Del Monte curriculum

Congratulations Year 3!

We are extremely proud of our Year 3 students for the confidence and resilience they showed while completing NAPLAN testing from Wednesday to Monday. Across the week, they completed four assessments and approached each one with calmness, positivity and confidence. This success reflects both the students’ dedication and the careful preparation provided by their teachers. Well done, Year 3!

Building thinking, language and confidence across our classrooms

Last week, our teachers came together to continue our professional learning focused on Teaching for Critical Thinking, particularly through HSIE. Staff have been enthusiastic about using explicit teaching models that help students think more deeply, explain their ideas clearly and ask thoughtful questions.

A key part of this learning has been the work of Dr Peter Ellerton’s Values of Inquiry, which we are using as a foundation for developing students’ thinking skills. These values include ideas such as accuracy, precision, depth and breadth. To understand and use these concepts, teachers are explicitly teaching the vocabulary linked to them. When students know and understand these words, they are better able to explain their thinking, justify their opinions and communicate clearly with others. Research strongly supports this focus on vocabulary. As McKeown and colleagues (2017) explain, Vocabulary knowledge is central to students’ ability to express ideas in writing, engage in complex thinking, and communicate meaningfully across subject.

This reminds us that learning new words isn’t just about spelling or definitions, it helps children become stronger writers, problem-solvers and communicators. We are already seeing students show greater curiosity and confidence as they use this language to ‘dive deeper’ into their thinking.

Learning through the new curriculum

As we implement new syllabus reforms in Science and Technology, HSIE and PDHPE, students are experiencing exciting and meaningful learning across the school.

  • In HSIE, Year 3 students are exploring Mesoamerica, learning about ancient societies and cultures.
  • In Science and Technology, Year 2 students are investigating forces and movement, including learning through an Aboriginal perspective.
  • In PDHPE, Year 4 has begun a unit called ‘Thriver Challenge’, where students work in small ‘Tribes’ to practise teamwork. Through a range of challenges, they are learning how cooperation, responsibility and communication support success.

Thank you to our families

Thank you to the families who attended the K-2 InitiaLit parent workshop on Thursday evening. It was wonderful to see such strong engagement and support. We hope the workshop helped build a clear understanding of the importance of reading and how actively your children are involved in the program each day.

We truly value our partnership with families and appreciate your continued support in your child’s learning journey.

Kate Bakhos
Curriculum Leader P-4