Year 5/6 Term 3 Overview

Year 5/6 Term Three

Welcome back to term three!

Semester one was certainly busy, with our students enjoying a range of incursions and events such as KidsView social justice Conference, Courageous Catholics Day, Kaboom Sports and B-Kinder day, just to name a few. We had a wonderful end to term two with our lifestyle expo and we were so excited to have so many of you come along in support of our students.

Hopefully everyone is feeling refreshed after the break and ready to enjoy the second semester of the year, the last one for our Year six students as they start to prepare for secondary school. We are all looking forward to a great term ahead and we have lots of exciting events planned to complement our curriculum and engage our students. Please welcome Claudine North-Coombes in 5/6A as Mrs Qiu is taking time off to attend to her health.

Communication

Effective communication between family and school is an important factor in a student’s learning. Please make contact with us if you have any questions, comments or concerns.

We will endeavour to respond to emails within 24 hours, during weekdays.

jqiu@sjmitcham.catholic.edu.au / cnorthcoombes@sjmitcham.catholic.edu.au

tfarrar@sjmitcham.catholic.edu.au

abayliss@sjmitcham.catholic.edu.au

Important dates for your calendars:

Y6 Confirmation retreat day - 19 July
5/6B Class mass - 23 July
Student-led learning conferences - 23 July
Aus Cycling bike incursion - 29 July
Y5/6 debating incursion - 30 July
5/6C Class mass - 30 July
Y6 students (reconciliation) mass - 6 August
Australian maths competition - 7 August
Y5/6 debating incursion - 7 August
Andy Griffiths online - 8 August
Tech Olympics - 9 August
Parent disco bingo - 9 August
Confirmation 3:15pm at St John’s - 10 August
Bullying, No Way! Week starts - 12 August
School closure day - 12 August
5/6A Class mass - 13 August
Y5/6 Interrelate workshop - 15 August
Superhero Friday - 16 August
Tournament of Minds - 17 August
Book Week starts - 19 August
Y5/6 Interrelate workshop - 19 August
5/6C Class assembly - 19 August
Y5/6 Interrelate workshop - 22 August
Dr Justin Coulson: Cybersafety evening - 22 August
Y5/6 Interrelate workshop - 26 August
Y5/6 Interrelate workshop - 29 August
Pyjama Day - 30 August
Father’s Day breakfast - 30 August
5/6B Class assembly - 2 September
Y5 Camp to Sovereign Hill - 4/5/6 September
Last day of term - 20 September (12:15 Assembly, 1:00pm finish)

All other school dates will be on the school online calendar

Religious Education

In Religious Education this term, we will spend time preparing for the Sacrament of Confirmation. We will look at the Gifts of the Spirit and make links between the Apostles Creed and our Baptismal Promises.

We will spend time examining the Fruits of the Spirit and find the differences between these and the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Students will observe the requirements for canonization and spend time researching their chosen saint, exploring their lives and the contributions they made to the world around them.

Inquiry

In our third term Inquiry, we will focus on Australian history, guided by the 'Big Question': "How has social justice been a catalyst for change in Australia?"

Students will focus on the decade of 1850-1860, examining the establishment of Australian colonies and their impact on the lives of Indigenous Australians, as well as those born in Australia and immigrants. We will explore key events from this decade that contributed to the development of Australia's Federation. This unit will also prepare us for our visit to Sovereign Hill, where our Year Five students will participate in role plays depicting life in the 1850s.

English

This term, the senior students will strengthen and consolidate their reading comprehension, speaking, listening and writing skills.

Reading and Viewing: During this time, students will focus on developing their knowledge of vocabulary, as well as their literal and inferential comprehension skills using a variety of texts. Our focus novel for the term, Restart by Gordon Korman, with its summary quote of “lose your memory, find your life”, will give students the opportunity to discuss ideas, make connections, and share their opinions during our whole class discussions and teacher focus groups. Students will also have access to Reading Eggs and other online activities, to practise and develop their learning. They will also work on personalised spelling lists, vocabulary and punctuation.

