Year 1/2 Mainstream
Celebrating Learning
What we have been up to:
As we approach the middle of term 2, year 1/2 Mainstream students have continued to extend their bug knowledge by engaging in research about a chosen bug using our classroom iPads. It was great to see students develop some helpful research skills. We learnt how to search for key words and questions and how to choose a video or article that was going to be appropriate for their age group.
Thank you to the parents who came along to our reading workshop! It was really cool to have Kiaya (speech pathologist from La Trobe University) come and speak to us about the support that she is giving us and your children in developing our phonics program.
We are really looking forward to welcoming our volunteers into our classrooms at the end of this term. If you are interested in helping out with reading in the classrooms in the mornings (Monday- Friday) volunteering, please get in touch with your classroom teacher and we will be able to organise a second workshop next term.
Maths:
Students have thoroughly enjoyed having discussions surrounding the properties of 2D shapes and 3D objects. We thank parents for donating cardboard boxes- we used these to create our 3D cities!
In our numeracy lessons, we have begun to explore addition and subtraction. As we develop our skills and understanding of these concepts, our goal is to use different and more efficient strategies to join numbers together. To build confidence (and have fun!), we use lots of different number stories which can then be translated into other number strategies. If you would like to practise addition or subtraction with your child at home, ask them to create joining and separating stories and model their thinking. You could also practise speed facts by playing ‘addition snap’!
Literacy:
As part of our phonics program, classes have begun Little Learners Love Literacy Stage 7.2 sounds. These sounds include: ar as in farm, or as in born, and aw as in yawn. This stage will continue into the rest of the term, moving on to other sounds such as ir as in first, er as in fern ur as in Thursday, and air (are, ere) as in fair.
What’s to come in the next two weeks:
Towards the end of the term, we will be revising and applying the phonics we have already learned throughout Little Learners Love Literacy Stages 7.1-7.2.
Continuing with the procedural (How to) text type, you may want to support this learning at home by following recipes or how to make different crafts.
We will continue developing our understanding of addition and work towards a deeper understanding of subtraction by implementing strategies such as commutativity, tens facts, breaking apart, and building to 10.
You could support this work by practising the basic addition facts at home. Generate the facts by using a pack of playing cards with the royals taken out. Flip two cards and add them together. If you want to make this Addition Snap, the fastest person to add the two numbers together wins the cards. Person with all the cards at the end of the game WINS!
We will also begin learning about location and transformation concepts like following directions, flipping, and rotating. Have a go at Scratch junior at home!
We would greatly appreciate you checking to make sure your child is swapping their take home reader. Reading at home every night helps your children to become confident and strong readers.
We encourage you to use the photos in our newsletters to stimulate conversation about school and learning!
From the 1/2 TEAM