Fiction and narrative books

We have been learning how to differentiate between fiction and non-fiction books. Non-fiction books contain true information and often have photographs or diagrams rather than illustrations and drawings. Non-fiction books often have a Contents and Index page too. Fiction books contain ‘made up’ and imagined stories, and narratives have at least one story problem that needs resolving by the end of the story. Fiction narratives also contain characters, at least one story setting and lots of events. We read the fiction book Huff and Puff and made event ladders of the story events. The beginning events are at the beginning of the ladder and as you climb the ladder you get more story events in order.dscf6009 dscf6011 dscf6012 dscf6013 dscf6014 dscf6015 dscf6016 dscf6017 dscf6018

Showbags at the Royal Adelaide Show

We have been talking about the Royal Adelaide Show. We looked at the show website and how to make a show bag wish list. It was great to see what you could get in each bag. We saw how much the bags cost and what the real value of the bags were. Some bags cost $25 but were worth  between $60 and $85 so they were great value for money if they were something we wanted.

dscf5998dscf5977dscf5979dscf5980dscf5981dscf5982dscf5983dscf5984dscf5985dscf5986dscf5987dscf5988dscf5989dscf5991dscf5992dscf5993dscf5994dscf5995dscf5996dscf5998

Geography – Community Spaces

In Geography we have been discussing how local communities have shared spaces such as parks, playgrounds, shops, schools and possibly cinemas and/or libraries and community halls. Our school community also has shared spaces that are used for different purposes – we identified many areas such as classrooms spaces, the library, canteen, kitchen and kitchen garden, office area, the oval, playground, castle playground and the Hall. Then the children chose an area and made a diorama which we will use to talk about how these different community spaces are used for different purposes. Some of the photos are side views and some are ‘top-down’ or ‘bird’s eye views’. Can you see the different views?

DSCF0212DSCF0205DSCF0211DSCF0207DSCF0203DSCF0199DSCF0205DSCF0202DSCF0201DSCF0196DSCF0188DSCF0187DSCF0185DSCF0184DSCF0182DSCF0179DSCF0178DSCF0167DSCF0163DSCF0161DSCF0160

Magic ‘e’

In phonics we have been learning about the Magic e or silent e, which lengthens the preceding vowel sound when it comes at the end of a word. This week’s spelling words are the a-e words and next week we will do the i-e words followed by the o-e and u-e words (all Magic ‘e’ words). The Magic ‘e’ changes the short vowel (letter sounds) into the long vowels (letter names).

3D shapes

In Mathematics we have been learning about 3D shapes and the difference between 2D and 3D shapes. 3D shapes have the extra dimension of ‘depth,’ while a 2D shape is a flat shape. A cube is a 3D shape and has 6 square faces. We made these “Jack in the Box’ cubes from the net of a cube. Some of our ‘Jack in the Boxes’ have footballs coming out of a box designed with football pictures and others have fish coming from underwater scenes. We had fun learning about cubes. Which views are side views? Can you find a photo that is a ‘top down view’ or ‘bird’s eye view?’

.DSCF0084 DSCF0085 DSCF0086 DSCF0087 DSCF0091 DSCF0092 DSCF0097 DSCF0098 DSCF0099 DSCF0104 DSCF0106 DSCF0107 DSCF0109 DSCF0110 DSCF0115 DSCF0116 DSCF0118 DSCF0122 DSCF0123 DSCF0126 DSCF0128 DSCF0131 DSCF0133 DSCF0135 DSCF0136 DSCF0137 DSCF0138

Winter Words

In English we have been talking about winter words with the focus on words that are nouns. Nouns are naming words – at this level, the names of any person, place, animal or thing. We then differentiated Proper Nouns as being the names of people and places and so they must have capital letters. Our Winter pictures have labels which are nouns.

DSCF5780     DSCF5764DSCF5777  DSCF5776    DSCF5768   DSCF5765   DSCF5779   DSCF5778  DSCF5775   DSCF5774   DSCF5771   DSCF5770    DSCF5763  DSCF5761

DSCF5773 DSCF5772 DSCF5767

Sounds

In Science we have been learning about sound – how sound waves are a vibration and travel through air, water and solids. We also learned about how sound waves look for high sounds and low sounds. In English we discussed ‘sound’ words (onomatopoeia) and made a short story or sentence to match our sound picture.

DSCF0011 DSCF0013 DSCF0015 DSCF0016 DSCF0017 DSCF0018 DSCF0019 DSCF0020 DSCF0021 DSCF0022 DSCF0023 DSCF0024 DSCF0025 DSCF0026 DSCF0027DSCF0028

RSPCA Empathy program

We had a visit from the RSPCA to discuss caring for pets. Its basis is quality Empathy between owner and animal and the responsibility for this is from the owner. It’s based on the same Golden Rule idea we use for the children – treat others as you would like them to treat you, but modified in concept to fit the animal/owner relationship. Five things to provide for your pet are  – Food, Water, Shelter, Friends and Exercise.

