Specialist Curriculum Areas

The Arts

This curriculum area has Two Strands – Performing Arts (Dance, Drama, Music) and Visual Arts (Art, Media). Through these strands children exercise their imagination, express their thoughts and feelings and grow in understanding of themselves and their culture.

All children attend specialist sessions in The Performing Arts and The Visual Arts. In addition The Arts will be integrated into many areas of the classroom program.

All children will be actively involved in music making, composing, performing and listening. The musical elements of; beat, rhythm, pitch, tempo/dynamics, tone colour, texture and form are taught, along with an understanding of how music style relates to period, culture and composer.

Students may elect to participate in WHPS Instrumental Program. A fee is charged for this and instruments may be hired for a small fee each term. Students in the Junior School may learn guitar and keyboard. Senior School Students have the opportunity for tuition in a range of instruments and participation in our WHPS School Band and WHPS Choir.

All children will attend Art Classes for 50 minutes each week or 100 minutes each fortnight, where art skills will be developed and promoted.

Art classes are time-tabled with specialist teachers in our well equipped art room. Students are expected to have their own art smock to protect their clothing.

Students undertake activities utilising the five elements of Art – Line, Pattern, Shape, Texture and Colour, from the following areas – Marks, Drawing, Collage, Painting, Threads and Textiles, Construction and Modelling.

Information and Communication Technology (I.C.T.)

I.C.T . and eLearning (electronic Learning) are the new names for Learning Technologies and Computer lessons. Our school has an I.C.T. room (Computer Resource Room) with 23 computers and each class is timetabled to use the computers for integrating information and communication technology into the curriculum.

Each class has one session with the I.C.T. specialist teacher where skills as well as applications are taught. These skills and applications are carried through into the classroom using the classroom computers. All classes have an additional fortnightly timetabled session taken by the class teacher.

All students are required to adhere to “ The Student Code of Conduct when Using the Internet ” and Parents are asked to read and sign the School Internet Protocol form which gives permission for their child/ren to use the Internet. Without this permission students will be unable to access the Internet for educational research and activities. The School Internet Protocol form will cover years Prep – 2 and then Years 3 – 6 so Parents will only need to sign it twice during the 7 years the child/ren are at Wheelers Hill Primary.

Library Resource Centre

All classes have a 50 minute timetabled weekly Library lessons in the Library taken by the class teacher. Children are encouraged to borrow books weekly and may have them on loan for 2 weeks. However, books may be returned daily and borrowing of books is available during Library lessons or when the Library is open during lunchtime on Tuesday and Thursday.

Children in Prep to Year 3 are encouraged to keep books in a Library bag when travelling to and from school. Please ensure that the bag is named

All classes have access to the Library collection from the classroom computers and the Library computers. Students may use the Library computers for research purposes during lessons and when the library is open at lunchtime.

Physical Education/Sport

During weekly timetabled Physical Education lessons, the children will participate in a range of activities to promote and develop their physical skills. Areas to be covered are ball handling skills, dance, gymnastics, minor games, fundamental motor skills, and fitness education. In addition to the specialist program children in years 3 & 4 enjoy a weekly sport session and children in years 5 & 6 participate in district interschool competition. An intensive swimming program is held annually for all children in prep-6.