Revision For Success!
During the last few days of school, we spent a lot of time consolidating some of the work covered over the first two terms. The students used letter and number cards, playdough, whiteboards and markers and educational games to demonstrate their knowledge and developing skills. Some of the educational games we played were pattern match, colour recognition, shapes recognition and we have even learned how to write our own names!In Literacy, we learnt about all the Jolly Phonics and the sounds they make. Linking sounds to letters, naming and sounding the letters of the alphabet. A student cannot learn to read without proper knowledge of phonics. It is the foundation for success in reading. The students make a connection between the words we put together and what they look like in print. Phonics skills are necessary to jump-start the process of learning to read, but reading by sight is more efficient.
In Numeracy, we learnt about colours and shapes (2D) within our environment. We learnt about patterns, recognizing and recreating various patterns using a repeated sequence. We learnt about numbers, counting and using developing mathematical ideas and methods to solve practical problems. We even learnt about addition and subtraction and the correct vocabulary associated with them through number rhymes. Students have attempted to write for a variety of purposes, using features of different forms.
Martie van Dyk
Pre-Reception teacher
Our Senses – Year 3
During the last few weeks of Term 1, we have been discussing and experimenting with our five senses. Although many of the students knew what their five senses are, they learnt so much more about them, using practical ways to explore them further and discover their importance.
Hearing:
Each student made a telephone using Styrofoam cups and fishing gut. They took them outside and learnt why it works so well. This is because the gut is dense, and the sound of our voices travels down the line and into the cup on the opposite side. Thus, allowing the recipient to hear what we have to say, even from a distance.
Sight:
The students learnt who invented Braille and why it is so important. They saw what Braille looks like and had to use a Braille Alphabet to decipher words in a ‘Mystery Challenge’. Each student managed to write their name and surname using this amazing technique that many visually impaired people use all over the World.
Touch:
Each student was given a chance to choose an item while their eyes were closed. They had to describe it to the children in the class, and guess what they think it is without looking. It was rather interesting to see what a daunting task it can be to describe something using words, without seeing the actual item.
Taste and smell:
The students were asked to bring in small containers, containing something that tastes sweet, salty, bitter, sour and spicey. They had the opportunity to first smell each one and describe how it smells. Each student then had to fill in a table to say if they liked the taste or disliked it. The tasting bit was super fun! Just not bitter and sour. Those flavours received a number of thumbs down.
Next, the students will be making ‘Taste Monsters’ to complete their tasting experience. I am looking forward to seeing how those will turn out.
We hope that our Year 3 students will continue to experiment using their five senses, and always remember why they are so important.
Wendy Menton
Year 3 Teacher
The Past Two Weeks In Pre-Reception
As we near the end of Term 2, the biggest challenge is to try and keep our students happy and occupied, without making their lives more stressful. The students know that something big is happening and they are not allowed to see their friends and teachers except for during our online Zoom class discussions.
During the past 2 weeks, our students have been very busy! We enjoyed learning more interesting facts about creepy crawlies; some took selfies in their school uniform; we had many Zoom meetings; we created our own insects for Art and others even drew pictures of all their friends at school.
The Pre-Reception classes have been learning about the letter ‘r’ in Literacy and they covered counting objects for Numeracy.
It is always wonderful to see our students and families share their experiences with us.
Martie van Dyk
Pre-Reception Teacher
Jumping into Math! Year 2
Maths is fun!
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn” – Benjamin Franklin
With that in mind, the Year 2 classes tackled this week’s Math concept of measuring from a totally different perspective.
The students were divided into three different groups, each group attempting a measurement task using different apparatus.
- One group had to estimate how many cubes would fill different size containers and then check their answer by actually counting the cubes.
- A second group had to measure and design a cardboard house for a soft toy they had brought to school.
- The third group worked on the mat, using their white boards to build a ramp for a toy car. They then used a measuring tape to measure the distance their cars traveled.
There was much excitement (and quite a bit of noise), as the groups worked in the passage to measure how far they could jump. My class agreed that this was the most “fun” two days of Math “ever”. They were so involved in the activities, that they completely forgot that they were actually learning about centimeters and millimeters. It was wonderful to see how they adapted the instructions given to think up new ideas to test their cars, make their houses and hopping instead of jumping.
So the objective of the lessons was achieved, by using a different approach, which kept the students engaged, and asking and answering questions. This approach has proven to be a successful way to improve lateral and analytical thinking and, despite the organised chaos, will definitely be repeated.
Mrs Kim Coetzer
Year 2 Teacher