Grade 3/4

It has been so lovely to see how settled the students are as we approach the end of Term One. The past few weeks have been full and productive, with parent–teacher conversations, Polwarth Sports Day, Clean Up Australia Day, the return of clubs and our Grade 3 students completing their NAPLAN assessments. We are incredibly proud of the positive attitude our Grade 3 students showed throughout NAPLAN. They approached the assessments with focus, determination and a willingness to do their best, which was wonderful to see. As we move into the final weeks of term, we are looking forward to House Sports, followed by the Easter Hat Parade and Easter egg hunt to round out a busy and positive start to the year. 

In English, students are well into our morning Sounds-Write routine. We have been reviewing complex spelling patterns and identifying words with up to four syllables. We have also been extending our vocabulary through our Morphology work, exploring how prefixes, suffixes and base words work together to build the meaning of words and help us understand new vocabulary. We have continued to explore the beautiful Australian novel Brindabella by Ursula Dubosarsky. Students have enjoyed discovering the themes of friendship, courage and freedom as the story has unfolded, and have engaged in thoughtful discussions and made insightful connections about the characters and their experiences. We also spent time revisiting narrative writing, reviewing the structure of a narrative and how authors build engaging stories with clear beginnings, complications and resolutions. Students crafted imaginative and engaging stories based on a range of picture prompts, focusing on developing their ideas and organising their writing clearly.

In Maths, we have continued to strengthen number fluency through a range of activities that support mental maths strategies. Students explored elapsed time and how it applies to everyday situations, such as calculating how long an event lasts or determining finishing times. We also worked on subtracting three-digit numbers using the vertical algorithm, focusing on lining up place value correctly and applying regrouping strategies when needed. Our current focus is on data, chance and probability. Students have been learning to identify appropriate ways to represent data and are developing their ability to pose suitable questions for collecting both categorical and numerical data. Through investigations and class discussions, they are beginning to understand how data can be used to answer questions and identify patterns.

Our Inquiry focus this term has centred on school expectations and values, and what it means to be a strong and resilient learner. Students have explored the qualities that support positive learning behaviours, such as persistence, organisation and taking responsibility for their learning. Through discussions and collaborative activities, students reflected on how our school values guide the way we learn and work together in the classroom. They also spent time setting personal learning goals and thinking about strategies that help them stay focused, overcome challenges and continue improving.

In Respectful Relationships, we have been developing emotional literacy skills. Students have been learning to recognise and name a range of emotions and to understand how emotions can influence our thoughts, behaviour and relationships with others.

A big thank you to everyone who continues to support us in Grade 3/4. Wishing everyone a safe and Happy Easter and a restful and relaxing school holidays. We’re looking forward to continuing our learning and exploring new topics together in Term Two.

- Mrs Welsh & Mr Burrell