Achilles 

 Our Learning

We want to say a big welcome back to all of our families in the Achilles community. Our students have started off the term extremely well and we are very excited to continue our learning journey together. We look forward to celebrating all of our successes, achievements and learnings with you throughout the term. 

Maths

We have started off the term by exploring all things money! Students have been busy learning how to recognise, count, add, and subtract dollars and cents through fun, hands-on activities.

Students began by solving simple money problems using Australian coins and notes. They practised recognising and creating additive patterns that increase or decrease by the same amount, helping them build confidence with number sequences and money values.

We then moved on to solving real-life money problems, where students had to decide whichmathematical operation to use (addition, subtraction or even multiplication.) 

For example:

• "I bought 3 apples and apples cost $2.15 each. How much money did my apples cost all together?" (Addition)
• “If I have $10 and spend $6.50, how much do I have left?” (Subtraction)
• “We’re buying 3 cupcakes at $2 each. How much do we need in total?” (Multiplication)

Through these activities, students are learning to choose the most efficient strategy, justify their thinking, and apply their number knowledge to practical, everyday situations. This builds strong skills in problem solving and financial literacy which is important foundations for future learning!

Reading 

This term, our class explored the theme of Animals through a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts. Students engaged with a wide range of stories and informational texts that helped them understand different ideas and perspectives about animals, their environments, and their significance across cultures.

In the classroom, students:

• Applied a range of reading strategies such as predicting, questioning, and summarising to deepen their comprehension
• Identified and discussed the features of narrative texts, including plot, characters, setting, and themes
• Explored how visuals (such as illustrations, diagrams, and photos) supported and enhanced meaning in texts

• Shared their reading preferences and reflected on the choices and preferences of characters in the stories

   

Throughout the unit, students participated in whole-class discussions, independent reading, and shared reading activities. They also responded to texts through creative writing, drawing, and oral presentations.

It has been a wonderful month of growth and discovery, and we’ve seen fantastic progress in students’ confidence and reading comprehension. Thank you for your continued support at home – from listening to your child read to discussing books together, your involvement has made a real difference!

Writing

This term, students have been learning how to write letters. We explored the structure of a letter, including the greeting, body, and closing, and practised writing to different audiences. Students wrote letters to their teachers to share ideas and questions. During Book Week, we linked our writing to The Day the Crayons Quit. The children imagined they were crayons and wrote creative letters explaining why they wanted a break, using humour and persuasive language.

Alongside letter writing, we have also been learning how to make our sentences more interesting. Students practised using noun groups (for example, “the bright red crayon”) and compound sentences (for example, “The crayon was tired, and it wanted a rest”). They are now starting to include these skills in their letters and stories to make their writing longer and more detailed. Families can support at home by encouraging children to write short notes or letters, and by noticing interesting describing words or sentences when reading together.

Social Emotional learning

In SEL, students have been considering other peoples feeling and perspectives and what is means to 'walk in other peoples shoes'. This picture below provided us with some interesting 'food for thought' and we had some fantastic eye opening conversations. We also learnt about expressing our feelings with the catch phrase 'Name it to tame it' and cracked a fun mystery code.

Inquiry

This term we have been learning about living and non-living things and classifying different types of  fish, amphibians, reptiles and their life cycles. Students have been very engaged and interested in this topic.

First, we went on a nature walk around our school to classify things as living, once living and non-living. We were able to classify different animals including whether they are vertebrates or invertebrates. Students enjoyed reading information texts and answering questions about these animals and labelling their body parts correctly.

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. 

https://victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au/level2 

Friendly Reminders

• Doors open at 8:50 a.m. and dismissal is at 3:20 p.m.
• Ensure your child’s belongings are clearly labelled. This includes clothing, drink bottles, hats, and lunchboxes (including lids).
• Please ensure that your child is reading their home reader for 15 minutes every night and that their reading log is filled in and signed by a parent/guardian.

• We strongly encourage students to bring along some brain food (fruit and vegetables) that they may eat in class. It is important that this is included as an additional snack in their lunchbox.

   

Best wishes,

The Year 2 Achilles Community Teachers

Britt, Shaveta, Natalia, Anne, Tamanna, Kartia and Belinda.