1. St Joseph’s Primary School, Mt Isa 2012 Teachers: Miss Meg Jaeschke Mrs Jessica Lynch

2. Each term, students will learn about a different aspect of the Catholic faith. Term 1: Teachings and Actions of Jesus Term 2: Sacraments and the Lives of Believers Term 3: Acting Justly Term 4: Exploring the Texts Students will also be involved in:  Daily Prayer and Christian Meditation  Beginning of Year and End of Year Mass  Other special Mass’ and Liturgies throughout the year  Liturgy on Friday’s Assembly4J – 24 th March 4L – 8 th June Religious Education

3. Literacy  Phonics – Based on the THRASS program, teaching children how to make correct spelling choices  Spelling program derived from the THRASS chart, Sound Waves, theme words and Year 4 core words.  Daily literacy rotations with a focus on demand writing, reading comprehension, guided reading, grammar and ICT incorporated activities.  Throughout the year, students will learn a number of text types and genres – factual, persuasive, narratives, reports, etc.

4. Mathematics  The ‘iMaths’ program will be implemented in conjunction with other Mathematical resources. Students will gain knowledge of particular topics and consolidate their knowledge throughout an investigation each term.  Math lessons include Mental Math/Algorithm practice and interactive topic focus activities.  Assessment will be in the form of ‘iMaths Tracker Book’, ‘iMaths investigations’, weekly Mental Math testing and diagnostic tests.  Number and Algebra: Number concepts, patterns and functions, equivalents and equations.  Measurement and Geometry: Length, mass, area and volume, time, shape and line, direction and movement.  Statistics and Probability: Graphing, judgements, data collections and variations.

5. SOSE Unit Overviews Term 1: National and International Celebrations Term 2: British Colonisation Term 3: Managing our Resources Term 4: Trade

6. Science Unit Overviews PRIMARY CONNECTIONS  Term 1: Plants in Action  Term 2: Material World  Term 3: Smooth Moves  Term 4: Beneath our Feet

7. Other Subjects Tuesday:  Music taught by Mrs Freeman  Physical Education taught by Miss Marshall  Library borrowing – bring library bags and books Thursday:  Cultural Studies taught by Mrs Thinee Swimming lessons TBA Health taught by classroom teacher Technology, ICT and The Arts are integrated in major unit themes throughout the year.

8. Homework  Homework is set from Monday to Thursday.  Homework includes Math, Literacy, SOSE, Current Affairs, relevant assignments and 15 minutes of home reading.  Homework is imperative and helps children revise work and develop skills and strategies.  A note is required if homework is not done or is incomplete.  Students’ responsibility: to hand in complete homework each Friday.  Teachers responsibility: to mark homework and return it the following Monday.  Occasionally, it is necessary for parents to assist with homework. If this happens, please initial the page to allow us to see an area that needs extra attention.  If students are having trouble with a question, they are always welcome to bring their homework to us during the week so we can help them.

9. Grade 4 Assignments  Students will complete 1 major SOSE assignment and 1 ‘iMaths’ investigation per term.  Each assignment will have an assignment requirement sheet and an assignment criteria sheet. A copy of these will be glued into homework books for parents to view.  Some assignments can be worked on during homework time.

10. Grade 4 Camp Location: St Joseph’s Primary School Dates: Term 4 (TBA) Students will participate in a games/leadership activities day and will also spend some time at the local pool. They will have dinner and a sleepover at school. Watch for more details to follow throughout the year!

11. Assessment and Reporting Term 1 – Parent / Teacher interview (End of Term) Term 2 – Report Card (End of Term) Term 3 – Parent/ Teacher interview (Beginning of Term) Term 4 – Report Card (End of Term)

12. Behaviour Management  Each teacher has a slightly different approach to behaviour management, however, in all cases it is more effective to be positive.  Class rules are formulated as a class, to give a sense or ownership.  Positive behaviour: children receive praise, stickers, lollies/prizes, pat on the back, free time.  Whole school behaviour management: Each class has a red, orange and green behaviour chart which is used as a warning to children displaying inappropriate behaviour. Each students starts in the green section, orange section is a warning and the red section results in a Time Out.

13. General Information Tuesday: Grade 4 Music Grade 4 P.E Grade 4 Library Borrowing Banking Thursday: Cultural Studies Newsletter Friday: Assembly

14. Grade 4 Parent Information Our doors are always open. If you have questions about anything, please come and speak with us. If you feel it is a matter that may take longer than5 minutes, please make an appointment to ensure that we can gather all of the relevant information and we can give you our undivided attention.

15. Contact Details Miss Meg Jaeschke (4J) mjaeschke@sjmtsv.catholic.edu.au Mrs Jessica Lynch (4L) jlynch3@sjmtsv.catholic.edu.au *Please ensure that you fill in your email address on the sign in sheet so we can keep you up to date with what’s happening in Grade 4 via our weekly update email.

16. Thank you! Thank you for making the time to attend this evening. We are both looking forward to a great year in 2012 as we work together with you to enrich your child’s learning.