Foundation Term 1 Week 7

                      
                                   Term One Week 7


The time is flying by at an incredible rate! The children are an enthusiastic cohort who are developing a preparedness to give everything a go without fear of failing. Most children understand the class mantra "Making mistakes are proof that you are trying". They respond with a loud and enthusiastic "NO" when asked, "Does it matter if you make a mistake?" and with an equally passionate "YES" to the question "Do you have to try your best?"

With the Foundation students now in school full time - although Labour Day meant another short week - there have been some necessary timetable changes made to the specialist programs. Next week Library and Art will be on Tuesday and P.E. and Performing Arts will be on a Wednesday. Eventually all specialist classes, Art, P.E. and Performing Arts, will be held on a Wednesday. We will let you know when this happens.

Language

The children have continued to enjoy listening to and viewing a range of stories throughout the week. Stories are read for a purpose as well as purely for pleasure. The children particularly enjoy listening to stories whilst eating their lunch.

The children have continued to build their knowledge of sound/letter relationships, a skill which is fundamental to both reading and writing. Whilst some children are writing several sentences, other children have now developed the confidence to have a go at writing short, simple sentences and other children continue to develop their understanding of letters and sounds. This reflects the fact that all children are different and learn at different rates and in different ways. A child might want to write a simple sentence such as 'I like to play at the park' and it may be written as 'I lk t pa at the prc.'  We would celebrate such an amazing effort as it shows a developing understanding of sounds and the fundamentals of a sentence - capital letter, spaces and full stop. As mentioned above the children are encouraged to have a go and not be held back because of fear of making a mistake.

The sounds covered so far, and which are constantly revisited, are s,a,t,p,i,n,m,d,g,o,c,k,e and a range of high frequency words. The first colour (or whatever colour is appropriate to each child) of M100W will be sent home shortly to play games to help children connect with and remember these words in a meaningful way. Some children will receive a copy of the alphabet with pictures to play games with to help reinforce the sound each letter makes.

Classroom Apps

These apps are currently being used during Discovery time as well as during Word Study and Writing lessons. We will add to this list as we progress during the year. 

1. Phonics Match
2. Demografix - School Fonts


Maths

Last week we completed our unit on Patterns and this week we have begun a three week unit on Addition. The children are learning about Friends of 10 which are two numbers that add to make 10: 5 and 5, 4 and 6, 3 and 7, 2 and 8, 1 and 9 and 0 and 10. We will also introduce the students to Doubles next week e.g. 5 and 5 is 10 and 2 and 2 is 4 before moving on to simple addition stories using counters. For example, there were 3 teddies at the park and then 3 more arrived, how many altogether? Learning mental computation skills such as Friends of 10 and Doubles will be a feature of our Maths program for the entire year, mostly practised during Warm-ups at the beginning of our Maths lessons. 

Rotations with Grade 1/2s

We are looking forward to working with the Grade 1/2 classes when we commence our STEM, Language Studies & Library sessions next week. Stay tuned to hear and see all the excitement that is sure to unfold.

Inquiry/Wellbeing

The children have continued to develop an understanding of differences - no two children are exactly the same, no two families are exactly the same and that is exactly what makes MPPS such a wonderful community.

Over the remainder of the term the children will continue to look at the Golden Rule - treat others as you like to be treated -and further consolidate their understanding of others.

Buddies

For the past two weeks our Buddies program has involved the Grade 6 buddies interviewing our Preps. The children have really enjoyed learning more about each other and having giggles along the way. 

This week the Buddies will work together to develop an understanding of the National Day of Action against Bullying. The children will be watching a short 12 minute video called The Allen Adventure which is about an alien and children learning about differences and appropriate and kind behaviours. They will then be creating 'message chains' with important ideas that they learnt from the video.  


Parent/Teacher Interviews

Thank you so much for attending these valuable interviews. It was wonderful and so beneficial to hear more about your children.

Online Testing 

The English and Maths Online Testing has now been completed. The information garnered from this testing will further enable us to target our teaching at each child's point of need. 

Staff Car Park

Just a friendly reminder that the staff car park is for staff only. Please make sure you use another safe spot to park in the mornings and afternoons. Thank you. 

No Trash Tuesday and Thursday

Thank you to the parents who are ensuring their children have 'no trash' in their lunch boxes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Our Green Gang would be very proud of you! Lets keep trying to reduce the amount of plastics we use and bring to school!

Monday March 18 & 25: Yoga
Thursday March 21: Harmony Day Multi-age morning - please see Harmony Day notice that was sent home and Flexibuzz message. 
Monday April 1: School photos
Friday April 5: Last day of Term 1
Monday April 22: First day of Term 2

 

• Can we please ask that students only drink water at school and bring two fruit (fresh/raw) breaks each day

• We have a 'no nuts' rule for our classroom including peanut butter

• Being a 'healthy-eating school' we ask that lollies are not brought to school, instead kept as a nice treat for home time.

• If your child is having a birthday and you would like to bring something in for the class to help us celebrate the very special occasion, could you please just bring one item per child and remember our 'no nuts' rule

• Please return the 2019 Payment Summary Sheets to the office or the classroom as soon as possible.

• We always welcome parent/family helpers in the classroom. If you are interested, please ensure you provide a copy of your Working With Children Check to the office. More information can be found at: http://www.workingwithchildren.vic.gov.au/  

• Term 1 is a SunSmart term - please ensure your child has a MPPS wide brim hat for recess and lunchtimes. Students without hats will be asked to play in the shaded areas.

• Take Home Books - Could you please ensure your child is reading their Take Home Book every night and that you sign their Reading Journal. We also encourage you to continue to read picture/chapter books to your child on a daily basis to really instill a love of reading. Daily reading is essential to help your child improve their reading ability and oral language! Thank you for your support!

Discovery Time