Grade 1/2 Term 1 News
Welcome back to the 2017 school year to all our grade 1/2 children and families. We especially welcome new families beginning at St. Joseph’s. The children have come back to school after the holidays filled with enthusiasm for learning in their new classroom setting.This Junior School Newsletter will outline the learning intentions for our 1/2 classes in Term 1.
Religion
In grade 1/2, our focus for the first 4 weeks is on prayer. The children are learning how they can talk to God at any time in many forms of prayer. We have been establishing our classroom prayer routine and learning about special types of prayers. The children will share ways that God is with them and how they can share God’s love with others.
All prep-two classes will then move on to the topic of ‘Lent and Easter'. The children will learn about the significance of Lent and the events of the Passion of Jesus Christ. We will learn about the importance of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and celebrate with our grade three students.
Inquiry
Our first Inquiry unit focuses on creating a positive classroom culture. As a class, we will create and agree on expectations to keep us safe, connected and give us a sense of belonging. We will discuss how we can reach our full potential and that mistakes are an opportunity to grow. Later in the term we will be learning about Community and Relationships. We will look at what a community is and the different community groups we belong to.
Literacy
This term in Literacy Grade one and two students will be focusing on:
- text structure and language features of persuasive and recount texts
- descriptive writing and sequencing their ideas in order
- different words used within a text, such as nouns, verbs and adjectives
- improving spelling choices through developing graphemic and phonemic knowledge (Sound Waves)
- vocabulary by learning to read and write high frequency words
- using different punctuation correctly
- correct pencil grip, positioning of letters on the line and letter formation
- using a variety of strategies to engage in group and class discussions
- developing active listening skills and contributing ideas with peers and teachers
- developing questioning skills
Please continue to read with your child every day and discuss what is happening in the books you share. We encourage you to practise words that will be provided with the take home books to improve your child’s reading fluency and spelling.
Mathematics
This term in Mathematics we will focus on developing students’ understanding of place value and number sequences. We will practice counting forwards and backwards by 1s, 2s, 3s, 5s and 10s. Students’ will be introduced to reading, writing, representing and ordering of numbers to 100 (for Grade 1s) and to 1000 (for Grade 2s). We will explore seasons, months, 2D and 3D shapes. We will also identify the probability of certain events happening.
At home we encourage you to practice counting with your child in everyday activities; such as in the kitchen and out shopping.
We look forward to sharing a fantastic year of learning and growing with you in the junior school.
The Grade 1/2 Teaching Team
Kristian Thompson:
Kelli Ford:
Jenny Carpenter:
Hayley Roberts: