Grade 5 News 

Upcoming Dates – Term 2

King's Birthday Public Holiday - June 8th

Special Lunch Day (Canteen) - June 18th

Hoop Time - June 25th 

Last Day Term 2 - June 26th

Sun Smart School Hat Program - restarts August 25th 

Important Reminders

• The Grade 5 maths curriculum assumes that all students know their multiplication tables. If your child is still working on this skill, we ask that you support them by finding some time to practise. If you would like suggestions about how to practise, please get in touch with your child's classroom teacher.
• Grade 6 Leaders sell icy poles each Monday and Tuesday at lunchtime for $1

Grade 5 Specialist Timetable

Australian Mathematics Competition

At Lysterfield Primary School, we promote high expectations for all our students and want to encourage our students to challenge themselves and tackle new and interesting opportunities. In light of this, we are encouraging interested students in Grades 3-6 to participate in the Australian Mathematics Competition this year.

The Australian Mathematics Competition, run by the Australian Maths Trust, is Australia’s longest running, largest and most well-known maths competition for school students. It is made up of 30 unique problems designed to challenge and extend students’ problem solving skills. 

Students have 60 minutes to complete the competition which will occur at school sometime between Tuesday 4 to Thursday 6 August 2026 (exact date and time TBC). 

Every student who participates will receive recognition and an award at their level of achievement. The levels are:

• Participation
• Proficiency
• Credit
• Distinction
• High Distinction

The competition will cost $9.30 per student. 

For more information about the competition, watch this video from AMT, check out their website, or contact Caillin Ibbotson (caillin.ibbotson@education.vic.gov.au).

If you are interested in your child participating in the Australian Mathematics Competition this year, please add their names to the form below by Friday 12th June.

https://forms.gle/78SpJvuCYXioqXWg7

Learning in Action

Word Work

This fortnight, students deepened their investigation of the Latin base st, sist, and stin, meaning 'to stand.' Through the exploration of this root alongside prefixes such as per–, contra–, and circum–, and suffixes including –ent, –ence and - ance, students developed a more sophisticated understanding of how morphemes work together to construct meaning. By analysing and discussing words such as persistence, contrast, and circumstance, students explored how the central concept of 'standing' is carried across a range of contexts. This study of morphology strengthened both their vocabulary knowledge and their ability to decode unfamiliar words through an understanding of word origins and structure.

Preview for learning:

In the coming fortnight, students will consolidate their understanding of the Latin bases st, sist, and stin, meaning ‘to stand,’ before exploring the Latin bases trib, meaning ‘to pay’ or ‘bestow,’ and act, meaning ‘to do’ or ‘set in motion.’ Through this study, students will continue to strengthen their vocabulary and understanding of how word parts shape meaning.

Literature

Students continued reading Dirrarn, the sequel to Black Cockatoo, by Carl Merrison and Hakea Hustler. In this novel, the protagonist, Mia, struggles with homesickness as she leaves the “big sky Country” that she loves in order to attend boarding school in a very different environment. Throughout the story, Mia draws strength from her friendship with Naya and from her spiritual connection to the Dirrarn, the black cockatoo, her totem animal and a symbol of freedom, resilience, and cultural identity. The novel provides insight into the experiences of many First Nations students who relocate for education, particularly the challenge of balancing ‘two worlds’ which include mainstream schooling and Indigenous culture. Themes of racism, belonging, truth-telling, and perseverance are explored throughout the text. 

In Sentence Level Writing, students focused on identifying and composing statements, commands, questions, and exclamations. They also explored appositives and subordinating conjunctions to create more detailed and engaging sentences. In Text Level Writing, students began working on a factual report on Jandamarra, the First Nations resistance leader and hero from the Kimberley region. Students learned to organise their ideas using two single-paragraph outlines to effectively structure the introductory and the first body paragraphs.

