Senior School Weeks 1,2 & 3

Senior School Weeks 1,2 & 3

CONNECT WITH
THE SENIOR SCHOOL

Learning in the Senior School has begun with a buzz of excitement as many new faces become accustomed to our environment. In welcoming the new Grade 5 cohort as they begin to understand what is expected of a senior student, we have been focusing on building relationships with each other and learning the new language of ‘Play is the Way’- a practical methodology for teaching social and emotional learning using guided play, classroom activities and an empowering language.
Our Senior school leaders were presented with their badges at last Friday's assembly. Looking forward to a great year of moving forward with your teams within the grade 6 cohort. Congratulations!

Learning and Teaching 
 

READING:
We are establishing our reading groups and our learning intention is to frame Higher-Order questions while reading. Students are experiencing the various reading activities we focus on at the senior level. All students have had opportunities to borrow books from the library and there are many times throughout the day the students can catch up on their reading.

WRITING:
Our learning intention has been to focus on the structure of a narrative and their features. Students began their 'Big Talk' and first 'Big Write' session this week. They have all showed enthusiasm and produced some excellent pieces of writing.
 

MATHS: 
Our focus has been on place value and improving the speed of our times tables. All students have experienced various maths activities and games to improve their skills.

 INQUIRY: 
The students will be exploring the three dimensions of health: Social; Physical; Mental/Emotional. The focus being on how do we keep physically and socially healthy? Looking at and identifying all characteristics of health.

 

COMMUNICATION

At Mentone Park Primary School we have many forms of communication. Newsletters from all levels are fortnightly and whole school in the alternate week. One to one interviews are held twice a year (Feb and June) but please feel free to make an appointment with your class teacher when necessary. We also use tiqbiz  regularly to keep parents notified of upcoming events. 

IMPORTANT DATES COMING UP:

Friday 17th Feb: Swimming Carnival at Mentone Grammar
Monday 20th Feb: YOGA begins
Monday 20th Feb to Friday 24th Feb: Beach Swimming
Tuesday 21st Feb to Wed 1st March: SOMERS camp
Wednesday 22nd Feb: Meet the Teacher!
Thursday 2nd March: District swimming

 

SOME CAPTURED HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE WEEKS!

 

Grade 5/6 Term 4 Week 7 & 8

Grade 5/6 Term 4 Week 7 & 8

CONNECT WITH
THE SENIOR SCHOOL


Learning and Teaching 

READING: The students are continuing with their focus on interpreting texts and have been completing independent reading activities, covering all the reading strategies. We have been exploring 'Dogonews'  a program that enables students to practise their comprehension skills through real-life situations. 

WRITING: The students have been adding to their Writer's Notebooks and enjoying free choice writing throughout the week. They have completed a Big Write assessment this week, focusing on a narrative with the prompt 'Missing'.

MATHS:  We have begun our unit of work on 'Money' exploring real life situations and working out problems and budgets for spending. They have also been completing timed times tables challenges. We are happy to accept more catalogues from home.

INQUIRY: 

The Immigration Museum was a wealth of information for all students. Reading the stories from so many different immigrants as they made their way to Australia. Students have begun exploring their own personal stories. There is no expectation for any work to be completed at home, although students may want to find out their family history to add to their projects.

Achievement Awards
5/6L
Lucas- For showing his leadership skills when working in a team.

5/6S
Natalia- For displaying her curiosity and interest while exploring the Immigration Museum.
Sonia- For extending her interest and researching the many stories from our visit to the Immigration Museum.

5/6R
Amy- For demonstrating her curiosity in the stories we read at the Immigration Museum. 



                                                   

Grade 5/6 Term 4 Week 3 & 4

Grade 5/6 Term 4 Week 3 & 4

CONNECT WITH
THE SENIOR SCHOOL


Learning and Teaching 

READING: During our guided reading sessions, the students have been using their inferential skills to make meaning of silent short films. They have thoroughly enjoyed the discussions 

WRITING: We have started writing newspaper reports during the Big Write sessions. Students have had the choice to write either fictional or non-fictional reports and have begun to publish these for our class newspaper.  

