How We Express Ourselves

Dear KG2 Parents,

This term, we will inquire into, and learn about Stories in the context of our fifth Unit of Inquiry.

Transdisciplinary Theme How We Express Ourselves

Central Idea: Stories engage an audience and communicate
meaning.

Through continual involvement of the students in this unit, they will

learn about the following Concepts:

You will be able to support your

child at home with the following
key unit vocabulary.
Consider using your Mother
Tongue as a means of developing
understanding.
Expression

Verbal

Perspective

Non-verbal

Perspective - What are the points of view?

Feelings

Genre

Reflection - How do we know?

Character

Fable

Plot

Myth

Setting

Legend

Problem

Fairytale

Solution

Folk tale

Form - What is it like?

Related concepts:
We will guide the inquiry and ensure the students grasp the concept
of the following lines of inquiry:

Ways in which stories can be told

Values

Stories and how they make us feel

Belief

What we can learn from stories

Images

Teacher questions:
How can we tell our stories? (Tell me the story, dance the story, draw
me the story, painting to music, act the story. Who do you want to
pretend to be?)
How are these stories different or the same?
How does this story make you feel?
How does the character feel?
What is the main idea in this story?
What can we learn from this story?

Beginning
Middle
End
Fluency
Communication

Transdisciplinary Skills Focus:

Social Skills:

Thinking skills:

Communications skills:

Adopting a variety of group roles - Understanding what behavior is appropriate in a given

situation and acting accordingly; being a leader in some circumstances, a follower in others.
Synthesis - Combining parts to create wholes; creating, designing, developing and innovating.
Metacognition - Analysing ones own and others thought processes; thinking about how one thinks
and one learns.
Listening - Listening to directions; listening to others; listening to information.
Speaking - Speaking clearly; giving oral reports to small and large groups; expressing ideas

clearly and logically; stating opinions.

Non-verbal communication - Recognizing the meaning of visual and kinesthetic communication; recognizing and creating signs; interpreting and utilizing symbols.
Presenting - Constructing visuals and multimedia for a range of purposes and audiences;
communicating information and ideas through a variety of visual media; using appropriate
technology for effective presentation and representation.

Self-management skills:

Research skills:

Time management - Using time effectively and appropriately.

Codes of behavior - Knowing and applying appropriate rules or operating procedures of groups of people.
Formulating questions - Identifying something one wants or needs to know and asking compelling and
relevant questions that can be researched.
Planning - Developing a course of action; writing an outline; devising ways of finding out necessary
information.

Learner Profile Focus:

Communicator: They understand and express ideas and information confidently and creatively in more
than one language and in a variety of modes of communication. They work effectively and willingly in collaboration with others.
Open-minded: They understand and appreciate their own cultures and personal histories, and are open
to the perspectives, values and traditions of other individuals and communities. They are accustomed to
seeking and evaluating a range of points of view, and are willing to grow from the experience.
Courageous: They approach unfamiliar situations and uncertainty with courage and forethought, and
have the independence of spirit to explore new roles, ideas and strategies. They are brave and articulate in
defending their beliefs.

Attitudes Focus:

Curiosity: Being curious about the nature of learning, about the world, its people and cultures.
Enthusiasm: Enjoying learning and willingly putting the effort into the process.
Respect: Respecting themselves, others and the world around them.

Summative assessment:

The Students will share a story with the class through any method of their
choice, e.g. orally, reading, puppetry, dance, mime, through pictures, music etc. The story should have a simple plot.
The students will explain why they decided on their particular method of communicating their story.

In addition to our Unit of Inquiry we also have content standards in language and math which we will be focusing
on. We have listed them below, both so you can stay informed and to enable you to encourage learning at home.
Language
Reading

Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.

Compare and contrast the adventures and experiences of characters in familiar stories.
Makes personal connections to visual texts.
Recognize common types of texts (storybooks poems).
Describe the relationship between illustrations and the story in which they appear (e.g., what moment in a story an illustration depicts).
Retell familiar stories, including key details.
Actively engage in group reading activities.
Read common high-frequency words by sight (e.g., the, of, to, you, she, my, is, are, do, does).
Identify basic similarities in and differences between two texts on the same topic (e.g., in illustrations, descriptions, or procedures).

