Learning & Teaching
Literacy News:
The book fair was such a success yet again. Thank you to everyone who came down, volunteered and purchased at the fair. With the funds raised, we will continue to purchase rich literature back into our school library and hub resources.
We have had a very busy term in literacy focusing on Poetry. We have engaged in various styles of poetry from 2 line rhyming poems to haiku’s and lantern poems.
It has been lots of fun learning how to be a Poet!
Reading at home!
It is very important that we build our children's reading stamina at home! Reading stamina is building how long your child can read for without being interrupted.
Regular reading at home:
- Prep read to each night by parent - letter and sound game
- Year 1 to Year 2 children read 15 minutes with Parent
- Year 3 to 4 children read for 20 mins independently each night
- Year 5 to 6 children read 30 minutes per night independently each night
Maths:
Fractions
In Mathematics, the children are learning about Fractions. The year 1 - 2 children, the focus is on exploring fractions of shapes, objects, and quantities.
To support your child's learning at home, you can encourage them to practise counting in halves, quarters, and thirds using objects and number lines. For instance, cutting fruit into three equal pieces helps them visualise and count thirds: ⅓, ⅔, 1, 1 ⅓, 1 ⅔, and so forth.
Here are some practical ways to help your child understand fractions at home:
Using Everyday Objects:
When cutting a sandwich, demonstrate how to divide it into two equal parts (halves) and explain that each part is called a half. Show that combining two halves makes a whole. You can also explore different ways of halving, like cutting into rectangles or triangles.
Drawing and Colouring:
Draw shapes like a circle, square, rectangle, and triangle, and ask your child to colour in one half of each shape. Then, draw another shape and have them colour in one quarter. This helps reinforce the concept of fractions visually.
Practical Grouping:
Use toys or other objects to demonstrate halving and quartering. For instance, ask your child to divide a collection of toys into two equal groups (halves) or four equal groups (quarters).
The children in 3-6, are exploring Fractions, Decimals, and Percentages. They are learning to read fractions, perform operations like addition and subtraction with fractions, and convert between fractions, decimals, and percentages.
The link below has activities you can do with your child at home. They complement what our children are learning at school and help reinforce their understanding of fractions through hands-on experiences and visual aids.
https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/Docs/ReferenceResources/WWC2021_fraction-parent-tips.pdf
Faith
St Gabriel’s Feast Day: Sunday 29th September
The name Gabriel means “Man of God” in Hebrew or “God is strength.”
St. Gabriel is one of the most important angels in the Bible. He's often called a "messenger angel" because he was sent by God to deliver important messages to people.
In the Bible, Gabriel appeared to Mary to tell her she would have a baby named Jesus, who would be the Son of God. He also appeared to other people, like Moses and the shepherds who were watching over their sheep near where Jesus was born.
Gabriel is known for his wisdom and strength. He's often pictured holding a spear and a mirror. The spear represents his strength, and the mirror represents the wisdom of God.
Gabriel is recognized as the patron saint of messengers, telecommunication workers, and postal workers. His feast day is celebrated on September 29, along with St. Michael and St. Raphael.
We will celebrate the patron of our school on Friday 11th October, with a Liturgy run by Fr Aurelio Fragapane in the hall and a fun afternoon of activities with Kaboom Sports.