Skip to content ↓

Learning in Year 5

Year 5 - Autumn

Maths

At Midfield we follow maths mastery:

 (https://www.ncetm.org.uk/public/files/19990433/Developing_mastery_in_mathematics_october_2014.pdf. )

All aspects of maths will first be taught using concrete materials, progressing onto pictorials and finally using abstract methods. This has been shown to be a fantastic method of building solid and secure mathematical understanding. Once this understanding is secure, children learn how to problem solve and reason. We aim to ground mathematical concepts in the real world to provide context and familiarisation.

During the autumn Term the children will learn about the topics of place value, addition and subtraction and start on multiplication and division.

During the topic of place value the children will learn to:

  • read, write, order and compare numbers to at least 1,000,000 and determine the value of each digit
  • count forwards or backwards in steps of powers of 10 for any given number up to 1,000,000
  • interpret negative numbers in context, count forwards and backwards with positive and negative whole numbers, including through 0
  • round any number up to 1,000,000 to the nearest 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000 and 100,000
  • solve number problems and practical problems that involve all of the above
  • read Roman numerals to 1,000 (M) and recognise years written in Roman numerals

During the topic of addition/subtraction the children will be taught to:

  • add and subtract whole numbers with more than 4 digits, including using formal written methods (columnar addition and subtraction)
  • add and subtract numbers mentally with increasingly large numbers
  • use rounding to check answers to calculations and determine, in the context of a problem, levels of accuracy
  • solve addition and subtraction multi-step problems in contexts, deciding which operations and methods to use and why

During the topic of multiplication/division the children will be taught to:

  • identify multiples and factors, including finding all factor pairs of a number, and common factors of 2 numbers
  • know and use the vocabulary of prime numbers, prime factors and composite (non-prime) numbers
  • establish whether a number up to 100 is prime and recall prime numbers up to 19
  • multiply numbers up to 4 digits by a one- or two-digit number using a formal written method, including long multiplication for two-digit numbers
  • multiply and divide numbers mentally, drawing upon known facts
  • divide numbers up to 4 digits by a one-digit number using the formal written method of short division and interpret remainders appropriately for the context
  • multiply and divide whole numbers and those involving decimals by 10, 100 and 1,000
  • recognise and use square numbers and cube numbers, and the notation for squared (²) and cubed (³)
  • solve problems involving multiplication and division, including using their knowledge of factors and multiples, squares and cubes
  • solve problems involving addition, subtraction, multiplication and division and a combination of these, including understanding the meaning of the equals sign
  • solve problems involving multiplication and division, including scaling by simple fractions and problems involving simple rates

By the end of Year 5 children are expected to be fluent in all their times tables and to help with that, we have subscribed to Times table Rockstars (with weekly certificates awarded for success and endeavour!). 


English

During Autumn Term 1 our focus text will be The Boy at the back of the class by Onjali Rauf.

Told with heart and humour, The Boy at the Back of the Class is a child's perspective on the refugee crisis, highlighting the importance of friendship and kindness in a world that doesn't always make sense.
There used to be an empty chair at the back of my class, but now a new boy called Ahmet is sitting in it.
He's nine years old (just like me), but he's very strange. He never talks and never smiles and doesn't like sweets - not even lemon sherbets, which are my favourite!
But then I learned the truth: Ahmet really isn't very strange at all. He's a refugee who's run away from a War.

The children will use this stimulus to engage in activities such as:

  • Retelling the story
  • Descriptions
  • Dream poetry
  • Writing in the character role.
  • Instructions for bringing on the rains
  • Newspaper Reports  

During Autumn Term 2 our focus text will be Beowulf by Michael Morpurgo.

The epic Anglo-Saxon legend is brilliantly recreated by an award-winning author/illustrator team. In fifth-century Denmark, a murderous monster stalks the night, and only the great prince of the Geats has the strength and courage to defeat him. Beowulf's terrifying quest to destroy Grendel, the foul fiend, a hideous sea-hag and a monstrous fire-dragon is the oldest surviving epic in British literature.

The children will use this stimulus to engage in activities such as:

  • Setting description
  • Narrative recount
  • Information text

We teach the children how to use a range of features within their writing including;

Capital letters / Finger spaces / Full stops / Expanded noun phrases / Similes / Adverbs / Conjunctions / Adverbials of time / Prefix and suffix words / Apostrophes / Joined handwriting / show not tell sentences / Quotation marks / relative clauses / subordinate clauses.

Reading

In Year 5 reading is taught daily. Most of the children will read with the class teacher during guided reading sessions in which children are taught a range of reading skills. 

Each child is issued with a home reading journal and book, which should be read, signed off, and returned to school each week. Home reading is a hugely beneficial way of supporting your child's learning across the curriculum.  The children are encouraged to explore a wide range of reading material and are given access to the school library books once a week and where possible we arrange trips to the local library and have themed weeks such as Book Week.

 


Science

In Autumn Term 1 we will be looking at Earth and Space.

In Autumn Term 2 we will be investigating Forces.


Humanities

In Autumn 1 our focus will be on Geography: Natural Resources.  

In Autumn 2 we will then move onto History: Anglo-Saxons.


Art & DT

Our first topic for Autumn 1 is Art: Drawing.  In Autumn 2 our next topic will be Art: Colour Mixing.


RE

In Autumn 1 we will be looking at Sikhism and in Autumn 2 we will focus on Christianity.