Year 1

English

Reading 

In Reading this term, students learnt how to infer using a variety of fiction and non fiction texts. They used their prior knowledge and the clues in the text, such as pictures and words, to infer how a character may be feeling, why a character may have done something, and were exposed to character traits (what a character is like). Students revised asking questions while reading to help them make meaning of a text, where they used their strategy of inferring to find answers to their questions. Students also used their prior knowledge and text clues to help them make meaningful text to self connections, where they connected the story to their own personal experiences. They also explored how to use key words in a text to help them visualise and create a mental image or movie to further their understanding of a text. Throughout the term we continued to build skills in phonological awareness, phonics and decoding strategies, such as segmenting and blending. 

Writing 

Grade 1 students have been looking at persuasive texts. They learnt that persuasive texts contain an opinion and reasons. Teachers modelled the way we write letters and students were explicitly taught about the different elements of a letter. They have had multiple opportunities to write persuasive letters to different audiences, where they have discussed their opinion and given several reasons to support their opinion. 

Students also experimented with different types of poetry. They have been reading a range of different poems and have learnt about how poems are used to communicate feelings. Students have been scaffolded through the writing of their first alliteration poem, inspired by ‘One Old Octopus’. Students also explored shape poems and free verse poems.

Mathematics

In Mathematics, students revisited Time, focusing on reading and making oclock and half past times on both a digital clock and analogue clock. They also revisited patterns, focusing on making and continuing repeating and growing patterns. We have continued our work on counting throughout the entire term, practising counting forwards and backwards by 1s to 100 and skip counting by 10s, 5s and 2s. 

Students then had a major focus on Division and Multiplication where they learnt how to share by 1s and how to make equal groups. Students were encouraged to use materials as visuals to help learn this strategy, as well as showing their answers in pictures and words. For the last two weeks of term, students learnt about Data, with a focus on collecting data, representing data in a pictograph and a column graph and analysing different sets of data.

Inquiry

In Inquiry learning this term, students explored a unit titled Time Traveller. The unit developed students’ historical skills of continuity and change, and significance in the context of our school and community history. Students explored the concept of continuity and change by exploring the living museum at Sovereign Hill and activities such as gold panning, school life and gold smelting.

Students investigated how our school has changed over time and then used this information to predict what our school might look like in the future. Additionally, students practised research skills by exploring a digital source and recording what they have discovered by using a thinking routine called 3-2-1. 

This routine supported students in recording interesting and new information.  Students strengthened their meta-cognition and thinking skills by using routines such as See, Think, Wonder with historical objects and artworks in our class museum. Students learnt to ‘Think like a Historian’ by examining objects and making predictions about what the artefact was used for and what it might look like today. Well done on a great unit of work Inquiry Superstars! 

Science

During Term 3, the Grade 1 students have explored the Physical Science strand through investigating the forces of push and pull. Students have observed the way different objects move, and have learned about the six simple machines where they have carried out investigations into the forces used by them.  Using a variety of objects, students have set up and tested Rube Goldberg style machines and have built up to designing their own Rube Goldberg style dog treat feeder, which uses the forces of push and pull.

LOTE - Chinese

During Term 3, Grade 1 students learnt how to pronounce different animals in Chinese. This included tadpole, frog, panda, duck, goose, fish, bunny, and dinosaur. They watched and listened to traditional Chinese fairy tales, such as Where is my mama? This is also known as ‘little tadpoles are looking for their mum’.

 Some traditional Chinese games and other games they know have been combined into the learning. These games/activities included ‘Duck Duck Goose’ which is similar to the Chinese game ‘Throw the handkerchief’, origami paper folding and bunny hop dance.

Art

The Year 1s have had an excellent term experimenting and discovering in the art room. We have been learning about good collaboration - sharing ideas, asking questions, and building on each other’s ideas to create impressive artwork together! It has been encouraging as the students develop greater confidence and independence in their creative process. This growth has involved planning and executing original and imaginative ideas. The Year 1s have worked with materials including paints, wool, felt, feathers, craft paper, cardboard, and so much glitter!

We began the term by reading artist Bronwyn Bancroft’s brightly illustrated text, Colours of Australia. The students then painted whole class banners, considering where we see colours in the places we spend time and that are important to us. Following this, we worked with First Nations artist and Melton local Lucy Webster. Lucy shared a version of a traditional Dreaming story involving the Rainbow Serpent, as well as symbols found in Aboriginal art and some of their possible meanings. The students explored these through drawing and dance.

Leading concepts to our learning this term have been building, improving, and celebrating. We will finish Term 3 with activities that provide opportunities for feedback and showcasing work that we are proud of. I have been delighted to see your achievements this term Year 1s. Thank you for your creative efforts. I cannot wait to spend more time learning and making together next term!

P.E.

This term, the Grade 1 students have moved into new areas of fundamental motor skills which have assisted them in the sports of football and soccer. Students have developed skills related to both these sports and have begun to apply them in game-based situations. Football was the first sport during this term and students were asked to showcase the relevant skills linked with this sport. This included kicking, handballing, and marking. They have learnt how to kick and handball a football with correct technique and are developing their accuracy when completing these skills. Catching/marking has been constant throughout, and all the students in Grade 1 are continuing to develop this motor skill. Students in Grade 1 are now on the path to continue to develop the skills needed to play AFL football. 

During the second half of the term, students have completed work on the relevant skills for the sport of soccer. Students can now show how to correctly pass a soccer ball and show their ability to dribble the soccer ball over a short distance. To finish this unit, students in Grade 1 participated in small games to show these skills and their goal kicking. Grade 1 students have continued to participate in class games throughout the term to demonstrate their ability to follow rules and instructions. These have taken the form of different warmup games, Just Dance videos and games directly linked to football and soccer. We all have had such a great time this term and the Grade 1 students have shown great progress in Physical Education. I am looking forward to the final term of the year and what we can achieve.