Year 5 News
Our Learning Celebrations
Literacy
The Year 5 students have been very busy over the past few weeks, completing a range of assessments across all areas of Literacy, including reading and responding, speaking and listening, and writing. Throughout this work, they have focused on developing their ability to gain deeper meaning from texts by locating evidence, evaluating what they have read, and responding with their own thoughtful ideas and opinions. In writing, students have been refining their recount pieces by using descriptive and emotive language to engage their readers, aiming to paint a vivid picture and bring their experiences to life. We are proud of the effort and growth shown as students continue to fine-tune these important Literacy skills.
Text Studies
Students have completed the final chapters of Music for Tigers, deepening their understanding of themes such as the Tasmanian Tiger (species extinction), friendship, and neurodiversity. With teacher guidance, they have analysed the author’s use of metaphors and how these are connected to the characters and key ideas. Through a shared reading of the epilogue, students discussed important vocabulary and made links to earlier events in the story.
As a culminating task, they will write a journal entry from Louisa’s (main character) perspective, applying their knowledge of journal writing features while reflecting on the text’s themes.
Mathematics
Multiplicative Thinking
Mathematics lessons have continued to focus on Multiplicative thinking, and the students have further developed their skills using a variety of strategies. They explored concepts such as finding unknown values using function machines, applying the inverse relationship between multiplication and division, and using visual representations like tree diagrams to solve problems.
Throughout these lessons, students strengthened their ability to explain their reasoning, choose efficient strategies and check the accuracy of their solutions.
The unit concluded with a final assessment, allowing students to demonstrate their understanding and progress in multiplicative thinking.
Unit of Inquiry – Showcase
The Year 5 students had a wonderful and rewarding experience at their recent Showcase, where they proudly presented their learning about natural disasters. Each student explored a specific disaster, explaining the impact it has on communities and the environment, and thoughtfully sharing the solutions they developed to address these challenges.
5B
Throughout the day, students from Prep to Year 6 visited the exhibits, engaging with the displays and asking insightful questions. It was fantastic to also welcome parents and families in the afternoon from 2:30–3:30pm, giving students the opportunity to share their knowledge with a wider audience.
5C
The Year 5 cohort worked incredibly hard in preparation for this event, and they should be very proud of the confident and knowledgeable way they presented their work.
Oral Presentations
Speaking and Listening Learning Task
Students showcased their learning through engaging oral presentations, demonstrating both confidence and creativity. Following their Showcase, they took time to reflect on their experiences, considering what aspects went well, the challenges they encountered, and the moments they felt most proud of.
Many students highlighted their growth in public speaking and their ability to communicate ideas clearly, while also recognising areas for improvement such as managing nerves or time.
It was wonderful to see such honest reflection and a willingness to learn, as students celebrated their achievements and identified goals for future presentations.
Recreation Group
Taekwondo & Basketball
This term of Recreation has been absolutely fantastic! Students have embraced every opportunity to participate in a range of exciting and new activities, demonstrating outstanding teamwork, encouragement, resilience, and friendliness throughout the program.
Waves
Mrs Plum has been incredibly proud of the way students have supported one another and stepped outside their comfort zones. Students conquered their fears during rock climbing, challenged themselves by learning hip hop dance moves, and enjoyed developing new skills in lawn bowls with the support of some wonderful community volunteers.
Lawn Bowls
They also enthusiastically participated in activities such as taekwondo, basketball, hockey, handball and Waves, making the most of every experience. Please enjoy the photos, which capture some of the fun, learning, and memorable moments from our Recreation sessions this term.
Hip Hop
Friday Fun - Soccer Clinic
Last week, we had a fantastic time during Friday Sports with our sports incursion, where they participated in a variety of fun and engaging soccer-based activities. Students practised their kicking skills by aiming for soccer balls at a giant dartboard and trying to score the highest points possible. Another popular activity challenged students to catch the ball on a bouncy inflatable to earn points for their chosen country. Each activity involved encouraging each other, showing teamwork and enjoying friendly competition.
Students also enjoyed an obstacle course where they navigated a series of challenges before finishing their turn with either a kick or a header. They then high-fived their teammate before cheering them on as they took their turn.
It was wonderful to see students developing their soccer skills, staying active, and having so much fun throughout the session.
What We Are Learning Next
Literacy
Text study
Next term, students will begin an engaging text study of Bindi by Kirli Saunders. This powerful free verse novel explores themes of connection to Country, care for the environment, and personal identity.
Throughout the unit, students will deepen their understanding of the author’s purpose and cultural context, while also learning about the unique features of free verse poetry, such as stanzas, line breaks and expressive language.
They will respond to the text through discussion, reading and writing activities, including creating their own pieces inspired by meaningful places in their lives. This rich study will support students in developing both their literacy skills and their appreciation of diverse voices and perspectives.
Spelling, Punctuation & Grammar
In upcoming lessons, Year 5 students will build their understanding of word structure (morphology) by exploring how words are formed and connected. They will be introduced to the Greek root ‘phon’ and the prefix ‘eco-’ using word sums, and will practise creating and analysing words using word matrices. Students will also match words to their meanings, helping them strengthen their vocabulary and deepen their understanding of how word parts contribute to meaning.
Mathematics
Next term, students will begin exploring Algebraic Reasoning and Algorithmic Thinking. Students will build on their understanding of number patterns and relationships to develop skills in recognising rules, working with unknown values and creating simple algorithms.
Through engaging problem-solving tasks, they will learn to think logically, follow and create step-by-step processes, and explain their reasoning clearly. This learning will support students in developing confidence when working with more abstract mathematical ideas.