St Simon the Apostle Primary School 2 TAYLORS LANE, ROWVILLE, VICTORIA, 3178 TELEPHONE: FAX:

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1 St Simon the Apostle Primary School 2 TAYLORS LANE, ROWVILLE, VICTORIA, 3178 TELEPHONE: FAX: Grade 6 Newsletter Term 3, 2015 Love in action is service Friday 15 th July, 2016 Dear Parents, Wow, it s amazing how quickly a half of the year has flown by. The first half of the year was filled with great success achieved by the students, and we would like to acknowledge the role of the family in this success. This was clearly evident in positive Parent/Student/Teacher chats during the last week of Term 2. We are looking forward to a busy Term 3, with Confirmation being a highlight. The students will be exploring Religions and various Asian countries culminating in a Family Curriculum Night on Tuesday 13 th September. We would like to welcome Sebastian Maxwell who is a new student in 6 Green. We are sure that the whole St Simon community will make Sebastian and his family feel welcomed. Once again please feel free to come and speak to any of us or on the addresses below as we journey together in the partnership of the Year Six education of your child. Religious Education The majority of the Term will have two points of focus. Through our Inquiry unit the children will explore various world religions as part of our Religious Education and Asian Perspectives. The highlight of the term will be the Sacrament of Confirmation during the second weekend of August. Working closely with the Parish the students will explore information about their Saint, whose confirmation name they chose (or one who inspires them). Monsignor Greg Bennet, the Vicar General of the Archdiocese will visit the students before Confirmation, and there will be a reflection day at the Don Bosco Retreat Centre. The students will also learn about the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit and participate in a Penitential Liturgy on 10 th August. Due to the students having homework through the Parish Sacramental Program, there will be no R.E homework until after Confirmation. We encourage those students not participating to come along and celebrate with their classmates in August.

2 After the majority of Year 6 students completed their last Sacrament of Initiation in the Catholic Church, we continue to focus on the message of how we can be Christ s messengers in our world. We will be looking at this in A Community of Faith Called to Serve. Literacy As the students head towards high school, we will continue to develop the students confidence as independent writers who are able to critically evaluate and edit their work. Part of the term will be spent integrating I.C.T skills and focusing on how they present their work using word processors, ipad apps and Google Apps for Education. There will be a focus on writing of poetry and narratives and day to day writing, such as letters and invitations. The students will continue to present to the class in regular public speaking tasks that include Social School Bus, Off the cuff presentations and weekly updates of their Asian Perspective presentations. The Year 6 students will continue with the Lexile Reading Program as they will be retested by the end of Week 2. The children will be reading designated books on topics of interest. Students are instructed to select books at their specific Lexile level and encouraged to read a book slightly above their level every third selection. On completing a book children will answer a questionnaire or prepare a book report demonstrating their understanding of the storyline and characters. Home Reading Being read to, reading with a more skilled reader and having regular independent reading time, greatly improves your child s reading skills. There can also be great benefit to comprehension and spelling skills. It is important that you seek opportunities to hear your child read aloud, which will help improve their confidence, fluency and accuracy. Reading material could include, re-reading favourite novels, newspapers, magazines, ebooks and information on the internet. Set a time each day for reading, that is free of interruptions. Talk to your child about what they read, helping them to make sense of the text. Most importantly, enjoy the special time that you spend reading together. Mathematics Throughout Term Three the students will be exploring the topics of; Mapping and Location, Algebra and Growing Patterns, Prime and Composite numbers, Financial maths, the 4 Operations and BODMAS. There continues to be a strong emphasis placed on knowing and using the multiplication tables in Year 6 throughout mathematics. Each student needs to be proficient in this area and each individual needs to ensure they are constantly practising. These basic operations are necessary tools for successfully learning

3 about Prime and Composite numbers this term. Inquiry Topic The Inquiry topic for Term Three is a multi-faceted approach. The students will be given an Asian country to study, and their goal is creating an Expo Stand that promotes their country. The students will explore Geography, Economics, Day to day life, Religion, Social Justice issues, Government and local artistry. Art will then be a focus running alongside the Expo. The students will create their own art pieces and use religious art as a focus. We envisage that the students will continue to build upon acquired skills such as team work, research skills, public speaking, report writing and creating design briefs. It culminates with the students presenting their Expo during the Family Curriculum Night on Tuesday 13 th September. Specialist classes Japanese will be held on Wednesday Mornings for 6 Yellow, 6 Blue and 6 Green. 6 Red participate in their Japanese lesson on a Wednesday afternoon. This term, other specialists for Grade 6 classes are held on Tuesday. Uniform 6 Blue 6 Green 6 Red 6 Yellow Library P.E Art Music Music Library P.E Art Art Music Library P.E Students are to wear full winter uniform (no shorts) in Term Three. Sport uniform should only be worn on P.E days and if they have Sport. If your child is out of uniform, please ensure that a note is sent to their classroom teacher explaining the reason. If your child chooses to wear black runners as part of the uniform, these runners need to be completely black with no other colours showing. Homework As per Terms One and Two, in preparation for Secondary School, learning successful study habits and developing organisational skills, it is imperative homework is completed weekly. Therefore it shall be sent home on a Friday to be handed in the following Friday. This should allow students with extra-curricular activities to plan their week. As part of the homework requirement, students need to read a minimum of 20 minutes per night. Homework will cover most areas of the curriculum with Mathematics largely including open ended questions. Book responses need to be completed at the end of the week in the homework book. Please see the Teacher with any questions.

