Grade 4

Grade 4 @ Mano

Literacy

Our Grade 4 students participate in daily Reading, Writing and Structured Literacy sessions. Our Structured Literacy sessions involve the students further cementing their phonemic awareness and phonics skills including, spelling rules, morphology and handwriting. Our Reading sessions consist of students working in whole and small differentiated groups to develop and practise reading fluency, comprehension skills, identifying text types and beginning to apply skills such as inferring.  Our Grade 3 and Grade 4 area features a Just Right Reading library for daily independent practice. Our Writing sessions involve students planning, drafting and publishing their writing while exploring a variety of genres and techniques, to enhance their writing.

Numeracy

Our Grade 4 Students participate in Numeracy sessions each day that are centred around the strands of Number and Algebra, Measurement and Geometry and Statistics and Probability. Students engage in regular independent learning goal, game based and small group focused sessions which are targeted to individual point of need. 

Inquiry

In Grade 4, each term we have a different Inquiry focus that revolves around a ‘Big Question’. Students work through the areas of Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate and Evaluation during their investigations. Skills are introduced and reinforced throughout the unit eg. brainstorming, listing, labelling diagrams, reading information or interpreting data, and designing presentations using different methods. At the end of every term students are involved in authentic action tasks which allows them to dive deeper into the topic and choose how they will demonstrate their learning.

SEL

Student wellbeing is an integral part of each day. Grade 4 students will engage in dedicated sessions to support their wellbeing to provide a range of strategies to promote healthy and positive lifestyles. These lessons link to our School Wide Positive Behaviour Support (SWPBS) program and school values, Respect, Responsibility and Safety.

Library

Each class is given a 30 minute session each week in our Library. These sessions allow us to continue to promote and foster a love of reading to our students. While in the Library, students have the opportunity to borrow books as well as explore what the Library has to offer.

Bike Education Program

Manifold Heights Primary School aims to improve safety for our students in Grades 3 – 6 by promoting bicycle education in our school. Bike Ed is delivered by our trained teachers and is designed to help children develop the skills they need to ride safely and independently on roads and paths.  It consists of a mix of practical activities conducted off-road (in the school grounds) and on-road (on local roads) together with classroom activities.

Swimming

Our Grade 3 and 4 students take part in a 5-day intensive Swimming Program at the beginning of Term 4. This program follows on from our Prep – 2 Swimming Program and allows the students to continue to develop and refine the skills learnt in previous years.  Students are placed in groups according to their current swimming level to ensure they are learning the correct skills, techniques and water safety strategies for their ability.

Excursions

We link our excursions to our Inquiry learning where possible. In previous years we have gone on local community walks to connect with learning, when investigating the Media Arts our Grade 3s and 4s went to ACMI, we have also been to the Queenscliff Marine Discovery Centre when focusing on Biological sciences.

B.Y.O.D

In Grade 3 and Grade 4, students are able and encouraged to bring their own iPad. Students will be taught basic iPad skills as well as use a range of apps to aide them in some reading, writing, numeracy and inquiry lessons. Students who are unable to supply their own iPad will have access to the small range of iPads the school owns during these lessons.

Angelsea Camp (Grade 4)

One of the highlights of the Grade 4 year, is the 3 day/2 night camp to Anglesea Coastal Forest Lodge. Confidence building, co-operation, self-esteem and teamwork are the main focus of this camp. For many this is their first experience of being away from home, so it is a wonderful opportunity for children to develop some independence and initiative as they tackle the range of fun and challenging activities available. These include, a low ropes course, a day at the beach, archery, yabbying, learning about the farm animals and bush walks.