English
We will complete our studies of Street Child by Berlie Doherty by the end of the second week back, before going on to explore a short picture book called Varmints. Varmints is by Helen Ward and Marc Craste and is a mysterious tale of a threatened, natrual world and a hopeful new start!
Spelling
The children will continue to receive a new spelling list each Monday and will be tested on these spellings on the following Friday.
There will be opportunities to practise these spellings in school throughout the week but you can also find a collection of these lists for this half term below so that you can support your child's learning at home.
Reading
Fluency in reading is hugely important for so many reasons, from the ability to independently research things of interest to the joy of 'getting lost' in a brilliant story.
In addition to the reading practice at school, there is an expectation that children in Year 5 read for 15 minutes each day at home.
All children have access to Bug Club (please contact school if you need a reminder of your child's login details) which has lots of amazing fiction and non-fiction books at your child's reading level and we also provide a Home Reader book each week which is changed every Friday.
This half term, we are introducing a Home Reading Reward Scheme. If your child brings their reading book back on a Friday (with their Reading Record signed by an adult) they will earn a stamp for the back of their Reading Record. If your child earns four stamps by the end of this half term - out of a possible five - they will earn four merits. If your child receives five stamps, they will be awarded five merits plus an additional bonus playtime! Please help your child to participate successfully by reminding them to bring their reading book and signed Reading Record to school every Friday.
We also visit the school library each Tuesday afternoon to give the children the opportunity to choose a book to read either in school or at home. Children are welcome to borrow their chosen book for longer than one week if additional time is needed.
Maths
Our main Maths topics for this term include:
- Comparing and ordering numbers with up to three decimal places
- Adding and subtracting decimals
- Rounding decimals to the nearest tenth and whole number
- Converting between and comparing fractions, decimals and percentages
- Calculating percentages of amounts
- Investigating the properties of regular polygons
- Measuring, drawing and calculating angles
Science
Our new Science topic is Life Cycles and will include the study of:
- Comparing the life cycles of different mammals
- Making comparisons between the life cycles of mammals, amphibians, insects and birds
- Naming the different parts of a flower and their role in reproduction
- Exploring the work of Jane Goodall and writing a biography which includes her scientific discoveries
PE
Our PE days will continue to be on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons.
On Wednesdays and Thursdays our PE sessions will be led by our professional coach this half term. We will be developing our table tennis and basketball skills.
For PE lessons, your child will need: either a school logo PE shirt or a plain white or pale blue t shirt (no football shirts, please), black or royal blue shorts or plain black or navy leggings and pumps or trainers.
A plain black or navy tracksuit will be useful in colder weather.
Please ensure PE bags and items of kit are clearly labelled with your child's name.
For safety, long hair should be tied back and earrings either removed or taped over (tape is provided by school; please provide your child's hair bobble).
RE
We will be exploring the theme 'Why do Christians believe that Easter is a celebration of victory?' The children will be able to retell the Easter story from Maunday Thursday through to the resurrection and look at art work that depicts parts of the Easter story. We will be refelcting on how the death and resurrection of Christ is a victory, and how this significant event impacts believers in their daily lives. We will also think about the feelings associated with being victorious and link this with our own experiences of victory.
Computing
Miss Brooks from Technola will continue to deliver computing on a Wednesday afternoon. The children were really amazed with all of the photography skills they were learning last half term!
PSHE
Our PSHE focus will be on Rights and Respect. We will also continue to use resources from My Happy Mind each week.
Cross-Curricular Topic
Our new topic is 'Why Visit North America'. We will be investigating:
- The different countries within the continent of North America
- The difference between human and physical geography
- The industries which are most important to North America
- The meaning behind some nicknames such as 'The Land of the Midnight Sun'
- Why the flag of the USA has stars and stripes
Mrs Newby will be leading our class music lessons on Thursday afternoons and will be teaching the children some fun and catchy songs linked to our topic.
Home Learning Challenges
Our new set of challenges were sent on home on Friday 13th January and are due to be returned by Friday 21st April. We can't wait to see some more fantastic pieces of learning!
