May the force be with you . . .

This week students have immersed themselves in the STEM program learning how to modify, check and upload Arduino codes to make a red LED light flicker at different speeds. The boys and girls collaborated well by working in pairs. In the next few weeks they will gain more knowledge and skills to build a circuit board themselves. How exciting! During our library time, Mrs Duffy refreshed our memories on the 5Ws of information research. We practiced searching for information to answer a student-led historical question - How long have Aboriginal people been living in Australia? Using the iPads students practised navigating through the Learning Hub online resources site, typing in search queries in sources such as Online Encyclopedia Britannica and World Book Online. Some students decided to look at other reliable sources using a Google search. We discussed the difference between primary sources and secondary sources, too. In Maths we had a Stage 2 Maths session during which Year 3 and Year 4 students worked together on differentiated learning activities in a Place Value game involving 3, 4, 5 and 6 digit numbers. Congratulations to all the students who swam in the swimming carnival races. Mrs Lucas is donating a grand total of $52.50 to 3WL students for their enthusiastic participation in the carnival ($1 for every 50m race, $0.50 for every 25m race; $1 for every student who felt they sat (and stayed) patiently in their house stand when they weren't racing). Students were very honest about that one! We are learning more about forces and motion in our science unit. The students are learning to describe different types of the forces at work in an Angry Birds game. Their conceptual understanding of forces and motion is still developing.