Year 5/6 

Wow, what a term it’s been! We’ve squeezed in so much learning (and fun) that it’s no wonder your kids are coming home ready to collapse on the couch. As we near the end of this busy term, let’s take a look back at the highlights and the hilarity that have defined the last few weeks in our Year 5/6 classrooms.

This term, we’ve been exploring the world of biographies, with a focus on inspirational First Nations peoples. Our budding biographers have been exploring what makes a life story truly captivating. Spoiler alert: it’s more than just knowing someone’s favourite colour or how they like their toast. We’ve learned about key features like introductions that hook the reader, fascinating life events, and of course, how to wrap it all up with a memorable closing. The students have been channelling their inner historians, and we’ve seen some incredible stories come to life on the page. 

Over in maths, it’s been a term of big numbers and even bigger brain power! We’ve been exploring different strategies for multiplying large numbers (no, “winging it” is not an approved method) and getting hands-on with rounding and estimation. But the real star of the show has been the order of operations using the GEMS strategy (Groupings, Exponents, Multiplication/Division, Subtraction/Additions). The kids have become real-life maths detectives, working out the right order to solve problems – and discovering that going out of order leads to answers that are incorrect.

Morphology and spelling have been another battleground, with our spelling words involving the base words “rupt” (as in “interrupt”), “zo” (the Greek root for animal), and some of those pesky homophones like “their,” “there,” and “they’re.” It’s amazing how many times we can end up "rupt-ing" a sentence by putting the wrong word in. We’ve been practising to make sure those mix-ups are a thing of the past.

Some of our Year 6 students have been channelling their inner carpenters at the Men’s Shed, crafting bird boxes and pencil boxes. It’s been a sawdust-filled adventure of measuring, cutting, and occasionally discovering that glue does, in fact, stick to everything. The results have been impressive, and we may have a future furniture designer or two among us!

And of course, who could forget the excitement of Book Week? The students wrote their own fairytales for the Preps, which were as magical and imaginative as the costumes they wore. From an inflatable dinosaur that almost took out the classroom door, to Superman flying (well, running) down the hall, Crayons of every colour, the Big Bad Wolf on the prowl, and even Dalmatians hot on the heels of Jaclyn’s fabulous Cruella de Vil – our halls were a storybook come to life! It was a day full of creativity, laughter, and maybe a little bit of chaos (in the best possible way).

As we head into the final stretch of the term, we’re so proud of how much the students have achieved. They’ve shown resilience, creativity, and a real passion for learning. Here’s to a well-deserved break soon – but not before a few more exciting days ahead! Thanks for your continued support, and for making this term such a success.