In English, our work on persuasive writing culminated in each of the students writing a persuasive letter to Miss Clancy about ways in which life at St Joseph’s School could be improved for them and/or other students in the school. The topics ranged widely, from getting rid of catheads on the oval, erecting goalposts on the oval, having class pets, adding a ball pit to the existing play equipment and replacing reading from homework with additional Maths homework instead. All of the students gained a better understanding of how people such as advertisers try to persuade us to do or buy things through their choice of words and images.
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In Mathematics, the students have been working with place value to read, represent and order numbers to 100,000 and beyond. They have also been developing and discussing different mental strategies that can be used to add and subtract larger numbers. In all units of Mathematics, students are being encouraged to demonstrate their understanding by communicating their ideas using mathematical language.
In Religion, the students are continuing to explore what it means to be stewards of creation. After looking carefully at the creation story in the Bible, the students generated some questions about what they read and then did some research to find the answers to some of their questions.
Critical analysis of biblical texts helps students to understand different perspectives, such as the people for whom the text was written, and their understanding of the world around them at that time. Critical to all Religion units is helping the students to appreciate, that even though the Bible was written a very long time ago, the messages contained in the scriptures are still just as relevant today.
In Geography, the Year 3/4 students have been investigating climate change in Australia and around the world. They have learned that rising temperatures, even though they may seem small, are contributing to threats to property, animals, and places people live all around the world.
Visual Art lessons have had the students working with various media, such as wire and mosaic tiles, to create three-dimensional art works. After learning ways to bend wire to create different shapes, the students went on to make abstract sculptures using different techniques.
They then used wire to imitate life by creating a wire armature to represent a sport or dance figure. These art projects have opened up their minds to new ways of expressing their artistic ideas and talents.