St Oswald's Catholic Primary SchoolYear 5: Blog items
Year 5 Friday 28th January 2022
Date: 27th Jan 2022 @ 4:40pm
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
The Year 5 class have been working really hard this week to settle in quickly and moving around school in a calmer manner. They have done so well, they have had comments from numerous teachers on how well behaved they have been. Keep it up Year 5!
This week in year 5
In Maths we finished looking at digital clocks and converting between analogue and digital, then concentrated on the value of numbers and decimals places. We first looked at the value of numbers up to 3 decimal places; that the 4 in 35.746 has the value of 4 hundredths, the 5 has the value of 5 ones, the 6 has the value of 6 thousandths etc. They were very good that this. We moved onto comparing numbers with similar digits, to 3 decimal places e.g. 12.401 and 12.104 and placing them in order. We finished the week by rounding decimals to the nearest whole number. We managed to achieve this to 2 decimal places. Some children also worked on reasoning problems to push them further.
In English we have focused on different types of sentences, to help up with an extended writing piece. We have been practising expanded noun phrases, prepositional phrases and adverbial phrases. The children have used these to plan, write and edit a missing chapter of Street Child, which tells us what happens to Jim’s sisters. Incidentally, there is a second book in the Street Child series that tells the sisters story. Many children were keen to read this so I here is the information, should you wish to purchase it - Berlie Doherty Far From Home. The Sisters of the Street Child. There are second-hand copies online for less than £2.
In Science, the children had a busy lesson, undertaking a comparative test. We went to the outdoor classroom to investigate carrier bags. We had a letter from Booths asking us to investigate the best sort of carrier bags. They wanted a bag that could hold 5kg, didn’t dig into the hand and that was environmentally friendly. The children carried out investigations using bags, weights, hooks and clay to find these things out. Finally they made a conclusion and wrote this up, using their findings. Excellent work! (Photo Gallery on class page)
In RE, the children continued their topic on Mission. We looked at Jesus’ mission and how that is carried on today in many ways. We compared different parts of the scripture and how they are relevant to us today.
In French, we have started to write our own descriptions of the planets in French. The children have done really well so far. Next week, we'll finish and illustrate our work. Wait until you see it - you'll be impressed at how well they've done!
In PE, the children were again split into 2 groups’ one playing hockey and one practising gymnastic techniques. The children continued to improve their hockey techniques, passing, stopping, dribbling and shooting. In gymnastics we looked at counter balancing. The children tried different techniques to counter balance their partner and then made up a routine where they moved into a counter balanced position and out of it again. They really work hard in these sessions and take it very seriously. Their finished routines are always of a great quality.
In Art the children finished their final piece. Wow! They have done an amazing job! The children sketched out their cityscape and then used watercolours to add colour. They were able to use more or less water to create texture and shade to their work. Many of the children experimented with water washes in the background, where they didn’t want a lot of colour but didn’t want to leave them blank. Again, WOW! (Photos of the children working in gallery - I will post the artwork, once it is displayed)
In computing we continued with our nesting loops topic in coding. This is a really tricky undertaking and needs resilience. The children worked really hard on working out the algorithm to make different shapes on the screen in a repeating circle.
DON’T FORGET
Topmarks clock online to practise telling the time.
Additional warm clothes for PE sessions.
I told the children they could keep their Holy Communion folders at home but we are going to use them in the offertory in our class mass. So please could you send them back into class.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed. Some children had a break from reading over the holidays but please ensure this is made a priority now that we are back at school. Practise is vital to improve in all areas of English.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Maths – please ask your child what their times tables target is and help them practise this in order for them to progress.
I’d also encourage you to do a daily count with your child. This week we are counting up in 7s and 0.7s. Give the children a number to start from and they must continue to count from that number in 7s or 0.7s, either forwards or backwards. A strategy we use is bridging e.g. if the number is 46 and we are adding 7 we would use 4 to bridge it to the next 10 first – 50 and then add the remaining 3. If subtracting we would again subtract to the nearest 10 – this time subtracting 6 to get to 40 and then subtracting the leftover 1.
Spellings words ending ‘ably’ and ‘ibly’. We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday.
horribly, incredibly, possibly, forcibly, impossibly, responsibly, visibly, arguably, comfortably, considerably, miserably, probably, remarkably, dependably, believably
Don’t forget the children have a big list of Common Exception words to learn, these can be practised each week to push your child further. You should all have received a sheet with these words on by now, I have highlighted the words that your child wrote correct in a spelling test before Christmas. This will give you an indication of how well they are remembering these spellings. Don’t worry if they don’t know many, they can practise them this term and will be assessed again near Easter.
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.
Please encourage your child to complete the Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words they find difficult. Once the diagnostic challenges have been completed Sumdog will set challenges to aid improvement and development in the appropriate areas for your child. Once you have completed the class challenges, please use this feature for extra challenge in both maths and spelling. Many children have still not completed the diagnostic section.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
Maths the children have been set activities relating to number.
Spellings words containing ‘ably’ and ‘ibly’.
The children have produced some outstanding work this week, I have been so impressed.
Year 5 - Friday 20th January 2022
Date: 21st Jan 2022 @ 1:14pm
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
This week in year 5
In Maths we been studying area. The children really impressed me with their grasp of the area of a rectangle but also estimating the area of an irregular shape. We also have been practising telling the time. This is a really tricky concept, they have done really well and many seem to understand it. However, it is a skill that needs to be practised over and over. If you type ‘topmarks clock’ into google you can access an interactive clock that you can set to various times and help your child tell the time. If you concentrate on analogue clock first this practise will really help your child.
In English poor Jim Jarvis has had a bad time in the workhouse but managed to escape. The children wrote a persuasive piece of writing, trying to persuade Jim to either stay at the workhouse or run away. They did a really good job. We also did a lot of work on mapping feelings and thinking about the level of feeling someone is having and words that are appropriate e.g. Is the character really terrified at the moment or is he just anxious? Finally we have started to plan a missing chapter of the book and we will concentrate on this extended piece next week.
In Science, the children had a great lesson with Mrs Quillam. She took them on a material hunt around the school, investigating the different materials objects were made from. She was extremely impressed with the level of work produced in a paragraph to explain their findings. This writing was really excellent, using lots of great science vocabulary. Well done - super scientists!
In RE, the children attended their final church session. This week we concentrated on the importance of the bread and wine and how it helps us remember the last supper. The children have been so respectful when visiting the church and have often asked insightful questions. I look forward to seeing everyone at the class mass on Sunday and the Communion practise session on Monday evening. You will learn more about what to expect on their Communion day and ask Father any questions you may have. We have also celebrated Wold Religion Day this week. The children learnt all about Hinduism, listened to the story of Rama and Sita, taking notes and made Rangoli patterns.
In French, the children read and understood some sentences in French about the planets. They will use these next week to help write their own sentences in French.
In PE, the children practised their hockey skills. They started in small groups of 8 - 4 attacking and 4 defending. They had to control the ball, pass to their partner, and try and aim effectively. They swapped over so they all had a chance to attack, score goals and defend. Then they made a team of 8 players and played matches against one another. They are concentrating on improving their technique. I am also proud that everyone can control the hockey sticks properly during the drills and games.
In history this week, we looked at the lives of children in the Victorian era. The children looked at photos of poor children and of Queen Victoria’s children and made decisions about the era based on them. We had some ideas that all children were poor, but realised that some were also wealthy. We then concentrated on the poor children and their lives. We looked at other sources, such as newspaper cuttings, interviews with mining children and more photographs. They made enquiries into these, then learnt some facts that help back up their enquiries. Finally they wrote paragraphs about the sources they used and what historical claims it can help us make about the era. Again, I was impressed with their level of ability.
