Xenica Community Report
December Update
What an amazing year we have had in the Xenica Community! Students have worked very hard throughout the year and we are so proud of them all. A big thank you to all of the families for supporting us throughout the year. We hope everyone has a wonderful and safe holiday and we look forward to seeing you next year!
Our Learning
READING
In Reading over the last month we have been focusing on various strategies. We have been looking into character traits and how they act and feel in a text we read. We also looked at how events that happen may change the way characters are and act towards others. Some have been making connections with the books we read and talking about similar events that may have experienced and also discussed whether the text reminds them of another book they have read. Other students have been answering questions about the text where the answer can be found directly in the text. Students have also been looking at the visualising strategy where they make mental images in their mind of the text that is being read to them and then draw their vision.
WRITING
In writing, Xenica students have continued to practice using the correct grammar with a particular focus of past, future and present tenses of both regular and irregular verbs. Students have also been using simple conjunctions such as ‘because’ and ‘and’ to elaborate on their writing.
Students are continuing to write their persuasive pieces, developing an understanding of persuasive techniques and how to create and organise their writing pieces. Students have enjoyed working hard to consider reasons to support their opinions. Students have been encouraged to follow the writing process, beginning with planning and drafting their writing pieces, before publishing. Students will pay particular attention to editing their work for grammar and punctuation, as well as making good word choices.
MATHEMATICS
In Maths, the Xenica students have been working on fractions. They have participated in many hands on activities and have developed new strategies that they will be able to use in the future. Students have been learning how to place fractions on a number line and about equivalent fractions. They have been using the CUBES strategy to solve worded problems based on fractions and have been encouraged to show their thinking when working out problems. The Cube strategy stands for:
C- Circle the numbers
U- Underline the question
B- Box key math words
E- evaluate and draw
S- Solve and Check
You can try this at home with your child when they solve worded problems!
INQUIRY
In Inquiry we have been investigating what a culture is and the diversity of cultures within our Xenica Community. We have been researching different landmarks from around the world using our iPads and learnt how to summarise key information in our own words.
On Wednesday 4th December the Xenica students participated in a cultural celebration day. Students dressed up in traditional costumes and colours from their back grounds and participated in a range of activities based on different cultures from around the world. We finished off the day with some traditional dancing and it was great to see students engaging and sharing in various cultural experiences. It was a wonderful day for all!
SEL
This term in Social Emotion Learning, the Xenica Learning Community have been focusing on a number of topics according to the needs of the students. We have explored the importance of having a growth mindset and being persistent when faced with new or challenging tasks and learning about why it is important to be honest when something happens at school. We have also investigated the difference between tattling on others about small problems and telling the teacher if there is a big problem, and practising showing kindness to others by ‘filling up their bucket’ with compliments that make them feel good about themselves.
Important notes to remember:
- The doors will open at 8.45am as learning begins at 8.50am. Students are encouraged to come into the community independently.
- Students will change their take home books each day and bring them home each night. It is important that students take books from the levels their teachers have assigned them as this is their instructional level which we work on to further develop their deeper understanding of texts.
- Students will bring their diaries and homework books to school on Fridays which will be checked by teachers.
- Please label all belongings.
- Students are encouraged to bring their iPads to school each day.
We hope you all have a wonderful and safe holiday. We look forward to seeing you next year!
Kind Regards,
Carla, Maddy, Fanny and Emma.