Year 2
Literacy
Reading:
During our start up program in Reading, the Grade 2 students discussed and identified the routines and expectations of our reading lessons. Our lessons focused on establishing expectations for independent reading, selecting Just Right Texts, participating in buddy reading opportunities, setting up and taking care of our classroom library and understanding and appreciating varied reading interests. We also have established structures and routines for conferencing, teacher focus groups, and Purposeful Reading Tasks (PRT).
The Grade 2 students then moved onto reading, processing and comprehending a wide range of high quality mentor texts. Our lessons explicitly focused on letter-sound relationships (phonics and phonological awareness), strategies to assist in working out unknown words, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. The comprehension strategies we explicitly taught this term were Activating Prior Knowledge, Predicting and Summarising. We also revised the basic features of fiction and non-fiction texts.
Writing:
To begin the year in Writing, the Grade 2 students identified and demonstrated the routines and expectations of our writing lessons. We discussed and modelled how to become independent writers by following our writing structure. We focused on what materials we need ready such as our Writer’s Notebook and writing journal, strategies in the classroom to help us spell words such as the word wall, personal dictionaries and what we can do when we get writer’s block. We established setting up our writing centre and shared ideas of what other purposeful activities we can do when we finish our tasks early.
The Grade 2 students participated in a unit on narratives which is a made up story. In this unit, the students were exposed to a range of activities to unpack and identify the components of a narrative and its structure through a range of reimagined fairy tales, e.g. Jack and the Beanstalk. From there, the students began to plan their own narratives - they started with a beginning that includes the characters and setting, middle that includes a problem and the events and end that includes resolution. Students worked through the writing process to plan, draft, revise, edit and publish their own narratives. Within their narratives they also needed to ensure that they included language and grammar features such as adjectives, punctuation and time connectives.
Numeracy:
Grade 2 students familiarised themselves with the tools and equipment they use to support their learning in mathematics sessions. Students also spent time learning the routines and expectations of our mathematics sessions, including how to work productively with a ‘maths mate’.Our first mathematics unit focussed on Time. Students revised previous learning which included days of the week, months of the year, seasons, o’clock and half-past time, before looking at reading quarter-to and quarter-past time on analogue clock faces. This focus will be ongoing throughout the year.
Following Time, students continued to consolidate their counting skills. They investigated a range of counting patterns and continue to develop fluency with these patterns. Students were given counting goals which they will practice with a ‘maths mate’ throughout the year.
The last few weeks and until the end of Term 1, students will focus on Place Value. Students will be working towards recognising, reading and writing numbers to 1000.
Inquiry
The grade one and two cohort have had a great start to inquiry learning this term. I have enjoyed getting to know the grade 1 students and continue to build on positive relationships established with grade two students.
In Inquiry learning we began by developing skills that all good learners have such as, growth mindset, curiosity and that mistakes matter. We developed our growth mindset by exploring differences between fixed vs. growth mindset looks like through dual self-portraits and adding the “power of yet” to our vocabulary. Further to this, we introduced the students to the analogy that good learners go into a learning pit and that through resilience and growth mindset we can make learning deeply personal and memorable.
We spent the remainder of the term exploring how we can belong safely to our school and classroom. The learning experiences aimed to create a number of artistic activities that engaged students to develop an expanded emotional vocabulary and how we can all belong safely in a classroom team. We developed a team culture by integrating STEM challenges that provided a wonderful opportunity for students to practice to become collaborative and inclusive members of our classroom.
What a great start to the year, well done grade 1 and 2!
Science
During Term 1, the Grade 2 students have explored the Biological Science strand of Science through investigating the life stages of humans, and the changes that we will go through as we grow older; we have carried out activities, watched video clips and have listened to songs to support our learning. Life cycles have been a focus this term, with students investigating the life cycles of humans, animals and insects, and exploring how different living things grow, change and reproduce.
Our Biological Science strand will continue into the start of Term 2 where students continue to learn and investigate how living things grow and change, with a focus on animals and their offspring.
Well done for an amazing Term 2 in Science Grade 2s!
Art
During Term 2 in Art, the Year 2s have practised various skills and techniques to do with drawing, manipulating paper and painting. Each student made and illustrated an accordion book with pictures that express something important about them.
The students showed lots of imagination in experimenting with collage, inspired by a range of artists, and in creating paper plate hats, masks & accessories, inspired by South African artist Zanele Muholi. We explored how and why artists might incorporate colour in art, layering coloured cellophane to create our own versions of stained glass windows and making exuberant paintings.
The Year 2s demonstrated strong knowledge and consideration of colour theory in mixing primary colours to make secondary colours, with paintbrushes and different types of sponges. Another fun activity involved acting out artworks, two favourite student impersonations being that of Mary Cassatt’s ‘Little Girl in a Blue Armchair’ and Edvard Munch’s ‘The Scream’! Well done on an excellent start to Art Year 2s!
PE
This term the grade 2 students have been working on developing their throwing and catching skills during their PE lessons. This comes under the umbrella topic of fundamental motor skills and students are learning about how these skills can not only be used in sport but in activities they complete each day. We are continuing to develop correct technique when throwing and catching and trying to expand the range of which students can throw an object like a ball or bean bag and hit a target.
All these skill development activities are designed to assist students to continue to build their hand-eye coordination and allow them to flourish through PE during their primary school years. Grade 2 students show great enthusiasm for PE this term and made good progress throughout, we look forward to continued improvement and development during term 2. Well done Grade 2’s!
LOTE (Chinese)
In term 1, Grades 2 started with Chinese New Year. We learned how to pronounce the Year of the tiger and some best wishes that Chinese people normally spoke during Chinese New Year.
We have learned about the culture behind Chinese New year, such as when Chinese people celebrate it, why people celebrate it and what people normally do during Chinese New Year. After this, we learned how to pronounce a bunch of fruit names in Chinese, which included the King and Queen of the fruit (Durian and Mangosteen) and some other most common fruits that you can purchase from the supermarket.
Now we are learning about how to pronounce and write the Chinese zodiac animal. The photos below are about the work we did related to Chinese New Year — tiger masks, and ‘fruit salad’ while we were learning fruit names in Chinese.