CURRICULUM

Students in P-6 follow the Australian Curriculum.  Students in Kindergarten follow the Early Years Learning Framework.

Early Years Learning Framework

(EYLF) is the foundation document for ensuring children in all early years settings experience quality teaching and learning.  The EYLF recognises the complex nature of young children’s learning and provides principles and practices to guide educators working with children from birth to 5 years of age and has, at its centre, the child. The EYLF has five learning outcomes:

• Children have a strong sense of identity
• Children are connected with and contribute to their world
• Children have a strong sense of wellbeing
• Children are confident and involved learners
• Children are effective communicators

Educators use the outcomes to observe children and plan for their ongoing development. When using the EYLF educators acknowledge that children learn in a variety of ways and provide quality learning environments that are inclusive of all children.

Australian Curriculum

The Australian Curriculum Framework is a national curriculum followed by all schools in Australia.  For primary school, the framework is made up of the following learning areas:

• English
• Mathematics
• Science
• Health and Physical Education
• HASS - Humanities and Social Science
• The Arts
• Technologies (including: Design and Technologies; Digital
  Technologies)
• Languages

Within the Australian Curriculum we are developing whole school approaches to the general capabilities:

• Literacy – whole school approaches specifically in reading, spelling and writing
• Numeracy – whole school approach using Di Siemon’s 6 Big Ideas in number
• Personal & Social capability – whole school approach in respectful relationships, consent education, whole school embedding of school values, Zones of Regulation, explicit social and emotional teaching
• Critical and Creative Thinking – whole school inquiry focus supported by Kath Murdoch’s learning assets – being a thinker, communicator, researcher, collaborator and self-manager
• Intercultural Understanding – whole school approach and also class by class approach
• ICT – a class by class approach
• Ethical Understanding – a class by class approach

We focus on the three cross curricular priorities as a whole school in the following
way:

• Term 1: Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia
• Term 2: Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories and
  Cultures
• Term 3: Sustainability

English

The strands in English are:

• Language
• Literature
• Literacy

Communication processes that are explicitly taught include: reading, listening, viewing; and speaking, writing, creating. Families are encouraged to support these elements of English at home by ensuring their children read and talk about what they read, hear and watch as well as encourage opportunities to build vocabulary by talking, writing and creating. Active engagement in the home reading program is also essential for developing reading skills – a foundation for learning in all areas.

We schedule our reading instructional model daily for 50 mins – hour for P-6 and daily 10 minute sessions in fluency in reading for G1-6.

Mathematics

The strands in Mathematics are:

• Number and algebra
• Measurement and geometry
• Statistics and probability

In this learning area the four proficiency strands which

teachers focus on are: understanding, fluency, problem

solving and reasoning.

Science

The Science curriculum focuses on the following four

strands for student learning:

• Science as a human endeavour
• Scientific inquiry
• Scientific communication
• Science as a body of knowledge

The Arts

Visual arts and performing arts are strands in this learning area. Depending on the availability of specialist teachers, students participate a weekly session of one or more of either visual art, drama or music.  In 2025, K-6 students attend specialist music sessions.  Instrument tuition occurs on a Friday afternoon for selected students.  G1-6 have a timetabled art session fortnightly.

Health and Physical Education

A weekly Physical Education (PE) session is timetabled for all
students. Gross and fine motor skills, as well as teamwork,
cooperation and sportsmanship are a focus in these sessions.

The Swimming and Water Safety Program runs for a week for
all students early in Term 1. Athletics is held in Term 1 and
sometimes we participate in a combined athletics carnival with
Glenora in Term 4 as well. Cross country is held in Term 2 and
our swimming carnival takes place in Term 4.

Relevant health topics and explicit social and emotional learning are taught
within the classroom program and in our specialist, wellbeing classes as part of our whole school
approach to student wellbeing. The Tasmanian Respectful Relationships and Consent Education Curriculum are also taught in specialist wellbeing classes for P-6.

Humanities and Social Science (HASS)

HASS focuses on four sub-strands, which are progressively introduced
to students:

• History (from Prep)
• Geography (from Prep)
• Civics and citizenship (from Gr 3)
• Economics and business (from Gr 5)

Technologies

Technologies is in the initial phase of implementation and, while taught, is not currently reported on at Westerway Primary School. It is composed of two subject areas:

• Design and Technologies
• Digital Technologies

Languages

We have been successful in a languages grant application in partnership with some of our Derwent Valley Learning Precinct partners for 2025 – Fairview, Molesworth, and Collinsvale.  We will be offering Mandarin in term 2 for P-6 students.

Kitchen Garden

Westerway Primary School also offers an opportunity for students to pursue learning through engagement in our kitchen garden program.  Classes can study and learn about the kitchen garden as part of their classroom program or work in small groups with our chaplain, who                                            will be supporting children in our kitchen to transform garden produce into nutritious food.

Testing

The testing program at Westerway Primary provides data which can be used to:

• identify students at risk or who may need extension
• monitor the effectiveness of learning programs at
  various grade levels and
• provide direction for teachers in planning programs to
  meet the needs of students.

State and national tests include:

• Kindergarten Development Checklist – KDC
• NAPLAN – Year 3 and 5
• PAT Testing – Progressive individual achievement tests - P-6
• Year 1 Phonics and Number testing – G1
• Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) – P-6

Further tests will be conducted at Westerway Primary at other grade levels to track student progress and to identify students who require additional support or extension.

Homework

Teachers may or may not set regular homework. The main homework as a whole school is regular participation in the home reading program. Other homework that teachers may set include finishing work from class, maths, writing or spelling practice, researching, collecting data for surveys, etc. Parents are encouraged to discuss work completed in class with their children and to access See Saw (our online communication tool) in order to keep up with class learning focuses. Parents are welcome to discuss homework expectations with the class teacher and to request additional homework if desired. The Department also provides links and ideas on their web page.

How to help at home - Department for Education, Children and Young People

As a general rule, the following times should be considered for homework, including home reading:

• K-2: 5 - 20 mins per night or 20 mins - 1 hour per week
• 3-6: 15 - 30 mins per night or 1 - 2 hours per week