News

**Term 2 Newsletter** Welcome to Term 2. This Term will be very busy with assessments and Reports. Parent/Teacher interviews will be conducted during the last week of Term 2. During Term 2 our Integrated Unit will be about ‘Fabulous Fabrics & Puppets’. It is a Science and Technology based unit so we will be looking at the properties of natural and manmade fibres, and also using the technology process of designing, creating and evaluating a product. Students will complete activities and projects to develop an understanding of the properties of textiles, what they are used for, and their origins and history. Using a variety of sources (such as books, newspapers, magazines, the school intranet and the internet) students will research information and interpret it. This contributes to the development of communication skills, the ability to research an unfamiliar topic and builds on students’ understanding of their physical world. Following the Grade 4 team philosophy of keeping learning ‘real’ students will create physical models to help them understand the technology process. They will relate what they have learnt to what they see around them. A home project will be set and students will be able to use their own interests and expertise to complete the brief. Our Mathematics program will focus on but is not limited to: **Number Facts:** students are expected to have automaticity of all the times tables and number facts to at least 20. This term we have a particular focus on the Times Tables especially 3x, 4x, 5x and 6x. We expect that each student will be able to recite the times table and also be able to answer with automaticity. § whole number problems of addition and subtraction involving numbers up to 999 § multiplication by single digits (using recall of multiplication tables) and multiples and powers of ten (for example, 5 × 100, 5 × 70 ) § division by a single-digit divisor (based on inverse relations in multiplication tables). § devise and use algorithms for the addition and subtraction of numbers to two decimal places, including situations involving money Our English program will focus on but is not limited to: ** Reading ** : Revise Comprehension Strategies: Explicit Teaching: : Question-Answer Relationships: “Right There” – Literal questions “Think and Search” – Infer the answer from the text “On My Own” – use your own knowledge to help formulate an answer “Author and You” – formulate your own ideas or opinions. What is the author telling me? ** Writing ** : ** Narratives: ** This term we will be revising the specific writing skills listed below.  show, don’t tell  vivid verbs  noticeable nouns  active nouns  lift a line  establishing a setting ||  revealing a  character  suspense  3-4 paragraphs  leads  endings ||  use punctuation to support meaning, including exclamation marks and quotation marks, and accurately use full stops, commas and question marks.  write a variety of simple and compound sentences and use verb tenses correctly. || The students will be working on puppet plays so that they can use the puppets designed and produced in their Art lessons to present a show to their classmates. We will also be writing Explanations, Reports and Procedures
 * Numbers, Counting and Numeration: **
 * use place value to determine the size and order of whole numbers to tens of thousands, and decimals to hundredths
 * skip count forwards and backwards, from various starting points using multiples of 2, 3, 4, 5, 10 and 100
 * compute with numbers up to 30 using all four operations
 * provide automatic recall of multiplication facts for 3x, 4x, 5, 6x tables
 * devise and use written methods for:
 * Space: **
 * recognise and describe the directions of lines as vertical, horizontal or diagonal
 * recognise angles are the result of rotation of lines with a common end-point
 * recognise and describe polygons
 * recognise and name common three-dimensional shapes such as spheres, prisms and pyramids
 * locate and identify places on maps and diagrams
 * Measurement Chance and Data: **
 * estimate and measure length, area, and time using appropriate instruments
 * read linear scales (for example, tape measures) and circular scales (for example, bathroom scales) in measurement contexts
 * read digital time displays and analogue clock times at five-minute intervals
 * describe the fairness of events in qualitative terms
 * predicting, questioning, making inferences, retelling and summarising, and choosing essential details.
 * fix-up strategies such as self-monitoring, rereading, close reading, thinking aloud, and questioning the author.
 * Handwriting: ** During Year 4 students are expected to :
 * develop a fluent and legible style of Victorian Modern Cursive
 * consolidate pencil grip, hand movements, correct letter formation and joining, including touch joins, and correct letter size, slope and spacing
 * work towards gaining a pen licence by the end of Term 3
 * develop confidence, accuracy and speed in keyboard skills.
 * Spelling: **
 * Rigby Spelling Pathways
 * Topic words
 * Personal words
 * Speaking and Listening: **
 * Puppet plays
 * Table Topics: up to one minute
 * eliminating umms and aahs
 * accurately retell key information from texts


 * Research:**
 * research skills and summarising techniques.
 * looking at more than one Internet site for information.
 * evaluating the validity of Internet sites.
 * using newspapers, magazines and books as sources of information.
 * acknowledging sources in preparation of writing bibliographies

**District Cross Country:** 30th April (for selected students) **Mothers’ Day Stall:** 6th May **Queen’s Birthday:** 14th June
 * Program Achieve** – You Can Do It Foundation this term is Getting Along
 * Dates to Remember: **
 * Report Writing Day: 14th May **


 * Parent Teacher Interviews:** June 22nd Tues / Thurs 24th
 * Gail Werrett for the Grade 4 Team **