News from around the School
Miss Sorbello Phillipines Immersion
Miss Sorbello is travelling to Cebu, Phillipines with a group of 17 teachers from the Sandhurst Diocese. This immersion trip provides Miss Sorbello with the experience of helping and teaching within the Cebu community.
We are looking for donations of items such as small toys (ie stress balls, balloons, slinkies, loom bands), craft items (ie chalk, crayons, stickers), small sporting goods (ie tennis balls) and clothes which may be sitting around our houses that are looking for a new home! Donations can be left at the office. Any items would be greatly appreciated, thank you.
Chatter Matters
Term 3 Language genres/ communicating for different social purposes
The following activities will help students make necessary adjustments to language to communicate in varied situations eg; to tell stories, recount events, persuade, give instructions and report information. These activities may help support not only the child’s oral language but written language development also.
1. Giving and listening to instructions;
A key language feature of giving instructions is the use of verbs or action words. For example when reading a recipe you will notice the following action words are used; stir, fold, combine, melt, sift, bake etc. Children benefit from practise identifying these key words in a sentence. As they highlight for the child
Here are a number of activities to practise identifying and using actions words/verbs.
- “Simon says” Take turns at being Simon and count how many different verbs each player uses. The one with the most verbs gets a bonus point. For example; on your left leg, your tummy, to the sky, your fingers.
- “read a recipe or list of instructions for a game” Highlight the different verbs used and discuss what they mean, for example “fold” can have a variety of meanings.
- when giving instructions ask your child to repeat the action words. Gradually increase the number of verbs, see how many they can remember for each instruction. For example, your socks, them to the laundry, them in the washing machine, the machine, until it’s finished.
The following ipad apps are excellent for taking turns to give and follow instructions.
2. Giving and listening to instructions;
One of the most rewarding learning experiences you can have with your child is while playing board or table top games. At least once week ask your child to drag out an old game. Pretend that you’ve forgotten how to pay the game and encourage your child to give you the instructions. Make sure you follow their instructions exactly as they say them, even if they are wrong. This way the child will realise they haven’t given clear instructions and will need to adjust their language accordingly.
This website has numerous free card, paper and dice games.
www.familyfuntwincities.com/fun-indoor-games-for-kids-of-all-ages-categorized/
While in the car, accidentally forget which way you are going and ask your child to give you directions. Encourage them to use appropriate instructional language for example; turn left at the next traffic lights, drive 2 more blocks then turn right at the post office. They need to include the action word and key words that highlight where to go.
3. The art of persuading!
Many children are very good at arguing but have they got the power of persuasion. Can they justify their decisions and provide evidence? The ability to provide a convincing argument both verbally and in written form is a critical life skill that children need to develop.
Ask your child to provide 3 reasons for and against each of these situations:
a. Having the following animals as pets (encourage them to be as creative as possible)
- snake, cat, koala, mouse, seahorse, magpie, giraffe.
b. having a sleepover at a friend’s house
c. staying up to watch a late night movie
d. buying a new electronic game
Encourage them to use the language of persuasion for example: “I believe that a snake would make an excellent pet for the following reasons; firstly it would certainly scare away unwanted visitors……..”