VELS Level 2 - Years 1 and 2 at School
The basic knowledge and skills learnt in Prep are developed in Years 1 and 2. As children grow in confidence, their friendships are strengthened, they become more engaged in learning and are able to handle different types of challenging learning experiences.
In Years 1 and 2, standards for assessment and reporting are set in six areas of learning as shown in the table below. Standards are introduced in information and communications technology (ICT) and interpersonal development in these years.
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Victorian Essential Learning Standards - Years 1 and 2 |
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Physical, Personal and Social Learning
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Discipline-based Learning
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Interdisciplinary Learning
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Student class work continues to focus on literacy, numeracy, health and physical education and the arts. They will also have learning experiences in other areas of learning. Student understanding of the world around them is further increased as they continue to be introduced to events, people, and ideas from science, history and geography.
In Years 1 and 2 children develop and take more control of their own learning, work with their peers and develop physical skills. They also become more aware of the world outside the school.
Standards in Years 1 and 2 in particular areas of learning are illustrated in the following examples.
English
As students work towards the achievement of standards they spend more time reading and begin to do so independently. In doing this they achieve the standards by:
- reading a range of books from story books to non-fiction titles
- starting to read poetry
- matching sounds accurately to a range of letters, letter clusters and patterns
- retelling ideas in sequence using vocabulary and phrases
- predicting plausible endings for stories and inferring characters’ feelings
- developing a clearer understanding of words and their use.
Students also continue to share ideas with classmates and family, understand the need to keep checking spelling and develop confidence in group discussion.
Mathematics
Students continue to build on and expand their knowledge of mathematics. They develop a better understanding of measurement by using common items and measures such as money, length, time and temperature, both in the classroom and at home.
Numbers continue to be a focus and students learn skills such as how to count in 2s and 4s, and count to 1000 by 1s, 10s and 100s. Activities often involve simple multiplication, division and the relationship of these to addition and subtraction. Students are encouraged to enter and read numbers on a calculator. They do mental arithmetic and also check estimations and simple number sentences and equations with a calculator.
The Arts and Interpersonal Development
Students work with friends in arts disciplines, for example art, dance, drama, media and music. Drama activities may include those that use mime and masks to tell stories about real and imagined characters. In art, they may make a slideshow to accompany one of their drama works.
As students work towards achieving the standards in the arts they develop their abilities to:
- express ideas through performing and visual arts works
- use different materials, equipment and technologies
- make decisions with others.
Students may join music ensembles, prepare group dances and explore works from different cultures.
Health and Physical Education
Learning is not restricted to the classroom. Young people take part in a range of activities such as ball games, team games and swimming, which encourages confidence in physical activity.
Clear standards mean that they complete safe activities in which they learn:
- basic motor skills
- how to change speed and direction
- about safe use of equipment and rules of games
- about the relationship between physical activity and health.
How Mitchell learns about information and communication technology
Mitchell uses ICT to help acquire new knowledge and skills in all areas of learning and to present his understandings. In mathematics, for example, Mitchell uses ICT to construct and combine different two-dimensional shapes such as rectangles and triangles. Using ICT functions he copies and flips these shapes horizontally and vertically and fills them with colours to show original and transformed shapes together.
Mitchell also accesses a multimedia resource such as a website or CD-ROM to participate in a food pyramid game and then presents his understandings of food groups in a slide show that contains an image of a lunchbox filled with appropriate food items.
He meets the standards by:
- manipulating text and images
- saving and naming a file
- creating and formatting a product
- using ICT to locate information.
