Squire Term 2

Welcome back to Term 2!

Term 1 proved to be a positive start to the year. All students have settled in well to class and school routines. Thank you to all parents who attended the parent-teacher interviews. These meetings are a valuable opportunity for sharing both the successes and concerns about our students.

Expectations

The focus for our class rules is: safe, respectful, helpful learners. Students have responded well to these and the positive outcomes in both behaviour and learning are encouraging so far.

Equipment

Each student needs basic equipment in a small pencil case please. At the very least, students must have a pencil, eraser and sharpener. A ruler, glue-stick, scissors, some coloured pencils would be useful. Having this basic equipment saves time and prevents arguments during work time about broken or lost items used by other students.

Homework

This term there will be a lot more computer related tasks. We have established a class blog and students will be encouraged to share class related tasks or respond to items posted on the blog. They will also be required to use their school email account to communicate or receive information. Both of these are safe and secure sites. The blogs and the email accounts can be blocked or suspended if used inappropriately. Students are aware of the school’s internet policy. If parents need more information, or have any concerns, please make an appointment to see me to further clarify any issues.

Literacy Focus:

Many of the literacy tasks this term will be related to a major history project, “It Didn’t Always Look Like This”. Students will engage in reading from a wide range of research material, such as copies of original documents, maps, interview scripts and diaries from the early settler period. Students will write biographies of significant white and Aboriginal personalities linked to our local area. To develop specific talking and listening skills, we will be recording our own interviews and making radio/TV shows using computer technology.

Specific sentence writing skills, grammar and spelling rules will be introduced on Monday and practised throughout the week as well as for homework. Specific reading strategies will focus on locating information, summarizing and sequencing events.

Spelling Mastery will continue between 11.30am -12.00pm every day, Mon-Thurs.

Mathematics:

This term’s focus will be 3D shapes, measuring length, area, multiplication and division. There will be a whole-school focus on explicitly teaching the language of mathematics. This will include strategies needed for problem-solving questions containing visual elements and a lot of written text.

COGS (Connected Outcomes Groups) HSIE/ CAPA/ SC & TECH

Topic: “It Didn’t Always Look Like This”

This unit continues from the First Fleet project started in term 1. Areas to be explored:

- case study on a famous Aboriginal and early White Settler.

- publishing a multi-media journal

- study of the changes in the Penrith Lakes area

PSSA and school sport:

Class sports will continue on Tuesday afternoons with Mr Oddy. PSSA Term 2 sports are Tiger Tag and Soccer. Non- PSSA School sport will be on Fridays 12-1pm.

NAPLAN 2011 for Years 3 and 5

Although important, this testing period should not be stressful for the students. Please be supportive and encourage your child to do their best, but do not exert undue pressure on them. There is no special preparation or practice needed. The tests are designed to assess skills already being taught in school and give diagnostic information about each child’s strengths and weaknesses. The dates for each test are:

Tuesday, 10^th May: Language Conventions and Writing Test

Wednesday, 11^th May: Reading Test

Thursday, 12^th May: Numeracy Test

Other Activities:

• Peer Support:All students (K-6) will be involved in activities led by Year Six Leaders. The theme is “Happy Schools”, exploring the topic of anti-bullying and how we can make Meadowbank a happy school for all.

• Multicultural Public Speaking Competition: This is a school-wide event. Topics for all stages will appear in the newsletter. Our class competition will be in week 5. Two class winners go forward to represent Squire in the school-wide event later this term.
• Details of other events this term, such as school disco, cross country events, chess club inter-school competition and University Tests can be found in the weekly school newsletter.
• School Reports are scheduled for the last week of term, but more information will be available closer to the time.

Thank you for your continuing support.

Sitinder Bahia

Assistant Principal