Wendy’s Group Week 9 Term 2
Many thanks to Susan, Olivia, Archana and Faith who took the group while I was unwell earlier this week. It’s good to be back on deck and feeling better!
The Ball last Friday night was a tremendous success. Congratulations to the Ball Committee for all their work organising things. They had food and drink, music, games and decorations all sorted out. Sido, Matt and Gina very kindly offered to be chaperones and Marty came to take photos… many thanks to them all. Of course, now the kids are talking about the next one…!!! One of the inevitabilities of having a group of such independent thinkers and competent organisers!
In English this week, the children have completed a comprehension task on the procedure for a parliamentary debate and we will be conducting a one such debate in class very soon. (Of course this is in part preparation for our trip to Canberra in Week 4 next term.) We have also been focusing on handwriting letter formation, writing stories and journal entries. I hope some of you have enjoyed reading the stories and persuasive writing written in time limits a few weeks ago. Here is the link again and I will add to the collection of children’s writing.
In Maths we are well into fractions and it is fabulous to see how much the children remember, how comfortable they are with the concepts and how quickly they catch on to new strategies and concepts. There is lots of terminology for the children to learn in this topic and, of course, it would be great if you could use the language of fractions at home whenever it’s appropriate, cutting up food or sharing things. The pronunciation of “th” as in “sixths” and “tenths” needs to be very clear and is still difficult for some of us.
Our Geography topic has given way somewhat to PIP presentations, which have been really fabulous. Topics as diverse as Amazon Rainforests, Pikmin, Fishing and France have both entertained and informed the audience. Some wonderful displays of presentation skills too, with palm cards being used to great effect, varied voices and enthusiasm for content. These will be finished next week.
Final numbers for our Canberra trip are now in and we looked at the itinerary this week. There’s a lot to look forward to!
Many thanks to Nate who is giving us some of his time on Monday mornings, teaching the children some DJ skills. Some of the children have very keen sense of rhythm and are taking in these skills very quickly and easily.
Also many thanks to Bec for her wonderful drama sessions each week this term. It is a much anticipated and enjoyed part of our Mondays!
I hope you all stay well and keep warm.
Love,
Wendy