DSCF0001 DSCF0003 DSCF0005 DSCF0007 DSCF0010

 

Mathematics Problem Solving

In Mathematics we have been working on problem solving tasks. This work is more challenging because it means the children have to apply previously learned knowledge in new and varied situations so it requires some more advanced thinking.  It also involves some representations diagrammatically and good organisation to help with accurate counting

 

DSCF0021 DSCF0022 DSCF0023 DSCF0024 DSCF0025 DSCF0026 DSCF0026 DSCF0027 DSCF0028 DSCF0029 DSCF0030

 

Mathematics measurement – Time

In Mathematics the children have been learning about time – the duration of a minute/hour/day/year. Some of this has involved measuring what you can do in a second and compared to a minute or hour. Morning and afternoon and how it is divided by the mid-day and noon time has been discussed and events divided into morning and afternoon (events such as getting up, going to bed, going to school and having dinner).

DSCF0013 DSCF0014 DSCF0018 DSCF0019 DSCF0020  DSCF0010

DSCF0012DSCF0009

Mathematics in Week 6

Some mathematics work this week has centred around different number combinations with the numbers 7,8 9 and 10 and number line work. The children were also asked to try their own number lines which could go forward, backward, diagonally and from different starting points. The connection was made between number lines and History Timelines. In Time different activities were matched to different times and number fluency (no aids) from 1-100 was checked.

 

 

DSCF0013 DSCF0014 DSCF0015 DSCF0016

Ladybirds

In Reading we have been reading a big non-fiction book about Ladybirds. We were interested because we are finding lots of ladybirds at school – so we have been looking at their life cycle, their predators and their habitat. Some Reading comprehension work has focused around ladybirds and one section asked the children to draw a specific picture and add labels.

DSCF0001 DSCF0002

DSCF0003 DSCF0004 DSCF0005 DSCF0006 DSCF0007 DSCF0008
DSCF0002   DSCF0008

Hitting the ‘Dip”

These motivational videos show strategies for self-motivation when things become a bit difficult (hit the dip). The answer of course is to reflect on your thinking (this may involve talking to others, research etc), but the power for this is within you as a person.


Big Ideas – Growth Mindset

In class we have been discussing how how important it is to put effort into things we undertake – whether it is sport, schoolwork, different challenges and friendships. We know these skills underpin successful learning and many life skills, and these You Tube clips are ones we have used to present these ideas to the children. Skills for developing Growth Mindset include collaborating with others (to extend on ideas), persistence, making good effort and developing personal skills such as confidence and questioning. It promotes the concept that challenges and effort help develop neural pathways and connections, and neuroscience research shows intelligence is fluid not static – with the implication that using your brain and reasoning power promotes brain development.


Tens and Ones

We played the Tens and Ones game with a partner. We had to take turns and after we had ten Ones in the Ones column we had to bundle it into a group of ten. At the end of the game we had to add our Tens and Ones to find our score and see who had the highest number.

 

DSCF0025 DSCF0026 DSCF0027 DSCF0028 DSCF0029 DSCF0030 DSCF0031 DSCF0032 DSCF0033 DSCF0034 DSCF0035 DSCF0036 DSCF0037 DSCF0038 DSCF0039 DSCF0040 DSCF0041 DSCF0042 DSCF0043 DSCF0044 DSCF0045 DSCF0046 DSCF0047 DSCF0048 DSCF0049 DSCF0050

Road Safety Centre

Last week’s excursion to the Road Safety Centre was fun, educational and very informative. The children learned about how and where to cross roads safely (and at this age, with an adult), using the safety door of the car (the door by the footpath), safe places to play (not roads) and when wearing a bike helmet, don’t wear a cap too (it can make the helmet slide around). They also learned about the importance of being a safe passenger and not be distracting for the driver.  The children rode bikes around the roads specially built for the Road Safety school. Yes, it was very hard to keep to the left, watch the lights and stop for pedestrians all at the same time. Then the children had turns at being safe pedestrians and crossing the roads while others rode bikes.

SAPOL Road Safety Centre | Bonython Park

 

 

 

 

Mathematics – teen numbers

In mathematics we are consolidating the concept that numbers under 100 are made up of tens and ones. ‘Teen’ numbers can be problematic with reversals (such as 17 being written as 71) sometimes happening when there is no learning issue – just that it’s tricky to remember which numeral comes first. We use this Rap to help us remember.