In computing we had a coding lesson. The children had a go at developing code to create a shape and then further developing the code to repeat the shapes at different locations on the screen. Remember if the children want to revisit any of the code lessons, they can access this at home with their passwords (please remind them not to go further than we have in class).
We have also ‘Planted a tree for the Jubilee.’ The children have helped to plant a row of hedges in the school grounds that we hope will be a legacy in years to come.
DON’T FORGET
Class Mass 10.30am on Sunday
Communion Practice on Monday evening at 6.30pm.
Topmarks clock online to practise telling the time.
Additional warm clothes for PE sessions.
Please can the children bring in a carrier bag for science next week. We are looking for a range of types of bag e.g. bag for life, thin chip shop bag, bakery bag, paper bag etc.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed. Some children had a break from reading over the holidays but please ensure this is made a priority now that we are back at school. Practise is vital to improve in all areas of English.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Maths – please ask your child what their times tables target is and help them practise this in order for them to progress.
I’d also encourage you to do a daily count with your child. This week we are counting up in 8s. Give the children a number to start from and they must continue to count from that number in 8s, either forwards or backwards. A strategy we use is bridging e.g. if the number is 46 and we are adding 10 we would use 4 to bridge it to the next 10 first – 50 and then add the remaining 4. If subtracting we would again subtract to the nearest 10 – this time subtracting 6 to get to 40 and then subtracting the leftover 2.
Spellings words containing ‘ent’ and ‘ence’. We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday.
accident, announcement, centre, confident, different, equipment, independent, conscience, difference, excellence, intelligence, science, violence, silence, magnificence
Don’t forget the children have a big list of Common Exception words to learn, these can be practised each week to push your child further. You should all have received a sheet with these words on by now, I have highlighted the words that your child wrote correct in a spelling test before Christmas. This will give you an indication of how well they are remembering these spellings. Don’t worry if they don’t know many, they can practise them this term and will be assessed again near Easter.
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.
Please encourage your child to complete the Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words they find difficult. Once the diagnostic challenges have been completed Sumdog will set challenges to aid improvement and development in the appropriate areas for your child. Once you have completed the class challenges, please use this feature for extra challenge in both maths and spelling. Many children have still not completed the diagnostic section.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
Maths the children have been set activities relating to area and time
Spellings words containing ‘ent’ and ‘ence’.
The children have worked hard this week and produced some great quality work.
Date: 13th Jan 2022 @ 5:17pm
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
The children have had a busy week working hard.
This week in year 5
In Maths we have learnt some new strategies to use when multiplying – the compensation strategy and grid method. The children enjoyed both and have been using them in their work. We have also done lots of mental arithmetic this week, deciding whether to work it out in our head, use jottings or a written method. We have also practised multiplication and division reasoning problems. These were really tricky and needed lots of concentration. The children have worked really hard.
In English we have continued to read the plight of Jim Jarvis in Street Child; poor Jim has ended up in the workhouse. The children have written notes (in character), they have written descriptive pieces of Jim’s time in the workhouse and they had to write a persuasive piece, whether Jim should run away from the workhouse or not.
In Science, the children looked at the different sorts of enquiry that we use in Science and came up with potential questions that related to each enquiry. This was particularly tricky but the children listened well and thought about each enquiry carefully.
In RE, the children attended church and learnt all about the preparations that have to be made for Mass by both the priest and community members that help him. The children were able to ask questions to Father Michael and Catechists and find out more about being a member of the Parish.
In French, we started a topic on Les planetes. Over the next couple of weeks, the children will build up their space vocabulary in French and learn to construct sentences about the planets. We will finish with a piece of writing about the planets and it will be amazing! Good start, year 5!
In PE, we split into 2 groups. One for learning how to hold the hockey stick safely and then learnt passing and stopping the ball. The other group were inside learning gymnastics. The children were fantastic. We were using mirroring and matching poses. They had to pair up and show poses that were first mirroring one another, then matching. They then paired with another pair and had to teach their pose to one another. These were then turned into a routine with moves in between the poses. I really was impressed with their teamwork and skills.
In Art, the children practised sketching cityscapes, using YouTube videos. They were able to carefully follow the lead of the artist on the screen. Then they looked back at their inspiration art, from Jo Quigley, and sketched out a plan for their final piece. They have all focused well and have great ideas to create a cityscape of London. I look forward to sharing their final pieces in a couple of weeks.
In PSHE we focused on money matters. We looked at the cost of various items a child needs throughout their life and the cost of this. We discussed budgets and why sometimes grown-ups have to be careful with their money. We discussed things that are essential that need to be budgeted for first and things that we would like that maybe we have to save up for.
DON’T FORGET
Sacramental folders need returning for church on Monday.
Additional warm clothes for PE sessions.
On Tuesday the children will be using the outside area and helping to plant saplings that will grow into a hedge. Please send in wellies, in a named plastic bag, to save their school shoes getting muddy. If you don’t have wellies, please send old pumps or trainers that you don’t mind getting muddy. Please send in a bag so the muddy wellies can be put in a bag and not on the carpet in class.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed. Some children had a break from reading over the holidays but please ensure this is made a priority now that we are back at school. Practise is vital to improve in all areas of English.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Maths – please ask your child what their times tables target is and help them practise this in order for them to progress.
I’d also encourage you to do a daily count with your child. This week we are counting up in 9s, 0.9 or 0.09. Give the children a number to start from and they must continue to count from that number in 9s, 0.9 or 0.09 either forwards or backwards. A strategy we use is adding 10 and then taking 1 away if counting up, or subtracting 10 and then adding 1 if subtracting.
Spellings words ending ‘ance’. We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday.
acceptance, appearance, assistance, balance, distance, ignorance, importance, performance, substance, vengeance, endurance, disappearance, circumstance, extravagance, attendance
Don’t forget the children have a big list of Common Exception words to learn, these can be practised each week to push your child further. You should all have received a sheet with these words on by now, I have highlighted the words that your child wrote correct in a spelling test before Christmas. This will give you an indication of how well they are remembering these spellings. Don’t worry if they don’t know many, they can practise them this term and will be assessed again near Easter.
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.
Please encourage your child to complete the Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words they find difficult. Once the diagnostic challenges have been completed Sumdog will set challenges to aid improvement and development in the appropriate areas for your child. Once you have completed the class challenges, please use this feature for extra challenge in both maths and spelling. Many children have still not completed the diagnostic section.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
Maths the children have been set activities relating to multiplication and division strategies.
Spellings words ending ‘ance’.
The children have had a great week, working hard.
Year 5 Friday 7th January 2022
Date: 6th Jan 2022 @ 5:04pm
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
Happy New Year to all my Year 5 families. I hope you all had a great break and are ready to go in 2022!
This week in year 5
In Maths we have worked on equivalent fractions. We have been converting fractions into equivalent fractions with both a higher and lower denominator and looking at finding the lowest term. This is a really tricky skill but the children will need to remember the rules with equivalent fractions – we can only use times and divide when making equivalent fractions and that whatever we do to the top we have to do to the bottom. This week everyone has worked really hard to grasp the concept.
In English we have started reading Street Child. This book is about a child during the Victorian era who ends up becoming a runaway. The story describes his life on the streets at a difficult time. So far the children have made some predictions, discussed the thoughts and feelings of characters through freeze frame drama and showed scenes from the book and discussed each character.
In RE, the children started their Mission topic. We have explored what it means to have a mission in life and how different people are called to their mission. Next week we will be concentrating on our Holy Communion. Please ensure that all sacramental programme folders are back in school for the church visit on Monday. You had a booklet to complete over the Christmas period that should also be returned.
