Trotts Hill Primary School and Nursery
Welcome to Year 5
In English, we learn how to be persuasive (sorry parents – it could lead to more pocket money!) and extend our writing skills by exploring legends. In Maths, we work towards securing standard methods of calculating, however we also make decisions about when it is more efficient to make informal jottings. Applying mathematical knowledge in problem solving contexts is a regular feature in lessons.
We encourage home learning to be completed weekly. Times table and, spelling practice as well as reading are compulsory. Regular reading is vital as it helps us to learn new vocabulary and notice how many different ways there are to construct a sentence. Keep reading together at home, as well as independently.
In Year 5, we take pride in putting in 100 percent effort. We celebrate the ‘have a go’ attitude. Someone once said, “If you haven’t failed, you haven’t tried.” We value the efforts all parents give to the development of their children.
Pupils learned about how to reduce the amount of code by making it more efficient. Then, they created a simple game.
After studying the legend of Theseus and the Minotaur in English, Year 5 thought about how much of it was true. They considered evidence such as artefacts, frescos and buildings.
As part of out science topic Properties and Changes of Materials, the children carried out a test to answer the question 'Does the temperature of the water affect dissolving?'
The children took it in turns to run and collect an addition calculation and work it out using mental methods. Their team mates had to remain active while this was going on - start jumps, jogging on the spot etc - and then checked it was correct. Back in the classroom they ranked the calculations from smallest sum to largest.
The children progressed from plucking strings to using a bow. It takes a bit of practice to master a bow hold.
Inspired by Kara Walker, pupils carved design into a tile, choosing whether to make it a negative or positive (challenge level) image. They then used paint and rollers to make a print.
After finding out about the causes of flooding, Year 5 pupils acted in the role of town planners. They decided where to site different amenities on a flood plain and give reasons for their decisions.
In science, pupils investigated the purpose of an insulator. At first, they thought the over mitten would get warmer inside over time. However, they were surprised to learn that there was very little difference in temperature.
In our PE topic - Outdoor Adventure Activities - Year 5 are learning about how to improve teamwork through better communication and support. In this activity, listening skills were very important.
Year 5 enjoyed a fantastic day consolidating their learning about rivers by identifying the features in real life during a visit to the Lea Valley Park. They undertook a river speed survey and observed the wildlife. It was our great fortune to be visiting on the day a rare breed of bird - a bittern- had arrived. We were able to observe it from the bird hide.
In, arguably, the most important lesson of the year, the children worked collaboratively to explain the SMART rules. The rules provide them with clear guidance on how to keep themselves safe online.
The sandpit came in useful for Year 5 geography this week. After studying how a river changes during the course of its journey fro source to mouth, the children made and labelled models to show what they had learned.
In DT this week, Year 5 are working on blackwork techniques to create a bookmark. Blackwork is believed to have been brought to England by Catharine of Aragon in Tudor times and was used to embellish and strengthen collars, cuffs and hems. Modern blackwork uses the old techniques but is usually more colourful, as you can see from our works in progress.
There's been a murder!!!! King Duncan has been murdered. Year 5, in the role of investigating officers, wrote a police report about the crime scene.
After learning about climate zones, the pupils used a serious of clue cards to find out about the climate experienced by a number of cities in North America.
In athletics, Year 5 pupils were learning techniques to throw a shot and discus.
Pupils were given statements about the Viking invasion. Their task was to decide how the threat of a Viking take over of Britain increased or decreased with each subsequent event.
In preparation for their performance, Year 5 learnt a piece that involved plucking the strings.
Year 5 rose magnificently to the STEM challenge to build a moving crane from Knex. In the space of only one hour, they produced some inventive prototypes. For this difficult task, the PRIDE learning behaviours were present in abundance - resilience in particular. All the children were able to identify what they would improve on next time. Congratulations to the worthy winners, Sophie and Myah and runners up, Layla, Evie-Grace and Noah. Many thanks to our governor and STEM Ambassador, Emma Richardson for running the workshop.
