Sunday, 22 July 2012

Term 3 Newsletter



Dear Parents and Students,
Welcome back to Term III. We hope that you and your families had a restful holiday. Once again we look forward to a very busy and productive term.

Some information and dates for your diaries:
WEEK 2
Tues, July 24  Parent / Teacher interviews
Wed July 25th Maths Olympiad 3
Fri, July 27  Pizza Day for Cambodia $5 a slice. Pre order day before. Peer support training day 1 for Year 6.
Sat, July 28  NSW Band Festival
 WEEK 3
Mon July 30th Peer Support Training Day 2 Year 6
Wed, August 1  Mufti Day and Busking for Yipirinya School in Alice Springs
Thurs, August 2  Netball photos
Fri, August 3 School Census Day
Sat August 4th Ordination of Deacon Epili
WEEK 4
Wed, August 8 Mary MacKillop Feast Day-whole school mass 9.15am
Thurs, August 9  Leadership for Reconciliation Trip 
Sun, August 12  Yr 6 Family Mass at 6pm – Sacred Heart Church 
WEEK 5
Mon, August 13  Staff Development Day (No school for students)
Wed, August 15  Feast of the Assumption –whole school mass 9.15am
Thurs August 16 Ms O’Connor at Religion Retreat
Fri, August 17  Ms O’Connor at Religion Retreat and Netball Clinic for girls Yr 4-6 @ Rawson Park
WEEK 6
Mon, August 20  Book Week.
Parade of Champions (day to be decided)
Wed, August 22  Maths Olympiad 4 and Caring for Cambodia Concert 6.30pm wine and cheese. Start at 7pm.
WEEK 7
Mon, August 27  Book Week – Guest Speaker:  9.20 & 11.15am
Tue, August 28  Catholic School Netball Carnival
Fri, August 31  Father’s Day Breakfast and excursion to Homebush for Science unit.
WEEK 9
Wed August 12 Maths Olympiad 5
WEEK 10
Fri Sept 21 Holidays!! and Ms O'Connor leaves for Cambodia

The following will give you a brief overview of the units of work to be studied in the Key Learning Areas in Term 3.
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

THE BIBLE : OUR SACRED STORY

This unit explores the Bible as our Sacred Scriptures. Students review the great story of our tradition: its significant people and events. The unit also briefly introduces the students to the formation of the Bible. 
WE CELEBRATE THE SACRAMENTS
This unit continues the exploration of sacraments in 5.7. Students will explore the sacraments of Marriage and Anointing of the Sick. They will examine the Church as a sacrament and study various vocations as a response to our baptismal call.

The students will be bringing their textbooks “To Know, Worship and Love” home, to complete activities as part of their weekly homework. Students will also require a bible to use at home.

ENGLISH

The English program is separated into three areas – Talking and Listening; Reading; Writing.
Below is an overview for Term 3.

Talking and Listening

·      The students will be involved in debating within the classroom and some will then be chosen as part of a team competing in the Eastern Region Competition which will take place on Tuesday evenings in weeks 4 and 5. Every child participates in class debates during this time.
·      The children will also listen and summarise from presentations such as relevant topical videos, DVDs and programs such as ‘Behind the News.’
Reading   

The literary text chosen this term is “Storm Boy,” by Colin Thiele. This famous Australian narrative will provide opportunities to apply higher order thinking skills and respond in various ways. There will be a particular focus on inferential thinking and in-depth responses.

We will continue to work on the CARS (Comprehensive Assessment of Reading Strategies) and STARS (Strategies to Achieve Reading Success) during class time.

We will begin the term with Guided Reading with a focus on Media Literacy and inferential comprehension skills relating to our HSIE/Science unit. The children will be encouraged to use environmental print, various forms of media, the school library and municipal libraries to broaden their reading experiences.

Writing

There will be many opportunities for writing this Term. Our text types this Term will be integrated with our HSIE  and Science Units. The students will be writing Narrative, Discussion, Procedure and Explanation Texts.
A Handwriting book has been provided for each child in the school. The students will use this to consolidate The N.S.W Foundation Handwriting style. All students should be writing in cursive Foundation Handwriting using black or blue ball-point pens. Liquid paper is not to be used at school or in the homework books.

  • Dictation sessions will enable students to improve their listening, handwriting and punctuation skills.