In French, we learnt about how French people celebrate La fete des Rois - the Feast of the Epiphany. A special cake which contains a lucky charm is shared. Whoever gets the lucky charm in their slice becomes the King or Queen for the day. We then focussed on the phonic sound oi (wa) as in roi, listening to a song with lots of oi words and reading them. Tres bien! Bonne annee!
In PE, the children completed the train run warm up, we have some super runners in Year 5 and they all really trying their hardest. Due to the cold weather we had to stay inside and had a spirited game of dodgeball and benchball. Next week even if the weather is cold we will still be doing PE outside, so please send in plain, dark leggings or jogging pants so they can keep warm. We are also suggesting thin gloves and hats if the children want to wear them. That way we will be able to split the class again and learn 2 different areas of PE each week.
We are studying history again this half term and our topic is the Victorian era. This fits alongside our English novel and will help with their understanding of the story. We have had an introduction lesson where we looked at the industrial changes that happened and how this prompted migration from the countryside to the cities and the negative consequences this had on people. We discussed the lack of housing, jobs and food and the spread of infection, illness and disease.
In Art, the children returned their focus to the artist Jo Quigley and looked in more detail at the features of her work. They have written a plan and chosen a specific piece of art for their inspiration and will sketch a rough plan ready for their final piece over the coming weeks.
In Science, the children had a wonderful lesson with Mrs Quillam. They investigated words that can be used to decribe different materials that they may be working with scientifically. They then went on to write questions that would lead to a fair test and went back through their science books and discussed questions that could have been used for enquiries in their previous topics. Mrs Quilliam was very impressed with their enthusiasm and their ideas. I'm sure this will help the children with their experiments and enquiries in our next topic Properties and Changes of Materials.
DON’T FORGET (see above for further details)
Sacramental folders need returning for church on Monday.
Additional warm clothes for PE sessions required from next week.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a reading journal/diary that must be completed and signed. Some children had a break from reading over the holidays but please ensure this is made a priority now that we are back at school. Practice is vital to improve in all areas of English.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Maths – please ask your child what their times tables target is and help them practise this in order for them to progress.
I’d also encourage you to do a daily count with your child. This week we are counting up in 4s, 0.4 and 0.04. Give the children a number to start from and they must continue to count from that number in 4s, 0.4 or 0.04 e.g. 3.2, 3.6, 4 or 1.13, 1.17, 1.21 etc. This will help the children learn and remember strategies to help them in maths.
Spellings words containing ‘ant’. We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday.
Don’t forget the children have a big list of common exception words to learn. These can be practised each week to push your child further. You will receive a sheet with these words on over the next few days, I have highlighted the words that your child spelled correctly in the spelling test before Christmas. This will give you an indication of how well they are remembering their spellings. Continue to practice these and will be assessed again near Easter.
antique, assistant, disadvantage, elephant, fantastic, gigantic, radiant, reluctant, want, advantage, ignorant, anticipate, defiant, important, distant
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.
Please encourage your child to complete the Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words they find difficult. Once the diagnostic challenges have been completed Sumdog will set challenges to aid improvement and development in the appropriate areas for your child. Once you have completed the class challenges, please use this feature for extra challenge in both maths and spelling. Many children have still not completed the diagnostic section.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
Maths the children have been set activities relating to fractions.
Spellings words containing ‘ant’.
The children have worked hard this week and settled in well.
Date: 5th Jan 2022 @ 11:44am
Too often, children can run rings around their parents when it comes to online safety, but guardians must stay clued up, warns Elizabeth Kitto (prevent education officer for Barking and Dagenham)
While there are a number of important areas of Online Safety, these are the big four.
Filters
Filters are amazing and can set healthy, age-appropriate boundaries for free on any device connected to the home WiFi. These can be set through a phone call to any internet provider and updated as children grow. Updates are incredibly important to gradually increase exposure and allow young people to build resilience as they mature.
Make sure that you are aware that any devices with their own data sets, like phones, will need their filters set separately. And remember that you can set passwords to override the filter system so you don't miss out on any of the film releases that would be less suitable for your 10-year-old.
Safe search engines
For under 10s, setting the homepage to a safe search engine is an excellent way to overcome mishaps. We have all had a seemingly innocent image search go awry, and by using child-friendly sites like Smiggle, YouTube Kids and KidRex, we can reduce that risk substantially. Some large web search providers do have safe search options but, be aware, these are very easy to switch off.
As for older children (year 6), it's all about reinforcing the importance of responsibility. Leaning over a child's shoulder at all times or attempting to monitor their screens using apps is less likely to create a healthy relationship and more likely to teach them how to creatively sneak past you.
Algorithms
Have you ever bought a pair of jeans and then been bombarded with ads for jeans for the next three months? That's an algorithm. They collect information and send us materials that will make us tick. While this may be great for our wardrobe, it can create problems regarding echo chambers and fake news.
Reinforce the importance of learning about the world from mainstream media channels rather than stories from social media or news suggestions from their phones. This can build a more balanced knowledge of the world within the home and help you recognise when you or your children are straying into conspiracy theories and bias debates, and instead form healthy informational environments.
Social media
Social media is often the centre of a young person's world and while many parents may have a Facebook account, they may be less au fait with the newer, young models.
For younger children, play around on social media sites alongside your child, learn together how to block and apply appropriate privacy settings to form a positive online space.
For older children, reinforce the message of accountability. What happens on the internet can be difficult to erase. Many young people have no interest in "friending" their parents, and respect of space can build trust, but if you have any concerns, ensure that the parents feel they can have an open a supportive dialogue to air out any worries.
National Online Safety Training Hub
Continue to access all information on the National Online Safety website. You will get access to all videos and guides by clicking the link below and joining free to our school online safety hub.
http://nationalonlinesafety.com/enrol/st-oswald-s-catholic-primary-school-pr45eb
We have set up a watchlist which includes some videos and training we think you will find beneficial.
Date: 17th Dec 2021 @ 11:57am
What an amazing term Year 5 have had!
I have been blown away by the amazing work produced this term bit also with the enthusiasm the children have shown.
This week the children have enjoyed learning in a fun way.
We have carried on with fractions earlier in the week and then completed some fun maths mysteries later in the week. The children love completing them even though they have to complete a number of difficult challenges to solve the mystery.
We have finished our Christmas Carol topic in English, the children showed great skills whilst reading this book and were able to understand some really tricky words and link certain themes within the book. I was impressed with their comprehension of the book, let's hope they remember it when they move onto high school and study it again!
We have had an arty week, the children have used layered printing, over a number of sessions, to produce some lovely Christmas cards and also used sketching and printing to make seasonal calendars.
The children have done some fabulous research of the planets in science. They were really engaged and couldn't stop informing me of all the different facts they were finding out.
The children completed an outbreak challenge in computing where they have to try and stop a terrible outbreak with the use of face masks, vaccinations etc. They used various coding skills to complete the challenge. They then discussed how real scientists may use these types of skills to help with things like the pandemic. Some children were very keen to work in this field in the future.
We have continued to think about the preparations we are making for the coming of Jesus at Christmas. The children are trying to make a difference to others each day, with kind acts and kind words.
The children had a very spirited dodgeball competition this week. They were so enthusiastic and showed great promise for the dodgeball team next year.
The children have had a lot of festive fun as well this week including the Santa Dash, Carolling in the yard for the parents (thank you so much for such an amazing turnout) and attending the Christmas shop. We have also completed a number of Christmas activities on our last morning such as poetry writing, Santa beetle drive, Christmas cartoon strips and the fantastic Pirate maths game - they would have played it all morning!
Thank you so much for all your support this term.
