Year 1/2 News
Reading
In Reading this term, the Grade 1/2 students will be completing an author study. We will focus closely on the author Jackie French. Students will start off learning about Jackie French and who she is as a person and what kind of author she is. They will then be introduced to different books by the author, where students will apply a range of comprehension strategies, including analysing, inferring, making connections and critiquing. Our lessons will focus on aspects of the author’s craft, such as the characters, settings, problems, solutions, language features, illustrations and layouts of her texts. Throughout the unit, students will have the opportunity to showcase their learning about Jackie French by completing various reading responses.
Students will also be focusing on nonfiction texts that align with the topic of the fiction texts from the author study. This will allow the students to continue developing their understanding of the different types of nonfiction texts, how to read them and how to apply strategies to understand them.
Writing
In Term 4 the Grade 1/2 students will have two areas of focus in Writing: Explanation Texts and Persuasive Texts. At the beginning of the Term, students will be learning about Explanation Texts. Students will be learning what the purpose of an Explanation Text is, its structure, and Sequence words used in an explanation Text so that they can write their own.
In the second half of the Term, students will be learning how Persuasive Texts are written. Students will focus on text features, such as opening statements, where they will state their opinion on a given topic along with their reasons to support their opinion, along with persuasive closing statements and the vocabulary used to persuade a reader.
‘Sounds Write’ will continue to be taught in Term 4, focusing on building, reading and writing words and sentences.
Mathematics
In Term 4, Grade 1/2 students will focus on a range of topics. Students will begin with a focus on Fractions where students will specifically look at halves. They will be given opportunities to halve shapes and real world objects. Then we will focus on Probability, where students will learn about and investigate the chance of something occurring. Students will then focus on Problem Solving, where they will use mathematical modelling to solve practical problems involving additive and multiplicative situations, including money transactions. Throughout the term students will also look at Mass where they will get the opportunity to identify how heavy or light an object is by hefting and using balance scales, and Capacity where they will get to practice estimating and measuring how much different objects can hold.
Inquiry
In Inquiry this term, students will explore a unit titled ‘Great Southern land’. By the end of this inquiry, students will be able to identify and explain why the environment is important to us and how the aboriginals cared for this land. Students will also be learning about ecological sustainability and how to care for the environment.
The key questions guiding our inquiry are:
How and why are Country / Place significant to Aboriginal people?
What are the ways in which Aboriginal people maintain special connections to particular country / land / place?
How did Aboriginal people care for and sustain these special places?
Science
Welcome to term 4 Science, where the Grade 1-2 students will be focusing on the Chemical Science strand and learning that different materials can be combined for particular purposes.
Students will focus on mixing materials and observe similarities and differences between different materials, which includes various foods. They will be learning to identify and record the properties of some everyday materials, such coco and spaghetti, and will carry out observations and experiments on how some foods can be mixed together to form different products, such as corn flour and water. Students will identify that not everything can be mixed together, such as oil and water, and explore how the properties of a mixture, such as colour and texture, can depend on the number of substances it contains. They will also learn to make different types of mixtures like; play dough, slime, oobleck and bubbles.
Looking forward to a very exciting Term 4 for grades 1-2!
Music
In Music, the students will be exploring how the different elements of music can create moods, effects and contrast. They will experiment with different ways of playing instruments to create music and sound effects to accompany stories and collaboratively plan and play music sequenced into sections. This will include inventing graphic symbols for rhythm and pitch, to write and then read and play their compositions. As they focus on learning new songs, they will explore how they can be sung and played in different ways by changing the rhythm, dynamics and tempo. The students will respond to songs and music with movement, voice and body percussion and develop their understanding of texture as they sing and play together in groups and as a class. Students will work cooperatively in small groups and as a whole class and be encouraged to perform and celebrate their achievements.
Art
Welcome to Art, Term 4, 2024! This term, Grade 1/2 will revise and consolidate their pattern skills by repeating lines and colours in their art pieces. They will also use the elements of form and texture. Students will be able to apply their maths skills and cross curricular learning to understand how the element of form is used in artworks. They will also make mixed media artworks using a combination of different materials. These artworks will focus on using and refining a range of skills which have been covered in previous terms.
Grade 1/2 will also explore and respond to artworks by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Lots of experimentation and discussion will take place as we discover wonderful creative possibilities. Looking forward to a fantastic final term of Art with Grade 1/2 students!
P.E
For this term the grade 1/2 students will be focussing on the sports of badminton and hockey to assist them in their development of the fundamental motor skills. These skills will include, throwing, catching, striking, and running. Students in term 4 will work on these sports and try to develop the relevant skills in each. By the end of the term the students in grade 1/2 will be able to showcase the skills required in each of these sports and be able to engage in a game-based approach to their learning in Physical Education.
The aim for our learning is to engage all students in games-based learning and give everyone the opportunity to showcase their skills in games. During this learning students will be asked to problem-solve and begin to develop tactics to assist them when playing these sports. I can’t wait for a great term with the grade 1/2 students! We have plenty of exciting learning ahead and looking forward to all of it.
LOTE - Auslan
Welcome to Grade 1/2 Auslan, Term 4! The focus this term is on the following topics: People, Sports, Mealtimes, Time, Occupations, Seasons, Handshapes #2, Storytelling and Celebrations. In the final lesson we will see interviews with Deaf people discussing their deafness, family, early life (Deaf Culture) etc and we also will revisit games and lessons that the students will enjoy learning throughout the term. Other core elements of Auslan, such as Constructed Action (mime) and Depicting Signs representing people, animals and vehicles), Handshapes, Fingerspelling and Facial Expression, will be taught and modelled, showing how they are essential parts of Auslan communication.
This final term for the year will build on previous skills and extend student communication
in Auslan. Learning a language requires immersion, repetition, sequential learning
where topics build on each other to expand the learner’s knowledge, confidence, and
comfort with the new language. With young Primary School students, fun activities practising new learning is a priority, as their interest in the Auslan language develops. Songs and poems support the activities and learning.
On the 26th of November, students will participate and engage in a check in visit and will be given an opportunity for each class to meet and interact with a Deaf person. The team attending on the day will be an Australian Education Services Team Leader, Deaf team member, and an Interpreter. The Deaf team member will begin by presenting to the children about their life as a Deaf person, followed by signing with the students, and some question time. This will provide students with a first-hand interaction with a Deaf person and give them a look at Deaf culture. Sessions on the day will run for 30 minutes. It will also be a good opportunity to provide support for students and staff.