Mount Pleasant Road Primary School & Kindergarten

Inquiry Centre

Curriculum

The countdown is well and truly happening for our return to the classroom on Thursday! The Inquiry Centre team are so excited to see our students and look forward to spending the first half of the week preparing together. We know that there will be lots of different feelings about our return and are committed to prioritising student wellbeing in this time. A video is linked below with what to expect for the first day back at school and we will also spend time discussing routines, daily schedules and how we are feeling about returning in our morning Google Meets. We are so excited! 

 

Last week in Writing, students focused on building their knowledge of codes and spelling rules for ‘qu’ and challenged themselves to investigate different words with this sound. It was fantastic to see creativity and humour in the funny sentences and stories that students developed using the words they discovered. In Reading, students explored different versions of ‘The Three Little Pigs’ and completed a venn diagram highlighting the similarities and differences between the texts. We focused on noticing the characters, setting and how the authors changed different parts of the plot. Students will continue working on this reading strategy in the coming weeks!

 

In Maths, we spent time reviewing our understanding of addition and subtraction by playing ‘Four in a Row’ and practising using vertical sums, number lines and place value to solve each problem. A major focus was for students to use their reasoning skills to explain their strategy using as many key words as possible. This is a fantastic way for students to consolidate their understanding of foundational concepts. Students also began investigating balanced equations where we were reminded that equals means ‘the same on both sides’. They chose whether to make equations using coloured teddy bears or to sort number sentences into true or false. It was challenging at first but a great opportunity to use perseverance! 

 

As you may have seen on our school Instagram stories, the Inquiry Centre loves to celebrate Thankful Thursday by using our character strength of gratitude. It has been so encouraging and uplifting to hear students name so many different things in these times including family, friends, school, nature, Google Meet and even one insightful comment from a student who ‘is grateful that there is enough of everything for everybody to share.’ We are grateful for our wonderful MPRPS community and being able to return to school! In the coming weeks, we hope that parents and carers can support students in noticing ‘mini-wins’ and ‘mini-joys’ in each day. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to your classroom teacher if you have any questions.

Have a wonderful week,

Miss Glen, Mrs Gill, Miss Honan, Mr Jenkins, Mrs Seadon, Miss Tillotson and Miss Wang

Reminders 

  • Individual assessments will be completed online Monday - Wednesday. Please ensure that you have booked an appointment with your classroom teacher.
  • We can’t wait to see you on Thursday! Don’t forget your orange folder ready to collect new readers.

Student Voice

  • My favourite thing this week was the addition and subtraction games - Neve M
  • I'm excited to have fun at school - Troy M
  • I'm excited to see my friends - Princess T
  • I liked completing the venn diagrams and I look forward to seeing my friends - Taj F
  • I'm excited to do some writing - Aakriti A
  • I'm looking forward to the new playground! - Jeremy K
  • I'm looking forward to our new Science topic - Rishi U

Pupil of the Week

1/2G: Ally W - 

For sharing your understanding of procedures when writing your detailed instructions for how to make ice cream in a bag. Great to see you using your love of learning and persistence in your online writing tasks. Keep up the amazing work, Ally! 

 

1/2H: Christopher D - 

For demonstrating life-long learning when discussing your learning goals for Term 4. It was wonderful to hear how you want to keep improving your skills and the strategies you will use. Fantastic effort Chris! 

 

1/2J: Nicole S - 

For demonstrating life long learning when completing all of your Remote Learning tasks. You always make sure to listen to any feedback you get and use it to improve your work. Nice job, Nicole!

 

1/2ST: Jana A - 

For consistently putting effort into all learning tasks. It is fantastic to see you use perseverance and spend time reflecting on your learning. You’ve done an amazing job Jana! 

 

1/2W: Sophie A - 

For demonstrating judgement and a love of learning when creating your learning goals. You thought deeply about how you would like to challenge and extend yourself in Reading, Writing, Math and Wellbeing this term. Great work and keep it up, Sophie! 

 

1/2Y: Lucas O - 

For demonstrating a love of learning and curiosity when comparing and contrasting the texts ‘The three little pigs’ and ‘The three Ninja Pigs’. You worked hard to compare the characters and events in the text. Keep up the great work Lucas!