Welcome back to the new school term. This newsletter is to help keep you informed about the curriculum for the grade and the day-to-day activities of the grade.

This term the following teachers will be supporting learning in Year 1.

*Teachers work under the structure of an Enterprise Agreement that includes a number of entitlements. One of these is the engagement in Profession Planning Time (PPT) where they are released from class to carry out other professional responsibilities. Each full time teacher is entitled to the equivalent of 2 hours PPT each week, or a pro-rata therefore for part time teachers. Therefore, all students operate across the school week with at least two teachers engaging in the classroom program of learning.

This Curriculum Outline is designed to communicate what your child is learning so you can support them at home this term. At Good Samaritan, we believe that the partnership between you as parents and our teachers are the most important influences on your son’s or daughter’s education.

The NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) is responsible for setting and monitoring quality teaching, learning, assessment and school standards across NSW public, Catholic and independent schools. NESA also develops Kindergarten to Year 12 syllabuses for NSW schools. Syllabuses identify: the knowledge, understanding, skills, values and attitudes students are expected to develop at each stage; what students are expected to know and do; Learning across the curriculum areas: cross-curriculum priorities, general capabilities and other important learning for all students.

At Good Samaritan we have a K-6 Scope & Sequence of learning which supports the implementation of the NESA Syllabuses. Below, is an outline of the Key Learning Area content & skills being taught this term.

This term in Religious Education, Year One will learn about:

The Easter Season

This unit will develop the students’ familiarity with the Easter story. It also introduces the stories of the Ascension and Pentecost. Through these stories, children will engage with the mystery of God.

Nourished by God

This unit will focus on the Sunday celebration of the Mass. It introduces students to Sunday as the special day when Catholics gather at Mass to listen, remember and give thanks to God, receive Holy Communion and go out to love and serve the Lord.

The second part of the unit will look at the story of ‘The Feeding of the Five Thousand’. It explores how Jesus cared for and fed the people. It invites the children to consider how they care for others and share what they have.

This term in English, Year One will cover all strands of the English Syllabus - Speaking, Listening, Reading, Writing, Viewing and Representing. 

Year One will explore ways to respond to and compose information texts about endangered animals of the world. 

The writing focus will be to learn how to plan and write an information report about an endangered animal of the world. The students’  information texts will be published so that we can create a class book.

The English tasks outlined will be linked to our Science programme.

Parent reading will take place during term 2. We will send home a note with the set days and times when the reading will take place. 

Reading Recovery is an early intervention programme for children in Year 1, who find reading and writing challenging. Children currently participating in the Reading Recovery intervention are at the halfway point of their lesson series. Once their lesson series has been discontinued a second intake of children will be selected. Easy homework texts, that are read aloud, give children opportunities to read fluently and engage in stories that grow confidence. Daily homework reading is therefore highly recommended. 

Mrs Jacinta O’Connor

This term in Mathematics, Year One will learn about:

• Whole Number 1- Partitioning and place value)
• Length 1- (Informal units)
• Addition & Subtraction 1 -Combinations to 10)
• 2D Space 1 ( Lines and features)
• Chance 1 (Probability)
• Patterns & Algebra 1 (Number patterns, skip counting)
•  Patterns & Algebra 1 (Symbols and objects)
• Multiplication & Division 1 (twos and fives, counting and groups)
• Position 1 ( Following directions)
• Whole Number 1 (Numbers to 100)

This term in History, Year One will continue to learn about family life in the past and the present.

 Year 1 will:

• discuss similarities and differences from generation to generation, eg family celebrations and traditions, leisure activities and changes in technology/communications over time through a range of sources

• identify days, holidays, events celebrated by students and their families and discuss cultural differences in days celebrated

• define and use terms relating to time, sequencing objects or photographs from the past, eg then and now, past and present, a long time ago

Year One will cover Geography,  in Terms 3 and 4

This term in Science & Technology, the content strand for Year 1 is Living World. 

The Living World strand focuses on the features of living things, their environment and how they change and reproduce.  

The students will investigate how plants and animals are used to satisfy our needs for food and fibre. This strand will develop the students’ understanding of how living things and their environment play a central role in the support for and survival of humans.

We will explore the following focus questions: 

• What are the external features of living things?  
• How do living things change as they grow?
• How can we improve a local environment to encourage living things to thrive?    
• How do humans use plants and animals?

This term in Creative Arts, Year One will:

Mrs Narelle Nuttall will teach Creative Arts in One Gold until Week Six then Mrs Cook will teach from Weeks 6-10

Mrs Michelle Cook will teach Creative Arts to Year One Blue.

Respect and consent…. May I please 

In this unit, students will develop an understanding of respect and consent, what respectful relationships look like and how it feels.

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

Throughout the year, students will participate in a variety of games and activities developing these skills: 

• Static Balance
• Sprint Run
• Vertical Jump
• Catching
• Hopping
• Side Gallop
• Skipping
• Overarm Throw

In Term Two, there will also be a focus on skills for the athletics carnival- sprinting, staying in lane, running through not to the finish line. 

Developing independence in your child. Where possible make them responsible for putting or checking that their lunch box, library bag, hat and/or reading folder is in their bag

At home asking your child to follow two step instructions such as asking them to take their clothes to their bedroom and put them away in their drawers. 

Where possible, arrive at school on time by 8:45am as it helps the children settle into the day.

Talk time - Students have been allocated a specific day to present an oral presentation to the class which will help develop confidence with speaking and listening skills. An overview for the term will be sent home outlining the topics for each week. Students will present a 2 minute presentation focusing on a specific listening and speaking focus. As the term progresses additional activities may be added either for the whole class or individually as required.

