Argus Community Report

Term 3, 2020

Term 3 is coming to an end. We would like to say a big well done to all of our Argus students. Each and every one of you have been amazing during remote learning, demonstrating commitment, enthusiasm, and resilience during these very challenging times. We are very proud of you all. A very big thank you to all of our families for your amazing support of not only your children but also the teachers during remote learning. We appreciate everything you have done. Next term, we look forward to being back at school and welcoming the Argus students back. Let's have a fantastic last term of Prep and make many more happy memories together of your first year of school.  

We would like to wish Stacey Gagula well, as she begins her maternity leave. Stacey, please enjoy these last few weeks before you welcome your little boy into the world. All the best and congratulations. Steph has joined the Argus team as Stacey's replacement and you all would have had the opportunity to meet her in our daily Google Meets. Please make Steph feel welcome. 

Reading

In Reading, this semester all students have been working on differentiated tasks, suited to their point of need. 

This term, in Ashley and Ceren’s Reading Groups, we have been focusing on 2 letters a week. We have explored what each letter looks like, in both uppercase and lowercase form. We have learned the sound that each letter makes through singing songs, making crafts, and playing fun games! We also completed picture sorts each week to help us consolidate our learning about the sounds that each letter makes and show how we can differentiate between more than one sound. CONGRATULATIONS for learning about all 26 letters of the alphabet!!

In Fiona, Amaal's and Stacey's Reading Groups, we have been learning about digraphs which are two letters that make one sound, for example, sh, ch, th. We have also been learning a new reading strategy and that is Chunky Monkey. Chunky Monkey is where we find small familiar words (chunks) within larger, unfamiliar words and use this to help us decode or read unknown words. We can use Chunky Monkey to decode words like catch, in this word I can see the small word cat and the digraph ch. When I blend them together the word is catch. We have also been making predictions and reading stories, then sequencing the events both orally and using pictures from the text. 

In our Guided Reading Sessions, we have been reading a range of stories, using the Eagle Eye, Lips the Fish, Stretchy Snake and Chunky Monkey strategies.  Please see the picture below for a strategy bookmark you can use to prompt your children when they are reading and come to an unknown word. 

Keep up the amazing work preps and continue to read each day over the school holidays!

Writing

In Writing, this term the preps have been focussing on using their letter, sound knowledge to construct sentences. The main focus has been on using capital letters, finger spaces and full stops correctly in their sentences. We have also looked at writing lists and simple procedures as well as writing our opinions by choosing things we prefer and explaining in writing why we prefer them. We have extended students’ knowledge with a focus on adding adjectives into their writing which allows them to provide detail, making it more interesting to read. Overall, our students have produced some amazing work this term and we are super proud of their achievements.

Maths

In Term 3, Argus Community focused on different areas of maths. We looked at topics such as positional language, times of the day, days of the week, months of the year, ordinal numbers, data, addition and base ten (counting). Students had a range of tasks to show their understanding of these different concepts using concrete materials such as objects from home, interactive activities and worksheets from their learning packs. Below are some of the examples of great work produced by Argus Community.

Inquiry

This term we have been learning all about the different types of weather and the 4 seasons. We have explored the concepts of…

• Types of weather (sunny, rainy, windy, cloudy, partly cloudy, stormy, snowy)
• 4 main seasons (summer, autumn, winter, and spring)
• Weather symbols
• Weather reports
• Clouds
• Storms

… through videos, songs, dances (in performing arts), crafts, and experiments. 

Check out the photos below of some amazing learning that has been happening in Inquiry this term. 

SEL

In SEL, the Argus Community have been learning about different emotions in a range of situations and how they can respond best. Students have also been learning about developing their confidence when presented with new and unfamiliar situations. They have been learning to embrace new learning experiences and relishes a challenge. Through a range of ‘Growth Mindset – Mojo’ clips online, students have been learning to not be deterred by setbacks and learn lessons from their mistakes. Below are some student samples of plans and robots they have made. They had to maintain a positive mindset and use trial and error if something did not necessarily go according to plan.

We have also been learning about making green choices at school. When we make a green choice, we may be given a green choice dot. Once we get 10 green choice dots we will receive a prize. Below is a picture of our Green Choice Chart and a list of green choices we can make. The Ants brainstormed some green choices they can make and have shared their ideas with us. 

Important notes to remember:

• Don’t forget to bring your hat to school each day
• Please bring a labeled drink bottle to school
• Please label all of your belongings.

Have a happy and safe holiday and we will see you in Term 4.