Learning  »  Class Pages  »  Year 5

Hi and welcome to our Year 5 class page. We have got lots going on this year throughout the curriculum and have started fantastically well! Below, you will find lots of information about what we have been doing, as well as learning that could be done at home for support and practise. At the top of the page, there are useful links and websites to support children at home, as well as help parents/carers to help their children. Also towards the top of the page, is the class timetable (that will be updated time-to-time), half termly newsletters, timestables/arithmetic support and general help. Further down the page, you will find lots of information keeping you up-to-date with what we have been upto in Year 5, with photos, videos and quotes from children. Thank you in advance for taking an interest!
Year 5 Class Timetable

Please see the link to the Year 5 class timetable. This may change slightly from time to time, but if it permanently changes, it will be uploaded in good time.

Half term Curriculum letters and important information

Please see below the half term letters which provide information about the curriculum we will follow in Year 5, as well as any useful information about the half term.

How to help your child at home!

Below are a selection of websites/links that might help you with supporting your child at home with books recommended for their level, SPaG (Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar) knowledge, times tables pracitse, arithmetic practise and spelling word lists. Please contact Mr Jackson if you have any more suggestions, recommendations or requests for anything else. For further practise, please access Purple Mash activities, or Century for ‘Nuggets’ to practise (children have their own log in information to access these).

Time tables Test sheets (for practise at home)

Attached are the times tables sheets that the children use in school for their weekly tests. Feel free to use and practise from. Equally, the children have been taught a variety of strategies to practise times tables from rote counting, box strategy, games, watching Youtube clips and basic counting up and back. If these sheets help, that is great, but please encourage your child to use games on Purple Mash and make it fun to learn!

Diversity Role Models

Year 5 welcomed Lynsey from Diversity Role Models, talking to us about LGBTQ+. It was reassuring to see and hear that all the learning that we have done so far in PSHE was applied to the discussions and questions asked within the session. Lynsey was certainly impressed with the knowledge, attitude and questions asked. We discussed unfairness and unkindness in society and whether this was acceptable. We discussed about where to go for support and being confident in who we are as individuals. Here are some of the messages the children wanted to give from the session:

Olive - Be a voice, not an echo!

Eloise - Be different; you can be who you are and people shouldn't judge you. Make a difference, BE YOU!

Rosie - Be yourself, before you don't know how. Make a difference!

Jemima - Be confident, be different, be you!

Celia - It is great to be different; it would be boring if we were all the same.

Elliot - Difference is a good thing, so please embrace it and we can make the world a better place.

Mr Jackson - In teaching the children about British Values, one of the most important values is 'tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs'. I hope to create a society where difference isn't just tolerated, but embraced; where children feel confident in themselves and are who they want to be, and do not compare themselves to others (like many on social media do). I see that children are becoming more open to difference and open to people being different - I hope this continues to develop so that our society accepts it more openly and that people treat everyone with respect, eradicating bullying.

Heliocentric Models

As part of their Science focus on 'Earth and Space', Year 5 have learnt about the Heliocentric Model (Sun at the centre of the Solar System) and the previous model of the geocentric model (Earth at the centre of the Solar System). We understand how the Geocentric Model has been disproved and how we have evidence that the Heliocentric Model has been scientifically proven. We learnt about the time it took different planets to spin on their axis, as well as how long it takes to orbit the Sun. We have continued to use active learning to help us remember and also to exercise more and be out of our seats for longer. The children enkoyed working in groups and showing their understanding practically - well done Year 5!

Heliocentric Models

Here are the videos of Year 5 working in groups to present their heliocentric models. We discussed these back in class and ensured children could recognise any misconceptions they had and ensured they knew the purpose of doing this - to make it more memorable and easier to remember the heliocentric model, as well as the concept of how quickly/slowly planets orbit the Sun, but also spin on their axis.

Solar System Scaled Distances and Relative Size of Planets!

To help children learn about the distances between the planets and the relative sizes of the planets, we split into large groups so that each child could represent a planet with varied calls/spheres and we then went outside and used scaled measurements to show the relative distances between the planets. Although obviously still not even close to the actual distances of the planets, it was still beneficial to the children's learning to see how far away they were from both the Sun and each other. The children worked very well in groups to all contribute to the measurements, as well as work as a team cooperatively to decided the size of planets to show their representations. Well done Year 5!

Active learning in Year 5!

For our first lesson on non-chronological reports, we hid the features of this genre all around our classroom and then working in pairs, children had to find them and record them in their books, taking it in turns to search and then find the features, define them and match them.

The children really enjoyed being out of their seats and engaging with the information and will hopefully remember the features due to their active learning and writing down of them. The children then looked through an example and located the features in a real non-chronological report.

Also, in Science, we launched our Earth and Space topic by again, hiding planets around the classroom with key facts, where the children had to navigate around the class making notes and work out how to order the planets closest to the Sun in terms of their orbits. It was great to see the discussions had by the children and how they all concluded the order of the planets base don the information given.

