Year 5/6 Spotlight on Learning

Self portraits

As a part of our ‘getting to know you’ and identity activities, the Year 5/6’s created a range of self portraits in Art. Before we began we looked at the elements when drawing a face. Some of the portraits included a realistic half of the face and the other half was filled with objects and hobbies that reflect our personality.

Mindfulness
This year students in years five and six have been investigating the practice of Mindfulness. We are learning that with mindfulness practise the parts of our brain that help us deal with difficult emotions, impulse control and learning get more active. When we are mindful, we get to decide how we respond to life’s challenges and we can more easily make good choices.
Some ways that we can practise Mindfulness at school include
- Guided Meditation (Smiling Minds)
- Zen Walks
- Mindful Colouring (with a set focus)
- Gratitude Journals 

PE 

During PE, we have been focusing on team building within the 5/6 cohort. Students have been exposed to various combinations of fundamental movement and technical skills playing Ultimate capture the flag and soccer. These activities focus on developing students' ABC’s, Agility, balance and coordination.

Maths

As a prelude to our studies on place value in whole number during weeks 3 and 4, students have been investigating numeral systems. After discussing and defining the difference between numbers and numerals, students worked in groups to research the numeral systems used by other cultural groups and civilizations throughout history.

This fortnight, the students have embarked on activities to familiarise themselves with each other and their teachers through a variety of STEM activities. Students have discussed their goals and aspirations for this year and thought about actions to help them achieve their goals.