MATHS: Students have continued working on their Time Priority Standards and 'I can...' statements at their own pace.

INQUIRY: 
Students have been learning about Australian history from the 40's- 60's over the past two weeks. The 'My Place' episodes have sparked interesting conversations about post-war migration.

 Bike Ed... All checked and ready to go!

Time for Maths!

Grade 5/6 Term 4 Week 1 & 2

Grade 5/6 Term 4 Week 1 & 2

CONNECT WITH YEAR 5/6

NEWS
Welcome back to an exciting and busy term 4!
Bike Ed starts next week so please ensure the permission form and bike checklist are signed and returned. Students are required to bring a bike every Friday for the duration of the Bike Ed Program.

Learning and Teaching 

READING: The students have been using the library to gather their favourite books for our class collection. We have been exploring various reading strategies through our whole class novel and also during daily individual reading time. 

WRITING: Many students wrote captivating narratives during 'Big Write' this week. The prompt encouraged students to use their imagination and apply their knowledge of descriptive language to set the scene. They edited their writing pieces using the VCOP program.

MATHS: We have started a new unit on time this week. The students have completed a pre-unit assessment and will be exploring various concepts such as converting 12 hour to 24 hour time, worded problem solving, understanding timetables and revising digital and analogue time. 

INQUIRY: This week the students celebrated and presented their Inquiry projects from Term 3. We were very impressed with how the groups collected their information, collaborated with their groups and presented their research using ICT. During the presentations, students wandered around to each group and discovered new facts about each country. 
We have introduced our new Inquiry unit which is all about Australian History. Students will be learning about post-war migration in Australia and using their own family history to make personal links to the topic.
We are planning an excursion to further explore the concepts of our Inquiry unit. 
                                          
STOLEN BIKE
Sadly, one of our students had his bike stolen after hours from the bike shed at the end of last term. The Brand of the Bike is GT and model is Aggressor. It is coloured black with red and silver detail. It had a numberplate on the back that said 'jimmie' and a BBB light on the front. If you see, or believe you have seen this bike around, please inform the school office and/or local police.  Model of bike pictured below. Thank you. 

  

Photos from our Inquiry Celebration

Grade 5/6 Term 3 Week 9 & 10

Grade 5/6 Term 3 Week 9 & 10

CONNECT WITH YEAR 5/6

NEWS
There are icy poles on sale to raise money for the Grade 6 Graduation each Tuesday at lunchtime.
Message for Grade 6 Parents
If there are parents who would like to be involved in the planning committee for the graduation, please contact Julie Challinor via mobile or email:mobile: 0425 764 425
email: Julie.challinor@duluxgroup.com.au

Learning and Teaching 

READING: The students have been revising all of the reading strategies and select appropriate strategies to deepen their understanding of the text. 

WRITING: The writing focus has been on the structure and features of a narrative. Students have been achieving their writing goals through the weekly 'Big Write.'They have also enjoyed using VCOP games to improve their vocabulary.

MATHS: We have continued the maths unit 'Fractions, Decimals and Percentages.' Students have been becoming increasingly confident with ordering, converting and placing all elements on a number line.

INQUIRY: And they're off! The groups have shown determination, organisation and enthusiasm with their inquiry projects. Each group has been incorporating ICT, using programs and apps such as iMovie, Canva, Book Creator, Piktochart and Prezi.


Achievement Awards
5/6S

Alannah- For her incredible Big Write.
Bill- For his inspiring and thought provoking piece of writing.

5/6LOlivia- For demonstrating excellence in our maths unit of fractions, decimals and percentages.

Amy- For her positive attitude during spelling tasks. What a champion!

5/6R

Harley- For using WOW words during a Big Write session.

Production Practice and Set Design