Buddies sharing of learning

To end the half term, Year 5 and Reception Buddies came together for the Year 5 Buddies to share their learning from Autumn 1. Year 5 were really proud to show their buddy all of the learning that they have done, ranging from challenging Maths lessons, to Artwork (drawing Propaganda posters and Blitz silhouettes), poems, Anderson shelters in D&T, evacuation letters and many more writing opportunities! It was lovely to see them coming together and sharing again; we look forward to the next time coming together to share!

Wharfe Valley Learning Partnership Year 5 Football Competition

At the Wharfe Valley Learning Partnership Year 5 Football Competition, Primrose Lane did us proud, behaved like true role models and showed excellent resilience throughout the competition.

We began the competition in group stages, where Primrose Lane drew their first game after an excellent strike from Jemima, but unfortunately narrowly lost some others by small margins. Despite this, the team moral was high, everybody stayed positive and this paid off with a fabulous win in our last game, with Alexander scoring twice to secure the win.

Despite us not winning, again to reiterate, it was a pleasure to see such excellent attitudes throughout, great gamesmanship, and all children represented school with pride. It was a delight to see Jemima pick up a recognition trophy for one of the players of the tournament. Well done team, keep staying positive!

Year 5 and 6 WWII Exhibition!

The children have been really excited to share their learning from this half term with their Parents and Carers. Children shared their recent artwork (including their Blitz Art and Propaganda Posters), evacuee letters, creative stories, war poems, Anderson shelters from D&T, Maths work and many more learning experiences to consolidate their knowledge and understanding, as well as demonstrate how proud they were.

Thank you to families who engaged with their children and enjoyed the experience of seeing what is happening in Year 5 - we hope you enjoyed it!

Blitz Artwork!

In Year 5, we have been learning about the Blitz and we have then transferred that knowledge into creating skylines of London during WW2.

The children observed London skylines and landmarks from the time period as well as images of London being bombed and the impact this would have on the skyline. We looked at images that included search lights, smoke and fire. Then the children used black card to create their silhouette of the skyline and chalk to create the background with a range of colours and ideas emerging.

The results were fantastic and the children demonstrated their knowledge of colour, contrast, line and the ability to blend chalk to create the wonderful skies.

Propaganda Posters

As part of their History driver topic, Year 5 studied WWII propaganda. We discussed that propaganda still exists nowadays in different forms (based on technological advances, influencers and the media). We looked at propaganda posters from WWII and analysed the message, slogans and lines, as well as the artistic features used to inspire our own. What do you think?

Democratic vote!

This week, we conducted our class democratic vote for who we thought would best represent our class this year for School Council. Children put forward their manifestos and explained why they put themselves forward, what they can bring to being a School Councillor and what difference they can make. It was very tight due to their great competition; but votes resulted in Alice and Elizabeth becoming our School Councillors this year. Congratulations girls!

Science: Mould investigation!

In Year 5, we have been studying classification of living things. Recently, we have conducted an investigation on mould (through looking at classification of fungi as one of our five kingdoms!).

Children worked in groups to design their own investigation to observe results of mould on bread. There was a range of investigative work, where children made a choice of which variable they would change. They kept one piece of bread as a 'control sample' (ie, it was put in a polythene bag and nothing had been changed with it), then with their variable sample, they ranged from: water change (e.g. 1oml of water added), a hand print with bacteria, soil added, an apple close by etc.

All groups were consistent in their observations, observing the changes at the same point each day and recording their results. As you can see, the mould on the bread was horrendous (including the smell!); but all groups found that their variable sample did infact mould first, compared to their controlled sample. We discovered that mould can thrive in warm environments, where it is moist, damp and the wetter, the better! We discussed mould in houses, particularly around this time of year and seeing condensation on windows, and that we need to ensure we get air into our houses and not breathe in the dangerous bacteria/spores. It was a great experiment, where the children's predictions were correct, but they saw it with their own eyes (and smelt it with their own noses too!).

Anderson Shelters

As part of their World War Two focus in our History driver topic, children have been learning about air-raids and different ways of keeping safe during air-raids. One way that people did this was to get into Anderson Shelters. For this reason, children in Year 5 had a project of designing their own Anderson Shelters and making them in their own way (after studying what good ones looked like, as well as studying potential designs and how other Anderson shelters have been created in Design and Technology).

As you can see, children had a choice of how they wanted to design their shelters, as well as make them, from making cakes, using corrugated card/metal, astroturf, Lego, playdough, designing on Mindcraft/Nintendo Switch/Roblox and many more creative and engaging ways! We hope you enjoy looking at them – come and see in Year 5, you’ll be blown away!

