Good morning parents,
Well here we are in week 4 already !
Homework
A reminder that our first fortnight's worth of homework is due tomorrow, Friday 24 February. We will review it and return it ready for Week 5 and 6 on Monday.
Parent Eucharist Evening
On Tuesday 28th February we will have our Year 4 parent and child evening in the Junior Science room (old library/old Year 3 rooms) from 5.00 to 6.00pm. We will discuss the upcoming First Eucharist with you and your child with some light refreshments provided. If possible, please do not bring other siblings along for the hour as it is special time to learn and prepare alongside your Year 4 child. If your child is not going to undertake the First Eucharist/Holy Communion sacrament and will be a prayer buddy, you do not need to attend this evening. If you are unsure about your child's participation in this upcoming sacrament please email us if you have any questions or contact our Religion Education AP, Amie Meyer.
Eucharist Commitment Mass: 6pm Saturday 18th March @ OLSC Church
We ask all First Eucharist Candidates to attend this mass in preparation for the Holy Sacrament. Of course, all families are welcome if they would like to come along and support their peers.
Celebration of the First Eucharist Mass: 8:30am Sunday 26th March @
We ask that all students attend this mass in support of the Year 4 candidates. As we are all learning about the First Eucharist in class, each of the First Eucharist candidates will be allocated a 'Prayer Buddy'. The role of the Prayer Buddy is to support the Eucharist candidates in their preparations and attend to be a part of the celebration on the night.
Laptop Use at Home
Please make sure you have a clear family policy in regards to the use of their laptop and access to internet/home wifi. Make sure your child is aware of where, when and how long they are allowed to use their laptop. Use within bedrooms and use on beds and lounges can encourage breakage, especially if not consistently used on a flat surface such as a desk or table. Many families have chosen to have an open room only policy where laptops are not allowed to be charged or used in bedrooms and can only be used in open rooms where supervision is easy to implement. It may also be useful to know that laptops will not be needed to be used at all at home for this term so can be considered as school-only equipment for the next few months if you wish to reduce the use at home in these early days.
I will put a copy of the student agreement on their class notebook so they can refer to it beyond classroom hours. Today we had a great session getting to know Microsoft Team, One Note Notebooks for our class and the capabilities of our laptop keyboard and touchpad. Students are learning to understand that we have a 4K Notebook and within that there is a Content Library tab (this is viewing only) and a name tab that has each subject within it that the students can add/edit and create their own work within it. Please be aware that as parents, you are able to access your child's online Notebook to get a glimpse of our learning over the year. It's pretty empty at the moment but is sure to grow each day as we learn more about the amazing learning opportunities our new laptops provide!
It is intended that laptops will only be used at school for educational purposes and only used with clear directions and instructions from their teacher what they are to use. Downloaded games, chrome extensions and 'open use' of internet searches will not occur at school and students have been made aware if they choose to use these at school or use their laptop in ways other than directed by their teacher, there will be a consequence. I am so impressed by how engaged and interested the students are in learning more about how they can use their laptops to help them with their learning and how careful they have been using them safely and with care. Please feel free to email me if you have any questions at all about our laptops and digital technology in Year 4.
Character Strength - Week 4
Our character strength for this week is Creativity.
Creativity is thinking of new ways to do things. It involves producing ideas or behaviours that are original. However, originality is not enough: whatever is created, whether an idea or a product, must also be useful or adaptable.
A creative individual generates ideas or behaviours that are novel or unusual and these make a positive contribution to the individual's life or the lives of others.
Hats:
Just a reminder that your child MUST bring their hat each day. It is a requirement that they wear them during daily fitness, recess and lunch. Can you please check in with your child to make sure they have their hat and their name is clearly displayed. Thank you!
Sports Days:
A reminder that now that swimming has finished we are wearing our sports uniform on Tuesday (sports) and Friday (faction). Students are to wear their formal uniform on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Please make sure that your child is also wearing the correct shoes with each uniform. There is information on the uniform policy including shoes examples on the school website.
JEMMS & Literacy Interventions:
We will begin our JEMMS sessions this week, all families involved will have been contacted via email about their participation.
Library:
We have begun to head back to the Library to get our students reading each week...your child is to bring their library bag each week and all students are strongly encouraged to borrow. Our Library day is Monday but students are welcome to bring back their bags on Thursday or Friday if they are easily forgotten. Choosing new books each week is a great chance for them to choose a book that they may not normally and of course, it is fine for them to read these for their nightly reading!
Artist Incursion:
We are super lucky this week to have the chance to work with the artist Andrew Fraser in an initiative organised by our incredible P&F! Yesterday he visited our class and helped us to learn about trying art in different ways and creative ways to draw shapes and lines to result in 3D pictures.
Ash Wednesday:
Ash Wednesday opens Lent, a season of fasting and prayer. Ash Wednesday takes place 46 days before Easter Sunday, and is chiefly observed by Catholics, although many other Christians observe it too.
Ash Wednesday comes from the ancient Jewish tradition of penance and fasting. The practice includes the wearing of ashes on the head. The ashes symbolize the dust from which God made us. The ashes are made from the blessed palms used in the Palm Sunday celebration of the previous year.
Seesaw
By the end of the week, you will see our first post for the year using the seesaw app to share our learning and current achievement. This will be an example of your child's writing skills in regards to the narrative genre. Today I will send home another copy of the QR code to access Seesaw, however most families are already connected so feel free to share these with grandparents or other special adults instead.
Communication
Please feel free to contact us about any issues or questions you may have. I am happy to organise a meeting before or after school most days if you wish to discuss anything in detail. Towards the end of term we will conduct brief parent interview to review how your child is going in Year 4 and discuss achievement and needs. Thank you for your continued support and assistance in your child's education.
Kind regards,
Penny and Gemma
