WHERE WE ARE IN PLACE & TIME

Students will investigate why humans explore and how exploration leads to new discoveries. They will learn about Earth’s place in the solar system and compare it to other planets. Students will explore the unique conditions that make life possible on Earth. They will ask questions, research answers, and communicate their thinking clearly. This unit builds curiosity, deepens understanding, and develops key thinking, research, and communication skills.

FANTASY

Students will explore the magic of fantasy through reading and writing. They will read stories with imaginative settings, strong characters, and clear structure. They will ask questions, infer, and visualize as they read. In writing, students will plan, draft, revise, and publish their own fantasy narratives. They will use vivid vocabulary, figurative language, and dialogue to bring their stories to life. Along the way, they will build grammar skills, share ideas, and grow as confident storytellers.

NUMBER OPERATIONS

Students will fluently add and subtract within 1000 using strategies based on place value and operation properties. They will build fluency when recalling multiplication tables and derive related division facts. Students will apply properties of operations to solve problems involving addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. They will use mental methods for exact and approximate calculations, solve two-step word problems, and check answers using estimation. This unit strengthens problem-solving skills and number sense.

DESCRIBING OUR UNIVERSE

Students will strengthen their Portuguese literacy skills through connections with the Year 4 Where We Are in Place and Time Unit of Inquiry. Using space, exploration, planets, Earth, and discoveries about the universe as meaningful contexts, students will read, discuss, and create descriptive texts, using precise vocabulary to describe objects, places, characteristics, and conditions. They will use information and images from their inquiry to practise identifying important details and communicating descriptions clearly. As part of their stand-alone Portuguese learning, students will develop reading fluency and comprehension, organise descriptive writing logically, use adjectives and adverbs to add detail and precision, explore synonyms and antonyms, apply appropriate punctuation, and revise their writing for clarity and effectiveness.

MOVEMENT ACROSS CULTURES

Students will develop their skills through Traditional Dance and Games, with a focus on movement, rhythm, teamwork, cultural expression, and respectful participation. Integrated with the Year 4 Where We Are in Place and Time Unit of Inquiry, students will explore how people across different cultures and time periods have used movement, dance, and games to express identity, traditions, and ways of life. They will compare traditional and modern activities and discover how movement can connect people across places and generations. As part of their stand-alone PE learning, students will develop control in throwing, catching, and striking, create and adapt strategies during games, move safely in relation to others, perform cultural dances respectfully, and create movement sequences inspired by different cultural patterns.