Our TOPIC . . . DYnamic dynasties

       Our topic this half term is called Dynamic Dynasties - focsing on the Ancient Emperors of China, and the impact they had on the wider world, and the lasting legacies they have left - even 4000 years later! We will gain knowledge about how they lived, their battles, and the hierarchy of their people. Our DT lessons will be fun as we try to recreate Ancient Chinese Oracle Bones - something they used to try communicate with the Gods. It is an exciting topic with will develop the children's research skills.

 

Reading 

During the year, there will be multiple opportunities for your child to explore a range of different texts either

through a class book, independent reading, story time or reading 1:1. Our first book is a book which all the children

love, called Holes

At St Thomas, during reading lessons, we follow a 7-stage format where children are asked to use prior knowledge,

read with fluency, break down tricky words and phrases, consider their initial thoughts and observations,

delve deeper, answer comprehension questions and summarise paragraphs/chapters/whole books.

Initially, we will be improving our reading fluency and our comprehension skills by using these taught methods.

 

 

Writing 

Children are given a variety of opportunities to write in many different genres (i.e. narrative, recount, report, instructions,

etc.) across the curriculum. They are encouraged to develop their work by writing consistently in full sentences, using more

sophisticated grammar and descriptive language in order to engage the reader. The importance of accurate punctuation in

all forms of writing is not only encouraged but expected. Despite the variety of genres we cover; a huge focus remains on

spellings and handwriting, so please encourage these areas when they do any home learning.

 

 

Maths – At St Thomas we follow the White Rose Maths Curriculum. We follow the small steps approach, which emphasises the importance of acquiring a deep, long-term, secure and adaptable understanding of the subject. Through the use of concrete resources, pictorial representations and abstract notation, children develop their mathematical fluency and are able to apply knowledge and understanding developed to respond to tricker, reasoning/problem solving questions.  We fundamentally believe that, all pupils are entitled to and are capable of succeeding within maths. We endeavour to not only develop the mathematic skills and understanding required for later life, but also an enthusiasm and fascination about maths itself. While Mathematics is taught mainly as a discrete subject, every effort is made to link maths with other areas of the curriculum. We will start the year with place value which is the foundation of our Maths' Learning. In Year 5 we learn up to 7-digit numbers (A Million!) and place value will also cover all the Roman Numerals, and negative numbers.

The basic 4 operations of Maths don't go away, so please encourage Times Table practice whenever you can - which includes dividing eg; we know 8x2=16, so we need to know what 16 divided by 2 is . . .  (=8).

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PE/Sport: 5S will need to wear PE Kit EVERY Tuesday, while 5F will need to bring Swimming Kit EVERY Tuesday (starting in Week 2)

                 Both Classes will also do PE EVERY Friday (tbc)

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​MFL: Pupils continue their speaking, reading & writing in French with increasing confidence. Tres bien!