Prep C St Sebastian's: Week 6 Term 1 (Class Newsletter)

WEEK 6 TERM 1 8-12^th March 2011

Transport

We made a great start on transport this week exploring the different modes and how they move. This week we are looking at trains. A couple of fun facts for you… did you know;

· The longest straight stretch of railway is in Australia. The part without any curves is 478km long.

· The fastest passenger train in the world is the Shinkansen in Japan. (travelling at 300 km/h)

· Every time a Virgin Pendolino train brakes it returns enough energy to the power supply to brew 2.6 billion cups of tea, or make 3.5 billion pieces of toast in a year!

I hope your child will be able to tell you some new facts by the end of the week.

http://www.familyandfriends-railcard.co.uk/cardholders/kidszone/railway-facts/fun_facts

There is also a very special guest who will play an important part in our class unit. This is Prep Possum (you may already have heard of him). He is a travelling possum who loves to go on different forms of transport. Each child will receive one of the 2 prep possums for a couple of days and it would be greatly appreciated if these possums could get a photo with a mode of transport. You and your family may be as creative as you like. We will put these photos both on the website and in our newsletter so we can all see how these possums like to travel.

Getting along with others

One of our curriculum goals this semester is

“Social and Personal learning”.

Specifically we are developing;

· acknowledging and negotiating rights, roles and responsibilities in a range of contexts.

· cooperating with others in social situations.

· developing a sense of personal identity as a capable learner

· acting with increasing independence and responsibility towards learning and personal organisation.

In implementing a child-responsive curriculum, children

For children this involves

• making decisions

• solving problems

• developing thinking processes

• developing effective communication

• developing collaboration strategies

• developing positive dispositions towards learning

• developing a positive sense of self.

This is being promoted through

· Pointing out positive behaviours

· Role playing inappropriate behavior and getting the children to show us how to do it properly.

· Creating rules, expectations and having routines

· Having a buddy in the school that we can model our behaviour on.

· Supporting the children to play, explore and investigate in an appropriate manner.

· Supporting your child to follow the rules and look at the natural consequences (e.g. if you hit someone they won’t want to play with you)

· Following only 1 rule a week, and reinforcing it with a behavior chart (you may have heard about the ticks)

Please be aware that starting Prep can be a daunting and challenging change in your child’s life. Be assured that they are settling in REALLY well. Some behaviours you have not seen before may occur but that just means that in this different situation your child may need help to find a solution. They may be striving to work out how best to overcome frustration, or cope with a lot stimulus in the busy school environment, or the making of new friends. The expectations at school will be different from Kindy. Also know that when I contact you it is to keep you informed about what is happening at school. It is not a reflection on you and your parenting but a means of you and I working together to help your child with their situation.

Some of the language we use is referred to as belonging and non belonging behaviour.

The rules that we have stressed so far have been

· Hands and feet to yourself

· Speak to please not to tease

· Sit on your bottom and don’t wander around(at specific times)

· When the teacher is talking you are not

Our main 3 school rules are

Respect for Self Respect for Others, Respect for the Environment

engage in a plan-do-reflect process that encourages the characteristics of lifelong learning.

Happy Birthday

Jemima B.7^thMarch Georgina 9^thMarch

An Ash Wednesday liturgy will be held instead of assembly this week. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Season of Lent. It is a season of penance, reflection, and fasting which prepares us for Christ's Resurrection on Easter Sunday, through which we attain redemption.

Shrove Tuesday

We will be having pancakes on Tuesday

Also known as "Pancake Day", always falls on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday which is the first day of Lent. It is the day of preparation for Lent, when the eating of pancakes was necessary to use up the eggs and flour, the eating of which were prohibited during the forty days of Lent.

Talk Time (Show and tell)

Thank you for the amazing and interesting show and tell you have been sending in. We loved Finn’s plane,Tahu’s bus, Keira’s plane, and Georgina’s horses just to name a few.

MONDAY – Billy, Biar, Jemima B., Joshua, Theresa

TUESDAY – Finn, Annaliese, Oscar, Caelen, Callum

WEDNESDAY –Clancy, Finley, Nino, Henry, Jemima O

THURSDAY – Keira, Adam, Daniel, Darcy, Bronte,

FRIDAY – Hannah, Georgina, Tahu, Will, Harvey.

Perceptual Motor

Tuesday 9.00-9.45am

Thank you to Rebecca Ralph (Darcy’s mum) and Nick Harrison (Finns Dad) who are helping on Tuesday.

Thursday 9.00-9.45am

Thank you to Julien Frachisse (family friend of Adam and Daniel) and Alison Lee Tannock (Tahu’s Mum) (17^th, 31^st March and 14^th April, and David Peirce (Keira’s Dad) and Angela Wishart (Will’s Mum) (10^th 17^th 31^st March) and Angela Nicholas (Henry’s Mum) and Emma Ross (Harvey’s mum) who will be helping on Thursdays.

Another person is needed for Tuesday.

This program developing the children’s gross motor skills, comes in 7 short 5minute rotations.

It would also be a great help if a parent was able to help with fine motor rotations on Friday morning 9-10.15am.

OR on a Monday morning.

Maths

This week we are starting to investigate numbers.

Alphabet

This week we are focussing on the capital and little letter of Aa, Bb, Cc, Dd, Ee, Ff and Gg. I am sending home a chart for use at home and some letter you can cut up and have some fun with. Perhaps you could-