Year 5

Today has been a busy day: not only are we wearing bright clothes to support CAFOD, but 21 of the class participated in the sports rewards morning for children with over 97% attendance and the winning house. Year 5 were narrowly beaten by year 3 in the class with the best overall attendance (mainly due to the number of year 5 arriving late in the mornings).

All of the 25 children that completed their final year 5 topic homework have now presented their projects and  are currently trying out the games that some children have created.

May Homework 

Yesterday afternoon, the children shared the first of their summer home learning in class. Several children had researched games played around the world: Sofia, Sean, Ratu, Freya, Jameelah and Joseph. Others chose to share their research on animals found in the Amazon Basin: Ava read a report on Anacondas; Alice shared her information about sloths; and Luke read a report on the Emerald Tree Boa. Ruby showed a detailed map of the Amazon Basin. 

Several of the class had designed their own Harry Potter style games (Natalia, Imogen, Amelia, Rachel, Brandyn, Jensen, Neve and Sophie). Some of these were based on games that muggles play!

After the rules had been explained, they were ready to try them out. 

The rest of the class will present their home learning on Thursday.

Project Homework

As always, it was fascinating seeing the children present their homework last week. We had a range of personal timelines; interviews with older relatives; research into childhood from twenty years ago; and paintings in the style of Kieran Williamson. 

Paulton's Park (23rd March 2018)

Year 5 learnt a phenomenal amount about forces today at Paulton's Park. Please see below for a snapshot of our day and ask your child to explain the effects of air resistance, gravity and friction on the rides. If they went on The Dragon or Sky Swinger, ask them about the centrifugal effect (especially if they sat on the outside!) 

End of Spring 1

This term, Year 5 have been studying the Lake District as a specific area of the UK. We have had numerous discussions about the difference between a city, county, country and continent and they are starting to become more aware of the world around them. The Lake District, Coniston Water in particular, was the setting for the Arthur Ransome novel Swallows and Amazons which we will continue reading next half term. Today, we made the famous Grasmere Gingerbread which the children have (hopefully!) brought home to share with you. Please see below for a few photographs of this cooking.

We will need to continue to work on the correct spelling of high frequency words and learning of basic maths facts next half-term in order for the children to make expected progress.  

End of term....

Thank you for all the support you have given your children in their learning this term. Once again, I have enjoyed seeing the child present their topic home learning this week and there are some photos for you to see below.

I was asked yesterday what I thought the class had enjoyed most this term and I am in no doubt that it was our class novel, Holes. This has been a real hit with both them and I and has been a great stimulus for their writing- I hope they enjoy next term's book and theme as much!

I hope you, and your families, enjoy a fun and restful break.

Autumn 1 done!

It has been great this week to see every pupil bring in their topic homework this week and I have enjoyed hearing the remainder of their presentations this afternoon. This afternoon, we are testing out the board games!

We have all been gripped by our class novel, Holes, and have used this as a stimulus for our writing. We will continue with the story after half-term and I know the themes that come up next will prompt some thoughtful discussion as we understand the characters and a little about what life was like in Texas many generations ago. 

Pupils have written a back story for one of the boys at Camp Green Lake and some will be uploaded.

In maths, we still need a big push on rapid recall of number facts (times tables, complements, halving and doubling) in order that each pupil can access the UKS2 maths curriculum. Many thanks for all you do to encourage your child with the learning of these facts.

The spellings your child has over half-term are the ones that they are consistently spelling incorrectly in their writing. These will not be assessed through a test but through an on-going monitoring of applying the spelling correctly in their writing.

It has been great to see most of the children grow in confidence and starting to become more resilient learners. I look forward to seeing this continue next term.

Miss Crouch 

New start

Mrs Dreelan and I are very pleased with the start Year 5 have already made and we are looking forward to working with you and your children over the next year. In only three days, the children have: contributed to class rules; considered their journey as readers;  discussed whether they would keep a tiny dragon a secret; and established growth mindsets for maths learning. In maths, they were surprised to know that nobody is born a 'maths person', that thinking of numbers visually is helpful, and, that deep learning is better than quick learning. These growth mindsets, and realising that everyone can learn maths to high levels, will be crucial for their progress over the year.

Miss Crouch