This Week in HASS – term 4, week 3

This week our youngest students are looking at special places locally and around Australia, slightly older students are considering plants and animals around the world, while our older students are studying aspects of diversity in Australia.

Foundation/Prep/Kindy to Year 3

Students in standalone Foundation/Prep/Kindy (Unit F.4) and combined classes with Year 1 (F-1.4) are thinking about special places this week – what places are special to them and their families? What places are special in Australia? This focus gives the teacher a chance to guide the students through the process of considering natural beauty and how we and other agencies, such as the government, can look after special places and places of natural beauty. Students in Years 1 (Unit 1.4), 2 (Unit 2.4) and 3 (Unit 3.4) are continuing their focus on the stories of families from around the world from week 1. This week Year 1 and 2 students are focusing on plants and animals from the places described in the stories in week 1. Students in Year 3 also consider the role of climate in the diversity of plants and animals.

Years 3 to 6

Students in Years 3 (Unit 3.8), 4 (Unit 4.4), 5 (Unit 5.4) and 6 (Unit 6.4) are studying different aspects of diversity this week. Students in year 3 are looking at Aboriginal people and the environment, in the context of climate. Students in Year 4 consider both Aboriginal people and technology with respect to the Australian environment. Students in year 5 are starting to consider how Aboriginal people’s interactions with the environment over millennia have set the stage for the recognition of Native Title in Australia; while students in year 6 examine the history of Aboriginal suffrage and Native Title in Australia. These studies of diversity in Australia provide information for the students to start planning a celebration of identity and diversity in the last week. Students in Years 3 to 6 also continue with their scientific experiment of growing a plant.