Class News

Year Two Class News

Year Two has begun as an exciting year full of new experiences and opportunities for the children!

In Religious Education, the children have been learning about nature and how we can look after the wonderful world that God gave us. The Year Two children have marveled at how God created different things in nature and how these things bring humans so much joy. They have explored the creation around our school and thought about how Jesus has taught people to look after God’s world. Soon, the children will revise the Sacrament of Baptism and discover how, through this Sacrament of Initiation, people become members of God’s family. Later in the term, the Year Two children will follow Jesus’ journey during Lent and look at how He died so that we could enter Heaven. They will look at how Catholics can pray, fast and give during this season.

In Mathematics, the children will focus on the number system as they explore place value of numbers to the thousands. The children have been focusing on reading and writing numbers and understanding that a digit in one place represents ten times what it represents in the place to its right. Later in the term they will use their knowledge of addition and subtraction to recognise the relationship between the two and build strong mental strategies. The language of chance will also be a focus. 

During English, the children will read for pleasure and information. This term, we are focusing on the following reading comprehension strategies; main idea, predicting and finding facts and details. We have exposed the children to various texts structures in particular Recounts and Narratives. Students have participated in various language experiences which support our writing and ideas. They have been writing recounts on a tour of the school, cooking gingerbread men, making jelly and planting broccoli. 

In our Humanities & Social Sciences (HASS) Programme the Year Twos have been discovering the importance of places in our community. The children will look at how different places in our community have changed over time and how these places have special meanings to different people. The children are eagerly looking forward to visiting Optus Stadium in Week Five where they will discover how the stadium’s surrounds have changed over time.  

The children have been refining their painting skills in Art as they have learnt about different shades of colour. After reading ‘The Dot’ by Peter Reynolds, they created their own ‘dot’ using water colours. They will continue to practise these skills throughout the term as they paint natural landscapes and places in our community.

In Science, Mr Capolingua will support the children to learn about the importance of water in our community. The children have been discovering different sources of water and investigating how living creatures need water to survive.

In Health this term, the Year Twos will be looking at ways they can stay healthy and active.  We will explore how children can be active in adopting healthy eating habits, exercise, meditation and other areas that promote health and wellbeing. The children will learn new terms such as inclusion and exclusion and the feelings associated with these. They will explore strategies to deal with incidents that may occur in the playground and classroom using stories, drama and vocabulary that will help them identify and help, not only themselves, but their peers also.  Developing empathy is an important step in the children’s development.

In Music, Miss Condipodero is eager to work with the children to help them develop their musical knowledge. They will extend their understanding of the elements of music as they develop their aural skills as well as recognise and discriminate between rhythm and beat. 

In Physical Education, and Class Sport the children will focus on crossing the midline and their balancing skills. These gross motor skills will also assist in their cognitive development and are crucial for healthy development.  

Technology is integrated into each learning area. In Year Two we will focus on developing the children’s individual technology skills by using applications that will enhance their presentations, allow them to discover new content and be able to record their understandings.  The Year Two Children have all explored the school’s iPad expectations and understand the role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in our classroom.

Year Five Class News

We have had a busy and enjoyable start to Year Five and the children are excited about every engaging and informative learning experience planned for them this term while they #ExpectGreatThings of themselves and their classmates.

In Religious Education, the children are learning about the Church as a community and how members of God’s family are called to love in this community. The children have explored how communities gather together, provide for the needs of their people and have rules. They have learnt how the early Church gathered and how Jesus chose the first leaders of the Church. Later in the term, the students will follow the life of Jesus during the Lenten period as they prepare for Easter.

In English, the Year Five students have started the year by learning different ways to add detail to their writing; such as adjectives, adverbs, synonyms and interesting vocabulary.  The children will write a variety of creative narratives using their own themes and ideas on given stimuli. Later in the term, we will learn about the structure and language features of persuasive texts. The children will write texts that include persuasive writing techniques to craft highly persuasive ideas and effectively contribute to their position on the topic. 

A focus in the guided reading program is extending children’s comprehension skills and developing each student’s understanding of the comprehension strategies. The children will continue to focus on ways to better comprehend texts and use a variety of reading strategies to interpret and understand the message and intent of the author.

