Year 5 News

We hope everyone had a well-rested break and are ready for another busy term! In typical Year 5 fashion, the students have hit the ground running with maths, literacy and a research project. 

Literacy 

This term we will be diving deep into one of the six traits of writing, Sentence Fluency. Each lesson will explore further into how sentences are formed, structured and created in the English language. The students will be exposed to mentor texts with rich language and structure, to help influence their sentence creations.  

So far, we have discussed sentence length, sentence fluency and beginners, emphasizing on nouns, verbs, pronouns and conjunctions. We look forward to reading their wonderful creations in the coming weeks. 

Numeracy 

Using their prior knowledge of place value, the Year 5s are experimenting with rounding and estimations of whole and decimal numbers. Every student was challenged to round and estimate a sum of two numbers, before doing the precise addition, with the answer to match. 

Research Project 

Without a moment to rest, the students jumped straight into a new research project. Our provocation involved using A.I. to provide a unique point of view.  Here, the A.I. was asked to act as though they were a 10-year-old indigenous Australian female in 1780 (just 8 years before European settlement). 

The students had an opportunity to ask the A.I. character questions comparing their lifestyle with that of the A.I. character.  In this way they were able to reflect on our Central Idea: Past Events Shape the Present and the Future and on our Transdisciplinary Theme – Where we are in Place and Time. 

Later the students had the opportunity to chat with another A.I. creation who provided a confusing, confronting and, at times harrowing account of when European settlers arrived on their shores, just 8 years later - changing their lives forever. 

The Year 5 students are currently considering significant events in Australia’s history and have been guided toward researching a significant group of people, a significant event and a significant individual character from our history. 

Somebody that I found interesting during the research is Ned Kelly.  He had a life of murdering and robbing yet he still had saved a little boy from drowning and is now a symbolic figure in Australian History. 

Lauren P (5C) 

The peculiar thing I found in my research on the Gold Rush was that Australia’s population sky-rocketed after the gold rush because they found Australia as an amazing and cozy place to carry on their lives. 

Aidan M (5A) 

Something that I found is that Ned Kelly’s last words ere “Such is Life”. Something lese I found that Ned Kelly was only 25-26 when he died. 

Yves A (5B) 

We look forward to reading their findings and considerations once the students craft their information reports later next week. 

Well-done to the Year 5 students for a successful transition back into term 2.