembly on dress-up day.
Celebration Dress Up Day and Parade - Monday 24th August 9:10 am
Get ready for one of the most exciting events of our school calendar — Book Week Dress-Up Day! This special day allows students to bring beloved stories to life by dressing as a favourite book character or something related to this year’s Book Week theme: Symphony of Stories. We look forward to seeing our students' creativity and enthusiasm as we come together as a school to celebrate reading and books. Families are welcome to come along to our grand parade (Monday 24th August 9:10 am - Back Oval), where everyone can proudly showcase their creative costumes inspired by their favourite books and characters!
2026 CBCA Book Week books
Early Childhood books
Picture Story books
Costume ideas for 2026 Book Week books
or
Theme : Symphony of Stories!
or favourite book characters:
Book Fair - Tuesday 25th August - Monday 31st August
Please note - 1 week only!!!!
Mark your calendars for our upcoming Book Fair! It's the perfect chance to expand your personal home library. We'll have a range of books available for purchase, including popular titles, new releases and novelty items. Don't miss this opportunity to find your next great read!
Premiers’ Reading Challenge - (ends Friday 4th September)
The Premiers’ Reading Challenge, a wonderful initiative that promotes literacy and a love for reading, will conclude on Friday, 4th September 2026. Please encourage your child to finish their reading list and complete the challenge before the deadline. Certificates of achievement will be awarded to participants who complete the challenge at the end of the year.
A reminder!
To complete the challenge:
CHILDREN FROM PREP TO YEAR 2 ARE TO READ OR ‘EXPERIENCE’ 30 BOOKS WITH THEIR PARENTS AND TEACHERS, 20 challenge & 10 choice books
CHILDREN FROM YEAR 3 TO YEAR 6 ARE TO READ 15 BOOKS, 10 challenge & 5 choice books
OLPS VPRC PROGRESS……
So far 79 students have completed the challenge!!!
8,136 books have been read!!
50 days to go!
Year levels will also be focusing on the following, connecting some skills to 2026 Children’s Book Council of Australia Book Week books:
Prep:
- Expresses feelings and opinions about texts
- Identifies the author's role in constructing a story
- Identifies some differences between narrative and informative texts
Year One:
- Identifies and discusses how the words and pictures in stories help create the characters
- Discusses with peers what they liked/did not like about their book and gives reasons
- Describes some similarities and differences between narrative and informative texts
Year Two:
- Expresses and compares opinions about characters, events and settings
- Discuss how their life is like or unlike a characters
- List features for both narrative and informational texts
Year Three:
- Explores the ways that Australian settings are portrayed in stories.
- Selects and discusses favourite texts and explains reasons for assigning greater or lesser merit to particular texts or types of texts
- Locates books using the library search program
JAPANESE TERM 3
Year 4 Japanese
In Term 3, students consolidate familiar Japanese through speaking activities while developing confidence in reading and writing hiragana. They begin writing their own name in katakana and explore Japanese culture through topics such as schools, origami, festivals and traditions. Culture is embedded throughout the unit to develop students' understanding and appreciation of Japan.
Year 5 Japanese
In Term 3, Students build on their existing Japanese language skills by extending familiar conversations, developing their hiragana knowledge, and exploring the geography, food and culture of Japan. Through speaking, reading, writing and hands-on cultural experiences, students develop a deeper understanding of Japanese life before researching and presenting information about Japan.
Year 6 Japanese
In Term 3, students extend their existing Japanese language skills by building on familiar conversations, expanding their hiragana knowledge, and exploring the geography, food and culture of Japan. Through speaking, reading, writing and hands-on cultural experiences, students deepen their understanding of Japanese culture before researching and presenting information about Japan.
STEM Term 3
Prep
In Term 3, the Year Prep students will have the opportunity to learn about coding by following and representing a sequence of steps needed to solve simple problems. They will also learn how to debug (identify and fix) errors in an algorithm or program.
Year 1
In Term 3, the Year One students Students will have the opportunity to program a device such as a Blue Bot following a sequence of steps to solve simple problems. Students will develop an understanding of their functionalities and will enhance students’ skills to troubleshoot and innovate.
Year 2
In Term 3, the Year Two students will have the opportunity to program a robot called Dash. They will learn block-based programming using apps like Blockly, building a strong foundation in sequencing, loops, events and functions.
Year 3
In Term 3, the Year Three students will have the opportunity to explore science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) concepts through hands-on building and programming LEGO Education Spike Essential.
Year 4
In Term 3, the Year Four students will have the opportunity to build and program the Spike Prime Legos. They will learn how motors, sensors, and software all work together—just like in real-world technology.
Year 5
In Term 3, the Year Five students will have the opportunity to learn about the Sphero Bolt robot. This initiative allows students to create custom programs, explore robotics, and engage in STEM education in a fun and interactive way.
Year 6
In Term 3, the Year Six students will design, build and debug programs using block coding in Microsoft MakeCode. They will explore algorithms, loops, inputs/output and apply these to create interactive games or stories.
Art Term 3
Our students will be busy exploring colour, line, shape, texture and different materials through a range of creative art activities. They will experiment with new techniques, practise using art tools safely and discover how artists make choices to communicate ideas.
During Book Week, students will create imaginative artworks inspired by stories. They will use materials such as felt, tissue paper, coloured paper and collage pieces to design forests, frogs, sea creatures and their own unique creatures.
Students will also explore how artists use colour and line to show feelings, details and textures. They will create self-portraits, add meaningful symbols and use collage materials to represent their ideas and experiences.
Through art reviews, demonstrations and gallery walks, students will develop their confidence in discussing artworks using art words such as line, shape, colour and texture. We look forward to seeing their creativity, imagination and artistic skills grow throughout the term!
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