No challenges have been set for the break but Sumdog will have the tailored challenges available for the children to access at any time. Also feel free to practise any times tables, number facts or mixed fraction to improper fraction games ( 3 ½ = 7/2 seven halves).
We would like to wish you all a very Happy and Holy Christmas, I hope you all get a good rest and have some peaceful times. I look forward to seeing you all back in January and send you all the best wishes for the New Year.
Tiny Tim said it best, "God bless us, everyone."
Year 5 - Friday 10th December 2021
Date: 10th Dec 2021 @ 8:42am
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
The children have had another busy week, working hard and learning new skills and knowledge.
This week in year 5
In Maths we have introduced mixed numbers and improper fractions and the children have completed 2 papers to show off everything they have learnt this term. I am very pleased with their focus and hard work with some tricky questions.
In English we have started reading A Christmas Carol. The children have been thinking about the words used and what they mean, many are not used very much today. They have written comparative descriptions of characters, used evidence from the text to draw conclusions about the story and they are really keen to find out what happens next. We are hoping to find a suitable version of the film to watch next week to compare to the book.
In RE, the children continued to discuss the preparations we make in the wait for the coming of Jesus at Christmastime and the hope this brings to people. We have created an advent calendar of kind deeds we can carry out for the remainder of Advent.
In French, the children read a story about how some aliens saved Christmas after Pere Noel's sleigh broke. They lent him their space ship to deliver presents so all was well! They then started to write their own version of the story in French - hopefully they will finish them next week and the children will be super proud of their stories! Joyeux Noel et bonne annee tout le monde!
In PE, the children did both activities this week. Due to the colder weather we have spilt the time so they are not outside and feeling the cold for too long. The tag rugby session was very competitive and the children showed off the skills they have learnt this term. In the hall, we really focused on moving in time with one another. We started by moving across the hall in small groups, first walking in time together and developing into running, jumping and hopping. They discussed items we would put in a time capsule and created an 8 count dance for the item. Next week they will teach the class their small group dances and we will create an ensemble piece.
In Geography the children loved researching different areas of North America. They looked at where on the map the place was located, where this was in relation to lines of latitude and how this may affect the climate. They then each made a fact file for their choice, many children asked to take pictures and titles home so they could make more. They used National Geographic Kids for research.
In Art, the children planned and practised their Christmas cards. We got very messy! They used a range of printing resources to see which effect they preferred and made decisions for their cards. Next week you will see their final pieces, they will be creating layered printing over a number of days to create their cards.
The children completing their Holy Communion next year, have been sent home with their folders and a workbook. This is to be completed over the Christmas break and returned to school in the first week back. We will begin our sessions in church in the second week to prepare for the sacrament.
It was lovely to see the children in their festive wear on Friday, we had a jolly day with Christmas Carols, festive lunchtime and Christmas post alongside our regular lessons.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.
Maths – please ask your child what their times tables target is and help them practise this in order for them to progress.
I’d also encourage you to do a daily count with your child. This week we are counting up in 9s. Give the children a number to start from and they must continue to count from that number in 9s e.g. 37, 46, 55. This will help the children learn and remember strategies to help them in maths. For 9s we add 10 and then take 1 away to help us count on faster.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Spellings words ending ‘cial’ and ‘tial’. We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday. After a vowel ‘cial’ is most common (special) and after a consonant ‘tial’ (confidential).
Don’t forget the children have a big list of Common Exception words to learn, these can be practised each week to push your child further.
Some children have been told to complete a different number of spellings, please check with your child.
official, special, social, artificial, facial, commercial, crucial, confidential, potential, initial, essential, partial, attached, available, average
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.
Please encourage your child to complete the Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words they find difficult. Once the diagnostic challenges have been completed Sumdog will set challenges to aid improvement and development in the appropriate areas for your child. Once you have completed the class challenges, please use this feature for extra challenge in both maths and spelling. Many children have still not completed the diagnostic section.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
Maths the children have been set activities relating to fractions.
Spellings words ending ‘cial’ and ‘tial’.
Only one more week to go and the children are still working hard.
Friday 3rd December 2021 - Year 5
Date: 3rd Dec 2021 @ 1:01pm
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
What a busy week it has been and the children have been fantastic!
This week in year 5
We started the week with our Reconciliation day. The children were so well behaved, enthusiastic and respectful all day. They appeared to have an enjoyable day and all felt happy at the end of the sacrament. I have posted a separate blog with photos in the gallery.
On Tuesday we had our trip to the Vehicle Museum, what a day! The children had an absolute action packed day, we stayed an extra 30 minutes, we were having so much fun! They children impressed Rob, our guide for the day, with their knowledge on forces, friction and resistance. They had to order the vehicles on age and again on horse power and then looked at links. Later in the morning the children made rubber band powered cars and were challenged to make their car travel the furthest. This was lots of fun. After lunch, the children had 4 activities, these were designing their own truck, finding badges on the vehicles and completing the sketches, designing their own logo to hand paint on a vehicle and finally free time in the museum to use the interactive truck, change tyres, get into some of the vehicles and look at the amazing vehicles on display. It really was a great day!
In Maths we have continued our focus on division. This week we have used the chunking method. The week started off with some challenging questions but they have used their strategies well to help them solve these. We finished the week being able to solve 3 digit division problems with remainders. I have been impressed with their resilience in a tricky topic.
In English we finally finished Room 13, what an exciting story! The children have been so engaged with ideas and links throughout the book. This week the children have spent time writing an alternative ending to the book and editing it. They have focussed on adding fronted adverbials, powerful verbs and including descriptions relating to senses to create suspense. They have done a marvellous job.
In RE the children have been looking at how the coming of Jesus at Christmas can provide hope to a lot of people that are unhappy. We discussed and wrote about how we could be like Jesus and bring hope to others will small deeds.
The children also did some work on money in PHSE. We looked at and discussed the right and wrong thing to do when we find money and then they had to shop for 2 people for 3 days on a budget. They were very careful with their money, shopped for essentials only and had £5 left over. We discussed how asking for treats is not always the best thing to do as parents can be on a budget and they could see how one or two treats can send you over the budget and you wouldn’t have enough money for essentials.
On Thursday the children watched the pantomime Dick Whittington.
“Oh No they didn’t!” “Oh yes they did!”
They had a great time shouting to the cast, laughing, cheering and enjoying the show!
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Spellings words ending cious and common exception words. We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday.
Don’t forget the children have a big list of Common Exception words to learn, these can be practised each week to push your child further.
Some children have been told to complete a different number of spellings, please check with your child.
conscious ferocious gracious precious suspicious spaciousness
spacious accommodate accompany according achieve
aggressive amateur ancient apparent
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.
Last week introduced Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words they find difficult. Once the diagnostic challenges have been completed Sumdog will set challenges to aid improvement and development in the appropriate areas for your child. Once you have completed the class challenges, please use this feature for extra challenge in both maths and spelling.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
Maths the children have been set more activities relating to multiplication and division. They will need to use their multiplication and division knowledge and learnt in recent weeks, to work out the answers. They may need to do jottings.
Spellings words ending cious and common exception words.
The children have had another great week in school.
Year 5 - Friday 26th November 2021
Date: 25th Nov 2021 @ 5:03pm
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
The children are working hard and developing their skills in many different areas.
This week in year 5
In Maths we have been focused on division. We started using arrays to work out division problems and by the end of the week we had moved onto chunking. Many children we able to move onto and solve division word problems.
In English we are very close to the end of the book. Before we find out what happens we have made our own predictions and are in the process of writing our own final chapter of the book. The suspense that the children are creating is great to see. We are trying to make our work more interesting by using fronted adverbials in some of our sentences.
In RE the children completed their Life Choices topic with a calm Collective Worship, where many of them read beautifully. We then moved onto our new topic of Hope, where we will discuss and explain reasons why we wait, and the most important time of waiting, during Advent.
