Level 4: Connect

Level 4 2025

Lisa Fennessy & Isabella Nocera 4A

Tilly Van & Marc Restaino 4B

Michelle Stainforth 4C

Important Date:

Just a reminder that district athletics is taking place on Monday 1st September. 

MS Readathon: 

Ways to Donate:

If you are donating cash, please collect over the month and bring your donation into school at the end of August along with your sponsorship form. Otherwise, families can donate at the end of August, or anytime during by going to https://www.msreadathon.org.au/home and clicking on the purple donate to a friend button (in the top right hand corner) and searching for Sandringham East Primary.

What is the MS Readathon?

This August, we will be encouraging the Level 4 students to take part in the MS Readathon! This initiative is a great way to get our students reading while supporting an important cause. Resources will be sent home with students including a recording sheet to list the books they read and a donation form. We have mentioned to students that a $1 is a great value per book, however any donation of any size is greatly appreciated. 

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neurological condition that affects more than 33,000 Aussies. It is a progressive condition that affects the central nervous system and interferes with nerve impulses from the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves. MS affects people differently, common symptoms include challenges with vision mobility and speech however many are often invisible.There is no cure, or cause however there are treatments available to help people live well with the condition. You can learn more about the MS Readathon here.

Level 4 Novel Recommendations:

We understand that finding the 'right book' can sometimes be a challenge. Please see a list of recommended texts below. Each book is aimed for students at a Level 4-5 level. Please note that some of these texts may explore more mature or intense themes and may be a sensitive topic for some families. Alternatively follow this link to Dymocks 'Kids top 51 Books' for more options and the 2025 Book of the Year Shortlist.

Literacy:

In Literacy we have begun analysing a new text, 'Figgy in the World by Tamsin Janu'. Figgy is a young girl in Ghana and the text follows her adventure in aim to get medicine to help her Grandma. 

“Figgy has two problems. One is her name. Nobody in Ghana has that name. The other is that her grandmother is ill and needs special medicine. Figgy can't do much about her name, but she can do something for Grandma Ama. She will go to America and bring back the medicine, and Kwame, her special goat, will go with her. Out in the wide world she will meet some bad people, but she will also find good friends.”

In our Reading lessons we have been looking at monitoring for meaning, make meaning of what we are reading, and identifying the main idea of a passage or chapter when reading 'Figgy' or a student choice book. In our Writing lessons we are refining our persuasive skills, revisiting the structure of persuasive pieces and how we can generate our ideas to write detailed, specific persuasive paragraphs. As we move into the next few weeks, we will focus on how our arguments can be supported by persuasive devices, and will be learning and applying these techniques to our writing.

Numeracy: 

After an exciting few weeks filled with swimming and camp, our Level 4s are happily settling back into their regular classroom routines. We have been strengthening our retrieval skills in fractions while also diving into the world of decimals and measurement. It’s wonderful to see their curiosity, focus, and confidence continue to grow as they reconnect with their learning!

To support this at home, we encourage students to practise their skills in everyday life. For example, they can be helping to measure ingredients while cooking, working out the cost of items while shopping, or even sharing out snacks equally with family and friends. These real-life moments make maths meaningful and fun!

Inquiry:

Level 4's will be exploring the similarities and differences between places in Australia and neighbouring countries in terms of their natural, managed and constructed features. They will have the opportunity to choose a neighboring country to research and present their findings to the rest of the class. 

Wellbeing Focus: Challenging Gender Norms and Stereotypes

This term, students are exploring the topic of gender norms and stereotypes as part of our Resilience, Rights and Respectful Relationships program. Through age-appropriate discussions and activities, students are learning to:

• Understand the difference between sex and gender
• Reflect on their own identity and individuality
• Recognise the positive and negative impact of gender norms
• Identify how media and literature can shape gender expectations
• Challenge limiting or harmful stereotypes in respectful ways

This important learning helps students build respect for diversity, develop inclusive attitudes, and form positive gender relationships. All lessons are delivered with care and sensitivity, ensuring that students feel safe and supported throughout.

Camp Reflection

What an incredible three days we had on camp. All of our students should feel so proud of the way they represented themselves and their school. The kindness, encouragement and resilience they showed throughout every activity was truly outstanding.

We were fortunate to enjoy beautiful weather, which made the experience even more special. For many, this camp was their first, and it was a wonderful introduction to life away from school. Every student embraced the challenges with a positive, “give it a go” attitude, which made the experience so rewarding for both students and teachers. Watching them grow and thrive outside the classroom setting was a reminder of the importance of connection, fun and achievement – the very things we value most in our learning community.

A heartfelt thank you goes to Sean and Patrick, our incredible volunteers, for their support across the three days – we know a comfortable bed at home would have been very welcome afterwards! We also enjoyed a visit from Ms Nocera on Tuesday, who joined in with great spirit and helped make the camp experience even more memorable.