Unit of Inquiry: Sharing the Planet

 

Year 5 and 6 have had a fantastic start to the term, diving into the Unit of Inquiry: Sharing the Planet. This term’s Central Idea is: "Survival depends on regeneration."

Students kicked off their mini-inquiry projects and design briefs, focusing on how life on Earth depends on regeneration. They’ve been researching concepts and ideas they find meaningful, using the following lines of inquiry as a guide:

  • Investigating technologies that support regeneration and help the environment
  • Evaluating models of regenerative practices
  • Designing technologies and solutions for sustainable living
  • Understanding the impact of energy use

Throughout their research, students are showing amazing creativity and linking their projects to the key concepts of function, causation, and responsibility.

This unit encourages students to understand how learning about regeneration demonstrates the resilience of nature. It shows that all living things must adapt and heal to survive and thrive together. Students are beginning to grasp both the fragility of the planet and the potential for nature to rebound if given the opportunity. Our classroom conversations explore how we use natural resources, produce energy, and the importance of balancing consumption with regeneration.

In Year 6, students are applying their inquiry skills in literacy, focusing on the form of information reports, with an ongoing focus on developing and improving punctuation and spelling as they draft and refine their research reports. Their work on design plans also connects with our math focus on measurement and geometry.

Meanwhile, Year 5 students have been developing their narrative writing skills for literacy. In numeracy, they are working through the complexities of fractions in various forms.

Our Friday Homestead Activities are also back in full swing! Students are cooking delicious treats, practising detailed calligraphy, coding robots, tending to the veggie patch, caring for our chickens, and upcycling materials into wearable items. Homestead Activities are a much-anticipated part of each week.

With Sarah's assistance, students across the campus are preparing for our Finale. We look forward to this extravagant event, where we welcome families to enjoy watching talented students celebrate their year of learning through song, dance, and other forms of creative performance. More information regarding the Finale will come!

I wish you all the best for a busy, happy, creative, and exciting time in Term 4.

Warm regards,
THE HOMESTEAD TEAM

 


Infographic by Billy Peach (6W)

 


Word Wall: Year 5J brainstorming ideas around regeneration!

 


George & Fred's (5B) design plan for their sustainable house they are proposing to build

 


Homestead Maths: Tilly Cohen's examples of BODMAS, working out how to get to 100 using numerals 1-9!