What's on in Syndicate One this term....
Welcome to Syndicate One for Term 2
What an incredibly busy term we have just completed! Our students thoroughly enjoyed their learning and activities at Camp Carey (year 6 & 8) and Waterwise (year 7). The Intermediate students had these topics followed by a robust poetry unit entitled 'Words Work' while year 6 students learned more about 'Survival'.
Three Way Interviews in Syndicate One were held successfully at the end of last term. These proved again to be a valuable reporting tool concentrated around student learning. I, personally, enjoyed meeting new families and also catching up again with those families I already knew.
Knowledge Net was rolled out last term and it has been rewarding to see the number of parent and caregiver comments. Teachers enjoy these and of course so do the students.
We look forward to this new term being full of exciting activities and new learning for our students.
Nicky Brickland (Syndicate Leader)
Year 7and 8 Integrated Topic
As emerging adolescents our students are wanting to know their place in the world around them and what part can they play in local, national and international events and issues. Our topics give opportunities for indepth analysis and inquiry based on the above rationale.
Topic- Term 2 CSI
Syndicate 1 is about to start its Crime Scene Investigation topic. This promises to be a very busy block of work. The students will be focusing on the procedure, techniques and laboratory research that go into investigating crime. Students will learn about ballistics, imprints, chromatography, blood groups and fingerprinting. Media Studies/Film Review will also be integrated into the topic and students will be viewing and reviewing The Young Sherlock Holmes- a wonderfully entertaining saga of the young Holmes as he investigates dastardly deeds in Victorian London. CSI is always a very popular topic so don’t be surprised if you find your child searching for clues and dusting for prints throughout this term.
Term One
The focus for Year 8 students is on Camp Carey in Week 3 with an emphasis on challenging themselves personally, physically and socially in a range of outdoor education activities. These include rock climbing, kayaking, target shooting and of course skit night!
Waterwise is the first topic for Year 7 students with a testing day at Parnell pools to assess confidence in the water. This is followed by practical sessions at Okahu Bay in Optimist boats and kayaks.
Term Two
CSI or Crime Scene Investigation introduces students to the world of forensic science. Forensic based TV shows have become hugely popular as people are fascinated by modern methods of crime fighting. We will be working with our police education officer and having ‘hands on' sessions involving fingerprinting and other forensic activities.
Term Three
St Thomas's Olympics/Idols - London is playing host to the 2012 Olympics. Our students will take an indepth look at specific athletes and the sacrifices and trials they go through to reach the highest level. As many cultures gather in London we also have our own Cultural Festival culminating in two fantastic performances at the end of term.
Term Four
The Science Fair and end of year exams round off the year. Students will be posing a scientific question and following the scientific method to form a hypothesis as a starting point for further investigation.
Year 6 Topic - Term 2
The students of Year 6 will be learning about the main events in World War 2 and pay close attention to how it affected everyone, expecially children. We will be encouraging the students to understand how everyone's perspective is shaped by their experience and background and asking such questions as 'what if your father went away for 5 years?'
The students will discover why some children were evacuated, why rationing took place and why 'blackouts' were necessary. It is an interesting and popular topic for the children which has always promoted excellent thinking and questioning skills in the past.
Our traditional World War 2 Day will take place again giving our students the opportunity to dress up and experience what school life was really like back in the 1940s. Who knows who may be lurking in the halls on that day......
Home Learning
Students will be receiving homework each Monday in class. It is expected that this work is completed and ready for marking on Friday. The homework will be relevant to the curriculum and allows an opportunity for parents/caregivers to gain insight into the weekly classroom programme
We encourage all parents/caregivers to check their child's work and to sign their weekly diary. If you wish to communicate or provide feedback for the teacher, please include your comments in this diary. The recommended guidelines for time to be spent on homework are as follows:
Year 6.....20-30 minutes.
Years 7-8.....30-45 minutes.
This year the school website will be actively used for homework, providing material and tasks for students to complete. Students can download or print up the relevant material that is to be completed.
Homework is to be completed at the discretion of parents and caregivers. It is deemed preferable that children have an opportunity to engage in play or after school activities in the first instance.
Cultural Festival
This year we will be running our Cultural Festival in term 3. As always this promises to be an extraordinary celebration of our cultural diversity at St Thomas's.
Rehearsals will begin later in the year and students will be encouraged to join in the various groups.In 2010 there were over 17 cultural groups which included everything from Japanese to Australian and from Indian to Pacifika.
The rehearsals will culminate in two live performances at the end of term 3.We look forward to seeing you there.
Keeping Ourselves Safe (KOS)
Over the last three weeks, children in Syndicate One have been participating in the Keeping Ourselves Safe (KOS) programme. KOS is a positive personal safety programme that aims to provide children with the skills to cope with situations that might involve abuse. It will help them keep themselves safe in their interactions with other people.
The KOS programme has different modules, targetted to children of specific ages. Year 6 students have been working through the “Getting Help” module which focusses on; recognising danger and strategies to keep safe, bullying, different types of touch, acting responsibly with younger children, reporting abuse and getting help.
The Year 7 and 8 students have been working through the “Standing Up For Myself” module which focusses on; recognising danger, safety strategies, babysitting, caring for others, finding out about abuse, family violence, reporting abuse, and abuse and the law.
The unit has been a very powerful and unifying within classrooms and we look forward to running it again in two years time.
Syndicate Sports / Tournaments
Syndicate Sports is continuing on Friday afternoon. This time gives the students the opportunity to get together in their ‘house teams' and play a range of sports . This term we are continuing to practise small ball skills by playing a range of games such as rounders, sockey, box cricket, softball, long ball and scatter ball.
The students are divided up into their houses and then into house teams and compete agaist each other. This brings out a lot of 'house spirit'. Each week the teams move around to a different game where they compete and try to earn house points.
House points are given out for skill and good sportsmanship as well as excellent effort and behaviour throughout the year. On a weekly basis, the leadership team from Year 8 have the important task of adding up the tally for each team. This all leads up to the very prestigious end of year assembly where the champions are crowned and awarded the house cup!
In Term 2 we turn our attention to the winter codes for eastern zone and Bay Suburbs tournaments. Students have the opportunity to trial for teams and then train intensively in preparation for each zone tournament.Training takes place at lunch times and all players are expected to wear their PE uniform at each training session.
For Year 6 students the upcoming Bay Suburbs tournaments are as follows:
For Year 7/8 students the upcoming Eastern zone tournaments are as follows:
