Year Level & Specialist Curriculum

Foundation:  

Year One: 

Year Two:

Year Three:

Year Four:

Year Five: 

Year Six:

Term 2, 2024 Specialist Curriculum Overviews

Our Specialist programs will cover the following during Term Two:

Physical Education “Every child is a winner, when they try their very best”  

Another jam packed term ahead of us with lots of variation in our PE lessons and many sport events ahead.

Prep:  The students have come a long way from their first session in term 1.  We will focus our first session on our first House Cross Country.  Then we will continue to focus on the various fundamental skills and in doing so they will participate in many circuits and activities that will practise these skills.  We will develop our overarm throw, catching skills and fitness rotations. Throughout the term we will continue to work on demonstrating safe behaviours by following instructions and taking turns

Year  1 / 2: We will continue to refine our fundamental skills this term. Focus will be on our first House Cross Country, catching, bouncing (year 1) and punting (year 2). These skills will be practised during various rotations and modified games.  By the end of the term we hope to have a specialised coach coming in to teach Taekwondo to our students also. We will continue to work on participating in games by following rules and using equipment and space safely.

Year  3 / 4: We start the term off with preparation for House Cross Country with some cooperative games.  This will encourage students to enjoy being active but also act as our trials for the District Cross Country on Monday 20th May. Following this we will be focusing on developing the students' invasion game skills. Invasion sports involve an offensive team working to maintain possession of an object while attacking (or invading) a defensive team's goal or target area. Development of specific skills and skill combinations that involve passing, receiving, shooting and defending will be our focus. We will learn some new games/sports so we can practise these skills in a fun environment. This will assist our year 4’s in preparing for the Winter Gala Day on 12th June where they will participate in netball, AFL 9’s, soccer or teeball and in preparation for their basketball day in term 3 (for year 4’s).  We will conclude the term with some orienteering. Students will continue to work on their skills to work cooperatively as a team and play fairly.

Year 5 / 6:  Our focus in first week will be on House Cross Country on Friday 19th April.  This will be an afternoon promoting and encouraging being active and also count as the District Cross Country trials (Monday 20th May). We also have our first Gala Day this week, students will be participating in Volleyball, Teeball, Hot Shots or European Handball at various venues.

The middle part of the term will focus on invasion sports/games, specifically teaching and reviewing our skills to invade an opponent's territory and score a goal or point and reverting between attacking and defending skills.  This will prepare us for the Winter Gala Day (Friday 21st of June) where students will participate in netball, softball, soccer or AFL and our basketball day in term 3.

We will conclude the term with students experiencing some orienteering.  Students will continue to develop their skills to work cooperatively in a team and apply rules fairly.

Visual Arts

Welcome to Visual Arts for 2024! This year is an exciting time with our Art Show later on in the year. The students will be creating a variety of their own art pieces, as they learn about different art elements, techniques, artists and cultures.

Year 3 - We will begin the term with a focus on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art. The students will explore the traditional styles used, the symbols and stories that are told by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists. They will use this knowledge to inspire their own artwork, of an Australian animal. They will be exploring the work of a female contemporary artist, Liz Tran. Comparing her work to other traditional and cultural art they have seen and are shown. The students will create a 3D piece inspired by one of Liz Tran’s projects, using their imagination to create an image of what they wished the world looked like from space. We will use the combination of media and drawing to create a 2D piece, exploring the combination of multimedia and how it can enhance the meaning to the audience. 

Year 4 - Term 2 will begin with a focus on line and colour, using these techniques to create a 2D optical illusion art piece. The students will have a focus on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art. The students will explore the traditional styles used, the symbols and stories that are told by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists. They will use this new knowledge to inspire their own artwork, designing symbols that represent their own story and painting these on sticks. We will then explore the work of Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. The students will then use her incredible art as inspiration for a book cover design that they will create using recycled materials. 

Year 5- This term the students will be learning about the importance of art in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture. The students will learn about the traditional styles and symbols used to tell stories, including dreamtime stories. They will use these symbols as inspiration to create their own symbols that represent themselves. The students will look at the techniques impressionist artists used to create their artwork, and use this process to create their own impressionism paintings using watercolour paints. Inspired by the text ‘The world needs who you were made to be’ by Johanna Raines, the students will create a 3D hot air balloon that allows them to use a variety of art techniques to showcase their individual design. Finally, the students will be using paint to create a ceramic pot that is inspired by Berber baskets from Morocco. 

Year 6 - Throughout this term, we will have a variety of 2D and 3D pieces completed. The students will be creating an image that expresses the important message of recycling and its positive impact on our world. With a focus on how we can deliver this message through art to their audience, they will be using recycled cups for the project. The students will be focussing on lines and colour to create a silhouette of themselves, filled with images that represent them as individuals. The students will explore different architects across the world, selecting a city of their choice to create a 3D design of a building. They will use recycled materials to create their installation. 

