Welcome to Term 4, 2019. 

Literacy Focus 

This semester students are developing their reading strategies collaboratively in reciprocal reading groups. Each group explores a text with students taking on a different role each week: the artful artist, the word wizard, the summariser, the passage picker, the discussion director and the connector, in order to make deep and meaningful connections to the text and build comprehension. 

As a part of our Speaking and Listening curriculum, students are taking part in Reader’s Theatre where they read and perform a part in a short performance. Senior students are also developing their skills and confidence in performing debates and using digital technologies to search for supporting evidence for their arguments. 

In writing, students continue to develop their skills across various genres of texts: narratives, discussions, poetry, persuasive and informative texts. With a focus on the writing traits, students are developing their skills on understanding purpose, audience and structure of their written texts. 

Utilising a suite of applications and digital technologies, senior students are developing their multimodal literacy and critical literacy skills through the exploration and creation of digital texts. 

Numeracy Focus

Semester Two is ‘shaping’ up to be ‘positively’ spectacular in the area of Mathematics. (Did you spot the Maths words?) We are really enjoying diving into collaborative group work, where we have been able to improve our personal attributes, such as confidence and persistence, as well as our interpersonal skills, including taking turns, performing specific roles within a group, and sharing our understandings with others. Strategies such as ‘Draw a picture,’ ‘Act it out’ and ‘Create a table’ are proving to be very useful, as we tackle a range of multi-step mathematical problems. In Number and Algebra, we are applying our knowledge of decimals and percentages to the area of Financial Mathematics. We are learning how to do those all important calculations of just how much we can save on an item in a sale, when it is discounted by 10%, 20% or even 50% (if we’re lucky!) BIDMAS is also making a big appearance this semester. “Don’t you mean BODMAS?” we hear you say. No, BIDMAS! The order of operations in solving equations is; Brackets, Indices, Division, Multiplication, Addition, Subtraction. You must follow the rules to arrive at the correct answer to an equation. Finally, in Probability and Statistics, we are continuing to develop our understanding of the relationship between fractions, decimals and percentages. We are also applying this understanding to the calculation of probabilities of particular events occurring. Did you know that the probability of choosing 6 distinct numbers from a range of 1 to 49 (remind you of anything?) is 1 in 13,983,816. That’s a very tiny fraction. If this sounds like a game not worth playing, you’re probably right!

S.T.E.A.M.

During Semester Two ALL Senior School Students are participating in a fortnightly STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) Challenge that will culminate in a Science & Technology Expo early in Term Four which involves our Families, Prep Buddies and broader School Community. Each Fortnight students participate in a project that has them exploring, designing, testing and repeating in science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics. STEAM challenges are all about the thought process and thinking improves problem-solving in all areas of life.

CYC City Camp Experience:

Senior School Children will be attending an educational camp to The CYC City Camp in Melbourne. Children will spend 3 Days and 2 nights away. Senior School Camp activities include an educational tour of the Old Melbourne Gaol, Queen Victoria Market, Old Treasury Building, Parliament of Victoria, Marvel Stadium Tour, Imax Cinema & Melbourne Museum, Galactic Circus & King Pin Bowling.

Mount Martha Life Saving Club - Open Water Beach Program

Senior School Children will participate in an Open Water / Beach Safety Program conducted with LifeGuards from the Mount Martha Life Saving Club during the final week of November. Activities will include surf ski, endurance swim, beach flags, beach cricket, soccer & volleyball, nipper boards, swim wade, basic first aid tuition (Qualified Instructor) and various beach activities. On Friday we will have our Beach Carnival Day and annual Iron Person Challenge in which students compete in various House events.The cost of this program has been heavily subsidised by the Department of Education this year to enhance swimming and swim safety opportunities.

Science

Senior students will be investigating how sudden geological changes or extreme weather conditions can affect the Earth’s surface. They will be conducting experiments that investigate how tectonic plates can shift to cause natural disasters such as earthquakes and tsunamis and how volcanic eruptions can change the shape of the earth. Students will be investigating the different types of volcanoes and conduct experiments to erupt their own, as well as investigating the impact a tsunami has on land. Students will be using items such as beakers, funnels and a variety of solids and liquids to test. 

Term Three & Four Dates:

Thursday 24 October: Mt Erin School Band Incursion

Tuesday 5th November: Melbourne Cup Holiday

Friday 8th November: Mt Erin Market Day

Monday 11th November: Remembrance Day Ceremony

Friday 15th November: Kingsley Park Birthday Celebrations and Colour Fun Run

Wednesday 27th November: Senior School Open Water Beach Program (Grade 5)

Thursday 28th November: Senior School Open Water Beach Program (Grade 6)

Friday 29th November: Senior School Open Water Beach Program (Carnival Day)

Tuesday 3rd Dec to Thursday 5th Dec: Senior City Camp

Tuesday 10th December: Year 6 Statewide Transition Day (Year 7 Orientation)

Thursday 12th December: Year Six Graduation Ceremony (Mount Erin College)

Wednesday 18th December: Year Six Activity Day (Gravity Zone & Ballam Park)

Thursday 19th December: Kingsley Park Class Parties

Friday 20th December: Bear / Soccer Ball / Football Signing Day (Year Six Only)

Friday 20th December: Last day of Term Four - 2.30pm finish