Year 1/2 Term 4 Overview

Welcome back to Term 4! 

We hope you found time to relax and recharge with your family and friends. We have commenced this term writing recounts about our holidays! We are looking forward to a busy and happy Term 4 as the year continues to fly by. In Term 4, the Junior classes will attend swimming lessons at Nunawading Aqualink Leisure centre from Wednesday 5 November to Tuesday 18 November. Please note that there will be no swimming on Friday 14 November, due to a school closure day and there is no swimming program on Monday 17 November. 

IMPORTANT DATES:

OCTOBER

7 Tuesday - 1/2A Class Mass 10 am

14 Tuesday - 1/2B Class Mass 10 am and Father Dispin’s Birthday celebrated after this mass

16 Thursday - P-6 Dance Curriculum Workshop 

NOVEMBER

3 Monday - School Closure Day

4 Tuesday - Melbourne Cup Holiday 

5 Wednesday - P-2 Swimming begins

14 Friday - School closure day 

15 Saturday - St John’s School Fete 

17 Monday - No P-2 Swimming

18 Tuesday - P-2 Swimming last day 

DECEMBER

1 Monday - Whole School Advent Liturgy

4 Thursday - Whole School Christmas concert 7pm

9 Tuesday - Whole School Mini Missions Fair

15 Monday - Whole School Picnic at Halliday Park 

16 Tuesday - Students’ Last Day/Final Assembly 12pm

Religious Education

This term in Religious Education, we will focus on God's creation and explore scripture stories that highlight love and care for the environment, helping us understand how God provides for our needs. Additionally, we will emphasise the concept of Stewardship and how we can act as Stewards of Creation within our own community. We also dive into the importance of Advent, preparing for the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. 

Inquiry 

This term in Inquiry, we will focus on Design and Technology, exploring the question: “How can our design solutions encourage others to make better choices for our community and environment?” Students will follow the design process to investigate ways food can be selected and prepared for healthy eating. They will also explore the characteristics and properties of environmentally friendly materials and design sustainable packing that helps keep our food fresh, secure and transported safely.

Mathematics

This term in Mathematics, we will be focusing on: 

• Fractions: Students will explore part-whole relationships by identifying halves, quarters and eighths. They will develop an understanding of how objects and collections can be divided into equal parts.

• Operations: Students will use mathematical thinking to solve addition and multiplication problems. They will use strategies to solve worded problems which will build their problem-solving and reasoning skills.

• Location: Students will learn to practice moving objects by following directions and pathways which enhances their spatial awareness. 

• Pattern: Students will describe and continue number patterns as well as identifying missing elements within these patterns, helping them with recognition of number sequences. 

Literacy

This term students will explore fiction texts in depth as we move into our Narrative writing unit. Using ‘The Snail and the Whale’ by Julia Donaldson as one of our mentor texts, students will investigate the structure and features of narratives and have the opportunity to plan and write their own creative pieces. We will continue to build on literal and inferential comprehension skills through class texts, with a particular focus on developing vocabulary and retelling. We will also explore different forms of poetry, looking at how pattern, rhythm and repetition are used to create meaning and fluency. Students will have the opportunity to write their own poems, leading into the Christmas season. Our weekly phonics and spelling program will continue to support students in both reading and writing. 

Social & Emotional Learning

The Resilience Project continues this term as we focus on the three strategies for true happiness: gratitude, empathy and mindfulness. Students will learn different ways to practice these strategies both at school and at home. We encourage you to support your child in using these strategies in everyday situations and we may send home related activities to reinforce their learning. We regularly teach emotional literacy to help students better understand their emotions and develop strong social awareness skills.

STEM

Our focus in STEM this term is on materials and their properties. Students will explore how objects are made from different materials and investigate the unique properties of each, such as hardness, flexibility, texture and absorbency. Through hands-on experiments, students will explore the essential question “how do the properties of materials help us choose and combine them to make useful objects?” By the end of this unit, students will identify and classify materials, combine materials and design and evaluate objects based on suitability of the materials used. 

Digital Technology

This term in Digital Technologies, Grade 1/2 students will plan, explain and show a sequence of steps and choices to solve straightforward problems, for example by giving instructions to a digital character or creating a path in Scratch Junior. They will also identify and investigate patterns in information and display this data visually using pictures, symbols and diagrams, to help them organise and communicate their findings. This term’s Inform & Empower live stream and activities will focus on developing critical thinking and digital literacy skills. We will also explore what it means to be kind online. The usual parent information sheet will be sent to you in the coming weeks. Staying informed through these resources is powerful as it supports you in guiding your child through an ever-changing digital world.

Homework

Homework will be sent out on Tuesdays, but not each week. Homework may include a selection of tasks across any subject area. Please initial your child’s Reading Record each day when you hear them read aloud. Remember the text coming home as their ‘reader’ is an easy, independent text so the focus can be on comprehension, not decoding words. Stop your child as they are reading and ask them a question about what is happening so far or what might happen next, as opposed to a general question at the end of a text. Please also ask your child to retell the text they have read using at least 3 sentences (beginning/middle/end). 

Specialists

Please see the timetable below for specialist lessons. 

Reminders

Bookbags with Readers are required at school daily. Summer uniform is required this term and please also ensure that hats are clearly labelled with your child’s name on it. The connections between home and school are very important. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions. We can be reached via email, or leave a message at the office, and we will endeavour to respond within two working days between 8am and 5pm. Please read our school newsletter which comes via email every fortnight on Monday. Facebook and Instagram are also a great way to see what is happening at St John's.

Clorinda Maio cmaio@sjmitcham.catholic.edu.au

Naomi Ryan nryan@sjmitcham.catholic.edu.au