Class teachers - Miss Craven and Miss Lincoln

• September - Respect and Responsibility 

• October - Compassion and Hope 

• November -  Friendship and Forgiveness 

• December - Understanding and Patience

During our first term in Year 5,  pupils will be continuing to build on their literary skills learned in Year 4 through the Literacy Tree format. 

In guided reading, we will begin the term reading 'The Good Thieves' by Katherine Rundell. The Good Thieves is a book about a woman called Vita Marlowe who is fresh off the boat from England and has a job to do. Her beloved grandfather Jack, has been cheated out of his home and possessions by a notorious conman with Mafia connections. Seeing Jack's spirit is broken, Vita is desperate to make him happy again, so she devises a plan to outwit his enemies and recover his home. Pupils will explore the 1920s in New York City, the time and place in which this book is set. They will develop their understanding of the period and explore the issues of the day as well as any relevant vocabulary. Pupils will gain experience answering a range of inference questions, focusing on impressions, characters' feelings, relationships and motivation.  They will also explore how protagonists change over time by mapping out character arcs.

During our literacy sessions, we will begin the year reading 'Hidden Figures' by Margot Lee Shetterly, in which the pupils will learn about the achievements and determination of four iconic women at key moments in American and world history. This provides an inspiring context for pupils to write for a range of purposes and for different formal and informal contexts. 

Throughout the week, we will also be focusing on phonics and ensuring that pupils are confident in their sounds and can continue building on their spelling knowledge and application developed last year. 

For Welsh in Year 5, we will be completing daily Helpwr Heddiw sessions. We plan to focus on providing the pupils with lots of opportunities to deepen their knowledge and confidence when using Welsh in and out of the classroom. Therefore, we will be focusing on ensuring that we engage in lots of Welsh reading and writing alongside oracy. The pupils will have access to Welsh reading books on Google Classroom that they can access at home or in school.   

Pupils will be reading daily for pleasure; they have full access to the school library, but are welcome to bring in a book from home.  We encourage pupils to read books of interest that will develop their vocabulary knowledge and challenge their thinking. To ensure progress is made, we ask that pupils read for pleasure at home and complete their reading journals independently.  

We will begin Year 5 by focusing on a range of skills within the number system (place value, addition and subtraction, multiplication and division) using a combination of oral, written and practical methods.  Pupils will identify common factors between numbers, round whole numbers to 10,000, and solve problems using reasoning skills.  Pupils will be developing their mastery of maths using equipment and sentence stems to deepen their understanding and build on their ability to recall facts more easily.  An example of a sentence stem for place value is:_____ is equal to _____ (1200 is equal to 1 thousand and two hundreds or 1200 is equal to 10 hundred and 20 tens).  This allows pupils to identify number equivalence, digit value, and improve their addition and subtraction skills using regrouping. 

During the second half of the term, pupils will use their number system knowledge to develop multiplication and division skills, calculating through practical activities and varying contexts: area and perimeter, budgeting, and algebra. 

Pupils are encouraged to practice their times tables at home to support their learning.  Times tables are central to mathematics, and the ability to recall tables will assist pupils with more challenging mathematical problems.

The format of our maths and numeracy lessons will continue to promote independence and allow pupils to challenge their learning through application across a range of areas. 

During PE, we will be developing our collaboration skills, working with other members of Year 5, building resilience, perseverance and independence. At the end of each day, we have a check in session, which allows pupils to speak freely about their day, ask questions and develop empathy skills towards one another and identify ways to move forward. 

Oldcastle Primary School are fortunate to have adopted ‘Thrive’ a therapeutic approach to help support pupils with their emotional and social development. Pupils will take part in group activities in class and across the year group.  

As a Year 5 group, we will concentrate on group work and team building. We know that everyone deserves to have their say and to be listened to. It is important that we give others the opportunity to voice their opinions and to use evidence to inform our own. We will be continuing to learn about Human Rights and the Rights of the Child and the importance of exercising these rights through Voice 21 principles. 

In Year 5, we will continue to build on the pupils' knowledge gained during Year 4. The unit of work will focus on developing pupils' knowledge of Justice and Freedom. This unit of work delves deeper into pupils’ understanding of human rights, democracy and diversity to formulate their own opinions regarding worldwide and local issues by enquiring, researching and formulating complex expressions of opinions. Pupils will explore significant current and historical events such as suffragettes and slavery, understanding the impact they have had on today’s society.  Throughout this unit, pupils will use a range of research techniques, developing their understanding of the reliability of sources. 

Pupils will explore the importance of democracy, diversity and inclusion and how this is the foundation of their future. Pupils will continue to explore their responsibility to bring about social change, for example, by looking at how they contribute to the world they live in.

We will be exploring the impact of Slavery, Civil Rights and Human Rights both historically and currently on society today. Pupils will understand how historical events have affected different groups throughout history, including global majority, gender, and those of different classes.  Pupils will explore various historical, mythical, and political events that lead up to the world they live in today, supporting them in formulating opinions and ideas about how they can impact the future.  Throughout the unit, pupils will form in-depth and research-supported ideas and opinions. 

In Expressive Arts, pupils will deepen their understanding of the unit’s themes by exploring how art and music express emotions and viewpoints related to environmental and social issues. They will create a portfolio of visual, musical, and written work that reflects their own perspectives and demonstrates how creative expression can inspire change. This will include studying artists from diverse cultures, faiths, and beliefs.

All pupils should have a water bottle in school every day. PE will take place on Friday. Children are expected to wear their kit to school on PE day. Children should read their reading books daily and practise their times tables at home as much as possible.   Over the course of the year, pupils will engage in outdoor learning opportunities, pupils and parents will be notified of these in advance. 

We ask that each day, pupils attend school with a water bottle and appropriate outdoor clothing to suit changing weather conditions. Pencil cases are limited to one per pupil and should remain in bags until needed. We provide pencils, erasers, pencil sharpeners, and rulers. 

We have a number of children in school with a nut allergy.  We strive to be a nut-free school so please do not send in nut products in packed lunches such as nutella.

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To contact your child's teacher please drop us an email via ask@oldcastleprimary.co.uk or call us 01656 815790.  

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