Year Six

Over the past two weeks, Year Six students have been immersed in rich learning experiences centred around our Unit of Inquiry, Who We Are. It has been a productive and thoughtful fortnight, with students demonstrating creativity, maturity and a strong commitment to their learning.

In Reading, our focus has been poetry. Students began by learning how to annotate poems carefully, identifying poetic devices and unpacking deeper meaning. They explored how authors use language intentionally and practised writing considered responses using evidence from the text. Grammar was strengthened through a focus on parts of speech, particularly nouns, to support more precise writing. As the fortnight progressed, students created found poetry, participated in Readers’ Theatre using the Children’s Poetry Archive, analysed poems for theme and structure, and used freeze framing to visually represent meaning. Students also had opportunities to independently explore and respond to poems of their own choice, building confidence in interpreting and discussing poetic language.

Writing sessions have been equally creative. Students experimented with personification, hyperbole, idioms and repetition, exploring how these devices enhance imagery and emotion. They edited and published their poems and began compiling their own Poetry Books, taking great pride in presenting their finished pieces. To prepare for our next writing focus, students completed a Narrative Pre-Assessment, allowing us to identify strengths and future goals in narrative writing.

In Mathematics, Week 5 focused on operating with decimals. Students strengthened their understanding of place value to accurately add and subtract decimals, ensuring correct alignment and applying estimation to check the reasonableness of their answers. Many students extended their learning by multiplying decimals and rounding to a given accuracy. In Week 6, our focus shifted to number properties, specifically factors and multiples. Students explored how numbers are connected, identified common factors and multiples, and continued building strong foundational number skills that will support future learning.

Within our Unit of Inquiry, students engaged in respectful and informative discussions around puberty. These sessions focused on understanding the physical, emotional and social changes that occur during adolescence. Students approached the topic with maturity and thoughtful curiosity, creating a safe and supportive learning environment.

Our wellbeing sessions explored resilience, failure and success, encouraging students to see challenges as opportunities for growth. We also unpacked the concept of equity versus equality, discussing fairness and why different individuals may require different types of support to succeed. These conversations prompted meaningful reflection and strong student voice.

At Assembly, we were proud to formally announce our House Captains and Vice House Captains. The selection process for these positions proved to be particularly challenging, with an exceptional number of high-quality applications received. Each reflected dedication, school spirit and a genuine desire to contribute positively to our community. The strength and depth of leadership across the cohort made the decision-making process a difficult one, and we sincerely thank all applicants for the time and effort invested in their submissions. We extend our warmest congratulations to our newly elected House Captains and Vice House Captains and wish them every success as they undertake their responsibilities this year.

This week has also been an exciting and significant one for our Year 6 students, as we witnessed outstanding examples of student leadership in action. All Class Captains confidently presented their prepared speeches for the Junior School Council (JSC), outlining their ideas, values and commitment to serving their peers. We commend each student for the thought, preparation and courage demonstrated in addressing their classmates. Voting for the Junior School Council representatives was conducted following the Assembly, and we congratulate all successful Council members.

Week 6 also included participation in the Beach Program. It was wonderful to see students demonstrating teamwork, confidence and positivity in an outdoor learning environment.

We are incredibly proud of the maturity, effort and engagement our Year 6 students continue to show. Thank you for your ongoing support.

Warm regards,

The Year Six Team