MATHEMATICS
The Key Learning Areas of Mathematics are separated into five content strands:
·      Number- mental skills, addition, subtraction, multiplication & division
·      Space- Angles, 2D and 3D shapes.
·      Patterns and Algebra- explaining the activities generated by children.
·      Data-collection explanation of data for graphs.
·      Measurement - Volume and Capacity/Mass
·      Calculating and comparing mass, volume and capacity of a variety of objects/ containers and converting units i.e. Millilitres to litres, grams to tonnes etc.
·      For speed and accuracy students need to practise their mental skills in addition, subtraction, division and multiplication particularly their tables.
·      Students will be given weekly homework using Studyladder. If students are unable to access Studyladder at home please inform class teachers through the student diary.
Year 6 will continue working on problem solving skills for Maths Olympiad.

SCIENCE / H.S.I.E

The unit for Term III is “Infinite Potential” This unit looks at renewable/non-renewable energy resources, how these resources can be used effectively and how humans impact positively and negatively on the environment. The goal is to identify and apply processes involved in manipulating, using and changing the form of energy. We are connecting our students with like minded peers in neighbouring schools through a safe social networking website for learning ‘Edmodo’ – www.edmodo.com. Your child has a log in and if you choose you may also join as a parent. The students will engage in many scientific experiments involving electricity, solar power, and water conservation. They will also engage in several higher order thinking activities culminating in an effective design for an environmentally friendly school.

VISUAL ARTS

Our art objectives this term will once again focus on the creation of individual artworks. The children will explore through their own artworks the unique techniques and effects employed by artists such as Tom Roberts, Pablo Picasso.

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

Mr Gosper will continue to develop student’s skills in games and sport this term. Please ensure students are wearing appropriate P.E/gym uniform.
Year 6 will have their sport lessons Wednesdays and Martial Arts on Thursdays.

MUSIC

Music will occur for one hour per fortnight for each class with our teacher Ms Gale.  Music will be on Fridays.

ITALIAN

The students will continue to have Italian lessons with Signor James every week. 6 Blue have their Italian class on Tuesdays and 6Gold will have their Italian class on Thursdays.

LIBRARY

As Book Week is fast approaching the focus for the first half of this term is ‘Literacy’. Jenny Dunn will be sharing the selection of short listed books and the children will be encouraged to borrow a wider selection of books more often. The lessons following Book Week will integrate with our Environmental unit this term.
Year 6 will have Library every Wednesday. We will continue to separate boys and girls for Library and Sport this Term. This is proving to work very well. Every child in Year 6 should have a log on for the Premier’s Reading Challenge.

HOMEWORK  ROUTINE

A weekly homework schedule will be given to your child in their diaries, listing a variety of tasks to be completed at home. Please ensure that your child balances their weekly commitments so that they are able to complete all tasks effectively, including reading. The recommended time that the students should be spending on homework is approximately 30 to 40 minutes per night.
Please sign homework books and diaries each week.

All homework is to be handed in on Mondays.  If homework is incomplete or a student does not hand their work in with a satisfactory explanation, they will be required to complete it in the Library at lunchtime.

We do understand that occasionally family commitments take precedence over homework; in this case a short explanatory note to the teacher would be appreciated. Sometimes overnight homework will be given if work is not completed in class. Assignments over several weeks may also be given at various stages throughout the year. This will assist the students in preparing to meet the challenge of the vast amounts of homework expected in High School.

We feel that the homework expectations are realistic, however if your child is not coping, please send a note and we will endeavour to work with them in class.

TEACHER MEETINGS

If at any time you feel that you need to see any of the teachers, please do not hesitate to contact us either in person, phone or by email.
Teacher Email:

jacinta.tucker@shmosman.catholic.edu.au   6 Blue Mon-Wed and Fri

It is always best to call and arrange a meeting so that we can ensure that we are available.

The school newsletter is also available through the school website every 2 weeks. We ask that you do not send permission slips or absent notes via email as these need to be signed.

YEAR 6 CLASS BLOG

We will endeavor to update our blog frequently. To access this go to the school website
->staff-> click on the link under the Year 6 teachers’ names or the direct address is http://yr6shm.blogspot.com.au/

Contact Details

Sacred Heart School Mosman
Phone:            (02) 99696600
Fax:            (02) 99604213
Email:            info@shmosman.catholic.edu.au


Kind Regards,
Gwen O’Connor, Jacinta Tucker and Jane Harrison

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