Year 5 enjoyed a lesson in yoga from Happy Little Yogi during which they learnt about the benefits of using breathing techniques to calm themselves down.
Year 5 children had an excellent day at Airbus. They made their own moon phases boxes and enjoyed an interactive show about Newton's laws of motion involving a bed of nails!!!! In addition, they saw the latest prototype of the Exo Mars Rover and found out what it investigations it is being designed to undertake. A fun time was spent in the activity room. Hopefully, this has inspired the next generation of scientists. The support of our parent helpers was much appreciated.
Year 5 designed a fair ground ride and wrote Crumble programs to control the model they built. They made their model rotate and repeat light sequences.
This half term, Year 5 have been learning how cams work and planning their own models of moving animals. This week was the final build. Year 5 were very pleased with their outcomes.
Year 5 have been learning about mapping skills. They studied contour lines on a map and learnt that they denote the height and gradient of a slope. They made their own models to translate 2-D lines into 3-D.
In music this week, we learnt about Gustav Holst. In spite of his Germanic-sounding name, he is actually a British composer who was born in 1874 and died in 1934. Holst wrote a suite of music about the planets. We listened to one of his compositions and tried to work out which planet it represented. Many of us were correct with the guess of Mars. We had to think about the colour and shapes the music made us imagine whilst listening to it. We then drew spacecraft inspired by the music.
Year 5 have been using coding to change the colour of a light and the speed and direction of a motor. They have programmed controlled loops to make a continuously repeated action.
Year 5 embraced World Book Day with a host of tremendous costumes. We read 'The Mousehole Cat' and chose different ways to respond to the story: diary entries, letters and poems.
We used counters to understand how formal division relates to grouping and what the exchanges mean. Then, we progressed to drawing it ourselves before using the short method alone and applying it to problem solving.
Year 5 learnt how to identify how to spot whether someone had stopped breathing. They learnt how to safely administer the recovery position, perform CPR and use a defibrillator.
Year 5 employed a travelling motif when performing to the track 'Space Man' by Sam Ryder using a parachute to suggest movement.
In PE this week, Year 5 did a variety of table tennis activities to help them to learn how to serve and how to carry out a rally whilst following the rules.
In art this half term, we are looking at the work of David Hockney. We carried out independent research as part of our home learning and added these facts into our illustrated biographies. Later in the term, we will be creating our own piece of art in the style of Hockney.
Today was the first dance lesson. Pupils danced a morning getting-up routine.
This week, Year 5 made scones as part of their DT Food module of learning. Earlier in the term, pupils had tasted a basic scone and then came up with their own ideas to make improvements and add flavour and texture to the basic recipe. Some of the variations included: cinnamon, banana and raisins; cheese, paprika and chilli flakes; and apple, lemon and cinnamon.
We created a webpage and then simulated a key word search. Points were given for the appearance on the word in headings, paragraphs and links. We considered what improvements we could make to improve the ranking of our page.
Students from Oaklands College delivered workshops based on our history topic The Ancient Greeks. Pupils learned about Greek gods through a series of activities. The session culminated in a drama performance that included song, dance and comedy and historical content such as The Trojan War.
Using cubes, we explored how to make cube numbers such as 8, 27 and 64.
After reading Theseus and the Minotaur, Year 5 role played being the conscience of Theseus and gave reasons why he should or shouldn't leave Ariadne on Naxos. Pupils walked down conscience alley and listened to the argument for both sides.
Year 5 took part in a workshop about nutrition and breakfast. They learnt that our bodies need fuel in the mornings. Using pedal power, they created electricity to activate two different blenders containing different combinations of fruits. They then sampled the smoothies.
Year 5 were set a challenge to build a balloon buggy as part of a science/maths/DT day. Measuring skills were put into practice as well as their ingenuity in designing a sturdy but smooth running vehicle. As with many design projects in the real world, it didn't always go to plan. However, all the class got to test out those that worked successfully.
