Pupil Free Day - Reflective Practice Day (Spelling) 

We hope your children had a fantastic pupil free day last week. While they enjoyed their day off, our dedicated teachers and school officers were engaged in professional development activities, aimed at enhancing their knowledge of curriculum and teaching practices. They spent more time engaging with the new Version 9 Australian Curriculum and specifically focused on Grammar and Punctuation (Spelling), in line with our School Improvement Plan.

Did you know that for children to become effective at spelling they need knowledge and skills in all of the following areas?

• Auditory Processing 
• Oral Language
• Semantics (vocabulary) 
• Phonological Awareness / Phonemic Awareness
• Morphology
• Spelling Conventions
• Etymology

All of this intricate content is taught at St Benedict's in a systemised and structured way as students progress from Prep to Year 6, using evidenced based pedagogy (this means we research best practice, teach each child within their developmental level, and create consistent processes across the school!). Spelling is also integrated into reading and writing, forming what we call ‘Literacy Block.’ During the day we also had Miss Anne McGrath showcase the work she has been doing, alongside the year 2 team and myself, in regards to teaching spelling; and Mrs Toni Pilcher updated the teachers on her learning and work for Maths Planning using the Version 9 Curriculum. Both teachers did a wonderful presentation and shared a wealth of knowledge and ideas with other staff.

For more information and ideas to support your child with spelling, see the website Reading Rockets: Writing and Spelling: Practical Ideas for Parents.

RACQ Streets Ahead

This week, the RACQ Education Team visited our school and delivered the Streets Ahead program to Year 3-6 classes. Our students were taught valuable road safety lessons including how to cross the road safely, how to correctly wear a helmet and how they can be a safe and helpful passenger when travelling in a vehicle. Our students thoroughly enjoyed the program and gained practical strategies they can use when out in our community as pedestrians, bike/scooter riders and passengers.

Free Apps until September 11th 

Normally $15.99, both 'Teach Your Monster to Read' and 'Reading for Fun' are for free until Wednesday 11th Sept! 

Teach Your Monster to Read is an award-winning, phonics and reading game for kids. Enjoyed by over 30 million worldwide, Teach Your Monster to Read is a truly ground-breaking kids reading app that makes learning to read fun for little ones aged between 3-8.

Reading for Fun is a magical world packed full of over 70 books and ignites a love of reading.

Together, these teacher-approved games have been played over 500 million times! 

‘Teach your Monster’ is a non-profit organisation, on a mission to help millions of children achieve the best start in life, through games, learning and fun. They rely on the funds raised through app sales to maintain and improve games, but every so often they are able to run special free promos like this one - with the goal to reach as many children as possible…

Download the Apps by going to: 

Apple: https://apps.apple.com/.../teach-your-monster/id828392049

Google: https://play.google.com/store/apps/dev...

School Holidays

The school holidays are fast approaching with one more week to go! For suggestions and ideas of engaging and educational activities around Townsville see the TSV City Council School Holiday Guide.

This is also a time worth noting the importance of monitoring your child’s screen time.  VerySpecialTales.com offers some insightful information and strategies on the positives and negatives of screen time for children. They also have these following PRINTABLES you may like to use with your child: 

Did you also know that Google offers an App called “Google Family Link” where you can track, restrict, and manage your child’s devices? “Family Link provides tools that respect families’ individual choices with technology, helping them create healthy, positive digital habits. With easy‑to‑use tools, you can understand how your child is spending time on their device, share location, manage privacy settings, and find the right balance for your family.”