Polygons

A polygon is any 2-dimensional shape formed with straight lines. Triangles, quadrilaterals, pentagons, and hexagons are all examples of polygons. The name tells you how many sides the shape has – for example, a triangle has three sides, and a quadrilateral has four sides.
 DSCF0001 DSCF0002 DSCF0003 DSCF0004 DSCF0005 DSCF0006 DSCF0007 DSCF0008 DSCF0009 DSCF0010 DSCF0011 DSCF0012 DSCF0013 DSCF0014 DSCF0015 DSCF0016 DSCF0017 DSCF0018 DSCF0019 DSCF0020 DSCF0021 DSCF0022 DSCF0023 DSCF0024 DSCF0025 DSCF0026 DSCF0027

Natural, Constructed and Managed Features

 

DSCF0006 DSCF0007 DSCF0008 DSCF0009 DSCF0011 DSCF0012 DSCF0013 DSCF0014 DSCF0015 DSCF0016 DSCF0017 DSCF0018 DSCF0019 DSCF0020 DSCF0021 DSCF0022 DSCF0023 DSCF0024 DSCF0026 DSCF0027 DSCF0028 DSCF0029

DSCF0030 DSCF0031

DSCF0032

 

In Geography we have been learning about Natural, Constructed and managed Features in our world. Natural features are not made by people and were in a place before people came (like rivers, mountains, soil, plants and animals). Constructed features are made by people (like roads, footpaths, buildings and signs), and were not always in that place. Managed features are those that are looked after by people (like parks, farms and planted forests). They are environments that have been changed by people.

The children had to make pictures that included at least one natural, constructed and managed feature. Our next step is to label and list these features.

Easter News

DSCF5020 DSCF5021 DSCF5022 DSCF5023 DSCF5024 DSCF5025 DSCF5026 DSCF5027 DSCF5028 DSCF5029 DSCF5030 DSCF5031 DSCF5032 DSCF5033 DSCF5034 DSCF5035 DSCF5036 DSCF5037 DSCF5038 DSCF5039 DSCF5040 DSCF5041 DSCF5042 DSCF5043

As part of our History Curriculum we look at celebrations in different countries and cultures. So far this year we have looked at Australia Day, birthdays and Easter. The children made Easter baskets and chicks, and we discussed how a chicken hatching from an egg is a symbol of new life and this has a comparison with Easter.

‘Whistleless Recounts

DSCF5001 DSCF5003 DSCF5004 DSCF5005 DSCF5006 DSCF5007 DSCF5008 DSCF5009 DSCF5010

A Recount is a genre in English Writing that is part of the Year One curriculum. It must have an introduction (that hopefully refers to who is in the story/where and when it happened/ and what happened).  The events then get written in order and a conclusion finishes off the work. We sequenced  seven events in picture form before we started.

Another part of our Mathematics work has been mathematics games – to develop number work and logic. We played Snakes and Ladders with one dice to reinforce the quick recognition of the dice dots (it’s called subitising and it means to intrinsically know that mathematical pattern without needing to count it). This is an important part of mathematics, and this same skill is used when cards are played. Later on we will use 2 dice for our games, and this is a great reinforcer of doubles addition and addition facts to 12. Board games with 2 dice are a great way to maximise number fact work for your child in the context of family fun.

20160311_16232620160311_162402

In Health we are talking about keeping safe as part of the Child Protection curriculum. We aim for a safe school and classroom environment and after playtimes we review safe play or social/play issues that arise. This encourages the children to talk about issues that might be bothering them and in a bigger picture, this same skill is a good life skill to develop. We made a ‘feelings puppet family’ – where we identified a range of feelings, such as happy, sad, confused, embarrassed, bored, excited, frustrated, angry, OK, loving, ashamed, scared and worried. With this more explicit language, the children are more able to explain and identify their feelings. Then the children had a chance to make a puppet play with their puppets.

DSCF5028 DSCF5029 DSCF5030 DSCF5031 DSCF5032 DSCF5033 DSCF5034 DSCF5035 DSCF5036 DSCF5037 DSCF5038 DSCF5041 DSCF5042 DSCF5043 DSCF5046 DSCF5047 DSCF5048 DSCF5049 DSCF5050 DSCF5051 DSCF5052 DSCF5053 DSCF5054 DSCF5055 DSCF5056 DSCF5057 DSCF5058 DSCF5059 DSCF5060 DSCF5061

We have been discussing good listening skills and social skills that involve turn taking and being aware of the feelings of others as we interact. We have made ‘noise meters’ where we can set the meter to the loudness level we want while we work (Whisper / Normal /Shout) or to any level in between. We discussed how it’s appropriate to shout at the football or soccer, or maybe outside, but not OK in class or to friends while we are talking. We will have our noise meters on our tables while we work. They are fun and useful.

20160211_19300720160211_19295920160211_19295020160211_19294120160211_19292820160211_19292320160211_19291620160211_19290620160211_19285520160211_19284620160211_19283720160211_19305220160211_19304420160211_19303420160211_19302020160211_19301320160211_19283220160211_192824

Big Numbers Song. We have been talking about patterns in numbers and doing lots of counting. After 100 there are more number patterns each time you add a zero – 100, then 1000, then 10,000….. Did you know zero is a number? Note to parents – this link will take you to the song, but the ad before the song may change. Just google “You Tube kids big numbers song” In Year One we are only needing to look at numbers to 100, but it’s fun to see a big visual number picture

big numbers song