Year 5 started the lesson by completing a follow-me loop card activity whereby the children had to find a match for an answer and a question about rivers. Then, after learning about the causes and effects of flooding, they acted in the role of town planners deciding where to allocate amenities such as recreational spaces, residential areas, schools, factories etc on an area of land in a flood plain.
In art, we looked at the work of print-maker Edward Bawden as inspiration for making our own prints using polystyrene tiles.
We tried out different thicknesses of lines and shapes to see what would create the best effects. We used both positive and negative printing techniques.
Following on from investigating electrical conductors and insulators, Year 5 investigated thermal insulators. Using a planning chart, they devised a test to answer the question 'Which material is the best insulator? A prediction was made following the examination of different materials on a cold surface. Then, temperature readings were taken every 5 minutes.
Year 5 spend the day learning about rivers first hand, after studying the course of a river in the classroom, during a visit to the River Lee. They identified and meander and tested their theory about where the water was flowing fastest by carrying out some research using a special instrument to measure speed. They were lucky enough to time a visit to the lock to coincide with a barge passing through. The class were a credit to the school, with the Lee Valley Park staff leader commenting, "This is the best group we have had for a long time."
This week, Year 5 had their first violin lesson. They met their teacher, Miss Humphries, and played some musical games. They were then taught the names of the various parts of the violin; how to open the violin cases and hold the instruments safely and the correct posture for playing. At the end of the lesson, Miss Humphries treated us all to a rendition of "Hedwig's Theme" on her violin which is 150 years old!
After watching a film and reading a text, the children sequenced the journey of a river. Then, they created a model and labelled the key features.
In DT, we have been looking at blackwork which is a type of embroidery popular in the Tudor times. These days, it is used to decorate items or create pictures. We looked at a variety of modern blackwork patterns to help us create our own designs, which we drew on graph paper and then stitched. Once we had completed our stitching, we folded the edges and used a running stitch to secure the folded edges to prevent fraying.
In maths, we started to look at 2D representations of 3D shapes, which are called nets. We went into the playground and drew around a variety of cuboids with chalk, making sure we included all six faces, to create our own nets.
We were given an angle and had to find the diagram it matched with. For the next angle, we had to try to remember if we had already seen the diagram in another part of the area. Otherwise, we had to visit each cone until we found it.
We used the clues in a statements about cities and towns in North America to work out which graph and photograph illustrated its climate. We then considered which place we would most or least like to live and why.
Year 5 engineers took part in a Knex STEM challenge to design a bridge with moving parts and then were given an hour to build it. The children demonstrated resilience, perseverance and determination. Congratulations to William and Amelia whose bridge will go forward to the county competition. Many thanks to Emma Richardson, a Trotts Hill governor, who delivered the workshop.
Today, Year 5 marked the Queen's Platinum Jubilee by dressing in red, white and blue and researching some significant events of her 70 year reign. In art, inspiration was taken from Georgia O'Keefe to paint flowers in keeping with the royal celebrations.
We have been observing the lifecycle of ladybirds. Meanwhile, we have spotted eggs, larvae and pupae on the trees in the school grounds. In English, we are comparing the lifecycles of dragon flies and ladybirds.
We have practising patch and point balances and rolling transitions. Today, we transferred our skills to the equipment and composed group sequences.
We looked at how some plants can reproduce without the need for a male or female sex cell. We wrote a leaflet encouraging this as a way to save money while getting more new plants.
In DT, Year 5 have been designing and building animal automata: a moving animal model. The brief was two create a moving animal through the use of axels and cams to raise awareness of endangered species. Year 5 enjoyed using tools including saws and glue guns to create their projects. We then evaluated our success and discussed how issues were resolved and what we would do differently if we had to do it again.
As part of our Earth Day activities, we used natural materials to create pictures. We didn't pick anything but used what had landed on the floor.
For Arts Week, Year 5 performed two dances to an audience of parents. In the classroom, we participated in a 'Dance of the Day'. In a drama workshop, Mr Driver encouraged us to use our senses when conveying a story. This was useful when writing our mystery and suspense stories.