Preview for Learning: 

Over the coming fortnight, students will work towards completing the novel study while engaging with supplementary texts about Jandamarra, the legendary Bunuba leader who courageously defended his Country during colonisation. Drawing on this learning, students will continue developing their factual recount by drafting subsequent body paragraphs and composing a concluding paragraph on Jandamarra’s life and legacy.

➗ Maths

Last week, students completed their unit on decimal numbers, where they developed their understanding of comparing and ordering decimals to three decimal places. Through a range of activities, students strengthened their ability to interpret the value of digits and apply place value knowledge when working with decimal numbers. This week, students began their new Mathematics unit on chance and data. They explored the language of probability by identifying possible outcomes in chance events and representing these outcomes as fractions. Students also conducted a variety of chance experiments, recorded their results, and began interpreting data collected from their investigations. Throughout the fortnight, students completed a range of online and paper-based Mathematics assessments. These tests provided valuable opportunities for teachers to monitor student progress, assess understanding, and inform reporting on student achievement.

Preview for Learning:

In the upcoming fortnight, students will continue their learning in chance and data by comparing the results of chance experiments with their predicted outcomes. They will also explore the concepts of fairness by identifying and comparing fair and unfair chance experiments. Following this, students will begin a new unit on shape, where they will investigate transformations including rotations, translations and reflections.

Knowledge Rich

This fortnight, students have continued exploring life in Australia during the 1800s. We revised the motivations behind colonial exploration and investigated the journeys and achievements of several significant explorers, including Matthew Flinders, Blaxland, Lawson and Wentworth, as well as Burke and Wills. Students also learnt about influential women who made important contributions to Australian society and helped improve the lives of others. These women included Caroline Chisholm, Mary Reibey and Mary MacKillop. Ask your child which of these women appears on the Australian $20 note and discuss how Mary Reibey challenged society’s expectations of women through her achievements and leadership. 

A few students enthusiastically extended their learning by conducting additional research at home and presenting their findings to the class. It was wonderful to see students confidently sharing their knowledge and engaging their peers in discussion. This week, students concluded their study of Australia in the 1800s by completing an end-of-unit assessment, drawing on their learning to showcase their understanding of the people, events, and developments that shaped the nation during this period.

Preview for Learning: 

In the next two weeks in Knowledge Rich, we will begin our exploration of the world’s lakes, focusing on how they form, where they are found, and the important roles they play in ecosystems and human life. 

Wellbeing

This fortnight, students focused on recognising and differentiating between positive, negative, and mixed emotions. They developed their vocabulary on emotions and practised using clear language to describe feelings in different situations. Students also learnt that emotions can be complex and that it is common to feel mixed emotions at the same time, such as excitement and nervousness before an event like the cross-country finals. This supported greater emotional awareness and understanding of feelings in real-life contexts.

Preview for Learning: 

Over the next fortnight, students will enjoy our much-anticipated second Circles and Buddy sessions. In Wellbeing, we will focus on developing emotional literacy by exploring the language of emotional intensity through engaging games and meaningful class discussions.

Winter Round Robin

On Friday 22nd and 29th May, students from across Grades 5 and 6 proudly represented our school at the Regional Winter Round Robin competition. Competing in Australian Rules Football, T-ball, Netball, Lawn Bowls and Soccer, our students showcased exceptional teamwork, resilience and sportsmanship, representing the school with pride both on and off the field.

A highlight of this year’s program was the introduction of Lysterfield Primary School’s inaugural Hiking group. This exciting new opportunity has enabled students to embrace the outdoors, enhance their health and fitness, and develop valuable personal qualities such as determination, perseverance and resilience. Through treks of up to 14 kilometres, participants have challenged themselves, built confidence and fostered a deeper appreciation for nature and active lifestyles. We are incredibly proud of all students for their enthusiasm, commitment and outstanding representation of Lysterfield Primary School throughout these experiences.

Grade 5 Teachers

Mrs Halstead, Mrs Alexander, Mrs Stokol and Mrs Chalmers