Swimming Carnival

Many students have signed up to various events today for the swimming carnival which will take place on the 21st February at Fitzroy Pool. (all spectators now have to pay an entry fee, $5.00 for adults). All Year-4 students are required to attend, whether competing or not, to show support for their peers in their house groups. The event is an excellent opportunity for the students to show school spirit and teamwork. Hats and suncream are necessities as there are very few shaded areas at the pool. Please ensure your child is provided with snacks and plenty of water for hydration. The students will be returning to school at 12.30pm for the rest of the school day.

Writer's Notebook

This week, we are beginning our first Writer's Notebook sessions and so I thought I'd explain what Writer's Notebooks are.

Writer's Notebook is a notebook for writing ideas, formatted so that children are able to get inspired and engaged with their writing. It helps students plan their writing constructively and avoid situations where students are sitting for long periods of time wondering what they should be writing about. The Writer's Notebook is also an excellent way for students to explore different genres, and we encourage students to write a varied selection of genres through the course of the year. Finally, because children must bring in their own stimulus from home, it allows their writing to be relevant (rather than always being told by the teacher what they should be writing about!)

Writer's Notebook contains three sections. The first part is the Seed of Thought, where students paste in a paper-based inspiration from home, such as a newspaper cutting, a ticket from a show or sporting event, a pamphlet from a museum exhibition, a photograph, a postcard, a picture found inside a magazine etc. This allows students to connect their writing with their 'out-of-school' experiences and come up with inspirations that are relevant to them. Students are expected to bring in something to use as a Seed of Thought at the beginning of the week, we ask parents to discuss during the weekend which Seed of Thought to choose from home. We also encourage students to keep several pieces of Seed of Thought in an envelope at the back of their notebook, so that they are always ready to make an entry.

Students write briefly on their response to the Seed of Thought in the Response section. The responses might include some description of the item, as well as what memory it may trigger, what kind of connection they can make to other experiences they may have had as well as more imaginative responses.

Finally, students write three detailed possibilities for a developed piece of writing they might want to continue with using this stimulus. The possibilities might include a poem, a story or an informational piece etc.

By the time they have made three entries in their Writer's Notebook, students are expected to begin their first copy of a developed piece of writing taken from one of their possibilities. This will then be redrafted, before being published.

Students may use a notebook provided by the school, or bring in their own notebook from home. All notebooks are kept in the writing shelf in the neighbourhood. If notebooks are taken home for home learning, we ask students to bring it back in on Monday so that teachers are able to keep track of students' writing.

Here are a couple of examples I wrote and showed to the students earlier this week which may give you a better idea how it all works. You can click on the image to enlarge it.

Parent Info Night

Parent information night will be held on Tuesday 26th February for the 3-4 neighbourhood. We will begin at 4pm in the gymnasium and the session will run until 5pm. There will be an opportunity for parents to visit the neighbourhoods where the teachers will be available to answer questions on a more individual basis. 

If you do bring children along to the evening we ask that you take responsibility for the supervision of your children during this time. We also request that any specific questions that you would like us to address are forwarded to us on the blog prior to the information session so that we can focus on the priority areas that you would most like to know about. We look forward to seeing you all at the welcome picnic next Tuesday night also. 

It has been a very smooth transition for our delightful grade 3 students and we are all greatly enjoying getting to know them and all our wonderful parents. Our grade 4 students have stepped up and are enjoying their leadership roles in introducing their new friends to the neighbourhood. It's going to be a fabulous year and we value always the contributions, support and feedback of our parent community.

Book Talk

We are looking forward to Book Talk sessions on Thursdays at 2.30- 3.15 in both neighbourhoods.

If you are able to be part of these sessions with a small group of students with a parent volunteer sharing books with ideas, guidance and support from the teachers please contact Sheryal as soon as you are able.

1-to-1 MacBook Program

Dear Parents,

The first payment of the 2013 1 to 1 MacBook program is due on Friday 8^th February. Students whose families have made this payment by the due date will receive their Macbook on this day. The first payment will be $159.00 due the protective case being included in the cost. Subsequent lease payments will be $104.00.  We do request that parents meet their children at the 3/4 neighbourhood to help them home with their MacBook on Friday. Students will not be permitted to take their MacBook to aftercare or home on their own. You will be receiving an invoice in the mail this week to advise you of the amount due. Should you have any questions please contact Keith McNeill in 3/4 neighbourhood 2.

Kind Regards,

The 3/4 Teaching Team

Welcome (and welcome back) to the Neighbourhood!

We had a fantastic first week in the 34 Neighbourhoods. where we got to know each other a little better. It has also been lovely meeting all the new parents and relatives during the first week. Teachers are always outside the neighbourhood after school from 3:30 - 3:45 and are available for impromptu chats or to answer any queries. If you have any specific concerns regarding learning or the wellbeing of your children, please make an appointments with a teacher so that we can sit down and discuss it with you. 

This blog will not only inform you all about our learning in the 3/4Neighbourhoods, but will tell you of up-and-coming events, our amazing achievements, our intentions and much more. Click on the LA Documents tab at the top and you will be able to access a copy of the Learning Agreement Documents. The Calendar tab will hopefully tell you some of the important events happening in the the Neighbourhood and the school. The Student Learning section (not yet completed) will explain what our aims are in the main curriculum areas of numeracy and literacy.

We hope that you will keep coming back to this blog. If you have any feedback, please feel free to comment below, or see one of the teachers.

Expert letters and emails

During our research inquiry, many students have found and contacted experts to ask specific questions that will help them with their research story. Some students have written an email or a letter with questions. The focus for these students have been to write in a purposeful manner and with clarity. Students have learned that not all experts will reply (as experts are often busy) but if we are polite and clear about our enquiry, we have a better chance. Many of the emails have been put on display on the writing area wall in the neighbourhood and we invite our parents to come in and have a look at them.