Jess and Susan’s Class: Term 1 Week 3
Dear Parents,
This week, we’ve really got stuck into our “What Matters” English unit. The children have been learning how to formulate an argument (not a fight) in order to persuade another to their point of view. We had fun with some simple debating games so the children could practice how to develop their opinion in order to be more persuasive. When writing their arguments, children learnt to start their paragraphs with topic sentences followed by a series of arguments. There were a range of issues argued including that “We should have a class pet”, “Donuts should be banned”, “Guns should be banned” and “My family should get a fourth cat”.
In Maths we’ve continued working with place value and noting how moving numbers to the left and right in the place value houses, increases and decreases their value by multiples of ten. The children have also been introduced to decimal numbers, specifically into the tenths columns. This will support them as they begin work in measuring length later this term. Other maths sessions this week focused on the properties of 3D objects. The children enjoyed constructing their own 3D objects using printed paper nets or Magna-tiles, exploring faces, edges and vertices in a hands-on way. Some children even
made a 3D shield volcano.
So far this term, our PIP and reading sessions have been dedicated to our geography and science topics. We are continuing to research, discuss credible sources, look at ways to organise our information, and investigate questions that arise. Some interesting tangents have been explored along the way — apparently “Poo Mountain” has been one topic of conversation that has made its way home! This week, the session was heavy going for some children, and we are still working out a happy medium that works for us all. As the term progresses, our possible PIP topics are beginning to broaden — watch this space!
On Tuesday, it was great to get wet and have some fun at Lane Cove Pool. The children enjoyed posing for photos connected to our safety discussions around our swimming excursions. Hopefully one makes the newsletter cut for you!
Today has been a very dynamic day of play, and the classroom is looking like a delightful mess of creativity – we have cubbies, craft, dress-up clothes and drawings spread across every surface. With the end of the day nearly upon us, it’s probably time to pack up and finish off with a chapter of our class book, The Wild Robot.
And don’t forget it’s Carnivale on Wednesday – bold and bright!
Warm regards,
Jess and Susan