5/6S

Kii Class 5/6 Families,

Main Lesson – Roman Republic

This term, our Main Lesson has focused on the Roman Republic, with students developing an understanding of how and why Rome transitioned away from rule by kings. They explored how dissatisfaction with absolute power led to the creation of a republic, where leadership was shared and carefully limited.

Students examined how this new system of government functioned, learning that power was divided between the Senate and two consuls to prevent any one individual from becoming too powerful. They discovered that consuls were elected from the patrician class and served for only one year, reinforcing the Roman value of accountability and balance in leadership.

Through their study of Roman society, students gained insight into the unequal social structure between patricians and plebeians. They explored how these differences affected people’s rights, responsibilities, and opportunities, particularly in the early Republic, and considered how this imbalance influenced the development of Roman laws and reforms over time.

In learning about the Roman army, students developed an understanding of how military service was closely linked to citizenship and social class. They investigated the differences between patrician and plebeian soldiers in the early Republic, as well as how the Roman legions were organised. Students also explored how discipline, training, and strategic formations contributed to the effectiveness of the Roman army in battle.

Literacy

In writing, students have been transforming their knowledge of the Roman Republic into imaginative letters. Through this, they are not only communicating historical information but also expressing thoughts and feelings from the perspective of people living during this time. This has supported their ability to write with empathy and voice.

Students have also been building their paragraphing skills, learning how to organise their ideas clearly so that their writing flows logically for the reader.

In Reading, students have begun their first novel study of the year, Black Cockatoo. Through this text, they are developing their comprehension skills by practising summarising key events and ideas, creating and answering thoughtful discussion questions, and making meaningful connections to the text. These connections include linking the story to their own experiences, other texts, and the wider world, helping to deepen their understanding and engagement.

Mathematics

In Mathematics, students have been working with decimals. They have been strengthening their understanding of place value into thousandths and have used partitioning strategies to represent and interpret decimal numbers in different ways.

They have also applied this understanding to add and subtract decimals, using partitioning methods to support accurate mental and written calculations. The use of inverse operations to find missing decimal addends and subtrahends in addition and subtraction equations has also been explored, further developing fluency and flexibility with number operations.

Ngoongodjin,

Robin