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GRADES PREP & ONE

In Term 4 the students will be continuing with the work on the weather.

They will be learning the names of the months and which seasons fall in

which months in both Australia and Italy.

In Term 4 the students will be continuing the work on the weather. They

will learn about when the seasons are in Australia and in Italy. They will

also be covering clothing worn during particular seasons.

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GRADES TWO & THREE

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GRADES FOUR & FIVE

In Term 4 the students will be starting a unit on clothing which will revise

work related to the weather as well.

• Please encourage your children to get onto languages on line to review

vocabulary and structures.

• The website is www.education.vic.gov.au/languagesonline

ITALIANO

GRADE 6

In Term 4 the students will be starting a unit on clothing which will

incorporate work from the unit on the weather.

• Please encourage your children to get onto languages on line in order

to review vocabulary and structures.

• The website is www.education.vic.gov.au/languagesonline

Each day the weather affects our work and leisure activities. The weather

influences our decisions about what to wear and the things we do. The accurate

prediction of weather patterns and interpretation of weather forecasts are very

important to our economy and lifestyle.

The Weather in my world unit investigates students’ beliefs and understandings

about the air, Sun and wind. Through investigations, students will increase their

knowledge of how the characteristics of weather affect their daily lives.

Prep/1 – Weather in my World

2/3 - Waterworks

Water is essential to life. As humans, we not only drink water, we also use it for

cooking, hygiene, recreation and agriculture. Australia is a dry continent with an

expanding population, and how we use water has become increasingly important.

Water is a precious resource.

The Water works unit provides opportunities for students to develop an

understanding of, and appreciation for, a precious natural resource. Through

investigations, students explore how water is used, where water comes from and

how to use it responsibly.

Humans have always looked with wonder at the movement of celestial bodies in the

sky. We have used its rhythms to determine our days, our months and our years. Not

only have we determined time by these patterns, we learned to navigate using their

predictable motions. Scientists have used observations of the day and night sky to

understand our place in Space.

The Earth’s place in Space unit provides opportunities for students to explore how

the patterns in the sky relate to days, months and years. Students’ understanding of

how observation and models can be used to shape ideas and understandings is

developed through hands-on activities and student-planned investigations. Students

also investigate the elements of our Solar System and Earth’s position within it.

4/5 – Earth’s Place in Space

Major earthquakes cause dramatic changes to the Earth’s surface. Strong earthquakes

can affect millions of lives by causing buildings to collapse, destroying roadways and

bridges and affecting basic necessities such as electricity and water supply. Fortunately,

the majority of earthquakes are barely noticed. It is still not possible to accurately

predict where and when an earthquake will happen. However, greater understanding of

their causes helps scientists estimate the locations and likelihood of future damaging

earthquakes.

The Earthquake explorers provides opportunities for students to develop an

understanding of the causes of earthquakes and how they change the Earth’s surface.

Through investigations, students explore earthquake magnitude data from Australia and

neighbouring countries, drawing conclusions about patterns in the data. This links with

their Inquiry unit ‘Data and Decisions’

6 – Earthquake Explorers

VISUAL ART 4-6

Our focus this term will be to explore construction and modelling skills. The

children will learn different building and joining techniques using a variety of

media: cardboard, paper, foil, foam, wood, wire. They will employ a variety

of joining techniques for construction, selecting appropriate materials to suit

specific purposes. They will plan and develop a piece (including evaluating

a design, making changes and deciding on a final structure) and present it

to an audience.

Students will also explore modelling and display an understanding of the

techniques of hand building (the additive, subtractive, pinch, slab and coil

methods). They will employ a variety of joining techniques, work on a piece,

refine it and present it to an audience.

Term 4 is also a revision of all the skills the children have

previously been taught throughout the year. Students

experiment with, practice and use the art elements of shape,

colour, line, pattern and texture in areas of drawing, printing,

threads and textiles, collage and modelling to create Christmas

art works.