In Mathematics, the students have been developing their motivation and confidence by exploring the place value of numbers up to the millions. They have focused on developing their mathematical vocabulary and understanding what each of the words mean. They will be developing their ability to choose and apply appropriate mental addition strategies and solve written addition problems using the vertical algorithm. Later in the term, they will be learning about applying rules to continue and create number patterns. To guide the students with their learning, they have been accessing a Microsoft Sway with explanations and examples on the mathematical concepts they have been taught.

The children have begun to explore the artwork of Sandra Silberzweig and the artistic techniques she uses. They will then design, draw and create their own Sandra Silberzweig inspired portraits incorporating artistic elements. We will be creating artwork for a green screen background for their documentary on bushfires and floods.

In Humanities and Social Science the students will learn about bushfires and floods and the major impact they have on people, animals and the environment. The children will present their learning in a documentary explaining: the causes of bushfires and floods, their environmental and community impacts, an action plan if there is a bushfire or flood and suggestions of how these disasters can be prevented. Celebrating living within a democratic country, the Year Five children will define the key features of the electoral process in Australia: such as compulsory voting, secret ballot and preferential voting.

In Technologies, the children have been learning about digital citizenship and how to be productive users of technology. They are creating their own digital toolkits using a variety of applications. The Year Five children are lucky to participate in an incursion where they can build an “oil and gas reservoir” using bread, vegemite and sprinkles. In teams, they then drill exploration wells with a straw and assess the cores to determine if they hit oil.

Our Science learning will be focused towards identifying the planets of the solar system and comparing how long they take to orbit the sun. We will model the relative size of and distance between Earth, other planets in the solar system and the sun on the oval using enlarged planets! Finally, we aim to recognise the role of the sun as a provider of energy for the Earth.

During Health this term, the Year Five children will be focussing on physical health. Students will develop knowledge, understanding and skills in relation to sun safety and safety on wheels. The students will investigate ultraviolet radiation and will use the knowledge gained to promote sun safety. Students will also explore cycling rules, risks and benefits of cycling and will develop plans to optimise safety while riding.

In Year Five we are eager to continue to learn, grow and take pride in everything we do.

Year Six News

At Mass last week, we were presented with our Leadership badges.  This was made very special as Fr Greg blessed them during the Mass for us.  We all went forward and stood at the front of the sanctuary and said our ‘Leadership Prayer’.  It was a special feeling and we are honoured to have been given this opportunity to be leaders of our school. 

We are almost finished preparing our letters which we are sending to Mr Hille about which Ministry we would like to be in.  Mr Hille will have a lot of reading to do very soon!  

Sports News

Swimming Lessons

This week the Year 5 and Year 6 children commenced their School Swimming Lessons.

The children started their first session with stroke development and perfecting their freestyle, breaststroke and backstroke for the Faction Swimming Carnival. After swimming for fifty minutes the children had a well-deserved break. After half an hour, the children were back in the water taking part in time trials, then finishing off with some fun races with the instructors! The Year 5 and 6 children have been simply amazing in the water and are now very excited about the Swimming Carnival!

The Year 4 children have been waiting patiently for their turn and are very enthusiastic to have started their swimming lessons today.

Squad Training

As you are aware the Infant Jesus School Swimming Carnival is scheduled for Thursday 4 April. In preparation for the Swimming Carnival, we will be offering swimming training for children in Year 4 to Year 6.  The squad training will take place at Bayswater Waves and is only open to those children who are competent swimmers: children must be able to swim 100m continuously.

SWIMMING SQUAD TRAINING DETAILS:

Date:            Commencing Week 4, every Friday morning in Term 1.

Venue:          Bayswater Waves Swimming Pool

Time:           7:30am – 8:10am.     

Supervising Teacher: Mrs Lauren Jenkins plus one teacher (depending on numbers).

• Students will need to wear their swimwear and bring goggles, cap and a towel (caps can be provided).
• Students will need to be dropped off by a parent/guardian at Bayswater Waves ready to commence training at 7:30am.
• Students will need to be picked up at Bayswater Waves at 8:15am.
• There is a spectator fee of $2.20.
• There will be a child fee of $3.20 (discounted school rate).

Information will be distributed to the Year 4 – Year 6 children, and has been placed on the school app (Connected). In order for Bayswater Waves to organise lanes, we require you to please complete and return this form to the classroom teacher by Friday, 22 February so we are ready to commence for Friday, Week 4.

Lauren Jenkins
Physical Education Teacher