Literacy and Numeracy

Victorian Premiers' Reading Challenge

The Premiers' Reading Challenge has officially started and everyone at St James is invited to participate! The goal of the Challenge is to foster a love of reading quality literature. The theme this year is ‘Stories to discover. Stories to tell’.

It is not a competition; it is a personal challenge for children to read a set number of books by 4 September 2026. Children from Prep to Year 2 are encouraged to read or ‘experience’ 30 books with their parents and teachers. Children from Year 3 to Year 6 are challenged to read 15 books. All children who meet the Challenge will receive a certificate of achievement signed by the Victorian Premier and former Premiers.

Your child's teacher will distribute your child's log in this week; Prep-2 students will have a sticker in their Reading log books and Year 3-6 student details can be found in their school diary. Please be in touch if you require any assistance.

To read the Premier’s letter to parents, view the booklist and for more information about the Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge, go to https://www.vic.gov.au/premiers-reading-challenge

To log into the Challenge go to https://vprc.eduweb.vic.gov.au/home

Go to Student login, then VPRC login and follow the prompts.

Maths Games Families Can Enjoy at Home

Here are parent-friendly, easy 10-minute maths games families can enjoy at home:

Times Table Toss – Toss a soft ball to each other. Each time you catch it, answer a times table (e.g., 4 × 6).
Dice Add Up – Roll two dice, add the numbers together, and keep a running score to 20 or 50.
Make 10 / Make 20 – Take turns adding numbers to reach 10 or 20 exactly without going over.
Countdown Numbers – Start at 100 and take turns subtracting 2, 5, or 10 until you reach 0.
Shopping Change Game – Pretend items cost small amounts (under $10) and practise giving change.
Coin Sort Challenge – Sort coins and quickly add up the total value.
Quick Fire Questions – Ask simple maths facts (addition, subtraction, times tables) for 1 minute. Try to beat your score each time.
Shape Hunt at Home – Find everyday objects that match shapes (circle clock, rectangular door, etc.).
Guess My Number – One person thinks of a number and others ask questions like “Is it bigger than 10?”
Pattern Maker – Create and continue patterns using toys, socks, or blocks (e.g., red-blue-red-blue).
Build a Number – Roll dice and use the digits to make the biggest or smallest number possible.