Literature Group PMI

In the final week of literature groups students were required to evaluate the books they were reading.  Working in their groups, students completed a PMI: the plus, minus and intersting aspects of their book.  To help the neighbourhood with the selection of their next literature book, the PMIs were presented to the class. 

Audio Conference

http://www.box.com/s/e023b3bd6377ec88de71

Parent Information Night: Inquiry

An inquiry approach helps foster and develop our students’ natural curiosity for the social, biological and physical worlds in which they live. When planning units of inquiry, we need to consider in depth ‘What are the concepts we want to develop in our students about these worlds. How are these worlds organised? How do they change? How do they interrelate? How do we communicate about, within and across these worlds? From the big concepts we move to an essential question that gives our inquiry a specific direction. For example, we are looking at the big idea of healthly communities. Our essential question focuses on choices relating to our health and its impact on the overall health of our community. Engaging the students in the inquiry is an essential part of the process, provoking their thinking and ascertaining prior knowledge and values they bring to the inquiry. The essential question gives rise to a problem or challenge that needs to be solved. Students generate guiding questions that they will need answered in order for them to complete their challenge. Through the process both the students and teachers work together as collaborators and co-constructors of knowledge. Students in this process have a voice in their learning journey, negotiating possible pathways for their learning.

The integrated and seamless nature of learning is embedded through the process. Students are given explicit opportunities to use language, mathematics, the arts and technology to inquire about, analyse and communicate their understandings. Simultaneously, students are learning about and mastering the processes and conventions for each particular discipline area and seeing the relationship of learning across each area.

Premiers Active Family Challenge

The Premiers Active Families Challenge is on again -

Parent info meeting

Thanks to all the parents who were able to attend our parent information session last week. As a courtesy to parents who were unable to attend the session, we will be uploading a text version of what we spoke about on the night. Please watch for additions to the blog.

Mathematics in 5/6:

Numeracy is a whole school focus for 2012 and is central to all learning.

‘Numeracy is an individual’s capacity to identify and understand the role that mathematics plays in the world, to make well-founded judgements and to use and engage with mathematics in ways that meet the needs of that individual’s life as a constructive, concerned and reflective citizen.’ (OECD 2004)

‘To be truly numerate, involves more than the acquisition of mathematical routines and algorithms, no matter how well they are learned. Students need to learn mathematics in ways that enable them to recognise when mathematics might help to interpret information or solve practical problems, apply their knowledge appropriately in contexts where they will have to use mathematical reasoning processes and choose mathematics that makes sense in the circumstances.’  (National Numeracy Review, 2008)

We work within the meaningful context of inquiry wherever possible. Alongside this is a diagnosis and intervention program delivered through targeted sessions which are differentiated depending on need.  These targeted sessions combine the balance of deep understanding and the development of efficient methods.

Running alongside this targeted approach is a maths investigation which supports our inquiry.

One example of this was our inquiry into identity where students were asked to get into groups of 4-5 and calculate their “average group member” based on a number of open-ended criteria. (For example hair colour, length of arm, hand-span). The students then created life-size images of their average group member which helped us come to a better understanding of a shared identity.

Another example of embedded mathematics stemmed from a targeted session on ratio. As a result of some thorough maths investigation, a group of students found some misleading advertising in a Woolworths brochure. We decided action needed to be taken and sent a letter to the ACCC, Woolworths and Yakult, asking for an explanation. Sadly, we did not receive a reply from Woolworths, but the ACCC and Yakult did reply in writing. 

Yakult offered a group of students the opportunity of a tour of their factory (at no charge), which related strongly to our unit on technology and mass production.

Premier’s Active Families Challenge 19th March-30th April

The Premier’s Active Families Challenge is a key component of the Victorian Government’s commitment to get more people more active more often.

·        The Challenge provides a great opportunity for all Victorian families to spend time together and enjoy the benefits of an active lifestyle.

·        Families participating in the Challenge are asked to do 30 minutes of physical activity a day for 30 days between 19 March and 30 April 2012.

·        Each family that registers will receive 20 free YMCA passes, discounts at Rebel Sport, one free child pass to the Melbourne Aquarium and one free child pass to the National Sports Museum, and opportunities to win prizes including iPads and Rebel Sport vouchers.

·        There will be regular tips and ideas on ways to keep active throughout the Challenge.

Get more active more often, spend quality time together and have fun. It’s free, it’s easy, and there are plenty of chances to win prizes for yourself or your school

Register online at www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/challenge or call 1800 463 684, and remember to include our school’s name when you register.

Ride to School Day

 Princes Hill Primary School will be celebrating National Ride2School day on Friday 23^rd of March, along with thousands of other schools around the country. We would like to encourage students and their families to leave their car at home on this day and get a taste of the benefits, ease and fun involved in choosing to walk and wheel to school.

 Ride2School Team Manager, Kelly Pearson said the success of the Ride2School program and its positive impact on students’ health is evident in the numbers. Over 140,000 students participate in this event.

“Schools that are registered in the Ride2School program more than double the national average riding rate. These students increase the time they devote to physical activity which helps reduce the risk of obesity and associated health problems,” she said.

Montana and Holly, students in Grade5/6FM are organising this event for the school and will be gathering data on the day and taking photos.                                 

                                    Holly & Montana (Ride2School organisers)

Students have been inquiring into goal setting.  Our questions for our inquiry were: <i><i>What is a goal? What makes a good goal? Why are goals important? Where do we see goals in our lives</ There were 3 main criteria that we agreed to be an essential ingredient of a good goal: It must be specific; it must be measurable; and it must be achievable. Each student was asked to write 10 goals related to their learning at school, such as skills related to a specific cuuriculum area, organisation or working together. Students brought these goals back to the following week's workshop and a conferenced each other's goals based on the criteria we identified in the previous week. Four goals were chosen as goals they agreed to work on this term. 

My Goal_example -

Parent Info Meeting

Parent Information Session
There will
be a Parent Information Session on Wednesday 7th March 4:00 – 5:00pm.
You will be able to find out about the
learning within our neighbourhoods and answers to any particular questions
regarding Year 5/6. We hope to see you there!
We will be starting our presentation in the gymnasium.