Term 4 newsletter for
Year 3 and 4
The year has
flown by so quickly! It is now Term 4 and thoughts are turning to Athletics
day, E.O.T.C week and the end of year Christmas concert.
Looking back
over Terms 1,2 and 3, it has been such a busy year filled with so many amazing
learning experiences. Ancient Greece, Wandering Whales, a beautiful Butterfly
garden, writing competitions, Artsplash... and this is only scratching the
surface! The teachers hope that you are able to visit your child’s class blog
from time to time and see for yourself some of the wonderful learning
opportunities that happen in their classroom.
The flowing
is an outline of what will be happening this term. Later in the year, extra emails
about E.O.T.C week will be sent by class teachers, so look out for those.
“Water,
water, everywhere...”
Every two
years, the Year 3 and 4 team aim to make a small difference in the day-to-day
lives of other people who live in different parts of the world. In previous
years we have raised money for the “Orphans of Nepal Trust” and “Green Gecko School’
in Cambodia.
This year,
as part of this terms inquiry into how water is used by different people around
the world, we hope to do a small amount of fund-raising to assist with
providing safe drinking water in parts of the world where safe drinking water cannot
be taken for granted.
Our children
will be given an opportunity to plan, prepare for and run a small fundraising
event in late November/ Early December.
Closer to
the time, your child’s teacher will email you to keep you up-to-date with
progress being made on the fundraising plan. As this is a ‘child driven’
inquiry, we may ask that you, at home, provide a bit of assistance here and
there, if your child needs it.
READING
AND WRITING:
Our
writing focus for this term is Persuasive writing, where we will be exploring how
to write a convincing argument. There is also the ongoing focus on embedding
effective editing and proofreading skills into every piece of writing the
children do.
Oral
language will focus on the oral presentation of their argument, with a focus on
using vocal expression and confident body language.
Reading
continues in all classes, with particular emphasis on reading for meaning and
(out aloud) for expression. There will also be a strong emphasis on ‘reading for
meaning’ as children read about the water cycle and how people in different
parts of the world use water.
NUMERACY:
We
have started the term in cross-grouped classes, re-visiting the addition,
subtraction, multiplication, division and fraction skills learned earlier in
the year. We finish the term by learning about the features of geometry and
looking at statistics.
Ongoing
basic facts practice and learning how to problem solve will also feature.
PE:
Each
Thursday morning, the children have taking part in Athletics practice, in preparation for the school’s Athletics Day, which is Monday, 5th November
(Week 4) , here at school. Look out for a reminder email later in Week 3.
Swimming
is scheduled to start around Week 7, however in reality this date is weather
dependent and we will not begin swimming until the weather has warmed up a
little.
ART:
We will be teaching your child how to sew this
term! Most classes have already started teaching children how to thread a
needle, tie a knot and sew a simple stitch. As the term progresses, children
will learn to cross-stitch and sew some simple patterns on material.
Other news:
Y3-4 Science Club
This
Term Mr Dobson is working with 20 students, chosen by classroom
teachers, each Friday lunchtime. Each week the science club will
investigate a scientific idea, conduct an experiment, and arrive at a
scientific truth. You can visit the Science Club's blog here http://muritaiscienceclub.blogspot.co.nz/
Gardening Club
The
Year 4 students who formed and have run the gardening club this year
are now looking at passing on their trowels and gardening gloves onto a
new group of (current Year Three ) students, who can form a Year 4
gardening club next year.
Please
check our class blogs! We would love to have you visit and leave a comment.
Your child will know how to do this and will be able to guide you through the
process. It’s easy! Just follow the class blog link at
the school website www.muritai.school.nz
To contact us, the easiest way is to
email us (teachers surname @ muritai.school.nz), or just pop in.
Kind
Regards,
The
Year 3 and 4 Team.