Home Reader - The students will be given a home reader to take home daily. Students are encouraged to read to an adult for 10-15 minutes every day and parents are encouraged to complete their child’s reading log daily. Home readers need to be returned to school every day. Use this opportunity to ask your child questions about their book to help and improve their reading and comprehension skills.

Please support your child to be Ready to Learn each day by ensuring he/she has the following in his or her’s school bag and that it is clearly labeled:

• Reading Folder, with reading books, to be brought to school every day
• Munch and crunch, recess and lunch
• School hat
• A change of underwear and socks in a labeled plastic bag
• Raincoat

CLASSROOM

Each class uses their co created behaviour matrix as a guide to help support and maintain a safe and positive classroom environment always linking in with our 3 school rules:

• Be Safe
• Be Respectful
• Be Responsible. 

These rules are supported by the classroom correction sequence. The sequence is used as a visual reminder for students to support them in getting back on track with learning.

PLAYGROUND

This term our tokens that are handed out for positive behaviours on the playground will be collected in each classroom’s token boxes. This way the students will be able to see as a class what a great job they are doing.

As a school the students have unpacked, role played and practiced positive and respectful ways they can interact with each other on their playground with a set of Social Norms. 

 SOCIAL NORMS FOR OUR PLAYGROUND

Social norm #1: Meet and greet politely.

• Say greetings, introductions, and goodbyes.
• Politely offer and receive compliments.
• Be able to start and finish conversations.

Social norm #2: Take turns talking.

• Listen when others are speaking and look them in the eye.
• Wait if adults are talking. 
• Respond appropriately and at the right time.

Social norm #3: Pay attention to others.

• Stop what you’re doing so you can listen.
• Read people’s emotions through their body language and facial expressions.
• Change your behaviour to match what other people are doing, such as quieting down with the rest of the room.

Social norm #4: Think about others before acting.

• Ask for consent.
• Don’t cut in line.
• Wait your turn.
• Stand a comfortable distance away when talking. 

Social norm #5: Cooperate with others.

• Follow directions when you’re asked to.
• Ask for help when you need it.
• Apologise when necessary.
• Be flexible and open to new ideas.

All students are expected to be neatly dressed in their school uniform or sports uniform each day. Classroom teachers will monitor the wearing of the uniform on a day-to-day basis and inappropriate dress will be brought to the attention of the student and, where necessary, parents. 

Students are expected to wear the correct Summer/Winter uniform including the correct footwear.

GOOD SAMARITAN CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL UNIFORM

Students are also expected to wear the correct Sports Uniform on sports days:

ALL ITEMS OF UNIFORM MUST BE CLEARLY MARKED WITH THE CHILD’S NAME

Ongoing communication between school and home is essential. The school aims to work in partnership with the home and recognises that parents wish to be informed of any problems. Likewise, there is a need for parents to keep the school informed of any events that may impact on the life of their child at school.

Through this mutual communication we aim to provide a safe and supportive environment for your child.

If you have any educational/behaviour concerns about your child always contact your child’s classroom teacher in the first instance. Your child’s classroom teacher will always contact you if they have any concerns regarding your child’s education or behaviour. 

1. Grades and classes across the school are supported by Middle Leaders. You are welcome to contact the Middle Leader/s responsible for your child’s class/grade if you have continued concerns regarding your child’s education or behaviour. The Middle Leaders will also contact you when and if necessary.

Middle Leaders 2021

3. If the issue remains unresolved beyond the Middle Leader then please address your concern/s to the Assistant Principal or the Principal. 
4. Parents may contact teachers by email via the school office (info@gsfmdow.catholic.edu.au) but are asked to understand that a response may not be immediate and certainly cannot be expected beyond the regular hours of the school day or week. 

At Good Samaritan, we believe it is important to speak with parents either in a face-to-face meeting or over the phone when responding to emails that may be of a sensitive nature or, that may require a lengthy response. Therefore, the email response you receive may be of a generic nature. 

Parents are asked to understand that teachers primary responsibility throughout the school day is towards the students. Therefore, teachers are unable to engage in discussion when they are in direct supervision of students.

For any absence the school must receive notification of the reason for the absence within 7 days of the return to school. This applies for partial absences as well as whole day absences. Please supply the reason via Compass. In the event that a notification is not supplied the absence will be recorded as Unjustified/Unexplained.

Whole School Term 2 Dates:

Further information regarding events will be distributed closer to each of the dates.

APRIL:

22/04: School Photos

23/04: ANZAC Day Prayer

27/04: Diocesan Cross Country

30/04: Autism Awareness Day

MAY:

3/05-4/05: Principals’ Overnight Retreat

6/05: Mother’s Day Liturgy

7/05: Mother’s Day Stall

11/05-20/05: NAPLAN testing

17/05: Athletics Carnival 

21/05: PUPIL FREE DAY Students do not attend school on this day

22/05-23/05: Confirmation Weekend

23/05: Pentecost

24/05-28/05: Screens Down Week

26/05: National Sorry Day

CEDoW School Director Peter Hill visit to GSFM

31/05: Reconciliation Week

JUNE:

3/06: MABO Day

11/06 Term 2 PB4L Day (Mufti Day)

14/06: Queen’s Birthday Long Weekend

15/06: Sth Coast Netball Gala Day

18/06: Semester One Reports distributed to Parents

21/06-25/06: Parent Teacher Interview Week

25/06: Term 2 concludes