Year 5 Report

The Year 5s have been doing so much learning over the last three terms. We are so excited to share what we have begun to learn about throughout Term 4 in our newsletter entry for this week! Our Year 5s are truly becoming the leaders of our school and it is so fantastic to see them stepping up as they prepare for Year 6.

Literacy: 

Reading - Literature Circles

Literature circles are a technique that brings small groups of students together to discuss texts of their own choosing. Each student in the group selects a role in advance that ensures balanced participation and equal opportunities for sharing ideas, expressing interpretations of texts, and responding to the contributions of others in the group. Research shows that the incorporation of literature circles promotes student self-determination, and the Year Fives have demonstrated an excellent ability to function independently and work collaboratively throughout Term Three.

Something I enjoyed about Literature Circles is the roles you get to do, like Word Wizard,  Illustrator, Connector, and more. I like it because when you're reading about the text you can understand what to do for your role. I personally think that the Discussion Director is the best because you get to ask questions about the texts and people answer you. - Peyton Z 5B

Having to find key information was hard because the book I was reading had so much information and I was not sure what information I should use. And I was not entirely sure what I was supposed to do in my role when I first started off. - Rhys L 5A

Faith Life Inquiry: As the year 5 students transition into their roles as leaders of our school, Term 4 has some amazing opportunities for them to grow in their skills and abilities. 

Peer Mediator Training 

At School of the Good Shepherd, the Year Fives are offered the option to participate in training to be a Peer Mediator. In the first week of this term students enthusiastically participated in five sessions of intensive learning and scenario discussions. For the remainder of the year, they will be guided and supported by the current Year 6 Peer Mediators to gain experience and confidence in their new roles.

Peer Mediation is based on the belief that in order to resolve conflicts, people must be willing to do the following:

• Stay calm and control their anger
• Focus on the problem and not blame the other person
• Use “I statements”
• Honestly state their wants and feelings
• Cooperate and create solutions that meet the needs of everyone involved