In PE, the children completed one of two activities. Firstly all the children practised baton passing. They learnt the techniques needed to make it as swift and smooth as possible. The tag rugby session with Mrs Cookson started with a practise tag game, dodging the other team trying to get to the semi-circle without losing their tags. Afterwards they moved onto passing the ball along the line and then running back to the start. The dance session with Mrs Nuttall was another success. The children split into teams and had to become tableaus of space related words e.g. a rocket, the Moon, a satellite. Then they had to create a story, in their groups, by creating 4 tableaus with a movement in between. They were extremely creative. We have the explosion of a star, a rocket going to Mars and the formation of Earth. Photos have been added to the gallery.
In Geography we continued our work on longitude and latitude but focused on North America and the different states and how the lines of latitude affect the climate. We looked at a number of states in detail and will use this information to complete more work on them, in future sessions.
In Art, the children are looking at the artist Jo Quigley from the UK. They have looked at her artwork and that of her influences and made links between the two. They will be planning and creating their own cityscape piece of artwork, inspired by Jo Quigley in the coming weeks.
The children have been sent home with a small 2 sided booklet about Reconciliation. Please look through this, with your child to prepare them further for their sacrament on Monday. You are invited to join them in Church at 2.30pm on Monday. Don’t forget the year 5 family mass on Sunday at Church, details in the newsletter.
Also don’t forget the rearranged trip on Tuesday to the Leyland Museum, all children will need a disposable lunch.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Spellings words ending ious. We will look at these in more detail in school next week. They should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday.
Don’t forget the children have a big list of Common Exception words to learn, these can be practised each week to push your child further.
Some children have been told to complete a different number of spellings, please check with your child.
ambitious, cautious, curious, delicious glorious, obvious, previous, religious, various, mysterious, previously, furiously, seriously, victorious, vicious
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.
This week we would like to introduce Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words they find difficult. Once the diagnostic challenges have been completed Sumdog will set challenges to aid improvement and development in the appropriate areas for your child. Once you have completed the class challenges, please use this feature for extra challenge in both maths and spelling. Your tailored training is available in your tasks tab.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
Maths the children have been set activities relating to multiplication and division. They will need to use their multiplication and division knowledge and learnt this week, to work out the answers. They may need to do jottings.
Spellings words ending ious.
The children have had another great week in school.
Year 5 - Friday 19th November 2021
Date: 18th Nov 2021 @ 4:58pm
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
The children have had a good week in school, working hard and trying their best.
This week in year 5
In Maths, we have been looking at multiplication and division. We have focused a lot on factors and factor pairs but also investigated prime numbers and how to find them. It was a tricky start to the week but with hard work and perseverance the children were able to grasp the concept and ended up enjoying the topic.
In English, things are really getting exciting with Room 13. The children are making fantastic links between things that happen at the beginning of the book, pictures they have looked at on various editions of front covers and what is happening as we read on. We have recapped 1st, 2nd and 3rd person when writing and completed a diary enter for the main character Fliss on her first night at the Crow’s Nest Hotel.
In RE, the children had another visit to church and discussed our relationship with God and different types of prayer. In school we have studied the sacrament of Marriage and the symbols associated with that.
In PE, again, the children did one of two activities. The tag rugby session with Mrs Cookson was a muddy one! The children started with a practise tag game, dodging the other team trying to get to the semi-circle without losing their tags. Afterwards they moved onto the field for a game of tag rugby; they had a great time. The dance session with Mrs Nuttall went very well. The children split into teams and had to become tableaus of space related words e.g. a rocket, the Moon, a satellite. Then they had to create a story, in their groups, by creating 4 tableaus with a movement in between. They were extremely creative. We have the birth of the sun, rocks connecting to form a planet and a rocket moving through the solar system. Photos have been added to the gallery.
In Geography, we learnt about lines of longitude and latitude, including the equator, tropic of Cancer and Capricorn and Greenwich Meriden. They learnt a song to help them understand that the invisible lines help us find where on the globe a location is. They then had to plot different places on a World map using longitude and latitude coordinates.
Finally, on Friday we took part in Children in Need in our spotty outfits and we discussed bullying as part of anti-bullying week. We discussed how one kind word, the theme this year, can make a big different to others.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Spellings words containing over. We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday.
Don’t forget the children have a big list of Common Exception words to learn, these can be practised each week to push your child further.
Some children have been told to complete a different number of spellings, please check with your child.
covered, discover, government, undercover, overnight, uncover, overjoyed, recovery, overcome, overheat, overreacting, uncovered, overheard, recover, discoveries
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets. If the children complete the challenges they can push themselves by accessing multiplication challenges on Sumdog.
Maths the children have been set activities relating to factors and factor pairs. They will need to use their multiplication knowledge and the knowledge learnt this week to work out the answers. They may need to do jottings.
Spellings words containing over.
The children have had another great week in school.
Year 5 Sacramental Programme15th November 2021
Date: 15th Nov 2021 @ 5:04pm
The children have had another lovely session in church to help in preparation for their Sacrament or to support their friends on their journey.
This week Father discussed with them their relationship with God. He discussed the different types of prayer that there are e.g. speaking, singing, thinking and the different things that we can pray for - in November we pray for those that have died in conflict.
The children discussed with Father where they personally pray, what they pray for, when they pray and if they pray together as a family.
Father explained to them that prayer strengthens their relationship with God and that praying together can help bring families togther to celebrate things they are thankful for or share worries they need help with.
There is a Gospel reading from St Luke on the children's worksheet that we encourage you to read together, about the disciples asking Jesus to teach them to pray. In church Father asked the children if they could think of a prayer it reminded them of and the children made links to the Our Father. Father then went on to discuss the Our Father with the children and broke it down into separate parts so that the children could have a greater understanding.of the words they are saying to God when they use it during prayer times.
The children then went on to discuss how Mass is the most perfect form of prayer and they talked about the different parts of the service and the order in which they come. The children have been given some Mass sheets from Father from this weekend to discuss with you at home.
On the final page of the worksheet is an activity to carry out at home, where the children can write a prayer of choice. In church they were shown how they can use each finger of their hand to pray for different people and they completed a sheet with their hand drawn on with five prayer suggestions to help them.
Year 5 - Friday 12th November 2021
Date: 11th Nov 2021 @ 3:43pm
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
The children have worked well this week despite the disappointment of the cancelled trip. As soon as a new date is confirmed we will let you know.
This week in year 5
In Maths we have completed perimeter for this half term, and moved onto statistics. The children have worked really hard trying to read and interpret data from a graph. It has been a tricky skill and they have concentrated and shown determination in gaining the skills needed.
In English we have continued with Room 13. There is a lot of gasping as the children make links between things mentioned at the start of the book and things that transpire as we read on. We have looked at letter writing and the features of a letter this week, alongside using our inference and retrieval skills to find evidence in the book to support answers to questions set.
In RE the children had their second visit to church and learnt about the different statues and paintings around the church and their significance. They also discussed the meaning and significance of their name. Finally in school we have studied Judaism and the festival of Passover. We read the story of Moses, the 10 plagues and how he helped set the Israelites free. We also discussed the Seder Plate and the significance of different foods during the Passover meal.
In PE the children did one of two activities, the opposite one from last week. Half of the class took part in a tag rugby session with Mrs Cookson. They worked really hard on throwing and passing the ball and trying to score a try. The other half of the class started the dance unit called ‘Earthlings!’ with Mrs Nuttall. They created their own movements for 16 counts that expressed who they were and then collaborated with a partner and performed for the class. They then went on to create a 16 count dance to represent one of the planets in the solar system. Again, they were very creative.
