ENGLISH:
Reading:
All three boys read
lots of books for their independent reading time. I do not dictate what books
they choose for their “free” independent reading time. I keep a list of all the
books the boys read in their portfolio for easy review.
Monster: Is
no longer participating in Premiere’s Reading Challenge this year as he
completed it in Year 9. However, if he finds PRC books in the library that look
interesting to him, I’m certain he will pick them up and read them.
Monkey: As
this year’s Premier’s Reading Challenge is finished, Monkey is starting on books
for next year’s challenge. He received his Platinum Award this year for
completing seven years of the challenge in a row.
Munchkin: As
Munchkin is the most voracious reader of the three boys, the Premier’s Reading
Challenge is quite easy for him. Even with the frustration of the long library
closure, Munchkin will have no trouble completing the challenge even if he
waits until March 2022 to get started. At the end of Term 4, Munchkin received
his Gold Award for Premier’s Reading Challenge, which signifies that he
completed four years in a row.
Writing:
All three boys
continue to use the Institute for Excellence in Writing: Teaching Writing
Structure and Style curriculum. It allows each boy to work at a level appropriate
for their age and ability. It “grows” with the child so to speak. See below for
a list of the types of writing each individual boy did during Term Four.
Thankfully in Term 4
we had access to the library again so the boys were able to do some research
style writing.
Monster: Weary
Dunlop (Unit 4/6) and Darwin/Northern Territory (Unit 4/6). Yes, Monster only completed
two writing assignments this term, but they were research style topics that
required more study and work.
Monkey: Time
Machine – Part 3 (Unit 8 Creative Writing Standard Essay), Tutankhamun (Unit
4/6),
Munchkin: Turtles
(Unit 4/6)
Spelling:
Monkey: I
use the Ozspeller website to choose and create weekly word lists for him. I
quiz him orally Monday – Thursday and then he takes a written test on Friday
morning. In Term 4 Monkey completed the Advanced lists and worked through some
of the commonly misspelled lists as well.
Munchkin: It
has become apparent that he didn’t learn as much on Reading Eggs as I thought
he did. While he did learn to read well, he hasn’t memorised the spelling rules
well. So I am doing some review spelling work with him. This term he continued
working through the Year 2/2nd Grade Targeting Spelling book.
Each week he worked through a two-page unit focusing on a specific reading
and/or spelling rule. I quizzed him orally on the spelling words in the unit.
If he got them all correct on Monday morning then he didn’t have to take a
written test on Friday. We will continue this review work until I feel
confident that he has spelling rules memorised.
Literature:
Below are the books I
selected to read to the boys for their literature this term. Munchkin’s books
were read to all three boys, Monkey’s books were read to Monster as well, and
Monster’s books were read only to him.
Along with “classic
literature” there are three books that we read aloud repeatedly. The first is
the Bible and then we also read “The Book of Virtues” and “The Moral Compass”
by William Bennett.
Munchkin: This
term we read the following books: “The Tale of Despereaux” by Kate DiCamillo, “The
Silver Chair” and “The Last Battle” by C. S. Lewis, “The Jungle Book” by
Rudyard Kipling, “Boyhood and Beyond” by Bob Schultz, “Pollyanna” and “Pollyanna
Grows Up” by Eleanor H. Porter
Monkey: This
term we finished the following books: “The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind” by
William Kamkwamba, “Peter Pan” by J.M. Barrie, “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” by
L Frank Baum,
Monster: This
term we read "Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl", “The Scarlet
Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, “The Great Divorce” and “Mere Christianity” by
C. S. Lewis, and “A Purpose Driven Life” by Rick Warren
Grammar:
Monster completed
Analytical Grammar Season Three during Term 3 so he will no longer feature in
the term reviews in the grammar section anymore.
Monkey finished
Season One of Analytical Grammar this year. In Term 4 he completed units 8 – 10
which focused on linking verbs and patterns 4 and 5, helping verbs, and
conjunctions and compound situations.
Munchkin is
not doing any grammar curriculum this year. I have learned that (for our
family) grammar is best introduced in the late primary grades or early high
school grades. Given that I have had to review spelling rules with Munchkin, I
have decided to hold off starting formal grammar lessons with him until he
starts high school (Year 7/7th grade).
MATHS:
Monster: Completed
his Haese Mathematics for Australia Year 10A textbook. Through the course of
the term he completed chapters 23 - 25 which covered the following content: Advanced
Trigonometry, Conic Sections and Bivariate Statistics.
Monkey: Completed
chapters 7 and also chapters 9 - 11 in the Yr 7 book which covered the content:
Algebra: Expressions and Formulae, Equations, Polygons and Coordinates. He will
continue working through the Yr 7 textbook next year before moving on to the Yr
8 textbook.
Munchkin: Finished
the Year 4/4th Grade course on Khan Academy. He spent the remainder
of the term trying out some Year 5 content on the Khan Academy website and also
practicing his multiplication tables using an app on my mobile phone. In the
2022 school year Munchkin will begin using the Yr 5 Haese Mathematics textbook.
