In Year 5, reading is of huge importance not only for reading itself, but for developing even better writing. Reading a wide range of books, provides children with a wealth of information to draw on in creating their own stories, information texts and poetry.

Discussing what they have read is very important as this provides the children with an opportunity to bounce ideas off people and discuss elements they may have not thought of initially. All children should read a minimum of 3 times a week in order to be a reading star. I would encourage parents or carers to use your child’s reading record to keep in touch with me about their reading and make note of any things they enjoyed or found tricky.

At the end of each day, I take great pleasure in reading our class novel to the children which nurtures children’s love of literature.

Writing in Year 5 covers a wide range of text types, from adventure stories to information texts and from Shakespeare to modern poetry. Throughout these genres of writing, children will learn the key features of those text types and how to make effective use of a range of skills which bridge the genres.

Every 2 weeks, children complete a big write, giving them an opportunity to show off what they can do in a range of genres. Some of these big writes are then displayed on our ‘Exciting Writing’ board to allow us to celebrate their amazing work.

Spelling is an incredibly important part or writing and requires lots of practice. We have recently started using the ‘No Nonsense Spelling’ scheme which will have a big impact on children’s spelling ability.

I would encourage parents to check through spelling of any work their children do at home to ensure spelling is accurate.

In maths we will be exploring the huge array of different problems that can be solved using mathematics. We will ensure that children are confident using both formal written methods of calculation but also mental arithmetic skills to solve questions quickly and easily.

In Year 5 children will complete calculations with numbers up to 1 million, negative numbers and numbers with up to 2 decimal places. It is important that children have a firm grasp of all their times tables up to 12 x 12. This will not only boost their confidence but also speed up both simple and more complex problem solving and also allows children to spot patterns. Therefore, any help or practice you help you can give your children will be of great benefit.

At West Street we run a very creative and topic based curriculum. Each half term we have a different theme for the children to sink their teeth into. These begin with an exciting launch where the children find out what they will be learning about that half term.

At the end of the half term, there is a chance for the children to present what they have found out and explain some of the exciting things they have done in the process.

Our previous topic launches include a visit from Dr Who and the Tardis, Mrs Trunchbull from Matilda taking over the running of the school for a day and a mystery of Cave Men and Dinosaurs breaking into the school in the dead of night!

One of the things which I believe is a crucial part of learning is having new experiences. These could include visits into school from outside agencies such as the Fire Brigade or trips to new and exciting places.

In the past the children have visited Chester Zoo to gain a better understanding of animal conservation, Victoria Cave to find out how people from the Stone Age would have lived and even a residential trip to London where the children went to see The Lion King in the West End and visited Buckingham Palace!

These opportunities are a important part of learning and provide them with a great base of knowledge and experience to draw from and memories to cherish for ever.

Throughout the school we use the Class Dojo reward system. Children can earn Dojo Points for a huge range of reasons from work in class to good manners and from asking good questions to being a reading star! This system also allows parents to keep in touch with their child’s learning and their good behaviour by signing up to Class Dojo. Additionally it provides a secure messaging service directly to the class teacher.

If you would like to sign up to Class Dojo, please see your child’s teacher who will give you a unique reference number to access your child’s Dojo Points through this link…
https://www.classdojo.com

Each week the children will be given a task, investigation or challenge to complete at home. Homework allows children to use the skills which they have developed in class independently and keeps their brains active.

Homework also provides a superb opportunity for you to catch up with what your child is learning and find ways to extend and further enhance their learning.