Year 5 News 

Reading

In Reading, the Year 5 students have been exploring how authors help readers visualise a story through the language they use. To create vivid images for readers, authors use a variety of techniques, including descriptive and figurative language. The students have been analysing and identifying different types of figurative language, such as similes, metaphors, personification, hyperbole and alliteration. They have also explored how authors use sensory language to help build clear images in the reader’s mind. Students have also been working on building up their reading stamina and staying engaged in their book.

“ I love to read!” - Blaze 5C

“It was fun highlighting the metaphors and drawing a picture. Hyperboles are exaggeration like I’m so hungry, I could eat a horse” - Hassen 5A

“I answered questions” - Shawaiz 5A

“Personification is giving human quality to something that is not human” - Charlotte 5A

Writing

This fortnight in Writing, the Year 5 students have been exploring rhyming poetry. Students investigated different rhyming patterns and learned how poets use rhyme, rhythm, and descriptive language to make their poems engaging and expressive.

They had the opportunity to read a variety of poems, identify rhyming words, and experiment with creating their own rhyming verses. It has been wonderful to see students developing their creativity and confidence as writers while having fun playing with language and sound. Students wrote many different poems such as, shape poems, acrostics, AABB poems, and poems with personification and haikus. The Year 5 cohort really flexed their creative muscles in our writing lessons this fortnight.

“‘I am so hungry, I could eat the milky way!’ is a hyperbole.” - Shishir 5C

“I wrote a poem about Summer. The sun is as hot as fire” - Fatima 5A

“The rose is so red, you’re able to see it shine” - Aysha 5A

Maths 

This fortnight in Maths, Year 5 students have been exploring factors and multiples. Students have been learning how to identify factors of numbers, recognise common multiples, and understand how these number patterns help strengthen multiplication and division skills. Through problem-solving activities and mathematical discussions, students have practised finding factor pairs, identifying prime and composite numbers, and using multiples to solve real-world problems. We encourage families to continue practising times tables at home to help build confidence and fluency with these important number concepts. 

 “I learned that with multiples, you have to skip count to find all of the multiples.” - Fatima 5C

“Multiples is skip counting by the number you are given” - Josiah 5A

“We used the rainbow strategy to find the factors of numbers” - Charlotte 5A

Inquiry

This fortnight in Inquiry, the Year 5 cohort has been researching different biomes from around the world. Students explored the unique features of biomes such as deserts, rainforests, tundras, grasslands, and aquatic environments, while investigating the plants, animals, and climates that make each biome unique.

Through their research, students developed their understanding of how living things adapt to different environments and the importance of protecting ecosystems around the world. It has been wonderful to see the Year 5 cohort building their research skills and presenting their findings with enthusiasm and curiosity.

“Biomes are different places in the world that have interesting things in them like trees.” - Dion 5C

“Biomes are really fun to learn about and you get to learn about other countries and their biomes.” -Ali 5C

“The tundra is one of the most cold and harsh places. My favourite ones are rainforests to explore and grasslands to relax” - Hassen 5A

“Biomes are different places. It can sometimes be hot, cold, or rainy. Different animals live in different biomes” - Rafaeel 5A

Social and Emotional Learning / SWPBS

This fortnight in Social and Emotional Learning, Year 5 students explored the concepts of equity and equality and what it means to create fair and inclusive communities. Students discussed the difference between treating everyone the same (equality) and giving people what they need to be successful (equity). Through class discussions, scenarios, and reflection activities, students considered how kindness, empathy, and understanding can help support others in different situations. These important conversations encouraged students to think about fairness, inclusion, and how they can contribute positively to our classroom and wider community. 

“Equality isn’t always fair because if you give the same amount of money to someone rich and someone poor it is not fair” - Josiah 5A

“Equity is more people that need some more help” - Sofia 5A

“Equity is when you give someone that needs that things more than others” - Hope 5A

AUSLAN

This fortnight in AUSLAN, the Year 5 cohort explored how to communicate different sizes and shapes through sign language. Students practised using hand shapes, movements, and facial expressions to describe objects such as circles and other shapes, while also showing differences in size.

Through interactive activities and games, students developed their confidence in using AUSLAN and strengthened their understanding of how visual communication can convey meaning. It has been wonderful to see the Year 5 cohort enthusiastically engaging in their learning and supporting one another as they practised new signs.

“It was fun and we learnt new things like fan and lamp” - Rafaeel 5A

Special Event

Open Classroom

This fortnight, the Year 5 cohort welcomed families into the classroom for the Education Week Open Morning. Students participated in an Inquiry lesson exploring symbols and their significance within Indigenous cultures from around the world, including the Māori, Inuit, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Working alongside their families, students then transformed these symbols into a collaborative quilt-style mosaic artwork. It was wonderful to see the Year 5 cohort demonstrating creativity, teamwork, and cultural appreciation while sharing their learning with the wider school community.

“I loved learning about the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and I love the flag.” - Agam 5C

“I love the Moken people because they can open their eyes under water and it’s really cool.” - Ayman 5C

“I like to learn about Indigenous people.” -Aida 5C