Specialist Classes

Library 

Science

Auslan

Our Level 3/4 and Level 5/6 students have continued strengthening their Auslan skills through a range of engaging revision activities focusing on the fingerspelling alphabet and four- to six-letter words. These activities are designed to develop both fingerspelling fluency—increasing speed and accuracy when signing words—and receptive skills, enabling students to recognise and understand letters and words fingerspelled by others.

Students are becoming increasingly confident communicating with one another in Auslan and are enjoying the challenge of fingerspelling with greater fluency while improving their ability to interpret what has been signed.

This fortnight, students have also been learning to communicate about holidays using simple Auslan conversations. They have practised asking and answering questions such as where they went, who they went with, and what they did during the holidays. Students have continued developing their understanding of Non-Manual Features (NMFs), using facial expressions, eye gaze and body movements to add meaning and emotion to their signs. It has been wonderful to see students becoming more expressive, confident and effective communicators.

As part of our learning, students explored how different emotions are communicated through facial expressions and body language. We discussed the important role of Non-Manual Features (NMFs) in Auslan, including facial expressions, eye gaze, head movements and body posture, and how these features are essential for conveying meaning rather than simply adding emotion. Students were encouraged to integrate these NMFs into their holiday conversations, using appropriate facial expressions and body movements to enhance their signing and communicate more naturally and effectively. We will continue to discuss and integrate NMF in our Auslan lessons. It has been wonderful to see students becoming increasingly aware that, in Auslan, their face and body are just as important as their hands.

Students also explored Deaf Protocol, learning about the importance of communicating respectfully when using Auslan. We discussed why it is important to sign thoughtfully and sincerely, rather than using signs in a silly or exaggerated way, as a sign of respect for the Deaf community and its language.

Students also learnt appropriate ways to gain the attention of a Deaf or hard of hearing person. These included gently waving within the person's line of sight, lightly tapping them on the shoulder, tapping on a table or the floor to create vibrations, or briefly flicking a light switch on and off when appropriate. Through these discussions, students are developing an understanding of both the language and the rich cultural practices of the Deaf community.

Jnr Library

Students have continued developing their library and information literacy skills through a range of engaging activities.

Our Prep students are becoming increasingly confident borrowing, returning and caring for library books. Over the past two weeks, they have thoroughly enjoyed the picture storybook Charlie & Chikita by Audrey Crowfoot. As they explored the story, students discovered fascinating facts about cicadas and reinforced their Auslan skills by signing key vocabulary, including colours and Australian animals featured throughout the book.

Our Level 1 students extended their understanding of the Dewey Decimal Classification System by working collaboratively in pairs during our Non-fiction Scavenger Hunt. They searched for books on a variety of topics while developing their research and library navigation skills. I was incredibly proud to see so many students independently using our Non-fiction Topic Book to locate books that matched their interests. It has been wonderful to watch students grow in confidence as increasingly independent and capable library users.

Jnr Performing Arts

Our Prep students have continued exploring the story of The Three Little Pigs, developing their drama skills through role-play, expressive character voices, facial expressions and body movements. This fortnight, our emotion focus was anger, and I was super impressed—and perhaps just a little frightened! (Ha ha!)—by our very convincing angry pigs. It is so rewarding to see students becoming more confident performing in front of their classmates while developing an understanding of how actors use voice, movement and facial expression to bring characters to life.

Our Level 1 students have continued learning their energetic Farmyard Dance for our Voices on the Farm emotion performance. They have been refining their movement quality, timing and spatial awareness while performing together as an ensemble. This fortnight, students focused on expressing the emotions of anger and silliness through strong movements, expressive facial expressions and purposeful body language. It has been wonderful to see their confidence and performance skills continue to grow with each lesson.

Across all classes, students have continued watching recordings of their performances and reflecting using the 'What Worked Well' (WWW) and 'Even Better If' (EBI) strategy. This process encourages thoughtful self-reflection, celebrates success and helps students identify goals for continued improvement.

ISS