Junior School Newsletter Term 2 Weeks 1 and 2

Junior School Newsletter: Term 2, Weeks 1 and 2

CONNECT WITH THE JUNIOR SCHOOL

Learning and Teaching

Welcome to Term 2! It was wonderful to see the smiling faces of enthusiastic children enter the classrooms ready to greet their friends (and teachers) and share their holiday adventures whether that was chilling out at home, going to the movies to see Boss Baby or camping!

It has been so satisfying to see the children settle back into the school routines we established last term.

To assist your child's academic progress, please continue to listen to them read every night and  practise their sound/spelling words. Playing games such as Fish, I Spy, Bingo, Pairs, Memory, using the relevant Magic 100 Words, sounds or spelling blend/digraphs will help your child consolidate their understanding. Discussing everyday maths' problems is also vital to their mathematical understanding and development e.g. cooking, estimating how many pieces of cutlery are required for setting the table, speed signs, house numbers etc.

IN THE JUNIOR SCHOOL WE ARE LEARNING TO: (WALT)...

Writing:  

Week 1 and 2:

Foundation:

• Further consolidate the student's knowledge of all upper and lower case letters and the most common sound that each letter represents

• Further develop the student's understanding of punctuation including appropriate use of capital letters for names and the start of a sentence and full stops

• Further consolidate the student's understanding of writing and their knowledge of sounds and high frequency words to have a go at constructing a simple sentence

Grade 1:

• Further consolidate creating short imaginative and informative recounts that show emerging use of appropriate text structure, grammar, word choice, spelling and punctuation

Grade 2:

• Further create short imaginative, informative recounts using growing knowledge of text structures and language features for audiences

Spelling: 

Week 1: 

Foundation: revision

Grade 1: revision

Grade 2: revision

Week 2: 

Foundation: 't' as in tiger

Grade 1: 'k' as in kitten
Grade 2: 'ea' as in bread

Reading: 

Week 1 and 2:
Foundation:

• Further consolidate our understanding that sentences are key units for expressing ideas 
• Further develop our understanding that texts are made up of words and groups of words that make meaning  
• Further consolidate our knowledge of all upper and lower case letters and the most common sound that each letter represents
• Further develop our understanding of blending sounds associated with letters when reading consonant-vowel-consonant words 

Grade 1:

• Understand how to decode one and two syllable words with common letter patterns

Grade 2: 

• Understand how and why suffixes are added to words

Maths: 

Week 1 and 2:

Foundation:
Week 1:

•  Answer yes, no questions to collect information to create a simple pictograph and interpret the information

Week 2:

• Counting to and from 20 from any starting point. Connect number names, numerals and quantities.

Grade 1: 

 Week 1:

• Identify, record and analyse data based on familiar events

Week 2:

• Counting to and from 100 by 1s from any starting point and skip count by 2s, 5s and 10s

Grade 2: 
Week 1:

• Identify, record and analyse data based on familiar events.

Week 2:

• Investigate number sequences increasing and decreasing by 2s, 3s, 5s and 10s from any starting point.

INQUIRY - ANZAC DAY:
Understand the significance of Anzac Day and how we commemorate it as a community.

UNIT OF STUDY - WELLBEING:

Pursue Your Personal Best No Matter Who You Work With  

ICT: 

Identify and explore digital systems (hardware and software components) for a purpose.

GOLDEN RULE:
The students have been learning about the 'Golden Rule'. This is 'Treat Others As You Would Like To Be Treated'.

IMPORTANT NOTICES

Working With Children Check

All parents/guardians, visitors & volunteers to the school MUST sign in & out of the school and display their WWCC in a lanyard, which is available at the school office. The Department of Education requires any person involved in an activity where children may be present to have a current WWCC or have supplied proof that they have applied for a WWCC with the Department of Justice. All schools are required to comply with the Working with Children Act 2005. Volunteers are expected to carry the WWCC card on their person at all times when working or volunteering at the school or during school related activities. There is no fee for this check. Apply now by visiting:  www.workingwithchildren.vic.gov.au 

The Junior School encourage and appreciate Parent helpers. Please see your child's teacher if you are able to assist.

Lost Property:

We are collecting a lot of lunch and snack boxes which have been left outside and in the corridors. If you are looking for any lost items we are housing them for collection in the labelled pigeon hole near Miss Arentz's room.

Art Smocks

Mrs Unwin has requested that all students please have an art smock at school. There is no need to purchase one if you don't already have one as an old shirt or thick t-shirt will do the job. We would rather not send students home wearing their artistic pursuits!

IMPORTANT DATES

8th & 17th May - Prep Fire Education
9th May - Mother's Day Stall
12th June - Queen's Birthday Holiday
23rd May - Italian Day
23rd  June - Excursion to Science Works
30th June - Last Day of Term

WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING IN THE JUNIOR SCHOOL

The Junior School students developed an understanding of Anzac Day through participation in a number of different activities. These activities included reflecting on the story of Simpson and Duffy through discussion and drawings, making poppies, viewing the stories of 'Anzac Teddy' and 'The Anzac Puppy' and making wreaths. We were also fortunate to have Mrs Unwin's daughter, Krystal, who is in the Australian Army, come and talk to the children. She wore her Ceremonial Uniform but brought her other camouflage gear which the children looked at and some even tried on. Krystal also showed the children how to stand to attention and salute.

The students were also very respectful during the Anzac Day service which was conducted by the student leaders. Representatives from each grade laid a class- made wreath or posy under the flagpole.