MATHS AND SCIENCE

Dear Parents,

The end of the semester 1 is rapidly approaching and there is much to do. Throughout semester 1, students were provided enriching opportunities to study different aspect of Maths & Science. These learning opportunities included experimentation, projects, research reports, assignments and excursions which helped students to develop their mathematical & scientific knowledge.

This semester for science, Year 7 students studied the units of Properties of Substances, Working Scientifically, and Mixtures. Year 8’s studied Substances - Elements and Compounds, Working with Scientific Data, and Energy. For Forensic Science elective, students are learning different techniques to analyse the finger prints, hair & fibres. During Research Science elective, students worked with our school counsellor Ms. Tania McDonald. They communicated about their future goals and created Vision Boards. Following is students’ feedback about the Vision Board activity.

• Spending time with Ms. McDonald was a lot of fun. We created a unique vision board by sticking cut-outs from different magazines to represent our future goals in life. It helped me to use my imagination freely to create something positive and relieve the stress and negative thoughts. It was also a good way to socialise because we were able to chat with each other. Over all, it was a fun, relaxing and a positive activity. Rafl - Year 7
• Creating vision board was a great fun. It made us think about our future goals and what we should do to achieve them. I liked the way Ms. McDonald communicated with us, she was so kind. Hajer - Year 7

For Maths, Year 7 students studied the units of Whole Numbers, Integers, Fractions & Decimals, Statistics & Probability and they are working on the unit of Algebra. Year 8 students finished the units of Integers, Algebra, Fractions, Decimals and Percentages. Soon both Year 7 & 8 students will start a project which will help them to learn the practical use of algebra in daily life. The project is designed to improve students thinking in an organized fashion. Three major assessments had occurred this semester.

• NAPLAN test for year 7
• Semester 1 tests
• PAT-M test

At this stage, most of the assessments are checked and individually discussed with the students. Parents can see the results on SEQTA and let me know if you have any concerns. I can arrange a suitable time for you so we can communicate about your child’s academic or behavioural progress in mathematics and science.