Reading

Throughout reading this term, Year 6 students have been busily making predictions about fiction texts. Some activities have included making predictions before reading, and also during the reading process. This has allowed everyone to deepen their comprehension of the text that they are reading. The students have also focused on increasing their reading stamina during independent reading time.

‘A prediction is when we use clues from the cover to make an educated guess about what will happen in the story’ - Jorja 6E

Writing

The commencement of this term proved very exciting for our budding authors as they generated ideas for their narratives from their writing seeds. The students embarked on this journey by writing in their writer’s notebooks. Students elected to write and draw too as they brainstormed ideas. They tried different things to collect ideas. Students realised that not everything becomes a story for sharing and that’s part of the process. Students learnt that it is important to allow themselves plenty of time to play, daydream and enjoy writing. Students were also able to generate interesting ideas for their narrative writing with the help of ‘seeds’ they developed so creatively in their writer’s notebook.

‘It was fun creating seeds for my writing’ - Rimas 6A

‘It was really fun being able to create new characters and describe a setting’ - Alexis 6A

‘It was nice to be able to choose how we would like to plan our stories’ Ivy 6A

Maths

Our Year 6 students have been focusing on the concept of division. We have been relating the relationships between division and multiplication to find the missing number to solve linear equations. They have also been using known strategies such as arrays, repeated addition and number lines to assist in their problem solving.

“I have enjoyed creating fact families using multiplication and division.” - Guransh 6B

“I feel more confident relating my division with multiplication.” - Prabhjeet

Inquiry

Our Year 6 students are reaching for the stars—literally! This term, their Inquiry unit is launching them into the wonders of our solar system and the mysteries of outer space.

Over the past two weeks, students have been actively researching planets and exploring all corners of the solar system. From discovering fascinating facts about planetary size, atmospheres, and unique features, to learning about meteors, space debris, and the challenges space junk presents—they’ve been on an exciting mission of discovery!

‘The Sun is actually a giant ball of gas that is classified as a star’ - Layth 6E ‘A year on Mercury is the same as 88 Earth days’ - Alexis 6A

‘Neputune takes 104.4 Earth years to orbit the sun’ - Ivy 6A

Social and Emotional Learning

This week in Social and Emotional Learning, we have been exploring the ideas of success, friendship, and character strengths.

We began by asking the students: "What makes a person successful or a good friend?" Students shared a wide range of thoughtful ideas, which we recorded together. Their responses helped us see that success and positive relationships are not just about talents like being good at sports, music, or maths — they are also about who we are as people.

We discussed how character strengths like kindness, courage, honesty, and perseverance are just as important as any skill or ability. Students were invited to think about someone they admire — a friend, family member, or well-known figure — and describe the qualities that make that person special. As a class, we listed these qualities and highlighted any character strengths that stood out.

We introduced an important idea:

➡️ Talents are abilities we develop (like drawing or running fast),

➡️ Character strengths are the personal qualities that shape how we treat others and face challenges (like showing bravery, fairness, or persistence).

Students also shared examples of times when they, or someone they know, showed a character strength and how it made a difference to others.

To build on our learning from last week, we revisited our Character Strengths Anchor Chart, which includes qualities like kindness, humour, persistence, and courage. We added new ideas too, using examples from fictional characters! For instance:

Harry Potter stands up to bullies → showing bravery and fairness
Moana perseveres to help her people → showing leadership and persistence

Through these discussions, students are learning to recognise and celebrate not just what they or others can do, but who they are on the inside.

“I am a creative thinker” -Autumn 6C

Special Events

The Year 6 students have had a very busy few weeks of Term 2. Please read about some of the fun things we have been doing:

Easter Bonnet Parade: To kick off the beginning of term 2, CPS hosted the annual Easter Bonnet Parade. Students from F - 6 had the opportunity to showcase their wonderful and cleverly designed Easter Bonnets. It was a wonderful event with lots of colour and creative designs on display. Well done to all the CPS students for their unique creations.

‘It was fun to see all of the creative hats!’ Ivy 6A

‘I had a lot of fun walking around and showing off my hat.’ Alexis 6A

‘I had fun at the parade, I hi -5’d many of the students’ - Mason 6A

‘ I made my hat out of recycled materials’ - Jagman 6E

Anzac Day: April 25th, is an important and significant day on the calendar each year. It is the day we remember and celebrate those who served our country. Year 6 students learnt about the significance of this day and why we have a public holiday ANZAC day to remember and show our gratitude. With this in mind each class created a wreath to commemorate the day and they are now on display in the school gym for all to see.

‘It was very interesting and I liked learning about ANZAC day’ - Mason 6A

I like listening to new and interesting facts about the ANZACs’ - Oliver 6A

‘We need to be respectful of the soldiers who fought in the wars’ - Noah 6E

Craigieburn Secondary College Open Day Visit - Year 6 students also had a ‘Welcome day’ at Craigieburn Secondary College this week where they got to experience the day in the life of a Year 7 student. Students participated in classes such Art, PE, food technology, Coding, Italian and Music. We hope all the Year 6 students had a wonderful day experiencing high school and seeing some of the differences from Primary School.

Police Incursion: Earlier this week, the Year 5/6 students took part in a session run by the local police Pro-Active Unit. This was a 1 hour session designed to educate students on the use of social media, some of the consequences of social media use, roles that police officers have and how to feel safe within our community. Part of the session also focused on how young people can make better choices for themselves.

Craigieburn Primary School Newsetter

Friday 2 May · 02 May 2025

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