Level 5
Celebrations from the week
It was wonderful to welcome our mums and special people to the classroom on Thursday 7th of May for our Mother’s Day Open Morning. The students absolutely loved having you there and took great pride in sharing their learning and celebrating the important role you play in their lives. Thank you for taking the time to join us and help make the morning so special.
Sovereign Hill Camp
Our Level 5 students and staff had a fantastic time at Sovereign Hill Camp! Although the weather was lovely, it was certainly on the chilly side—perfect for experiencing a true taste of Ballarat’s history.
A highlight of the trip was the spectacular Aura Night Show, which left everyone in awe, while the lively pantomime had students (and teachers!) laughing along. Students especially enjoyed trying their luck at gold panning and exploring the shops, bringing home a few special treasures.
Overall, it was a wonderful experience filled with fun, learning, and lasting memories for all.
Trailblazers
On Monday 11th May, selected Level 5 students participated in the Trailblazer program, delivered by Trailblazers, Resilient Youth Australia. This one-day workshop empowered students to explore wellbeing in their school community by identifying strengths and challenges, brainstorming solutions, and developing innovative ideas.
Through team building, problem-solving, and guided discussions led by experienced facilitators, students-built resilience, leadership, and a strong sense of belonging. The program gave students a voice and the confidence to take action, with the goal of creating positive, student-driven change that supports wellbeing across the school.
Reading
Our Level 5 students have been engaging with the novel The Lemonade War, using it as a springboard to explore both literacy and real-world business concepts. Through the story, students are analysing character development, particularly how emotions and decisions impact relationships over time.
Alongside this, students are investigating key ideas in economics and business, including entrepreneurship, business strategies, problem solving, and decision making. Rich discussions have also focused on ethics and fairness in business, encouraging students to think critically about what it means to act responsibly.
It has been wonderful to see students making strong connections between the text and real-life situations, while developing both their comprehension and critical thinking skills.
Writing
Our Level 5 students have been working as young researchers by selecting a business that interests them to investigate in depth. Students have explored the history of their chosen business, how it has developed over time, and the strategies it has used to grow and succeed.
Using the 6+1 Writing Traits to support their learning, our focus so far has been on developing strong Ideas and Organisation. Students are using their research to write an information report, ensuring their ideas are clear, well-structured, and logically sequenced.
This unit is helping students build their understanding of how real-world businesses operate while strengthening their research, writing, and critical thinking skills.
Spelling
In Spelling, our Level 5 students have been focusing on learning and applying subject-specific vocabulary related to business and economics. Building this vocabulary is helping students to better understand what they read, contribute more confidently to class discussions, and communicate their ideas clearly in their writing.
| Term 2 - Week 4 - Economics | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| economics | joint venture | supply | stagnation |
| financial | inflation | demand | taxation |
| revenue | underselling | equilibrium | recession |
| entrepreneurship | slump | scarcity | levy |
As students become more familiar with these terms, they are developing a deeper understanding of key concepts and are able to use precise language when explaining their thinking.
| Term 2 - Week 4 - Economics words | |
|---|---|
| Word | Definition |
| economics | A science focused on how individuals, businesses, and governments allocate scarce resources to produce, distribute, and consume goods and services. |
| financial | Relating to the management, transfer, or investment of money and assets. |
| revenue | The total income a business generates from the sale of goods or services. |
| entrepreneurship | The process of starting and running a business or creating new ideas to solve problems and make money. |
| joint venture | Two or more people joining forces to sell a certain amount of goods or to work on a single venture. |
| inflation | The rate at which the general level of prices for goods and services rises. |
| underselling | Pricing the same goods for less than the competition. |
| slump | A drop in the activity or a business or the economy. |
| recession | A significant, widespread, and sustained decline in economic activity. |
| taxation | A compulsory financial charge or levy imposed by governments on individuals and businesses to fund public expenditures. |
| levy | An officially imposed tax, fee, or fine collected by an authority. |
| scarcity | An economic problem where there are not enough resources, goods, or services to meet everyone’s wants and needs. |
| equilibrium | The price point where the quantity demanded equals the quantity supplied, resulting in no surplus or shortage. |
| supply | The availability of a goods/service. |
| demand | Consumers’ desire for a particular goods/service. |
| stagnation | When an economy stops growing or changes very little over time. |
Numeracy
In Mathematics, our Level 5 students are developing their understanding of large multiplication using a range of efficient strategies. Students are learning and applying the vertical algorithm, lattice method, and area model to build flexibility and accuracy in their calculations.
We will also extend this learning to include multiplying decimals and fractions, helping students strengthen their number sense and deepen their understanding of place value and proportional reasoning.
Through hands-on problem solving and visual models, students are gaining confidence in choosing and explaining different strategies to solve complex multiplication problems.
Important Dates
Week 4
Monday 11th
- Trailblazers Program (selected students)
Tuesday 12th
- ES Appreciation Day
- Maths Olympiads Contest
Thursday 14th
- Level 5/6 VHAP
Friday 15th
- Ethics Olympiad
Week 5
Monday 18th
- Education Week Open Night
- Maths Olympiads
Tuesday 19th
- District Cross Country (selected students)
Wednesday 20th
- Walk to School Day
Thursday 21st
- Pupil Free - Whole School Curriculum Day
Friday 22nd
- Pupil Free - Professional Practice Day
Week 6
Monday 25th
- Maths Olymp
Thursday 28th
- 5KL to Heathmont Preschool
- Level 5/6 VHAP
Friday 29th
- Subway Lunch Order
- Ethics Olympiad