Upper Key Stage 2

Children will have regular opportunities to write to increase their confidence, writing stamina and overall progress.

Writing in Year 5 is approached in a systematic and strategic way to ensure that every child makes maximum progress and is given the support and challenge appropriate for their needs. The content of the writing is designed to grip pupils’ imagination and engage them.

In writing lessons, pupils produce a piece of writing based on a stimulus. The writing process involves identifying the features of a text, modelling and chunking ideas before moving on to the development of writing.  Writing covers a variety of genres and is closely linked to our topic work. Examples of the different writing across the year include

• Instructions – How to mummify an Egyptian.
• Diary entry written by Howard Carter and of a Transatlantic Slave.
• Persuasive letter regarding the use of plastic.
• Retelling of a Mayan myth.

In addition to a writing focus, we also have a weekly ‘SPaG Superstar’ lesson. In this lesson, pupils practise and develop their English grammar, punctuation and spelling (EGPS) skills. Children are given a weekly spelling list each Friday and have access to the app ‘Spelling Shed’.

This half term Year 5 will continue to focus on extended writing.

Children will have regular opportunities to write to increase their confidence, writing stamina and overall progress.

Writing in Year 5 is approached in a systematic and strategic way to ensure that every child makes maximum progress and is given the support and challenge appropriate for their needs. The content of the writing is designed to grip pupils’ imagination and engage them.

In writing lessons, pupils produce a piece of writing based on a stimulus, teachers assess the work and personalised targets are then given to each child. These targets will focus on EGPS (English grammar, punctuation and spelling) as well as the content of the work. Pupils receive tailored teaching based on their needs to enable them to meet their target. Children then have the opportunity to showcase their new skills in the next piece of writing. Writing covers a variety of genres and is closely linked to our topic work on ‘Is it Fair?’ moving on to ‘Can you brush your teeth in space?’ after the Easter holidays.

In addition to a writing focus, we also have a weekly ‘SPaG Superstar’ lesson. In this lesson, pupils practise and develop their English grammar, punctuation and spelling (EGPS) skills. Children are given a weekly spelling list each Monday and they are tested the following Monday.

Reading will be one of our priorities in Year 5.

We have a weekly ‘Reading Skills’ session in which we discuss different texts and complete a variety of activities to improve comprehension and other reading skills. There is also a reading activity most mornings to enable children to further embed these reading skills.

We will also be sharing a class book each day and activities will be completed by the children based on what they have read.

Our class books for this year are ‘The Secrets of a Sun King’ and The Boy at the Back of the Class’ by Onjali Q.Rauf.

In Year 5 children are put into sets for Maths. This can mean that classes are studying different aspects of maths at different times. In Maths, we continue to look at our 4 key operations as part of arithmetic. We do an arithmetic task each morning and the children continue to work on their skills of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

As a school we deliver a broad and balanced curriculum and will work cross-curricular within the topic titles.

This term year 5 will study

 ‘Who built the pyramids?’

 ‘Is it Fair?’

 ‘Can you brush your teeth in space?’

 A local history study of Doncaster

Please see the attached curriculum map which highlights in more detail what we will cover.

We also cover music, ICT, Spanish and RE on a Friday morning on a rota based system.

As a school we deliver a broad and balanced curriculum and will work cross-curricular within the topic titles.

This term year 5 will study ‘Is it Fair?’ and ‘Can you brush your teeth in space?’.

This half term we will be researching:

– The transatlantic slave trade

– William Wilberforce

– Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroads

In the Summer Term we will be covering;

– The solar system

– The Space Race

– Space travel

– Design a moon buggy and food pack

– Research Astronauts.

On Tuesday 26th April, we will visit The Space Centre, Leicester to learn more about The Space Race.

This term Year 6 will continue to focus on extended writing. Children will have regular opportunities to write to increase their confidence, writing stamina and overall progress.

Writing in Year 6 is approached in a systematic and strategic way to ensure that every child makes maximum progress and is given the support and challenge appropriate for their needs. The content of the writing is designed to grip pupils’ imagination and engage them.