We read, understood and performed a poem called Braves Soldats in French. We came up with actions to fit the text to make our performance more exciting. Well done, year 5.
The children started their Geography topic on North America this week. We started by recapping some of the foundations including the continents and the oceans. We examined the use of a compass and used the cardinal directions, alongside an atlas, to describe the locations of the oceans in relation to the continents. This again was a tricky concept and they worked really hard to understand it. Finally we used an atlas to examine the equator and discuss which continents were in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
Finally on Friday we took part in the school’s ‘Go Green Day’. We spent the day using as little electricity as possible, we discussed Climate Change and how we can help the planet. The children made posters to show what they want for our world and how they could help make it happen.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Spellings prefix re or pre. We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Thursday.
Don’t forget the children have a big list of Common Exception words to learn, these can be practised each week to push your child further.
Some children have been told to complete a different number of spellings, please check with your child.
readjust, reaffirm, reappear, rearrangement, redecorate, reinvent, reload, repayment, prejudice, premature, preoccupied, prefix, preposition, prefer, preparation
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG. ONCE YOU HAVE COMPLETED THE SET CHALLENGES, ACCESS THE MATHS TRAINING WHERE CHALLENGES WILL BE TAILORED FOR EVERY CHILD.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
Maths the children have been set activities relating to reading and interpreting graphs. Some children found this very difficult so may need support with this. If they have spent time with you trying to work it out and cannot complete all the questions, this is ok. They just need to have a chance to practise outside of the class time to help embed these skills.
Spellings with the prefix re or pre.
The children have had another great week in school.
Year 5 Sacramental Programme 8th November 2021
Date: 9th Nov 2021 @ 12:20pm
The children had another successful session in the church this week, once again they were thoughtful and respectful and showed enthusiasm throughout.
This week Father Michael asked the children about their names. He asked them to have a chat with their parents about why they have the name they have. Father Michael discussed that his family have a tradition of naming their children after a Saint that has their feast day in that month. Father Michael was born in September and it is the feast of St Michael on 29th September. Have a chat with your child about how you chose their name, perhaps a family tradition, a family name or someone you admired.
The children had a worksheet to complete in church. They also took part in treasure hunt this week looking at all the statues, memorials and paintings and learning about their significance. They also created an acrostic poem using their name and features/traits that they have. Please have a look at the sheets that they brought home. There is an activity to complete together on the acrostic page and some discussions to have on the double page worksheet.
We appreciate your time and support in helping your children understand the significance of the work they are completing as part of their Faith Journey.
Year 5 Sacramental Programme - Session 1
Date: 4th Nov 2021 @ 5:30pm
After each session of the Sacramental Programme, we will inform you through our class page what the children have discussed and any points that can be further explored at home. The children who are completing the programme will bring home their 'Thank God for Mass!' books to help you understand what they have done and help with your discussions.
This week the children started their sacramental journey at church with Father Michael, Catechists from St Oswald's, Mrs Mulgrew, Mrs Deighton and Mrs Nuttall. The children were able to explore the church and find out about all the different sections and symbols. They stood on the sanctuary and spoke to Father Michael about the different things that are around the alter and their significance. They spoke with school staff and the Catechists about the Baptismal font, the Reconciliation room and the Holy Oils used at different times in a Christian's life. The children also got the chance to walk around and look at the Stations of the Cross and the various statues and paintings within the church. The children were very respectful and remained calm and inquisitive throughout.
All the children, whether they are taking part in the Sacramental Programme or not, will take part in the sessions. All the children will have a folder and a worksheet each week to bring home but only the children completing the sacrament will have the booklet. The children not completing the Sacramental Programme will learn about the Sacraments as part of the RE curriculum and support their friends on their faith Journey.
Points to discuss at home.
Father Michael spoke to the children about various things and asked the children who had undertaken the sacrement of Baptism, to go home and speak to their parents about it. Fr Michael spoke about how Baptism was the start of the children's Faith journey and they were now embarking upon the next stage.
The children could perhaps look at photos of their Baptism, discuss who was there, who their Godparents are and their role in their Catholic journey and what happened at their Baptism.
The children who have not undertaken Baptism were still involved in the conversations and activities and were able to listen to stories that the other children could recall and support their friends on the next stage of their journey in Faith.
Year 5 Friday 5th November 2021
Date: 4th Nov 2021 @ 5:07pm
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
The children have settled back into school this week and been very grown up and respectful of one another during our RSE discussion sessions.
This week in year 5
In Maths we have been measuring perimeters. They have been investigating the different ways of calculating perimeters and practising using a ruler. They have moved onto calculating perimeters with decimal places and perimeters of shapes that are not simply a quadrilateral.
In English we have moved onto our new book Room 13. We have looked at the features of a suspense story, made predictions about what the story could be about and then we have made up our own nightmare story, trying to include features to create suspense.
In RE the children went over to visit the church, some children began their journey towards the sacrament of reconciliation and the children not undertaking the sacrament attended the session and supported their friends on their journey. The children were able to explore the church in a way that they are not usually allowed. For more details please see the additional blog on the website (titled Year 5 Sacramental Programme - session 1)
In PE the children did one of two activities as they will swap next week. Half of the class took part in a tag rugby session with Mrs Cookson. They worked really hard on throwing and passing the ball and trying to score a try. The other half of the class started the dance unit called ‘Earthlings!’ with Mrs Nuttall. They created their own movements for 16 counts that expressed who they were and then collaborated with a partner and performed for the class. They then went on to create a 16 count dance to represent one of the planets in the solar system. They were very creative.
In Science the children had their final classroom sessions on their Forces topic; the topic will conclude with the trip next week. The children investigated simple machines, using pulleys and gears and learnt how machines can help change the amount of force needed for tasks. The children also undertook a special session with Mrs Quilliam where they learnt about Sir Isaac Newton and how he discovered the force of gravity. They measured weight using Newton meters. Some of even managed to find a pattern between Newtons and Grams. One Newton = 100 grams. Well done Year 5!
In French the children have learnt about subject pronouns (I, you, he, she, we, you, they) and the verb etre (to be) in the context of Remembrance Day. Next week, they will use this grammar to write about this special time.
The children also took part in a number of sessions for their Journey in Love (RSE programme). They learnt about the different life stages a person goes through, with particular attention to the puberty stage. We discussed the different stages both girls and boys go through and what will happen to their bodies at this time, but that this will happen at different times to one another. The children were very mature; we did have some giggles, but overall they were very considerate of others, listened and asked relevant questions.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Spellings prefix dis or mis). We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Thursday. Now that we are back into the swing of things they have more than 10 spellings.
Some children have been told to complete a different number of spellings, please check with your child.
misinform, misguide, misplaced, misread, misspell, misunderstood, misjudge, disadvantage, disagree, disappear, discontinue, dishonest, dislike, disobey, displease.
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
For Maths the children have been set activities relating to regular and irregular polygons and calculating perimeter
Spellings with the prefix dis or mis.
I have been really impressed with the children’s hard work and attitude this week.
Date: 4th Nov 2021 @ 12:31pm
Keeping our children safe in the online space is of ever growing importance. From phones to consoles, our children are exposed to more online risk than ever and it is important that we adults keep up to date to ensure our children are prepared for all they meet online.
This term our classes have been learning about privacy and security as part of their Online Safety lessons. Below we have attached a guide for settting up new devices that your children may use. This incluses tips for security and password protection.
Please continue to access all information on the National Online Safety website. You will get access to all videos and guides by clicking the link below and joining free to our school online safety hub.
http://nationalonlinesafety.com/enrol/st-oswald-s-catholic-primary-school-pr45eb
Year 5 - Friday 15th October 2021
Date: 14th Oct 2021 @ 4:12pm
Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog
The children have had another fabulous week. They are remaining keen, enthusiastic and eager to learn. This week we have been investigating levers, creating mythical beasts and had a netball tournament.