4 Behaviour Teachers at St Simon s expect that all Year 6 students continue to meet the high expectations of behaviour. Towards the end of Term Two, these standards dropped a little. The expectations on behaviour have been re-affirmed by Mr Phil Hesse at a level assembly. Although outside of school hours, it has been brought to our attention of some disappointing choices made by a small number of Year 6 students online. We highly encourage that all parents know exactly what their child is doing online. We want each Year 6 student to be the best leader they can be, by looking after each other and the community, showing resilience and being responsible role models. Sports A big congratulation must be given to all the children who represented St Simon s at interschool sport last term. Although hampered by the weather, they competed extremely well and displayed fantastic sportsmanship. Congratulations to the Mixed Netball team who will represent the District next week. Many thanks to all parents who volunteered to help coach, umpire, supervise or support. Without your support we are unable to offer sport, so it is greatly appreciated. Calendar The calendar attached has all dates required for Term Three. Many of these dates are replicated on the school App, which conveniently has an easy to use facility to notify the school of student absences. JULY Wednesday 13th Girls Footy All day Wednesday 13th Parent Confirmation Program (1) 2pm or 7.30pm Thursday 14th Year 6 Excursion to Maroondah Dam Monday 18th Division Footy Finals Tuesday 19th Mixed Netball Finals 11.30am Wednesday 20th Parent Confirmation Program (2) 2pm or 7.30pm Friday 22nd Classroom Helpers Program 9am in School Library Friday 22nd Feast of Anne & Joachim, Grandparents Day 11.30am (1R) Monday 25th National Literacy & Numeracy Week Tuesday 26th Rotary Speech Contest Tuesday 26th Feast of Anne & Joachim Wednesday 27th Kidsview Social Justice Conference Wednesday 27th Parent Confirmation Program (3) 2pm or 7.30pm Wednesday 27th School Advisory Board Meeting 7pm Friday 29th Australian Maths Competition for Years 3 6, 9am in school library Friday 29th Prep 100 days of school Celebration (Prep R)

5 AUGUST Monday 1st Assembly / Liturgy 2.30pm (Prep B) Monday 1st Division Soccer Finals Tuesday 2nd Advisory Board Meeting 7pm Tuesday 2nd Confirmation Reflection Day 1- Salesian Retreat Wednesday 3rd Parent Confirmation Program (4) 2pm or 7.30pm Wednesday 3rd Parents Association Meeting 7pm - Salesian Retreat Thursday 4th Confirmation Reflection Day 2 Friday 5th Parish Anointing Mass 9.15am Friday 5th School Athletics Friday 5th Olympic Games start Saturday 6th Feast of the Transfiguration Monday 8th Feast of Mary McKillop Monday 8th Division Netball Finals Wednesday 10th Family Penitential Liturgy 7.30pm Wednesday 10th Parish Pastoral Team Meeting 7.30pm Sat 13th / Sun 14th Confirmation Masses 2 & 4pm on both days Monday 15th National Science Week Monday 15th Assumption Mass 11.30am (4B) Wednesday 17th Grade 6 Graduation Meeting 2.30pm Wednesday 17th Parents Association Meeting 7pm Friday 19th District Athletics Day Monday 22nd Professional Development Day No school Sunday 21st Olympic Games end Wednesday 24th Advisory Board Meeting 7pm SEPTEMBER Thursday 1st Friday 2nd Sunday 4th Monday 5th Wednesday 7th Wednesday 7th Thursday 8th Friday 9th Tuesday 13th Wednesday 14th Friday 16th Friday 16th Sunday 18th Father s Day Stall Parish Anointing Mass 9.15am Father s Day School Assembly Father s Day 2.30pm (3B) Para Olympics Start Advisory Board Meeting 7pm International Literacy Day District Summer Sports Curriculum Night 6.30pm 8pm Parish Team Meeting End of Term 3 Liturgy 11.30am (5R) Term 3 ends early dismissal 1.15pm Para Olympics end OCTOBER Saturday 1st Sunday 2nd Monday 3rd Monday 3rd AFL Grand Final Daylight Savings begins Term 4 begins Assembly 2.30pm

6 We look forward to another successful term together! Mrs. Helen Rochecouste Mr. Nick Frederiksen Mrs. Melissa Court Miss Natalie Di Carlo Mr Chris Giosis