Queensland state schools teach the Australian Curriculum, and Version 9 is the one in classrooms now.[2] Year 5 maths has 24 content descriptions, the specific things teachers are asked to teach. They sit in six strands: Number, Algebra, Measurement, Space, Statistics and Probability.[1]
This page puts all 24 in plain English. If you've seen a code like AC9M5N05 on a report card or a worksheet, you'll find it below. The "M5" part means maths, Year 5.
The big ideas in Year 5
- Decimals and factors. Ordering decimals with three or more places, and breaking numbers into factors.
- Fractions and percentages. Adding and subtracting fractions with related denominators, and linking common percentages to fractions and decimals.
- Bigger calculations. Multiplying by two-digit numbers, dividing with remainders, and checking with estimates.
- Measuring the real world. Perimeter and area, 24-hour time, and measuring angles in degrees.
- Data and chance. Line graphs, small investigations, and repeated chance experiments.
All 24 Year 5 maths topics, explained
The descriptions below are in our words. ACARA publishes the official wording.[1]
Number
| Code | What your child learns |
|---|---|
| AC9M5N01 | Read, compare and order decimals with more than two decimal places, including numbers bigger than one, and place them on a number line. |
| AC9M5N02 | Write whole numbers as products of their factors, find multiples, and test whether one number divides evenly into another. |
| AC9M5N03 | Compare and order fractions with the same or related denominators, including mixed numbers, and show them on a number line. |
| AC9M5N04 | Understand 100% as the whole, and connect common percentages to fractions and decimals (50% is a half is 0.5). |
| AC9M5N05 | Add and subtract fractions with the same or related denominators. |
| AC9M5N06 | Multiply large numbers by one- and two-digit numbers, choosing an efficient method. |
| AC9M5N07 | Divide, and decide what a remainder means in the problem: round up, round down, or write it as a fraction or decimal. |
| AC9M5N08 | Use estimation to check whether an answer, including a money answer, makes sense. |
| AC9M5N09 | Use maths to model and solve real problems, including money problems, and explain the answer. |
| AC9M5N10 | Follow and write step-by-step algorithms, with decisions, to explore factors, multiples and divisibility. |
Algebra
| Code | What your child learns |
|---|---|
| AC9M5A01 | Use the fact that multiplication and division undo each other to build fact families (6 × 7 = 42, so 42 ÷ 7 = 6). |
| AC9M5A02 | Find the missing number in multiplication and division equations, such as 8 × ? = 96. |
Measurement
| Code | What your child learns |
|---|---|
| AC9M5M01 | Choose sensible metric units for length, mass and capacity, using smaller units or mixed units for accuracy. |
| AC9M5M02 | Solve practical problems about the perimeter and area of regular and irregular shapes. |
| AC9M5M03 | Compare 12-hour and 24-hour time and convert between them. |
| AC9M5M04 | Estimate, draw and measure angles in degrees with a protractor, and name angles by their size. |
Space
| Code | What your child learns |
|---|---|
| AC9M5SP01 | Match 3D objects to their nets, and build objects from nets. |
| AC9M5SP02 | Use a grid with coordinates, plus direction words, to describe where things are and how they move. |
| AC9M5SP03 | Slide, flip and turn shapes, and say what changes and what stays the same. |
Statistics
| Code | What your child learns |
|---|---|
| AC9M5ST01 | Collect, check and display data using software such as spreadsheets, and describe it by its most common value (mode) and its shape. |
| AC9M5ST02 | Read line graphs that show change over time and draw conclusions from them. |
| AC9M5ST03 | Plan and run a small statistical investigation, choose a display and report what they found. |
Probability
| Code | What your child learns |
|---|---|
| AC9M5P01 | List all possible outcomes of a chance experiment and tell equally likely outcomes from ones that aren't. |
| AC9M5P02 | Repeat chance experiments, count how often each result comes up, and use that to compare how likely each one is. |
Where children often get stuck
- "Longer decimals are bigger." Plenty of Year 5s think 0.45 is bigger than 0.5 because it has more digits. Money sorts it out fast: 45 cents is less than 50 cents.
- Related denominators. Adding a half and a quarter means turning the half into two quarters first. A child who writes 1/2 + 1/4 = 2/6 needs to see it drawn.
- Remainders. 26 children with 4 to a car needs 7 cars, not 6.5. Year 5 asks children to decide what the remainder means.
- Area and perimeter. Perimeter is the fence around the yard. Area is the grass inside it.
How to help at home
- Use money for decimals. Compare prices at the shops, add up a short list, work out the change.
- Practise times tables as fact families. 6 × 8 = 48 also gives 48 ÷ 8 = 6. That's AC9M5A01, and it makes division much easier.
- Spot percentages. "50% off" and "25% off" signs link percentages to halves and quarters.
- Read a timetable. Train and bus timetables use 24-hour time.
- Measure something real. A garden bed that needs mulch makes area and perimeter make sense quickly.
What comes next
Year 5 leads straight into Year 6. Fractions with related denominators become fractions with any denominators. Linking percentages to fractions becomes finding a percentage of an amount, like a discount. Counting squares for area becomes the formula for the area of a rectangle.[1] Our Year 6 maths guide covers what follows.
Lessons mapped to the curriculum
Every Study Compass maths lesson carries its Australian Curriculum code. A short starting check finds where your child is, then the plan fills Year 5 gaps first and moves on when they're ready.
Start freeSources
- ACARA, Australian Curriculum: Mathematics F–6, Version 9.0 (Year 5 content descriptions). https://v9.australiancurriculum.edu.au/content/dam/en/curriculum/ac-version-9/downloads/mathematics/mathematics-curriculum-content-f-6-v9.docx (accessed 19 October 2026).
- Queensland Department of Education, Australian Curriculum implementation. https://education.qld.gov.au/curriculums/school-curriculum/Pages/australianCurriculumImplementation.aspx (accessed 19 October 2026).
Curriculum documents get updated. Always check the official source before making a decision. Study Compass isn't affiliated with or endorsed by ACARA, QCAA or the Queensland Department of Education.