Welcome to Year 5

Spring Term 2023

Areas of study for Year 5*

 

Literacy

This term in Literacy the children will be focusing on different styles of writing. They will read a book called ‘Lost Happy Endings’ and write their own versions of the ending. They will also focus on non-fiction writing, writing a persuasive advert for the Emerald City, a newspaper report about the Viking attack on Lindisfarne, which provides cross curricular links with their history unit, and a travel brochure and travel blog about the forest featured in the book ‘The Minpins’. The children will be exploring poetry, looking at different poetic styles and the use of figurative writing, before writing some poems of their own. They will also learn and perform a class poem in celebration of World Poetry Day. They will end the term using their story telling skills and building on what they know about pace and suspense by writing the ending to the story of ‘Clockwork’.  

Numeracy

At the start of the term, the children will look at multiplication and division. They will use expanded and contracted methods of multiplication to multiply 2-digit and 3-digit numbers by a single digit; they will then move on to multiply by two 2-digit numbers. In division, the children will recap expanded methods of division before practising the short ‘bus-stop’ method; this will include finding remainders. The children will then look at fractions with a focus on multiplying fractions by a whole number, before learning how to find a fraction of an amount.  The children then move on to look at decimals and percentages, including the relationship between fractions, decimals and percentages. Towards the end of the term, the children will learn strategies to calculate the perimeter and area of shapes. Finally, they will have opportunities to draw and interpret formation in line graphs and tables.        

Reading

At the start of the term, the children will explore play scripts and non-fiction texts during Guided Reading sessions. They will then move on to focus on the book, ‘The Boy in the Tower’ for the rest of the term. During guided reading sessions, children will take part in choral reading and have the chance to discuss and answer questions verbally, before practising how to write answers to questions using evidence from the text. The children will be focussing on answering all questions in full sentences and encouraged to use ‘Go APE’ (Answer, Prove, Explain) to compose their answers.

MFL

In French lessons, the children will be spending the first half term learning about families. They will learn the key vocabulary for members of their family and will be able to answer questions about their own family. They will also be able to ask others questions about their families. After half term, they will learn the key vocabulary for objects in the classroom and in their own pencil cases. They will also learn and respond to classroom instructions given in French.  

PSHE/RSHE

In PSHE lessons, the children will learn about the environment around them and how they can care for it. The children will also be learning about stereotypes and how the media portrays people, which links with the targeting of online advertisements. We end the term by discussing aspirations and the goals that the children would like to set for themselves.

RE

The children will be introduced to the Abrahamic and Eastern faiths and how these are similar. They will then begin by looking at the celebration of life, such as birthdays and naming ceremonies. They will also look at how religions cope with the idea of life after death and how these beliefs might bring hope and peace to their followers.

PE

Through their PE lessons, the children will be focusing on their gymnastic skills. During the first half term,, they will be using equipment and low apparatus, with a focus on physical skills. They will then develop their balance and movement techniques, creating a short series of gymnastic movements with equipment such as balls, hoops, ropes and ribbons. 

Geography

This term, the children will develop as geographers, initially through cross-curricular links with our history topic on the Vikings in the first half term. They will research where the Vikings originated and their travels to Britain from Scandinavian countries. The larger focus on geography comes through our topic all about the local area. They will be looking at a range of maps, including topographical maps and street maps, considering the land use in the area and investigating population data. They will learn about the census taken in March 2021 and compare historic census information. 

History

The Vikings are the focus of our history topic this term. The children will learn where the Vikings appear in the timeline of British history, as well as their lifestyle and some of their infamous attacks. They will continue to learn about the way England changed throughout the time that they were here and discuss Danelaw and Danegeld. In the second half term, through cross-curricular links with our geography topic about the local area, they will touch on aspects of local history when discussing how land use and population data has changed over time. 

Science

This term, the children will be learning about materials in Science; this will build on their previous knowledge from Key Stage One. They will conduct experiments on reversible and irreversible changes and look into how different solutions can be separated. They will plan scientific enquiries to investigate thermal insulators, record their results and write scientific conclusions based on what they discover.

Music

The children will learn to play a brass instrument, led by a teacher from Berkshire Maestros, this term. This includes learning the names of parts of the instrument, practising to make a sound and then learning to play some notes. Ultimately, the children will learn to play a simple tune as a group.    

Computing

During the first half term, the children will be creating their own 3D art gallery using SketchUp, a 3D modelling programme. They will then use cameras and iPads to take photographs that will be displayed within their virtual art galleries. After half term, they will explore the use of HTML to create web pages, before creating their own content for a webpage.  

Art, Design and Technology

The children will be learning about perspective photography throughout this term. They will be discussing and artist named Iwao Yamawaki and looking at his work closely. Then, they will be taking and drawing their own images that have considered a different perspective or viewpoint. Through their drawings, the children will also consider their sketching and texture drawing techniques. 
In Design and Technology, the children will be looking at the famous engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. In pairs, they will spend time planning and designing a bridge, which they will then have the opportunity to make using materials of their choice. Finally, they will have time to evaluate their work and consider improvements they could make. 
 

*If you require additional information relating to our school curriculum, please ask at the school office or the class teacher.