In writing lessons, pupils produce a piece of writing based on a stimulus, teachers assess the work and personalised targets are then given to each child. These targets will focus on EGPS (English grammar, punctuation and spelling) as well as the content of the work. Pupils receive tailored teaching based on their needs to enable them to meet their target. Children then have the opportunity to showcase their new skills in the next piece of writing. Writing covers a variety of genres and is closely linked to our topics: ‘Where is your gas mask?’ ‘Are you a survivor?’ ‘How does it work?’

During our writing sessions, children will be given more opportunity for proof-reading and editing their work to improve the content and structure. Children are aware of what is needed to be a ‘Year 6 writer’ and they strive towards this.

In addition to a writing focus, we also have a weekly ‘SPaG Superstar’ lesson. In this lesson, pupils practise their spelling and grammar skills. Children undertake a weekly spelling spell which focus on a different spelling rule / statutory spelling words. To help practise these spellings, children have access to Spelling Shed where they can play a variety of games.

GPS interventions will continue to close gaps in children’s knowledge and understanding.

This term our focus areas of maths are:

• Factors and multiples
• Prime numbers
• Reasoning from known facts
• Fractions

Each maths lesson begins with arithmetic skills and involves pupils tackling a variety of calculations in a timed environment. Arithmetic sessions focus on previously taught concepts and give children the opportunity to practise these skills.

The main part of each maths lesson focuses on developing the children’s fluency and reasoning skills in a new topic area.

Children will participate in interventions where misconceptions have become apparent.

Opportunities are taken across the year for children to utilise their maths skills in the wider curriculum.

Year 6 focus on three topics throughout the year which are ‘Where is your gas mask?’ ‘Are you a survivor?’ and ‘How does it work?’

Children will learn and investigate the following in each topic:

Where is your gas mask?

• Key events in WWII
• The Blitz
• Evacuation
• The Holocaust
• The role of the ARP warden
• Air raid shelters
• Propaganda
• The Axis powers and the Allies
• Countries invaded by Germany
• Designing and producing an Anderson shelter
• Blitz art

Are you a survivor?

• Arctic and Antarctica
• Animals in the polar region (adaptation / habitat)
• The Titanic
• Longitude and latitude
• Temperature changes using Digimap
• Famous polar explorers
• Northern lights
• Inuit art
• Sea world and the exploitation of Orcas

How does it work?

• The heart
• Circulatory system
• Centripetal force
• Moving models of theme park rides

CAS (Creating Active Schools).

Children will revisit area of Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling in a variety of active tasks.

Year 6 have a weekly ‘Reading Skills’ session in which we discuss different texts and complete a variety of activities to improve comprehension and other reading skills. Year 6 also have a weekly shared reading session where we focus on a book linked to our topic. Children may undertake other reading activities such as speed reading, daily reading and focused comprehension sessions. We also share a story at the end of each day to encourage the children’s love of reading.

Reading skills interventions are set up where there are gaps in learning.

There is an expectation that children will read for at least one hour a week at home.

Spanish is taught on a Friday to all Y5 and Y6 on a Friday as part of our curriculum carousel. They are taught a variety of basic and conversational Spanish including family, greetings, numbers, days of the week and months of the year. Children are also taught phonics, grammar and spellings.

Year 6 have PE on a Thursday.

PE is taught by both the year group teacher and by a coach from Complete Coaching Solutions to maximise pupil-teacher interaction. We intend to do as much PE outside as possible. We therefore ask you to send your child in suitable outdoor kit for the time of year along with suitable footwear. All jewellery MUST be removed for all PE sessions.

• Reading at home for the equivalent of an hour per week
• Learning spellings in preparation for the weekly test
• Practising the Y3/4 and Y5/6 Statutory spellings.
• Ensuring confidence with spelling the Year 1-6 common exception words
• Learning the times tables – access TT Rock Stars
• Accessing Spelling Shed
• Termly topic larger scale tasks
• Rainbow point challenge – a daily topic-based challenge

Crucial Crew –

Sunday SATs Revision – 

6 for 6 – more information to follow

National Holocaust Centre – Tuesday 8^th November 2022