Writing: This term in Writing, the senior students will be focusing on Snapshot writing, Recount writing and Biographies (including letter writing). During this time they will focus on developing the structure of their writing and adding language features for emphasis. Students will write for a range of purposes and audiences. They will also look at the elements of writing, such as using effective vocabulary, building their knowledge of connectives and sensory language.

Speaking and Listening: Students will engage in a variety of speaking and listening activities within focus groups, whole class discussions, as well as tasks involving listening and responding to podcasts. Across the curriculum, students will have many opportunities to practise their speaking and listening skills, as they engage in a range of learning opportunities such as presentations, reports and debates. Debating Victoria will also be working with us to further develop our skills.

Mathematics

In Mathematics this term students will review their knowledge of measurement and geometry as well as develop their number skills and processes.

Our focus this term will be:

Shape
Angles
Location and transformation
Addition
Subtraction
Order of operations (BODMAS)
Worded number problems
Time

What you can do at home to further support your child's math's learning:

- Encourage continued practice of rapid recall of multiplication facts.

- Involve your child in shopping to help them use money and develop budgeting skills.

- Engage your child in cooking activities to practise using weights and measurements.

- Help your child learn to manage their personal timetable by paying attention to the time.

- Use public transport together to explore schedules, distances, and the cost of trips.

STEM

This term in STEM, (Science Technology Engineering and Maths) students will delve into the fascinating world of states of matter. They will investigate the properties and behaviours of solids, liquids, and gases, gaining a deeper understanding of how these states interact and change under various conditions. Through hands-on experiments, students will observe how solids, liquids, and gases change when subjected to heating and cooling, providing practical insights into processes like melting, freezing, evaporation, and condensation. They will discover that gases have mass and occupy space, illustrated through engaging activities such as using balloons and bubbles to demonstrate these properties. Additionally, they will recognise that not all substances fit neatly into the categories of solid, liquid, or gas based on observable properties, prompting them to think critically about classification and the nature of matter. Through these investigations, students will develop a solid foundation in understanding the physical properties of materials, and investigate how these affect the way humans utilise and interact with different resources.

Digital Technology

This term in Digital Technology, our Grade 5 and 6 students will explore binary numbers, learning how they play a crucial role in computer coding. They will practise converting binary to decimal numbers and back again, and even use binary code to create images. To build their digital intelligence, students will begin working on eSmart modules that focus on balancing technology use in their lives, understanding and countering persuasive design, and becoming more aware of cyber risks and cyberbullying. Additionally, students will enhance their coding skills by participating in the NCSS challenge by Grok Academy. These activities will complement their regular daily use of Chromebooks, where they will continue to strengthen their word processing and typing skills, as well as build knowledge of software programs and editing tools to support them in their learning.

Students are encouraged to join in our weekly Digitech Club, and can also engage with Digitech activities at home through the Google Classroom for the club. The link to join can be found here: https://classroom.google.com/c/NjcwMjYyMTg2OTgw?cjc=ucfjnwc

Social Emotional Learning (SEL)

This term in SEL our whole school focus continues to be on Positive behaviour for learning (PBL) and we will continue to reinforce our modified matrix and positive behaviour strategies. For Year 5/6 students, this will include continuing to build respectful relationships with their peers and teachers, and showing persistence with their learning. Student leaders from all leadership areas will also have continued opportunities to engage in activities to further develop their leadership skills. Our SEL (Social Emotional Learning) curriculum whole school focus is on Social Awareness. For Year 5/6 students this will include exploring and appreciating the uniqueness of all people. They will identify and describe the characteristics of respectful relationships and contribute to groups and teams suggesting improvements for methods used in group projects and investigations. Finally, they will identify the causes and effects of conflict and explain different strategies to defuse or resolve conflict situations.