YEAR FIVE

Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Primary School provides a range of holistic learning experiences to enable students to:

• Participate in the life and mission of the school.
• Deepen their knowledge and engagement with the Catholic faith and tradition.
• Build capacity to continuously reason, reflectively, logically and critically.
• Embrace interdependence of human existence as global citizens, who are responsible to and for themselves and others.
• Engage in learning in a multitude of ways, through personalised and self-paced learning.

Religious Education

Students will continue to engage with the unit of the story of the Catholic Church in Australia. Students will investigate key events and people that have shaped the identity and growth of the Catholic Church in Australia. 

Students will then explore the unit of the Bible as our Sacred Scripture. Students review the great story of our Tradition: its significant people and events. The unit also introduces the students to the formation and structure of the Bible.

English

This term, English literature will be explored through modelled, guided and independent reading of a novel as a springboard into literary concepts including theme, figurative language, characterisation and narrative structure. Students respond to literature and create digital texts around themes of friendship, isolation and resilience. Students will continue to practise spelling daily as part of our Soundwaves spelling program. 

Mathematics

Mathematics lessons will be taught daily with a consistent structure of Daily Review, Mental Arithmetic, Explicit Teaching, Routine Practice activities with working mathematical skills embedded throughout the lesson. The topics taught in Term 4 are: Area, Multiplicative Relations, Fractions, Position and Chance. 

Science and Technology

This Semester, the Year 5 students will be studying the Material World strand. This unit focuses on how the properties of a range of materials determine their use and inform design solutions. Students investigate the different properties of solids, liquids and gases, and consider combining and separating mixtures. Stage 3 of this strand introduces students to fundamental concepts of chemistry and is an introduction to materials technologies.

History

This Semester, the Year 5 students will be engaging in the History program ‘Australian Colonies and Policies’, which provides a study of colonial Australia in the 1800s. Students examine significant events and people, political and economic developments, social structures and settlement patterns of the colonies. Students will learn about the reasons people migrated to Australia with a focus on the Gold Rush era.

Personal Development, Health and Physical Education

In sports lessons,  Year 5 students will enhance their movement skills through engaging activities that promote coordination, balance, and teamwork. The program will include a focus on dance, allowing students to compose their own routines and express creativity through movement. Additionally, they will learn the fundamentals of Australian sports, such as AFL and cricket, fostering a deeper understanding of teamwork and sportsmanship. Through drills, games, and friendly competitions, students will develop their skills while emphasising the values of respect and fair play. 

Our Swimming program is run by Neilson’s Swim School at Caringbah Leisure Centre. They provide qualified, experienced instructors who teach water safety and race readiness. The swimming program is part of the school curriculum and is compulsory for all children. The intensive swimming program will run for 5 days. Each lesson is 40 minutes. 

Weeks 1 & 2 (see Compass for details)

5B: 9:10 am - 9:50 am

5G: 9:50 am - 10:30 am

5W: 11:10 am - 11:50 am

Growing Towards Wholeness - Personal Development

On Thursday 24th October the school is offering a Personal Development evening run by Catholic Care Sydney for students in Years 5 - (5 - 6:30pm) and Year 6 - (6:45-8:15pm). 

The evening will provide accurate information about puberty and changes that occur during puberty, in line with the set PDHPE Curriculum and Catholic Church Teachings. Students will be provided with workbooks that can be completed during the session as well as at home once the session is finished.

Peer Support will commence this term and run for five weeks. This year's Module is, “Strong Together”.

The module aims to enhance student safety and wellbeing by promoting positive relationships, positive behaviours and expectations. It leverages peer-led leadership, encouraging older students to guide their younger peers with engaging activities. The approach emphasises strengths-based strategies and calls for a whole-school commitment to ensure sustained effectiveness in creating a safe and supportive school environment that aligns beautifully with our SPBL and Mercy Values.

This mini module aims to develop leadership as well as:

• Students to know their strengths.
• Establish expectations of positive behaviour and what it looks like.
• Clarify how to take action to make things better.
• Develop resilience.

Open Parachute will then continue for the remainder of the Term. Open Parachute aims to provide practical support on mental health to students. The program aims to reduce stigma and generate authentic dialogue in classrooms about the real issues students face. The psychological skills-building exercises aim to increase empathy, self-compassion, self-awareness, mental health literacy, and self-efficacy in students.

Amadeus Music Program

Students will continue with the Amadeus Music Education Program and participate in activities in listening, performing and organising sound within their regular Classroom Music lessons. 

• It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that they:
  • Arrive on time for each lesson
  • Bring their instrument and required accessories to every lesson
  • Bring their Essential Elements* music book
  • Bring a lead pencil and eraser

In music lessons, students will begin to understand music as an important medium of expression that can be shared both in groups and individually. They will develop an understanding of the roles of performer and composer and how these roles can be both separated and combined. Students will recognise that their work in class as both performers and composers can also be combined.

Creative Arts

In Music with Mr Parlato, students will use digital technology and instruments to compose and perform looped melodies and rhythmic patterns. They will use digital tools to demonstrate their understanding of pitch and rhythm. 

In Visual Arts, students will continue to engage in thematic artworks related to Science Week and Religious concepts. 

Mandarin

Our students continue to enjoy participating in the Chinese language program called the Meg Language Program. The Meg Curriculum is written by the co-author of the Australian Curriculum. All students and teachers will participate in the digital learning platform via Zoom weekly sessions with educators in China.

Homework 

In Year 5, students are expected to complete 40 minutes of homework each night. It is expected that your child reads for 20 minutes nightly as part of their 40 minutes of homework and record their reading in their diaries. Your child will need to bring their diary to school when their homework is due. 

A homework grid will be sent home in their homework book clearly outlining the tasks. Each fortnight there will be spelling, reading, religion/wellbeing/science and maths tasks (mentals) to complete.

Please sign and check your child's homework and make sure it has been completed to the best of their ability and presented neatly. Homework is due fortnightly on Thursdays (even weeks).

We look forward to continuing to work with you and your child this year. If you have any concerns, please do not hesitate to contact your child’s teacher via a note or by appointment at the office. 

Mrs Taylar Stewart & Miss Belle Reid (Odd Thursdays) (5Blue)

Miss Chloe Tozer (5Gold)

Miss Mikayla Duffy (5White)

Important Dates for Year 5

Sports Days:

5B: Monday and Thursday

5G: Monday and Thursday

5W: Monday and Thursday

Library Days:

5B: Monday

5G: Monday

5W: Monday

History Excursion: Friday, 25th of October. All details will be shared via Compass.

2024 - School Term 1

Parent calendar available at this link