Hello everyone,

It has been so joyful to hear, and see (via photographs) Room 7’s excursions into the community. They have been exploring various play spaces in the community, public transport systems and a range of venues. The smiles and yawns upon the students return has been so rewarding to see.

We recently held an Orientation morning for our 2023 starters. We had 7 students join us, along with 15 family members. We have 4 kindy children joining us next year, along with a Y1, Y4 and Y7 student. Murray was joined by 3 staff on the playground to observe the children- looking for challenges, turn-taking, sharing and communication, as when we start looking at class groupings we hope to make the right choice about which group they will join.

We currently have 2 university students here doing their third-year placement, which is exciting. It is always interesting to share practice and expertise, and listen to the perspective of others.

Do consider joining the P&C next year. The meetings are generally held on the third Wednesday of each month (dependent on school holidays) and are not too onerous. They last a maximum of 2 hours, and generally less. You have the option to attend in person in the school PL room, or you can be sent a zoom link- but beware, no chocolates or snacks provided if you don’t come to school! There is no fund-raising associated with being a member of the P&C, and you can join a special group of people who can be lifelines when you need special information (Who do you go to for haircuts? Any good dentists in the area who are sympathetic to special needs children?).

Next meeting Wednesday February 15^th 2023 6.45pm in the PL room or zoom.

Learning the concepts of mathematics is an enjoyable activity in Room 11. Jedi and Issa eagerly await the warm up sessions of ‘Ants to marching!’, ‘Five cheeky monkeys’ and other selected rhymes. While Issa counts large Lego blocks and builds towers, Jedi settles for the abacus or the multi-base arithmetic blocks. Jedi displays an avid interest in shapes, often taking these to the floor and looking at these resources through different angles at leisure. Julie settles for play dough, breaking these into parts and counting, understanding number sense, making patterns, addition and subtraction being her focus. Thomas exceeds in subitising and matching with the use of counters. He displays avid interest in Mobilo blocks and creating cars and trucks with his peers. Haley and Heba display interest in understanding mathematical concepts using penguins, and farm animals. The students of Room 11 display interest in making connections between mathematical concepts and objects observed in their classroom too. For examples, counting the number of tables / chairs, adding together class-mates shoes, and seeking shapes in the windows, books, trays and the clock. Room 11 will continue to engage, explore and explain their thinking using their preferred resources.

In Room 13 this term we have been learning more about the numbers 1 to 20. We have been using counters and ten-frames to make the numbers 1 to 10.  Mark, Mason D and George are using two ten-frames to complete simple addition activities. Sadie and Farhan can recognise and represent numbers up to 10. Agam and Mason M are learning to represent the numbers 1 to 5 on a ten-frame. All students enjoy counting songs and engaging with movement activities whilst counting.