Friday Weekly Reflection 23

Hello Grade 4 Families, 

I am pretty sure that I could hear a big sigh of relief after grade 4 completed the ISA test yesterday. Despite the intense concentration and diligence required to do the tasks, all students put in their best efforts. 

This week was full of extra-curricular activities and events. We had a whole school science experiment on Tuesday in preparation for Science and Numeracy Week next week, Japanese Culture Day on Thursday, the ISA test of course and Pika Pika on Friday. Quite a jam-packed week!

Inquiry, art and language became intertwined this week when students undertook a formative task in pairs, aimed at targeting our first line of inquiry. Whilst students were not given a choice in their partnership (we drew from a hat), they were given voice and choice to investigate a source of energy a little more deeply. The project follows our "explore, create, share" cycle, which is becoming second nature to the group now. After reading through the task together as group, I asked students to formulate the assessment criteria. After compiling a list of the aspects of the task that students found important, I typed them up into a checklist. I was so impressed at how independent students are becoming with regards to their learning. They really took responsibility and applied social and thinking skills. I have attached the Task sheet below as well as the checklist that was created by students. 

Each group selected a different form of energy to inquire into and chose to create models to display the form of each energy source using a variety of materials. Below are some photos of their progress. 

Despite the many interruptions this week, we managed to squeeze in some Mathematics, focusing on circles. Students are working on being able to identify, draw and measure the radius, diameter and circumference of a circle. 

That is all for this week, 

Have a great weekend!

- Miss Raciti 

Singing a song for Japanese Culture Day

We have been practicing the song "Hana wa saku" for Japanese Culture Day.

Students picked this song because they thought it sounds really beautiful.

NHK(Nippon Hoso Kyokai) produced this song to build public support for the 3.11 disaster recovery efforts. 

Students really like this song and sing very beautifully.

Grade 4 JNL students took the test of the essay"appu to ru-zu de tsutaeru".

Students seemed to enjoy finding the answers in the essay.

Friday Weekly Reflection 22

Hello Grade 4 Families, 

This week has been a very productive week indeed.

Grade 4 students worked solidly on their inquiry, investigating energy sources and identifying the difference between renewable and non-renewable energy. The group did a great job at demonstrating their learning of these terms by creating some interesting and informative posters. Some students wrote short paragraphs about different types of renewable and non-renewable energy, whilst others opted for more visual platforms, utilizing Microsoft Paint, PowerPoint and Word. I have included photos of the students working on these pieces as well as images taken during the experiments that they conducted last week. As a reflective activity to the experiments, students selected their favourite experiment and wrote about it in the form of a lab report. 

During language time, students continued to work on their book reports. This year, the students have learned about different types of reports. They produced a research report during the "Who We Are" unit of inquiry and have now undertaken scientific report writing. Throughout the current "How The World Works" unit, students will investigate yet another form of report writing/presentation. We will explore newspaper reports and news report programs and use these as the stimulus for the summative assessment piece. 

Throughout mathematics this week the group has began investigating triangles. We classified different kinds of triangles and students were very eager to point out their similarities and differences. Students then went on to create "Polygon Riddles" for their classmates, using distinctive features of polygons as clues. 

That is all for this week. 

Have a wonderful weekend!

- Miss Raciti

Friday Weekly Reflection 21

Hello Grade 4 Families,

I hope you have had a fantastic week and were able to enjoy the national holiday on Wednesday. 

This week students completed the practice ISA examination and it was great to see students trying their absolute best and showing commitment to their learning. Students also worked on a Mathematics review of angles and lines. Most students are demonstrating great confidence in their ability to use geometry equipment, accurately identify, measure and draw various angles and lines. The photos below show some students during our daily "Multiplication Master" game.

In Language, students all finished up their narratives and shared them with their peers. I am in the process of conferencing with each student to talk about the progress they have made with their writing and individual ways they can improve their next piece. Writer's Workshop is working really well and I look forward to utilizing this method to coincide with the next language project to accompany the "How The World Works" inquiry. 

In inquiry, students began talking about the central idea and lines of inquiry, most specifically showing interest in different forms of energy and where it comes from. Today I set up various exploration stations for students to independently conduct experiments and investigations about different forms of energy. This provocation will hopefully produce some great questions and I'm already noticing that many students already have a wealth of by bringing in a book that had a section dedicated specifically to how we obtain and use energy and so he and some peers formed an independent inquiry group and begun exploring the topic to share with the class next week. The second photo below shows the group reading the book together and discussing ways to share their findings. 

Until next week, 

Miss Raciti

Welcoming Hikmet

Grade 4 students welcomed Hikmet to music class with an introduction to the piano. Murtaza and Mr Miller challenged his English skills. He was quick to understand and start making music!

Friday Weekly Reflection 20

Hello Grade 4 Families, 

This week, Grade 4 wrapped up their inquiry about colonisation, published and polished their narratives. Next week we will begin looking at our new unit of Inquiry, which will focus on "The Way The World Works". I am looking forward to this unit, which incorporates science, social studies, persuasive language and design. We will be investigating the way we use energy, which should lead us to some interesting questions and discoveries. 

In language this week, we looked at plurals and some rules we can use to help us because I noticed that in both oral and written language many students have been getting a tad confused. The new Reader's Workshop arrangement is working sensationally. Students are familiar now of the system and are taking more responsibility for their reading. The conferences have been really productive and the activities assigned to each student have really helped most students engage with their reading in ways that will assist both their fluency as a reader but also the critical elements of interacting with texts. 

During mathematics, students worked on their protractor and set square skills, particularly using set squares to draw parallel lines. We found a digital resource to practice estimating and measuring angles. 

The Jinsho art exhibition will take place tomorrow and JIES has an allocated area displaying some of the amazing work students have been doing. Please check it out if you have time. 

I look forward to sharing news about the next inquiry with you next week!

Have a great weekend. 

- Miss Raciti

Making poems in Japanese class

Grade4 students just finished reading Gongitsune from Kokugo textbook this week.
On the final test, they were able to write what they thought about the story with words nicely.

They also read some poems about nature and enjoyed using their imaginations.
They like making poems because they enjoy rhyming.

To make what they are learning in Japanese class more clear,
we will start using a new reading card next week.
Some study will be related to classroom inquiry.
Some of them are for Japanese stand-alone classes.

Thank you always for your support for their homework at home.