Year Five Curriculum Newsletter- Autumn Term 2009

Welcome back to a new school year!! I hope you all had a restful and enjoyable summer break! I am really looking forward to teaching your child in year five as well as working in partnership with you during the forthcoming year. It is a very important year for all involved! I will be working in class on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. On Tuesdays, Mrs Brooker will be teaching year five while I plan and prepare future lessons and assessments. As well as Mrs Brooker, year five are very fortunate to have Mrs McCabe, Mrs Williams and Mrs Ling as a part of the year five staff.

This school year, some of your child's work will be focused around a certain theme each term.

The autumn term's theme is PLANET EARTH AND BEYOND.

This half term, we will be looking at recounts. We will be looking at the features of a good recount and using this to write our own recounts. We will also be looking at how to interview and record a recount in order to write a report based around the first man on the moon.

You could encourage your child to write short recounts of their weekend as it will help them practise writing a good recount.

I would expect the children to be reading at home for at least fifteen minutes each day. It would be great and very beneficial to your child if you could read with them and listen to them read regularly. Please could you also remember to sign your child's reading record book at least twice weekly.

The children will have spellings to learn. A spelling list for the whole term will be sent home so you will know what words to practise with your child. Spellings will be given out on a Monday with a test on Friday. When learning the spellings, it is also very useful if you could help your child practise how to use each word in a sentence. Knowing what each word means is just as important as spelling it correctly!

We will be starting the year by looking at 2D shapes, parallel and perpendicular lines, perimeters and reading co-ordinates. We will also be revisiting units of measurement as well as equivalent measurements. We will move onto fractions, finding out simple equivalent fractions, for example, ½, 4/8, The children will then study decimals and learn to understand percentages as parts in every hundred.

Encourage your child to look at shapes in the environment and try to identify parallel and perpendicular lines. You could also draw some rectangles/squares and practise using the formula (Length + width) x 2 to work out their perimeters.You can help your child at home by practising their times table with them.

Mrs Brooker will be teaching science on a Tuesday afternoon. In keeping with ourplanet earth theme, the children will be studying the Earth, Moon and beyond. They will be looking at how the Sun affects the seasons on Earth, the Moon's lunar cycle and finding out fascinating facts about the planets in our solar system!

We will be using the computers to to search for answers to complex questions, using both software such as CD-ROM's and using the internet. This will be linked to our history topic where the children will be conducting research. If you have access to the internet, or encyclopedia on CD-ROM, then you could help your child to search for information at home, focussing particularly on how to use search engines as Google. Please can I stress though the importance of supervising your child whilst they access to the internet at home.

We will be looking at change in Britain since 1948. We will especially be looking at the Moon landing and how it has affected technology, popular culture and other areas of life in Britain. If you are able to, you can aid your child's learning in this area by visiting museums such as the Victoria and Albert museum in London or the Science museum. These museums are free and have great interactive displays!

In keeping with our planet earth and beyond theme, the children will be using music to tell the story of a journey into space. They will use a range of instruments to 'describe' this journey.

Outside P.E. lessons will be focussing on ball games. We will be developing our skills in catching and throwing the ball, essential skills in many games! Indoor lessons will be about gymnastics. The children will be working on creating symmetrical and asymmetrical shapes and movements, linking them together to make up a sequence. If you go to the park at the weekends, why not take a ball along and help your child to develop their ball skills?

We will be looking at how rules and laws affect us. We will be developing an understanding of why we need rules and how they help us at home, at school and in our wider community. You could discuss with your child what rules you have at home and why you have them.

Mrs Brooker will be teaching French and looking at classroom objects.

Homework will be given out on Fridays and needs to be handed in by the following Wednesday. It will take the form of a piece of literacy and numeracy homework. Reading is also considered as homework. All homework needs to be completed in pencil or ink pen. Children may also use coloured pencils where appropriate. Please do not allow your child to use felt pens or crayons. Thank you in advance for your support in this.

As I have mentioned before, I am really looking forward to teaching year five and hope your child enjoys their time in my class. If you have any queries or problems during the year or are not sure how to help your child with their learning then please do not hesitate to come and speak to me.

Mr L.Sutton

September 2009