This week in year 5
We have been using protractors and investigating different angles this week, which is a tricky task. The children have persevered and shown great skills. If you have protractors at home, allow your children to continue to practise using them and looking at angles smaller than a right angle (acute angles) and angles bigger than a right angle (obtuse angles). They really enjoyed estimating angles and seeing how close they could get. There is a game called Alien Attack on the Topmarks Maths website that they can use at home.
In English we have been reading the Greek Myth of Perseus and the Gorgon. They have been fascinated by the story. They have created their own hero, setting and mythical beast that will be used to create their own Myth next week.
In History we focused on the Olympic Games and how the Ancient Greek Olympic games have influenced the Olympic Games we now hold. The children made 'Fact Files' showing the similarities and differences between the two games.
In PSHE this week the children looked at stereotyping and how we should not judge people on what we see. We will be examining this further next week and looking at challenging stereotypes and why this is important.
In RE the children have been exploring friendships and what it means to be a good friend.
In PE the children had a spirited netball tournament, where they were able to showcase all the great defending, passing and shooting skills they have been developing this half term. They have shown real improvement in their technique.
In Science the children investigated levers and how levers can be used to magnify force and help us use little force but achieve greater force. They used a range of levers including wheelbarrows, dog ball throwing aids, scissors and tin openers.
Don't forget to check in the gallery for photos.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Spellings (homophones and near homophones). We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Thursday. Now that we are back into the swing of things they have more than 10 spellings.
Some children have been told to complete a different number of spellings, so please check with your child.
past passed aisle isle allowed aloud affect effect witch which where were wear there their they’re
Sumdog challenges
PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES. MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.
Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
Maths the children have been set compare and order different angles
Spellings homophones and near homophones
Year 5 Friday 8th October 2021
Date: 7th Oct 2021 @ 5:57pm
Welcome to the Year 5 class blog
What a week we have had! The children have remained hard working and enthusiastic throughout the week, impressing me with their dedication. They have carried out a water resistance experiment, written an exciting newspaper article and worked so hard on subtraction in Maths.
This week in year 5
We have looked closely at subtraction this week. The children have used various methods including number lines, partitioning and column method to subtract whole numbers and numbers with up to 2 decimal places. Their enthusiasm to complete different sums has been amazing.
In English the children have completed a newspaper report relating to the last chapter in Goth Girl. They have identified the different feature of a newspaper report and then planned and completed their own. We have had some snappy headlines and even some puns.
In History we have been researching Greek Myths and different Greek Gods and Goddesses. The children have read different myths and read about different Gods and Goddesses and chosen their favourite to write about. We will be looking at myths in more detail in English leading up to half term.
In DT we have finalised our Greek feast plans and look forward to preparing and eating it on the last week. More details of our Greek day will follow.
In RE the children led a lovely Collective Worship to celebrate all we had learnt in the first topic and we have begun to explore our new topic ‘Life Choices’. The children were able to reflect on our first topic and really thought about the ways they could make a difference.
In PE the children continued to develop skills in netball. They learnt techniques for effective shooting into the net and began to understand the importance of marking players on the opposite team in order to try and intercept the ball. The children are really starting to show increasing control and looking for opportunities to outwit the other team.
In Science we had a great time learning about water resistance. The children carried out an experiment with salted and unsalted water to see which would provide buoyancy for the greatest weight and they made tinfoil boats and tested which shape of boat created the least water resistance. They were very sensible given the excitement of water in the classroom!
Don't forget to look our photos in the class gallery.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Spellings (words ending with ible, ibly, able and ably). We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday.
comfortable, enjoyable, sensible, terrible, horribly, impossibly, reasonably, valuable, possibly, understandably
Counting - the children are really enjoying the counting challenges in class, why not set them challenges at home. This week give them a number and ask them to count forwards by 9 or backwards by 9 for the next 6 numbers. We have been practising this by adding 10 and then taking away 1 or if completing subtraction, subtracting 10 and adding 1 more. Example 32, 41, 50, 59, 68, 77, 86 or 137, 128, 119, 110, 101, 92, 83.
Sumdog challenges
Please ensure your child logs onto Sumdog and completes these challenges, all log ins and passwords have been sent home. If lost send in a note and i can re-print them.
- Times tables have been set to reflect class targets
- Maths - the children have been set a number of addition and subtraction calculations using 4 digit numbers
- Spellings - able, ible, ably and ibly
The children have worked really hard this week and have been trying their best to be good friends to one another.
Year 5 Friday 1st October 2021
Date: 30th Sep 2021 @ 5:23pm
Welcome to the Year 5 class blog
We have had a great week, the children have worked hard and remained well behaved despite a week with wet plays. They have carried out a friction experiment, written a missing chapter to our class novel and looked at ways they can use their special gifts to help others in RE.
This week in year 5
We have looked closely at decimals this week. We have explored the place value of decimals; place value of decimals, sorting decimals, rounding decimals and addition of decimals. We also investigated increasing and decreasing numbers to the power of 10 to help with addition problems.
In English we have worked so hard planning, developing and writing a missing chapter to Goth Girl, featuring their own villain. The children learnt about adding tension to their writing through the vocabulary that we use and the length of our sentences. They have used our similes and metaphors and added dialogue between characters. We have finally reached the end of the book and have really enjoyed the action throughout.
In History we have continued our topic about the Ancient Greeks and this week focused on the similarities and differences between our life and that of the Ancient Greeks. We examined Greek homes, food, jobs, toys and clothing. We also discussed slaves and the reason why people became slaves in Ancient Greek civilization.
In DT this week we continued our work on Greek cuisine. We read a number of different Greek recipes and decided upon items we would include in our class Greek feast. The children had to identify and describe the ingredients and equipment they would need and how they would stay safe throughout, including food safety (hygiene/allergies).
In RE we have been completed our first topic 'Ourselves'. We looked at scripture and made links to how we could live our lives as children of God, how we could share the gifts we had with others to help them and read the poem Footprints and discussed how God is always there for us, even though we don’t always realise it.
In PE, our topic is invasion games. Sadly due to the rain we had to remain inside but Mrs Cookson organised an action packed game of dodgeball, encouraging the children to work together as a team.
In Science we investigated friction this week. We carried out an experiment using different materials to find which one would cause the greatest amount of friction. The children had to spin a bicycle wheel and use tinfoil, bubblewrap, sandpaper and fabric as brakes. They had to use a stopwatch and think about variables and how to perform a fair test.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning. These are the tasks to be completed:
Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.
You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
Spellings (words with silent letters). We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday.
doubt, lamb, debt, thumb, solemn, autumn, column, knight, knuckle, knot.
Sumdog challenges
times tables x3/x6
maths
Spellings (words with silent letters)
The children have worked very hard this week and used their manners. They have impressed other teachers with their amazing story writing.
Year 5 Friday 24th September 2021
Date: 23rd Sep 2021 @ 5:42pm
Welcome to the first Year 5 class blog
The class have had a fantastic start to the new school year. They have settled in nicely with the new routine and new teacher and have shown an excellent attitude to learning. Our Greek feast, parachute experiment and creating a villainous character have been a lot of fun and the children have enjoyed all of them.
This week in year 5
We have been working a lot on place value and number in maths. The children have been looking at the value different digits have in a number, ordering numbers, rounding numbers up to 10,000, partitioning numbers and understanding decimals up to hundredths. They have used place value tables, counters and talk partners to help embed this understanding. We have also had a challenge day, where the children moved around the room, taking part in a number of challenges and problem solving activites to check their understanding.