Homefront Murton Park Trip

On Friday 6th October 2023, Year 5 went on their ‘Home Front’ trip as part of their World War Two History driver this half term. We learnt lots, ranging from experiences of evacuees, women’s roles and rationing, to general way of life during the war times, as well as various facts about the war itself. Throughout the day, the whole class represented the school really well, showing excellent behaviour, but also willingly showing to the leaders how much they already knew about World War Two, as well as experiences that children went through during this difficult time. The leaders were very impressed at the knowledge the children were giving and the eagerness they had with answering and asking questions – at one point, the leader had to say, ‘There’s no point in me being here, you already know it all!’
Children got right into character for the day, coming into school dressed as evacuees, with their labels attached to them showing who they were and where they came from. Throughout the day, children were straight in role conducting usual jobs expected from children and adults during the 1939-1945 era. The jobs ranged from creating rag rugs, cleaning and drying clothes using the ‘dolly’, making flapjacks and butter, putting out fire-bombs as fire-guards and cleaning war equipment. Having said this, we did have a real life air-raid, where we ‘pulled together’ and shared Anderson shelters and bunkers to keep us safe.
It really was a pleasure to see such great learning first hand, with handling such artefacts as ‘gas masks’ and helmets etc; as well as viewing what was a weeks ration for a child and adult would be…..we all agreed it was absolutely nothing- what do you think…?
Thanks must go to the parents that helped support the children on the day to ensure we could work in groups on the trip – it is always very much appreciated!

Judith Rhodes visit!

We were fortunate enough to have a visit from Judith Rhodes in Year 5 last Friday. Judith shared her mother’s experiences as a refugee in World War 2. Her mother, Ursula, left her family behind in Nazi Germany at the age of 15 and came to London as part of the Kindertransport programme prior the outbreak of the war. The rest of her family were unable to leave and later perished in concentration camps during the Holocaust. We really appreciated Judith sharing her powerful and moving story which really helped the children to understand the impact of these events on individual families. In the photo you might be able to see the suitcase that Ursula took with her and one of the very few items of clothing she was able to fit into it.
We made notes throughout her presentation of key questions, as well as key points to help us with our follow up reports about her visit and what we learnt. There were some excellent enquiry questions from the children throughout the presentation, which very much impressed Judith.

Science - Mouldy Bread Investigation!

We started our Science investigation on mouldy bread, where the children have worked really well in groups to choose how to investigate fungi and mould; whether they investigate the effect water has on mould, bacteria, temperature and much more. They had a controlled piece of bread (which has been put in a plastic bag having nothing done to it) and a piece of bread with a variable change. We will observe changes over the next few weeks and see how the mould develops - we look forward to seeing some interesting mould develop!

History!

Year 5 continue to enjoy their learning about World War 2. We have continued to build connections with events that happened within the period 1939-45, being able to explain what chronology is, and answer our enquiry questions, which are: why did the second world war begin? and how did the Battle of Britain affect people's lives?

We have been doing lots of active learning in class, working in groups and supporting each other to build these connections and understand how the events influenced our lives today. Some of the questions the children have asked have been fantastic and the eagerness of them to find out information to share with their friends is admirable. Keep going Year 5!

Year 5 Evacuee Letters

As part of our History driver, Year 5 have been reading, analysing and identfying features of evacuee letters in preparation to write our own as if we were evacuees. The children thought about their audience (who they were writing to), thought about who they were in role of and what empathy they could show to the person they were pretending to be. Here are just a few of those letters, where we focused on effective editing, quality sentence construction and using impressive punctuation and writing skills to make the informal letters interesting to read! There are lots more on our display in the key stage area if you would like to read more; please do!

Science: Classification of living things

We have made a great start to our Science focus for this half term, which is 'Classifying living things'. We began by discussing our 'Goldilocks Words' (words that are just right for our age group) related to this topic and recapping on previous ones from previous years that they should already have good knowledge of (such as vertebrate, invertebrate, amphibian, reptile, mammal, bird etc). Our words include 'Micro-organisms, classification, bacteria, fermentation, genus, organisms'. We had a fun first lesson classifying items from our desks, as well as classifying different types of sweets (apologies, in the excitement, we forgot to take photos of the children classifying their sweets in their classification keys!). rnrnFollowing this, we discussed living species and organisms and went outside in groups to see what organisms we could find to create a classification key of our own. As you can see from the pictures, we created some great examples and worked really well in teams to demonstrate our that we could think of key questions to conclude the classifications. We even foudn some mushrooms on the field that we said were just like Mr Jackson (fungi.....okay, maybe the joke went down like a lead balloon, but great to see fungi and discuss it being a living thing!). Great start Year 5!

Year 5 and their Reception Buddies!

This week, Reception welcomed their ‘Year 5 Buddies’ to their classroom for the first time. Now Reception children have settled into Primrose Lane school life, our wonderful Year 5 children offer a generous, helping hand to settle them in further. This is one of the ‘responsibilities’ expected by a Year 5 child at the beginning of the year, which they always look forward to! Year 5 get the opportunity to be role models, leaders and supportive of their new younger friends. The Reception children learn lots of skills and behaviours from their role models, but teach Year 5 about empathy, tolerance and patience, just by being their lovely selves!

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