We also read the book
“100 Things to Know About Numbers, Computers and Coding”
SCIENCE:
For the remaining
school subjects I try to teach all three boys together as a group as much as I
possibly can. So I will now start listing Munchkin’s work first and work from
youngest to eldest boy rather than repeatedly recording the same things.
I rely heavily on our
library for quality books to cover the content we study in the remaining
subjects. When I am planning a unit study I do a subject search for books and
reserve any and all that look like they will be suitable for the boys. I
include picture books, junior non-fiction, and I’ve just started including
adult non-fiction for both Monkey AND Monster.
Munchkin, Monkey,
Monster:
We read the following
books as part of our Science learning this term:
“Science Ideas in 30
Seconds” by Dr Mike Goldsmith
The Life of Plants series
by Louise and Richard Spilsbury – there are three books in the series entitled:
“Plant Growth”, “Plant Classification” and “Plant Products”
HISTORY:
Munchkin: I
read the following books aloud to Munchkin for History this term:
“Meet Nellie”, “Nellie
and the Secret Letter”, “Nellie’s Quest”, and “Nellie’s Greatest Wish” by Penny
Matthews
“My Place” by Nadia
Wheatley
“Barney and the
Secret of the Whales”, “The Secret of the Black Bushranger” and “The Secret of
the French Spies” by Jackie French
“Meet Poppy”, “Poppy
at Summerhill”, “Poppy and the Thief” and “Poppy Comes Home” by Gabrielle Wang
“Took the Children
Away” by Archie Roach
Monkey: I
read the following books aloud to Monkey for History this term:
“The Burnt Stick” by
Anthony Hill, “Follow the Rabbit Proof Fence” by Doris Pilkington, “Egyptian
Pyramid” by Gillian Clements, “Hard Nuts of History: Ancient Egypt” by Tracey
Turner, “The Legend of Tutankhamun” by Sally Morgan, “Cleopatra: Powerful
Leader or Ruthless Pharaoh” by Peggy Caravantes, “Egyptian Mythology” by Donna
Jo Napoli, and “Hatshepsut” by Carole Wilkinson
Monster: I
read the following books aloud to Monster for History this term:
“The White Mouse: The
Story of Nancy Wake” by Peter Gouldthorpe, “Angel of Kokoda” by Mark Wilson, “War
in the Pacific”, “Winston Churchill”, “Battles of WWII”, “Weary Dunlop” by
Allan Drummond, “Sir Edward Weary Dunlop” by Hazel Edwards, “Archie’s Letter”
by Martin Flanagan, “Tucky Jo and Little Heart” by Patricia Polacco, “Pennies
For Hitler” and “Good-bye Mr Hitler” by Jackie French
GEOGRAPHY:
Munchkin, Monkey,
Monster:
We read the following
books as part of their Geography studies this term:
Australian Landscapes
series by Rachel Dixon “Deserts and Savannahs in Australia”, “Forests in
Australia”, “Mountains in Australia” and “Water in Australia”
Australia’s
Neighbours by Jane Hinchey “China”, “Singapore”, “Indonesia”, “Malaysia”, and “Philippines”
– we will finish this series off next year as there are several more countries
we want to learn about
Migration by William
Day “Migration from Asia”, “Migration from Europe”, and “Migration from the
Middle East and Africa”
“The Little Refugee”
and “The Happiest Refugee” by Anh Do (the second book was only read to the two
older boys as some of the content was too mature for Munchkin)
“Refugee” by William
Day
We Worship Here
series by Angela Wood “Christian Church”, “Jewish Synagogue”, “Muslim Mosque”, “Hindu
Mandir” and “Buddhist Temple”
“Food and Farming” by
Steve Parker
“Food and Farming” by
John Baines
PDHPE:
We read the following
books covering mental health and puberty during the term.
Your Mind Matters
series by Honor Head “Your Brain and Body”, “Your Emotions”, “Social Media and
You” and “Beating Stress and Anxiety”
“So That’s What’s
Happening” by Gina Dawson
“My Body’s Changing:
A Boy’s Guide to Growing Up” by Anita Ganeri
“The Ultimate Guy’s
Body Book” by Walt Larimore
Creative Arts:
During
Term 4 all three boys enjoyed “free range” creative arts activities… these
included, but weren’t limited to, listening to and participating in a variety
of music at church, in the car, and with various devices in the home… Monkey
continues to draw daily using pencil, coloured pencil, various textas and pens,
watercolour paint and acrylic paint. Munchkin continues to enjoy various forms
of crafting and construction as well as drawing… Monster loves watching “theory”
videos on YouTube about movies and music.
Latin: (Monster)
Monster is currently
working through two Latin textbooks independently. They are Lingua Latina
Familia Romana and Lingua Latina Exercitia Latina 1.
Marine and
Aquaculture Technology: (Monster)
We read “Deep Oceans”
by Anna Claybourne
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