In English we have been reading Goth Girl by Chris Riddell and reached an excting part of the book. The children cannot wait for the concuding chapters next week. We have created a video tour of Ghastly-Gorm Hall, where the children have imagined they are tour guides, explaining the different rooms of the hall. We watched them in class at the end of the week. We have also created a new villain for the book and written a descriptive piece. As part of our writing, we have been working on using similes and metaphors in our work.
In History we have been learning about the Ancient Greeks and looking at how artefacts and architecture helps us understand what life was like in Ancient Greece.
In DT this week we had the long awaited food tasting lesson. There were mixed reviews on the Greek cuisine but we have agreed that as a class that we mostly enjoyed pitta breads and tzatziki, so we will plan recipes in the coming weeks.
In RE we have been exploring our first topic 'Ourselves'. We have looked at the different talents and qualities we have, how we can use these to show we are children of God and how we can use them to help others.
In PE, our topic is invasion games. The children have been learning different passing techniques including chest pass, bounce pass and shoulder pass. They have then used these skills to play an informal game with Mrs Cookson.
In Science we are learning all about forces. We have a good understanding of gravity and how air resistance works against gravity. We have made parachutes with different variables and tested them to find the most effective parachute.
Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed
- Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.
- You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)
- Spellings (words with endings that sound like /ow/ and /oo/ but spelt with ough). We will look at these in more detail in school next week, They should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday.
- though, although, thought, bought, dough, brought, through, fought, throughout, breakthrough.
- Sumdog challenges
- times tables x4/x8
- maths
- Spellings (ough words)
The children have been very kind, well-behaved and polite during their first few weeks. They have made me feel welcome and settle into my role here at St Oswald's.
Date: 14th Sep 2021 @ 11:55am
With your children returning to school, it is a great time to review online safety in your homes and make sure we are all up to date with developments in the online world. At St Oswald's, all classes will be beginning their Online Saftety learning where they will learn all about safe practices online in the following areas.
Self image and identitiy
Online relationships
Online bulllying
Health, Well-being and lifestyle
Online reputation
Managing online information
Copyright and ownership
We will blog regularly to keep you updated with developments in the online space, sharing platform guides and links to expert training for you to keep your children safe when exploring the internet. Below you will find a guide on some back to school online safety tips for children.
To access a huge range of information on the National Online Safety website click the link below and join our school online safety hub.You will get access to videos, training and guides to keep you informed of the best practices in keeping your children safe online.
http://nationalonlinesafety.com/enrol/st-oswald-s-catholic-primary-school-pr45eb
Year 5 Home Practice Friday 9th July 2021
Date: 9th Jul 2021 @ 4:27pm
Year 5 Home Practice Friday 9th July 2021
A great week year 5, the highlight was Sports Day. What a great afternoon! You all did so well, make sure you have another look at yourselves on St Oswalds TV (You Tube). We enjoyed watching the Year 6 production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. That'll be you next year!! Have a fantastic weekend and enjoy the football.
Reading
Please read for at least twenty/thirty minutes every evening.
Remember to complete your ‘Reading Journal’ task. Colour/highlight the square to show you have done it. Complete one activity per week.
Maths
This week’s challenge on Sumdog is based on times tables and division facts.
Spelling
There will be no spellings next week.
Have a great weekend. Come on England!!!
Miss Gravili
Year 5 Home Practice Friday 2nd July 2021
Date: 2nd Jul 2021 @ 4:11pm
Year 5 Home Practice Friday 2nd July 2021
Year 5 had so much fun participating in the ‘Tough Kidder’ event this afternoon. They sang, danced and got very wet! It was lovely to see them cheering the other classes on and helping out. Our RSE sessions went very well. The children were so sensible and grown-up, they asked good questions and enjoyed learning new things. In Science, they took part in a live lesson about planets and learnt about friction. It was really good to see real scientists at work.
Reading
Please read for at least twenty/thirty minutes every evening.
Remember to complete your ‘Reading Journal’ task. At the front of the journal there are activities for you to do using your current book or one you have just finished. Choose an activity, complete it in your journal (best presentation and handwriting!) and colour/highlight the square to show you have done it. Complete one activity per week.
Maths
This week’s challenge on Sumdog is based on converting between units of measure.
Spelling
Please learn these spellings for Friday (9.7.21): If you don’t know what a word means, look it up in a dictionary or ask an adult.
We are investigating silent letters.
participate stretched surprise climbing knock
knowledge hedges whistle different known
designed cupboard wrestling environment should
Have a lovely weekend Year 5.
Miss Gravili
Year 5 Home Practice Friday 25th June 2021
Date: 25th Jun 2021 @ 4:22pm
Year 5 Home Practice Friday 25th June 2021
Year 5 have worked extremely hard this week and proved what great learners they are. I was so impressed with how resilient and positive they were whilst doing their end of year tests, well done Year 5!! World Music Day was a success, the children sang and played the glocks really well and it was lovely to be out on the field with the rest of the school. On Tuesday, we enjoyed a mindfulness workshop with Miss Rebecca. The children were very mature when taking part in the meditation activity and designed and coloured some fabulous leaves. We painted the ocean-themed pottery and they look amazing, despite one or two pieces falling off! In Maths, the children have continued working on written methods of division. Mrs wilson has been helping Year 5 prepare for their First Holy Communion, everyone is looking forward to their special day tomorrow.
Reading
Please read for at least twenty/thirty minutes every day. Talk about what you have read with an adult. Discuss the story, characters and any new vocabulary you come across.
You may change your book any day.
Remember to complete one Reading Journal task each week.
Spelling
This week we are investigating words with hyphens. Please learn these spellings for Friday (02.07.21). If you don’t know what a word means ask an adult or look it up in a dictionary.
co-operate re-enter ex-convict re-form pre-war
co-ordinate re-elect re-cover re-bound sub-aquatic
co-own re-educate mid-Atlantic anti-aircraft semi-conscious
Sumdog Challenges
Maths - Identifying Multiples and Factors.
Have a lovely weekend Year 5. Miss Gravili
Year 5 Home Practice Friday 18th June 2021
Date: 18th Jun 2021 @ 12:29pm
Year 5 Home Practice Friday 18th June 2021
A great week year 5, the highlight was the Clay Workshop with Mr Hill. The ocean-themed clay scenes were amazing! You learned so many interesting clay techniques and skills. We also visited Fr Michael in Church to practise for your First Holy Communion, which you did respectfully and thoughtfully. I’m sure you are really looking forward to your special day. In Maths, we worked on written methods of division and we started our new topic in English, which is persuasive writing.
Reading
Please read for at least twenty/thirty minutes every evening.
Remember to complete your ‘Reading Journal’ task. At the front of the journal there are activities for you to do using your current book or one you have just finished. Choose an activity, complete it in your journal (best presentation and handwriting!) and colour/highlight the square to show you have done it. Complete one activity per week.
Maths
This week’s challenge on Sumdog is based on multiplying and dividing mentally. We will have a division facts test on Monday (21.6.21).
Spelling
There will be no Sumdog spelling challenge this week, so please spend extra time learning the spellings below.
Please learn these spellings for Friday (25.6.21): If you don’t know what a word means, look it up in a dictionary or ask an adult.
We are investigating the most misspelt words.
acceptance humorous coarse resistant significance
persistent colleague bizarre irresistible intelligence
curiosity basically noticeable obligatory foreseeable
Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar (SPAG)
This week’s challenge on Sumdog (grammar section) is based on relative pronouns and adverbs. Although we have not spent time on them this week, we have done this in Year 5. I’m sure you will remember!
Have a lovely weekend Year 5.
Miss Gravili
