Uh-Oh!!!......Phew

During Readers' Workshops we have been exploring the structure of narratives. We used the Uh-Oh!!!...Phew strategy to help us comprehend the picture book, Bushfire by Margurite Hann Syme.

While we were reading we thought about the problem (uh-oh), how the problem got worse (UH-OH!) and how the problem got solved (phew!). We used a story mountain to help us. We are also trying to transfer this knowledge while writing a narrative during Writers' Workshops.

Use the story mountain to help you retell a story you have read.

Mathletics

Students have been accessing Mathletics during 'Maths Extra' each Wednesday. They will be receiving a copy of their passwords to take home so that they can continue practising.

                                     


Don't forget if you are finding a task too easy or too hard you can always click on the 

 Something Easier                    or                     Something Harder  

buttons.

'Beyond the Bin' Inquiry - Worm Farms

We have been learning about how worm farms can help us be waste wise and more sustainable. We have learnt some interesting information about both earthworms and worm farms.

What were some of the interesting facts you learnt?

Beyond the Bin - What Is In Our Classroom Bins?

This week we have been looking at what is in our classroom rubbish bins and how well we use our recycling bins. We tipped our bin rubbish onto a plastic mat and sorted through our waste. We discussed items that had been misplaced in the bin and where they should have been. We also discussed where our waste goes once we place it in the bins.

Record the waste you have at the end of the day in your lunch box. 

What items could you recycle or could you have found a better (more sustainable) way to pack your food?

3/4 Information Session - Wednesday 10 February 2016

We would like to thank all of the parents/carers that were able to attend our information session last Wednesday. We understand that many of you were unable to attend, so please find a brief summary of our session below. We also handed out a couple of resources for home that can be picked from the classroom. Should you have any questions please do not hesitate to speak to your child’s teacher.

• Introductions/Roles

Kylie Evans (Dumbledores), Brooke Hall  (Resourcing Support), Natalie Murphy (Hufflepuffs), Melissa Markos (Ravenclaws), Rachel Van Audenaerde (Slytherin), Emily Vernon (Gryffindor) and Merriel Hossack (Learning Support Assistant).

• BLOG

Please take the time to regularly check our Blog. Tip- subscribe by entering your email address to receive alerts. Students are encouraged to discuss posts with their family and answer the questions at the end of each post.

• Timetable - ‘Typical’ Week

Students participate daily in reading, writing, maths and inquiry. A visual timetable is displayed in all classrooms. On Wednesdays, students participate in Japanese, Performing Arts and Library.

• Maths Structure

Students are split into year groups. Flexible groupings ensure students are able to be supported in their learning, whether this is consolidation, enrichment or extension, as they work towards their individual goals.

Year 3 Maths teachers - Natalie Murphy, Brooke Hall and Emily Vernon

Year 4 Maths teachers - Rachel Van Audenaerde, Melissa Markos and Kylie Evans

• English Structure  

Readers’ Workshops and Work on Writing (WOW!) sessions begin with a 15-20 minute mini lesson where explicit skills are taught. This is followed by 30 minutes of independent, guided practise. During this time teachers are either conferencing one on one with students or taking small focus groups.

Students participate in daily Word Work (spelling) sessions. They are grouped according to their needs and participate in a range of explicit lessons focusing on phonics, prefixes, suffixes and word derivations.

• Inquiry Planner/Genius Hour

Each term students participate in a History/Geography Inquiry and a Science Inquiry.

Geography Inquiry, ‘Beyond the Bin’

We are investigating how people can use places and environments more sustainably.

Science Inquiry, ‘Melting Moments’

This inquiry explores how solids or liquids are influenced by temperature. Students experience the way items from their everyday lives can change.

Genius Hour

Genius Hour is an hour given on Wednesdays, to allow students to follow their passions and learn about topics that interest them. They develop a driving question, e.g. Is it possible to make a sugar free lolly that tastes good? Students then choose a way to present their learning to the class, e.g. model, information book, video, web page.

• Social and Emotional Learning - Overview

TERM 1	TERM 2	TERM 3	TERM 4
Self-Awareness	Self-Management	Relationship Skills Social Decision-Making	Social Awareness

• Student Welfare  

Students participate in the ‘Peg Chart’ reward system in the classroom. They earn raffle tickets when they display our Fraser SCARF values. Raffle prizes include books and stationery  items.

Students can continue to earn Wrist bands on the playground when they display our Fraser SCARF values.

Beyond the Bin - Geography Inquiry

This week we started our Geography Inquiry, Beyond the Bin. We are investigating how people can use places and environments more sustainably. We watched the original Lorax animation and have begun summarising the story using text and images. We look forward to sharing some of our amazing work with you next week .

How does The Lorax link to our Beyond the Bin inquiry?

What is Dr.Seuss' message in the story?

Parent/Carer Information Session

Tomorrow morning the Year 3/4 Team will be hosting an information session for all parents and carers, starting at 8:30am in Unit 2. Below is an overview of some of the main points we will be covering.

We look forward to seeing you tomorrow.

The Year 3/4 Team.

Week 1 Term 1

We have had an incredibly busy start to our year in Hogwarts. All of our classes have been spending time getting to know each other and talking about how we can create the best classroom learning environments for everyone. We have also been investigating growth and fixed mindsets and learning about how we can change our thinking to help us become better learners and make our brains stronger.

Chicken Scramble
This week in maths we played a game called Chicken Scramble. We pretended to be chickens collecting 'corn'. We were investigating the most efficient and accurate strategy for counting large numbers. We discovered that counting by 2s and 5s and then forming groups of 10 was a great strategy. 

Good Fit Books
During English, we have been learning about choosing 'Good Fit Books'. We compared choosing the correct weight to make our muscles stronger, to choosing the correct book to make our brains smarter. Ask your child to help explain the activity.   

What good fit book are you currently reading? 

How do you know that it is a good fit for you?

Welcome to 2016 at Hogwarts

                                              

WELCOME TO HOGWARTS!

Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts. We are so excited to have you all returning and would like to give a huge welcome to all of our brand new students to Fraser this year.

This year we will have five year 3/4 classes and Miss Hall will continue as our resourcing teacher to support all five classes. Our classes are:

Slytherin - Mrs. Van Audenaerde

Dumbledores - Mrs Evans

Ravenclaw - Miss Markos

Hufflepuff - Miss Murphy

Gryffindor - Miss Vernon

Diagon Alley - Miss Hall

We have lots of exciting and fun activities and games planned for our first week of school and we look forward to getting to know lots of you even better.

The first class novel that we will all be reading together this year is Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. 

We are excited to continue sharing lots of our amazing learning and reflecting with you all this year. Each post has a question for you to share your thinking, so we look forward to seeing your contributions. Parents and carers make sure that you subscribe to our blog by entering your email on the top right where you see, Follow by Email to be notified each time a new post is added to our blog.

What are some of your favourite character's from the Harry Potter series and explain what you like about them?