5B Newsletter

Dear Parents and Guardians,

We have had a fantastic start to the year in Year 5B! The students have settled into their new routines and are already showing so much enthusiasm for learning!

In Mathematics, we’ve been focusing on key areas such as multiples and factors, where students have been exploring how numbers are connected. We have also been delving into data representation, learning how to display and interpret different types of data, and are building a strong foundation in multiplication and division, which will be important for their learning throughout the year. The students use their mini whiteboards every day to demonstrate their understanding in the daily review. We are constantly revisiting previously taught material to strengthen students’ long-term memory.

Kai: This term, I've enjoyed creating dot plots because it's fun to make them and find out what other people prefer. A dot plot needs a key, frequency, title, and a horizontal axis title. In data, the mode is the value that appears most frequently. If two different values have the same frequency, the data is bimodal.

Christopher: This term, we have been learning about factors and multiples. For example, with LCM (Lowest Common Multiple), we list the multiples of 5 and 3 and find the lowest common multiple, which is 15. In the daily review, we also cover fractions and percentages. The daily review is a recap of what we learned the previous week, including division and multiplication facts. We use whiteboards, markers, and erasers to write our answers. We also learned the divisibility rule of 4. To use this rule, we look at the last number. If it’s odd, the number is not divisible by 4. If it’s even, we divide by 2. If we can divide by 2 again, the number is divisible by 4.

Evelyn: We have been learning new ways to solve division problems with remainders easily and how to simplify multiplication. For example, 57 divided by 7 equals 8 remainder 1. We solve the problem by finding how many times 7 fits into 57 evenly. The closest multiple is 56, leaving a remainder of 1.

In Literacy, we are focusing on developing engaging writing techniques, including sizzling starts, to grab the reader’s attention from the very first sentence. We are also exploring persuasive devices to help students express their opinions and ideas more convincingly. In reading, we are working in small groups to enhance our comprehension strategies, helping students become more confident and skilled at understanding and analysing texts.

Charlie: In writing, we have been generating strong ideas for persuasive texts. One of our activities involved listing arguments for and against a topic before deciding our position. We need strong reasons to persuade our audience.

Hugh: For example, we debated whether the city or countryside is better and if video games are good for you. We have been learning to respond to other people’s opinions with counter arguments. It was really fun hearing what everyone came up with!

Sophie: We have been working on creating great sizzling starts in writing. We used onomatopoeia, action, moments of change, dialogue, humour, questions, show don’t tell, and sound effects. We also mapped out a storyline and used our sizzling starts to develop a story.

Phoebe: In our reading groups, we have been practising fluency, comprehension, and some NAPLAN preparation. It’s been fun because we’re learning while working with our friends.

Grace: In reading groups, we do different activities each day, such as listening to podcasts, comprehension exercises, grammar, and NAPLAN practice. These activities help improve our reading and understanding of texts.

Isla: This term, in reading groups, we have been doing things like listening to podcasts and answering related questions. We also practise grammar, comprehension, and fluency. My favourite part is listening to the podcasts because they are so interesting and teach us new things!

In our Inquiry unit, students are exploring the key features of the Australian electoral process. They are learning about the significance of voting in a democracy and examining how voting impacts society. Through hypothetical scenarios, students decide which community issues voting could influence. They also explore the history of voting rights in Australia and how the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) ensures accessibility for voters in remote areas. Before writing their own electoral procedures, students investigate how the voting system works in Australia. We were fortunate to have a visit from Councillor Hanna El Mouallem, Mayor of Bayside City Council, who spoke to the students about local government.

Holly: This term in Inquiry, we have been learning about Civics and Citizenship, focusing on democracy. I have enjoyed learning about the Australian voting system, including preferential voting and secret ballots. We are very excited for the visit from the Mayor of Bayside, who will talk to us about democracy at a local level!

Izzy: In Inquiry, we have been learning about democracy and voting in the Bayside City Council. Our focus has been on preferential voting and the ballot box. We are very excited for Cr. Hanna El Mouallem, Mayor of Bayside, to visit Year 5 for a presentation! He will talk about the local community, and we will have the chance to ask him questions. We also discussed setting up a local voting poll in class. In preferential voting, we rank candidates in order of preference.

Olivia: We have been learning about voting rights in Australia and democracy in Inquiry. We also explored voting rights in other parts of the world. On Wednesday, someone very important to the Bayside community is coming! Hanna El Mouallem, the Mayor of Bayside, will be visiting our class. Another interesting fact we learned is that secret ballots allow people to vote privately, ranking their top candidates.

Thank you for all your support this term so far. NAPLAN begins next week, so please ensure your child has a set of headphones. I look forward to meeting you all during parent-teacher interviews at the end of the term.

Kindly,

Shannon Bourke

5B Classroom Teacher