Year Five
Welcome back to the Spring term of year five! I am very excited to start 2025 with our wonderful year five class and we have lots of great learning opportunities ahead of us.
The children really impressed me with their love of reading last term with lots of them reading and sharing recommended reads, I cannot wait to share new books and continue with them on their reading journey. We have recommended authors through school, which I look forward to hearing the children's views on as well as some excellent class texts and many more books in our exciting class reading area. We also have a weekly newspaper in class which proves to be very popular so keep a look out for the new arrivals this term! Reading is key to all we do and incredibly important across the whole of our curriculum, so your support is vital in helping your child develop the confidence and love of reading to reach their full potential. We do expect the children to read at home at least three times a week and have this signed weekly in their reading diaries. I will check and sign every Friday.
This term we step into our topic – Sow, Grow, Farm
This project teaches children about the features and characteristics of land use in agricultural regions across the world, including a detailed exploration of significant environmental areas.
There are several mini topics which fit into the Sow, Grow, Farm topic, which ensures children develop a breadth of skills and knowledge.
Eat the seasons: This project teaches children about the meaning and benefits of seasonal eating, including food preparation and cooking techniques.
Human reproduction and ageing: This project teaches children about animal life cycles, including the human life cycle. They explore human growth and development to old age, including the changes experienced during puberty and human reproduction.
Light, line and shadows: This project teaches children about the visual qualities of line, light and shadow. They explore the work of Pablo Picasso and Rembrandt and are introduced to a range of shading techniques. They take black and white photographs and use pencil, pen and ink wash to reimagine their photographs in a shaded drawing.
Nature's art: This project teaches children about the genre of land art. They work outdoors to sketch natural forms and explore the sculptural potential of natural materials before working collaboratively to create land art installations.
Our book for class story this term is Midnight fox by Betsy Byars In addition to this book we will also be reading Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman, Exploring Space, Arthur and the Golden Rope by Todd-Stanton and the Darkest Dark by Chris Hadfield. These books will be studied in more detail as part of our literacy topics.
In PE the children will start off with dance and volleyball. After half term this will swap to orienteering and gymnastics. Our PE days for this term are Thursday and Friday. The children will need a full PE kit for both days-plain white T shirt, black bottoms and a red, grey or black hoodie or jumper.
Homework:
Homework will be given weekly. The children will be asked to complete:
· 15 minutes of their reading books at least 3x per week (dairies will be checked and signed every Friday.)
· Subject specific homework given on a Friday (due in the following Friday)
· Spellings to learn weekly.
Reflex times tables - please play on this at least three times a week to keep your times tables knowledge fresh and efficient.
In addition to the above additional homework includes:
· Selection of creative topic work (from the working at home ideas sheet) –to be handed in at the end of each half term.
I will post all messages and announcements on dojo so that you can be well informed on what is happening in school.
If you have any questions about any of this information or other questions not relating to this please do not hesitate to contact me.
Many thanks.
Mrs Lowry
These are the words children are expected to learn by the end of year six:
Spelling word list for Year 5 and Year 6
Topic Documents
Sow, Grow, Farm - Knowledge Organiser
Eat the seasons - Knowledge Organiser
Light, line and Shadows - Knowledge Organiser
Nature's art - Knowledge Organiser
