Literacy

This term, we have been exploring recount writing. The children have been encouraged to include the who, what, where, when and why in their recounts. They have been thinking about their audience and using enough detail to provide the reader with adequate information. They have also focussed on capital letters at the start of sentences and full stops at the end.

Read Write Inc. sessions have occurred throughout the term. Within their groups, the children have been focusing on comprehension and fluency in their reading, spelling, sentence structure, recall of known sounds, and various writing genres, including letter-writing, stories, lists, and recounts.

Handwriting has also been practised throughout the term. The children are learning correct formation, sizing, and placement on lines. We will continue with this focus throughout Term 2.

Speaking and listening are continually developed. The children are being encouraged to use whole body listening, express themselves clearly, use a voice appropriate to the situation and share questions, ideas, and wonderings.

Numeracy

Throughout the term, the children have been developing their number skills through real-life experiences, mathematical games, intentional explicit teaching, and problem-solving. The focus has been on place value, counting patterns, numeral writing and making connections.

The children have also explored data collection and have represented this information in the form of a graph. The children have graphed data about themselves (e.g. favourite TV programs), their lunches, birthdays, and the colour of cars the staff drive. Graphs used have included picture graphs and column graphs. Data was collected through interviews and recorded on tallies.

The children have also inquired into the properties and characteristics of 2D and 3D shapes. They have created shape pictures, puzzled over differences, been on a shape walk around the school, and shared their understandings.

Inquiry

For the first seven weeks of the term, the children explored 'Who We Are'. The central idea for this unit was - People have roles and responsibilities when contributing to a learning community. The lines of inquiry were –

• Diversity within our learning community
• Consequences of actions on the learning community
• Our roles and responsibilities in contributing to our learning community

The children explored what makes them individuals and how they are all diverse and unique. Throughout the unit, the children inquired into their roles and responsibilities as a part of the learning community where they work and play. The children discussed the consequences of behaviours (positive and negative), created a classroom agreement, and recognised that they are a part of a diverse learning community in which they all have similar and different learning styles and needs. The children enjoyed highlighting these as they reflected and created their individual learning goals and displayed them in a diverse display of dreamcatchers.

We have just begun our 'How we express ourselves' unit. This inquiry will continue throughout the first four weeks of Term 2. This unit explores the central idea – Materials can be used and combined in different ways for creative expression. It is an inquiry into –

• How the observable properties of materials influence the way they are used
• The connection between technology and materials
• Ways we can use and combine materials to express ourselves creatively.

Discovery Day

The children have had a great start to the Discovery Day program for the year as they explored the different areas of Overport Park this term. It was such a new experience for many going off-site, exploring the diverse spaces, and making connections with group members before tackling the walk back to school. We have been so fortunate with the weather on these days, enjoying the glorious sunshine, which has also given the children the opportunity to practise their organisation skills as they get themselves ready for the day and monitor their personal needs during the morning.

In line with the Unit of Inquiry, the Year 1s and 2s have been looking at the roles and responsibilities they have on Discovery Day. They have had many rich discussions about how they keep safe while out on-site and what behaviours they expect from themselves and others to ensure we work well together and leave the spaces we visited in a respectful way for others to enjoy as well.

The children explored several different spaces and used their observation, mindfulness and writing skills to compare and contrast what they heard and saw. They climbed, whittled and built in the 'Pine Forest' and practised taking responsible risks. However, a favourite spot was the 'Cubby Spot', where they built shelters and teepees for animals or imaginary creatures and characters. Many problem-solving and collaborative skills were on display as they worked together to navigate the space and find solutions to ensure their shelters were strong and would last the week until their next visit.

Next term, students will be placed in their three smaller groups as they explore the new sites of the Granites, Grange and the Beach. We will send out more information regarding these groups at the start of Term 2, including an online roster to sign up as a parent helper.

Parent Helping

As we move forward with parent helpers this year, it is now a requirement of the Victorian Government that all 'volunteers that attend an education facility and that work in close proximity to children, students or staff (including parent helpers)' have received their third dose vaccination. There will be many opportunities for parents to help out throughout the year, especially on our Discovery Day program, so we ask that you ensure you have sent through to Kerrie a current copy of your Working with Children Check and a copy of your vaccination certificate.

Wishing you all an enjoyable holiday break and a happy Easter!

LIANE & LEXI Year 1 and 2 Teachers