The Sunroom - 8s & 9s

Mathematical Thinking

This week we consolidated our understanding of the concept of division . The children explored the connection between representing equations with concrete materials and in the abstract form, as number sentences.

We also set ourselves the task of authenticating a statistic found on Wikipedia. The children are very aware of the importance of the validity of information sourced on the Internet and often remind us that Wikipedia is considered unreliable. We set about collecting a large pool of data to see how it stacked up against the statistic that 70% of car colours are in the grey scale.

Literacy

Idioms are expressions that help us describe a situation in a more creative and visual manner. They are both cultural and historical and broaden our understanding of language both verbal and written. We had a go at using a number of them in short snippets of written expression.

Spelling: Lost Consonants

It really is interesting how much power one letter holds! As a spelling investigation, we looked closely at how the meaning of a sentence can change with just the removal of one critical letter.

“Errrr, what sound is that?” 

We went in search of words that contain the ‘ear’ grapheme as in:

Making Bath Bombs was a fun home based science investigation, looking at how substances can change their state due to chemical reactions. Ultimately, a very rewarding and relaxing investigation! 

Michael Price and Sophie Dall'Ava

8s & 9s classroom teachers

sophia.dall'ava@preshil.vic.edu.au michael.price@preshil.vic.edu.au