Writing
Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions as desired to provide additional detail.
Understand and use question words (interrogatives (e.g., who, what, when, where, why, how).
Explore a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing, including collaboration with peers.
Respond to questions and suggestions from peers and add details to strengthen writing as needed.
Capitalize the first word in a sentence and the pronoun I.
Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several loosely linked events, tell about the events in the
order in which they occurred, and provide a reaction to what happened.

Speaking and Listening

Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions
Continue a conversation through multiple exchanges.
Sort common objects into categories to gain a sense of concepts the categories represent.
Distinguish shades of meaning among verbs describing the same general action by acting out the meaning.
Recognize and produce rhyming words.
Count, pronounce, blend, and segment syllables in spoken words.
Math
Count to 100 by ones and by tens
Count forward beginning from a given number within the known sequence (instead of having to begin at 1)
Understand that the last number name said tells the number of objects counted. The number of objects is the same regardless of their
arrangement or the order in which they were counted.

Count to answer how many? questions about as many as 20 things arranged in a line, a rectangular array, or a circle, or as many as 10
things in a scattered configuration, given a number from 1 to 20, count out that many objects.

Understand addition as putting together and adding to, and understand subtraction as taking apart and taking from.

Fluently add and subtract within 5.

Identify and describe 2d and 3d shapes, and distinguish between the two.

Decompose numbers less than or equal to 10 into pairs in more than one way, eg using objects or drawings, and record each decomposition
by a drawing or equation (eg. 5 = 2 + 3).
Compose and decompose numbers from 11-19 into ten ones and some further ones, eg. By using objects or drawings, and record each composition or decomposition by drawing or equation, such as 18 = 10 + 8.
Model shapes in the world by building shapes from components, for example sticks and clay balls, and drawing shapes.
Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.
Attend to precision.

Social Studies

Identify stories about events, people, places or situations, and explain the main idea in these stories.
Identify regional folk stories and the ways in which stories are told in different cultures.
Explain the main ideas in stories and how they make us feel.

How you can help your child at home:

Families are encouraged to share stories at home through different mediums. Children can access RAZKids
through the login provided earlier in the year by your class teacher. It is recommended that parents support
their child by sitting with them and discussing the books and asking questions. There is also a quiz at the end of
each book! Children should be encouraged to write and draw their own stories, tell stories through role play and
puppetry, dance and song. Please talk to your child about stories from your own cultural background, and we
encourage parents and children to read and tell stories through their mother tongue as well as in English.

We look forward to your co-operation and support for your child through this unit. Please let us know if you have
any questions regarding this unit.
Thank you,
The KG2 Team

GIS Specialist Newsletter

Unit 5 KG2
Art
Learning Objectives: In Unit 5 the students will be able to:

Express themselves through art in a different visual representation.

Select the most suitable forms of visual presentation enhances our ability to express ideas and images.

Produce different effects using various visual techniques and use to present different types of information from an art work.

Activities/Projects/Connections:

Print making

Connection to How we express ourselves UOI: Form- types of creative expression. PerspectiveHow our creativity is inspired. Reflection- How we respond to art.

Music
Learning Objectives: In Unit 5 the students will be able to:

Read and write traditional music notation

Follow musical directions on instruments that are given by notation

Demonstrate and perform several tempi and dynamics changes vocally or instrumentally.

Activities/Projects/Connections:

perform, read and write rhythmic and melodic note patterns that include various note values and
rests

Performing rhythmic patterns and ostinati on tuned percussion instruments like Boomwhackers and
Xylophones/Glockenspiels

Connection to How we express ourselves UOI: Perspective- How music evokes different feelings in
us.

Learning multicultural songs and games

PE
Learning Objectives: In Unit 5 the students will be able to:

Develop their confidence in the water.

Understand that we can manipulate our body in different ways to help us move through the water.

Develop their performance across different swimming strokes by practicing and working on basic
drills.

Develop their balance and body control.

Acquisition of new motor skills, like the somersault.

Activities/Projects/Connections:

Partner work to provide peer feedback using reciprocal learning cards.

Develop a sequence of movements using, as an aid, photos and cards of themselves.