Auslan

"Sign Language is a dance with words, to be enjoyed from babyhood, through childhood to adulthood." - Marilyn Daniels

​​Welcome to Term 2 in Auslan. Hopefully you’re feeling refreshed from the two-week Easter break. What an exciting start we had in Term 1 Auslan, with our new resources delivered! Students have been enjoying the new Auslan books and language games. Throughout our Auslan classes this term, students will continue to grow their Auslan vocabulary and receptive skills through the use of targeted vocabulary activities, live demonstrations and peer interactions.

Preps will continue their Auslan journey by learning the fingerspelled alphabet and mastering how to introduce themselves. Their main focus will be on signs associated with ‘self’, and learning to express their own preferences in sign language. This term they will learn new signed vocabulary including colours and numbers through guided group activities, repeated language structures and games.

Year 1 and 2 will continue to consolidate their existing Auslan vocabulary through signing letters, school and everyday signs. This term they will extend their vocabulary to include signs related to food and zoo animals, and will develop their signed presentation skills.

As much as possible, we will continue to use similar vocabulary themes between year levels to motivate signed communication between siblings and friends. Therefore, 

Year 3 – 6 will also focus on language associated with meals and zoos - and extend into physical animal descriptions. They will explore the themes presented in Deaf author Kerrie Taylor’s books and the associated signed vocabulary. They will continue to consolidate their communication skills, use of common signs, expression of opinion and their ability to respond to questions without the support of spoken language.

As Semester 1 draws nearer its conclusion, it is always wonderful to see students across St James presenting independently to their class, demonstrating their signing development, without voice.

Performing Arts

Performing Arts is in full swing for Prep, Year 1 and Year 2 students for Term 2, with an integrated focus on Music and Dance.  For Year 3 - Year 6 students, Choir meets every Thursday at lunchtime in the Multipurpose Room, new members are welcome anytime.  We have been busy preparing for our upcoming performance at the Mother's Day celebrations.

Prep - In music, prep students are learning to identify and perform different rhythms, and exploring how rhythm is different to beat.  They will practice these skills through singing songs, playing instruments and musical games and dance.  In dance lessons, students will learn about safe dance practices, the elements of dance, making shapes with their bodies and improvising movements through space with a small group.  Our dance unit is based around sea creatures and underwater dance movements.

Year 1 and 2 - Year 1 and 2 students will continue to learn about rhythmic and melodic elements of music through playing instruments, singing songs, playing games, reading, writing and composing music, improvisation and active listening.  By the end of term, Year 1 students will have had the opportunity to learn about the rhythmic elements ‘ta’ and ‘ti-ti’ and will continue learning about high and low sounds.  Throughout this term, Year 2 students' lessons will focus on familiarisation of the melodic elements ‘so’ and ‘mi’ and the musical stave.  Both Year 1 and 2 students' music lessons will be complemented by their learning in Dance, with a focus on historical Australian dances.  Students will learn Bush Dances and Indigenous Australian dances, and will work with a group to choreograph and perform their own dances.

STEM

The students made a great start to STEM in Term 1.  

Prep- In Term 2 the students will begin to access the school network by logging into the Chromebook and will start using Google Chrome and various websites on the internet.  They will also be introduced to coding through the use of the Bluebot robots.

Year 1- In Term 2 the students will build on their knowledge in the use of Google Chrome and develop their skills using Google Docs.  They will extend their coding skills using an app - Kodable and also the robots BlueBots.

Year 2 - In Term 2 the students will be using the robots Dash and Dot.  They will explore the coding required for these robots and discover terms such as sequences and loops.  They will look at how sequencing affects the outcome of a robot's movements.  They will also be building on their Google skills with a look at tools in Google Slides.

Year 3 - Students will be using the robots Spheros and Sphero Bolts in Term 2.  They will look at free driving the Spheros to control them and then look at being able to code the robot to make similar moves.  They will need to look at variables such as speed, direction, time and distance to successfully code a Sphero through various obstacles and courses.

Year 4 - Students will be using the robots Ozobots. They will be using colour markers to code the Ozobots through various moves and functions. They will create their own courses for the Ozobots to manoeuvre through.  They will also use block coding to have the Ozobots perform similar functions.

Year 5- Year 5 students will be using Spheros and Sphero Bolts this term.  They have previously used them in Year 3 and will now build on their knowledge to code the Spheros to perform various functions, loops and sequences.  The students will work through various modules to have the Spheros act as a Magic Ball, Swimmer, Sumo Wrestler and Race Car.

Year 6 - The students this term will finish their Stop Motion creation and present it to the class. Following this they will be looking using an app on the iPads called Reality Composer.  Reality Composer uses 3d shapes and items and puts them into real life situations, scenarios and games, Augmented Reality (AR).  The students will need to look at using real life applications such as physics, how objects move i.e. rubber balls bouncing, metal objects hitting the ground then tumbling, scaling of objects, behaviours of moving objects, collisions etc.  They will incorporate their knowledge to build something linked with their art for the Art Show.