ST VINCENT DE PAULPRIMARY SCHOOL

Curriculum News Year Two

Welcome to Term Two 2014!

Religious Education

This term the students will be completing our unit of Easter by recapping the events of Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Year 2 students will attend an ANZAC Day service and during week 7 will participate in our Year Level class Mass.

During our unit ‘Alive in the Spirit’ we will focus onSaints and special people in our lives. The children will investigate who saints are and how they used their gifts to live as God wanted them to. We will focus on identifying the gifts that we have ourselves and how they help us lead a spirit filled life. This unit will tie in with the Confirmation celebration for the Year 6 students.

Maths

Number and Algebra

In the area of Addition, the students will reinforce their mental computation and addition strategies with facts up to 20.

  • Mentally compute and recall simple addition calculations up to 20.
  • Create and solve simple addition problems using a range of mental and written strategies (for example, doubles, near doubles, building to 10).

Measurement and Geometry

In the area of measurement, the students will look at location.

  • Interpret maps of familiar locations
  • Identify positions of key features using coordinates.

Statistics and Probability

In the area of probability, the students will identify activities and everyday events that involve chance using the language of likely, unlikely, certain or impossible.

Literacy

Writing

In writing the student will be introduced to Narratives. They will build on the structure they have worked with in previous years to collate/write a detailed plan of events and then transform this into a clear and entertaining narrative. We will be linking their writing to our history Inquiry unit so that by the end of the term they will produce an historical narrative.

Throughout this process the students will be encouraged to edit their work. This involves re-reading their writing to check that it makes sense, identifying spelling of unknown vocabulary and strengthening their sentence structure.

The students continue to write in their Writers’ Notebook and Daily Pages. Their Daily Pages will provide time for students to write freely about topics of interest to them.

This term we are also starting Words Their Way. This is an individualised spelling program that targets each student where they are at as shown through prior assessment.

Reading

The students will be exposed to focussed reading groups as identified through prior testing. These groups will highlight the areas of reading or comprehension that they are needing in order to read fluently, solve words independently and have full understanding of the text read. We will continue the Independent Reading Routine where they will choose ‘just right books’ from our Classroom Libraryand participate in sustained silent reading. Through a variety of reading comprehension strategies, e.g. Text to Text connections, Sketch to Stretch and Reading Responses, they will respond to their chosen texts.

Investigation Time

During Term Two we will be reinforcing and raising our classroom expectations and intentions during Investigation Time. All Investigation areas will be based upon the Year Two student’s interests and class subject areas. Before commencing an investigation, students will be expected to plan and outline their intentions by preparing an appropriate design brief or plan.

Our History Inquiry Unit, Our Local Area Then and Now, will concentrate on the changes to our local area over time. The excursions we have planned will help them develop an idea of what Melbourne and our local area were like in the past and the factors that have influenced their changes.

Physical Education

The students willbe

  • Continuingthe development oftheir co-ordination skills through the units of basketball, gymnastics and skipping.
  • Developing their skills of throwing, bouncing and catching, and participate in two Basketball skills sessions offered by Basketball Victoria.
  • Develop an understanding of the use of rules and procedures within a game to ensure safe play.
  • In Gymnastics students will be encouraged to develop their skills of balance, travelling movements and rolls, and combine a number of these movements into a routine
  • The students will participate in a variety of activities using short and long skipping ropes to develop and perform movement patterns and sequences individually and as part of a group.

Performing Arts

The student will be

  • Further developing Performing Arts skills in the elements of dance, drama and music
  • Developing skills in reading and performing simple beat and graphic rhythm notation using different a variety of percussion instruments
  • Experiencing different dance style and learning simple choreography routines
  • Planning, preparing and rehearsing for School Concert

Visual Arts

The student will be

  • Sharing and discussing their art and the art of others.
  • Use a variety of skills to create an image of a peacock. [painting, collage]
  • Exploring textiles and the qualities of a variety of materials.
  • Experiment with simple sewing techniques to create a piece of art using hessian and wool. For example: threading a needle, tying a knot, straight stitch and attaching a bead.

Italian

The students will

  • Be exposed to the language of the story of Questa è l’Italia, which focuses on statement sentences & adjectives to describe landmarks
  • Choose a landmark and write a sentence describing it

Critical Dates

Thursday 8th May - Closure Day

Friday 9th May - Mother’s Day Breakfast

Mother’s day manicures

Monday 12th May - Mother’s day manicures

Thursday 15th May – Excursion to Melbourne Museum

Friday 16th May – Year 2 Assembly/Mission Fete

Monday 19th May – Excursion - Blackbird River Cruise and Pipe Makers Museum

Wednesday 4th June – Year 2 Mass

Monday 9th June - Queen’s Birthday holiday

Friday 13th June - Casual Clothes Day

Additional Information

HOME READING!

It is important for the students to read a minimum of four times a week and make a record in their Reading Journals including the date, title and comment. Their Reading Journals will be checked on a Friday when the students change their take-home readers. Students will be given the opportunity to choose up to 4 take-home readers each week.

Students may read from the Take-Home Readers available at school or any library books or home books that they are currently reading at home. The main point is that they are reading aloud regularly and fluently.Please note as per the letter that was sent home in Term 1, the take home reading levels are according to their comprehension levels and not their decoding levels. It is vital that you are discussing the texts with your child and if you need another copy of the types of questions and discussions you could be having please don’t hesitate to ask.

Sports Uniform Days:

2 Blue-Monday and Tuesday

2 Gold-Tuesday and Thursday

For additional information please contact Kate, Michelle or Carolyn.