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P-3 Term 4 Overview

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P-1Literacy

Reading

In term four, the literacy program will cover a range of reading

strategies which will build students’ skills in understanding texts and

reading for enjoyment. Some specific strategies to build

comprehension will be, identifying different parts of the text - plot,

characters, genre and themes, asking questions before, during and

after reading and identifying the author’s purpose. Students will also

develop their fluency through reading and re-reading familiar and

guided reading texts and reading with a partner or older buddy.

Learning to read the words accurately will be supported by strategies

such as, looking at the picture, skipping or trading a word and finding

patterns in words.

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P-1Literacy

Writing

In Writing, students will explore the features and styles of a range

of genres including transactional texts (letters, invitations, etc.),

information reports, descriptive and persuasive writing. They will

learn about strategies to build their spelling knowledge including

blends (br, tr, sl, fl, sp, etc.) and digraphs (ow, ew, aw, sh, ch, th,

etc.). Students will also develop their understanding of grammar

through word study, such as word endings (play, played, playing)

and continue to improve their handwriting each lesson and through

targeted weekly practice.

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P-1Maths

This term, students will consolidate their confidence to trust the

count with numbers to 20 and beyond and further develop their

counting skills and place value understandings. They will explore

capacity and mass using both formal and informal units of

measurement, explore 3 dimensional objects and extend their

understanding and application of positional language.

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P-1Inquiry and SEL

Unit of Inquiry- ‘Great and Small’

This term, students will learn about different animals including what they need

to survive, their various habitats and common features. They will explore how

and why we should care for animals and their environments. Students will

create a model of an animal or an animal they have chosen to imagine and

create.

Social and Emotional Learning – ‘Gender Identity and Positive Gender

Relations’

Over Term 4 we will acknowledge, explore and celebrate diverse identities. We

will learn about what makes us different and what makes us the same. We will

learn about tolerance. We will challenge the traditional roles of boys and girls

by looking at traditional stories. We will investigate how boys and girls can

respect each other.

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2/3Literacy

Reading

In term four, the literacy program will cover a range of reading

strategies which will build students’ skills in understanding texts and

reading for enjoyment. Some specific strategies to build

comprehension will be, identifying different parts of the text - plot,

characters, genre and themes, asking questions before, during and

after reading and identifying the author’s purpose. Students in Year

2/3 will be encouraged and supported to expand their vocabulary

by using online and in-print dictionaries and thesauruses and using

clues to solve unknown words.

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2/3Literacy

Writing

In Writing, students will explore the features and styles of a range of

genres including transactional texts (letters, invitations, etc.),

explanation texts, descriptive and persuasive writing. They will develop

their understanding of spelling strategies including short and long

vowel sounds, breaking words into syllables, word origins, double

letters (when adding ed and ing) and homophones. Students will

explore and use grammar and punctuation to suit their writing, such as

contractions (couldn’t, won’t, what’s, etc.), changing words with

suffixes (adding ‘ly’ to make adverbs) and using conjunctions (e.g.

when, if, because) to join ideas. They will continue to improve their

handwriting through targeted practice and feedback.

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2/3Maths

By the end of Term 4, students will measure, order and compare

objects using familiar metric units of mass and capacity and use

grams and kilograms, and litres and millilitres. They will create and

interpret simple grid maps to show position and pathways, and

explore ways to transform shapes through flips, slides and turns

and investigate symmetry.

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2/3Inquiry and SEL

Unit of Inquiry – ‘Through Generations’

Students will use their knowledge of the lives of people in the past to participate in

conversations with their parents and grandparents. They will pose interesting questions

and think of follow-up questions. Students will use language to describe events in the

past, present, and future and provide reasons for their conclusions. They will develop

an interest in different ways that people tell stories and an appreciation of the

importance of place to different cultures.

Social and Emotional Learning – ‘Gender Identity and Positive Gender Relations’

Over Term 4 we will acknowledge, explore and celebrate diverse identities. We will

learn about what makes us different and what makes us the same. We will learn about

tolerance. We will challenge the traditional roles of boys and girls by looking at

traditional stories. We will investigate how boys and girls can respect each other.

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P-3P.E.

This term students will be exploring cricket, football and dance.

They will develop skills such as batting grip and stance, and learn

the correct technique for kicking and passing a football.

All students in Prep-3 will be developing their skills, techniques,

and water safety knowledge during our swimming program in

Weeks 9 and 10.

Years 4-6 Term 4

Newsletter

We welcome you to Term 4 2017 and look forward to working

with your child this term.

Literacy

Reading• In Reading the students will be looking at a number

of different reading strategies that relate to their writing tasks. They will look at identifying and using figurative language, making inferences and visualising text as they read. They will read a variety of genres including transactional texts and poetry. The students will then look at poetry, with a focus on song lyrics. They will look at lyrics by influential artists such as Bob Dylan, The Beatles and Led Zeppelin, alongside contemporary artists such as Justin Bieber and Katy Perry. We will also look at poets such as William Shakespeare by way of comparison.

Writing• In Writing students will be looking at the

narrative genre during the beginning of the term. They will then move into a unit on transactional texts during which the Year 5s will write their school captain speeches and the Year 4s will write letters to their Prep buddies. The Year 6s will focus on writing for their new high schools. The students will then focus on writing poetry, looking at rhyming patterns and wordplay.

Numeracy

Year 4/5• The topics covered this term include

statistics and probability, multiplication and division, geometric reasoning, time, location and transformation. The activities and practice differs from group to group according to each child’s learning needs. Students will also continue to work on improving their recall of times tables.

Year 6• The topics covered this term will be

statistics and probability, measuring and solving problems with angles and revising some of the more complex topics covered throughout the year. We will also be looking at engineering and technology through STEM based activities, such as building bridges, towers and other things.

Inquiry

• Year 4/5 – Our Island Home

• The students will be engaged in the connections of the Geographical world as they learn about different environments, climate zones and natural vegetation. They will learn about Australia's neighbouring countries and about changes caused by adding and removing heat, and heat conductivity. The students will work in groups as they consider the location, climate, and values of their own artificial island nation.

• Year 6 - Data and Decisions

• The students will consider the difference between needs and wants, the types of resources that we have, and how we use them, and the nature and meaning of work. They will be engaged in economics and business as they work in groups to develop a business plan that they will present to younger students in their school.

Special Events: Year 4/5

• Students in Years 4/5 will attend The Moonee Valley YMCA Gymnastics

Club cnr. Cooper and Spencer St, Essendon on the following dates: Friday

10th November, 17tht November, 24th November, 1st December, 8th

December. More information will be sent later in term 4.

Special Events: Year 6

• Footsteps Dance Program: The Year 6 students will take part in a dance program in the lead up to their graduation evening. They will perform a series of dances during the event.

• Graduation: The most important event in the Year 6 calendar. The event will be held at Firenze Receptions on Tuesday 19th December. Students and parents are invited to celebrate the students’ time at primary school and their transition to high school.

• Funfields Excursion: The Funfields excursion will be held on the 21st December. The students will have a day of fun in the sun, riding waterslides and spending time with friends as they celebrate their time as primary school students.

• MILO CRICKET: Students will be taking part in 4 weeks of cricket session

• More information and permission slips for the above-mentioned events will be sent to families during the remainder of the term.

YEAR 4-5 SEL

• HELP SEEKING

• Children can experience all kinds of challenges as they grow and develop.

The help-seeking behaviours of children are fundamental to their mental

health and wellbeing. Encouraging and fostering help-seeking behaviours is

one way to improve mental health and wellbeing [48]. It is important to work

with students to make sure they are aware about help- seeking avenues and

are confident to seek help from an appropriate source when needed.

YEAR 6 SEL

• POSITIVE RELATIONS

• Students identify and describe personal attributes important in developing resilience

• Students recognise and appreciate the uniqueness of all people

• Students are able to explain how individual, social and cultural differences may increase vulnerability to stereotypes

• Students identify characteristics of respectful relationships

• Students contribute to groups and teams suggesting improvements for methods used in groups and investigations

• Students identify causes and effects of conflict and explain different strategies to diffuse or resolve conflict situations