Icarus 

Dear Families,

It has been another busy and exciting month of learning in Year 3! Students have continued to build their knowledge, skills and confidence across all areas of the curriculum. We have been working hard to develop independent learning behaviours, challenge ourselves and apply our learning in new and meaningful ways.

Our Learning

Reading

In Year 3, students have continued developing a range of reading and word knowledge skills to strengthen their comprehension and vocabulary. Through a variety of texts, students have been learning to ask and answer questions before, during and after reading to deepen their understanding and think more deeply about a text. They have explored how illustrations and other visual features can provide important information and support their understanding of what they read.

Students have also been exploring how authors use verbs, adjectives and other vocabulary choices to create meaning, describe characters and settings, and engage the reader. They have practised identifying key ideas, making predictions, drawing inferences and using evidence from the text to explain and support their thinking. These skills are helping students become thoughtful, confident readers who can independently make meaning from and respond to a range of texts.

Writing

Students have completed their Realistic Narrative writing unit. They have planned and developed their own realistic stories, focusing on creating engaging beginnings that capture the reader’s attention and developing characters, settings, problems, solutions and endings. Students have experimented with descriptive language, dialogue and varied sentence structures to add detail, create interest and bring their stories to life. They have also focused on organising their ideas into a clear narrative structure and revising their writing to improve the way their ideas are communicated. .

Students have also started a writing unit on procedures. They are learning how to write clear and organised procedural texts that explain how to complete a task or make something. Students are exploring the importance of including a clear goal, an ordered sequence of steps, precise and specific language and relevant materials or equipment. They are also developing their understanding of how action verbs, time connectives and language choices help the reader follow instructions successfully. Students will have opportunities to plan, write, revise and edit their own procedures.

Maths 

In Mathematics, students have been developing their understanding of measurement, geometry and number. They have explored length using formal units of measurement, including millimetres, centimetres and metres and have practised selecting appropriate units to measure and compare objects.

Students have investigated the properties of three-dimensional shapes, learning to describe, compare and classify objects based on their features. 

In multiplication and division, students have explored a range of strategies and representations to solve problems, including repeated addition, arrays, equal groups and the use of MAB (Maths Activity Blocks) to represent and partition numbers. Students have also developed their understanding of the language of division by identifying the dividend and divisor and applying different strategies to solve two-digit numbers divided by one-digit numbers.

We have recently begun our fractions unit, where students are recognising and representing unit fractions such as one-half, one-third, one-quarter, one-fifth and one-tenth. They are exploring how fractions and their multiples can be represented in different ways and are learning to combine fractions with the same denominator to make a whole.

Inquiry

In Inquiry, students have been learning about Rules, Laws and Levels of Government and developing an understanding of how rules and laws help communities function safely and fairly. They have explored the different levels of government in Australia and considered the roles and responsibilities of each level.

Students have also been exploring participation in their local community and what it means to be an active citizen. They have considered ways people can contribute to their community, make responsible choices and participate in decisions and activities that help create positive change. Through these investigations, students are developing an understanding of their rights and responsibilities and how they can contribute to the communities they belong to.

Social and Emotional Learning

Students have been developing important life skills through our focus on social awareness and wellbeing. We have explored what it means to be kind, both in our words and actions and how our internal thoughts can shape how we feel and behave. Students have been learning to recognise the difference between internal and external thoughts, and how managing these can help us maintain a healthy and positive mindset. As part of our ongoing work with 'The Resilience Project', students have engaged in activities that promote gratitude, empathy, and mindfulness, helping them to build stronger connections with others and themselves. These skills are essential for supporting mental health and creating a respectful, caring school community where everyone feels valued.

Victorian Curriculum

Below is the link to the Victorian Curriculum if you would like to take a look at what we cover throughout the year. 

Friendly Reminders 

Please remember: 

• Please ensure your children are attending school as 'it is not okay to be away'.
• It is important to have a water bottle each day and that it is labelled.
• Brain Food is fruit or vegetable snacks that children may eat in class. It is important include this as an additional snack in their lunch box. 
• Please ensure that your child is reading their home reader for 15 minutes every night and completing their spelling practice. Some grades also have spelling tasks to go along with their weekly words.