RE: Year 5 Autumn Term

Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

Your child has just started Year 5 and has been assigned to St Joseph’s class for the year. As your child’s class teacher, I will have the pleasure of working with both you and your child to ensure that the termly academic and behavioural targets are achieved and a solid foundation for learning is laid before your child progresses to Year 6. I hope that we can work collaboratively to ensure that your child can both benefit fully from the learning activities and reach their potential across all subject areas in the curriculum.

As the new school year begins, the children will have a busy schedule across all subject areas. Each lesson will encourage the children to become cognitively active in their learning through the De Bono Six Thinking Hats strategy (http://www.debonogroup.com/six_thinking_hats.php) and through the cultivating of a Habit of Mind (www.habitsofmind.co.uk/) in each lesson. You can learn more about these initiatives by asking your child or following the web links provided. The application of these thinking skills will enable the children to engage in higher order learning and equip them with the tools to become independent learners.

In Religious Education, the children will familiarise themselves with the Paschal Mystery and the Sacramental Nature of the Church. In the first half of the term we will cover the topic ‘Beginning With God’. In the second half of the term the children will remember the Holy Souls, learn about the Jewish faith from a Catholic perspective and prepare themselves spiritually for the celebration of Christmas.

Literacy lessons will centre on perfecting the punctuation and grammar expected of year 5 pupils. The pupils will learn how to recount a story with clarity of expression and develop their ability to write clear, concise instructions. A range of comprehension texts will be studied across the term with a particular focus being paid to the reading of myths and legends of many cultures around the world. The students will also be exposed to a selection of poems to foster a positive attitude towards reading. You can encourage a love of reading in your children at home by discussing the texts they are reading in school or making family trips to the local library.

The learning taking place in maths classes this term will lay the foundation for attainment in numeracy for the remainder of the year. Students will polish and extend their current skills in addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. The concept of place value as well as geometry will be also explored over the course of the term. You can support your child’s learning in numeracy lessons by prompting them to apply the lesson content to everyday situations.

Learning experiences in science this term will be out of this world. The students are set to learn about the earth, sun, moon and other planets in the solar system. Answers to

questions such as why the tide draws in at night and why the moon appears to change shape will be unravelled during the first half of the term.

The Ancient Mayan Civilisation will be studied in history classes this term. The students will step back in time to discover how the ancient Mayan children lived and draw comparisons and contrasts between life then and now.

For our D&T topic this term, we will be focusing on sewing skills. The children will be creating a section a Mayan wall hanging. We will sew Mayan letters using different sewing techniques.

Throughout the different Art lessons, the children will be improving their sketching skills and use of mixing different colours. They will create a piece of artwork based on Mayan architecture and use pastels to create a dramatic effect. The children will then use glass paints to create glass paintings of a Mayan god or goddess. We will also be focusing on the works by Henri Rousseau.

In ICT, the children will be learning about internet safety and using child-friendly search engines to research information on topics in history. The students will learn how to format their research into a presentable document complete with images and charts.

The topic of ‘New beginnings’ will be unpacked in SEAL classes. It will enable the students to build good relationships with their classmates and set high standards for their behaviour and for their schoolwork.

The students in St Joseph have the privilege of taking part in the Enfield Sings project this term. They will be taught by a specialist music teacher how to sing a range of songs with a concert scheduled to take place before the end of term in which the students can showcase their hard work.

St Joseph will be attending swimming sessions on Monday. Please ensure your child has the correct kit for this including: costume/shorts, towel and swimming cap. P.E. will take place on Tuesday . The children will be learning and taking part in different games to build team work skills such as tag rugby and hockey. In addition, please ensure that your child has the correct P.E. gear in school for every lesson.

All children are expected to read for 20 minutes at home at least 5 times a week and have an adult sign their reading record confirming that this reading has taken place on a daily basis . Children must bring in their reading record books every day, and they will be checked every Wednesday to ensure that the 5 times-a-week reading has taken place.

Maths, English and RE homework will be set each week on Wednesday with a due date of the following Monday, day in which it will be marked. The children will also have to complete some Mental Maths questions, spellings and handwriting sheets. There may be occasions when the children are asked to complete a further piece for from another subject area.

I hope to have your support for the above arrangements and I am more than happy to discuss these with you at any time before or after school. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me via the School Office.

Looking forward to working with you,

__________________________________________

Mr Pablo Casares