Year 5
Week beginning 9th February 2026
Our project for this half-term is Space and Earth.
Year 5 have continued to build on their learning this week, showing great enthusiasm across the curriculum. The children have worked hard on their non-chronological reports in English, producing clear and well-structured writing, and have impressed us with their creativity in art through thoughtful line drawing and layering techniques. In science, they deepened their understanding of space, learning about stars, planets and how objects move within our solar system, while also applying important geographical skills using maps and grid references.
We would also like to say a huge thank you to Miss Colyer, who had her final day on Friday – thank you for all your hard work, dedication and the positive impact you have had on the children. 💫
As a year group, we have agreed a small number of clear rules to help create a calm, safe and respectful learning environment for all children. These expectations are designed to support learning, wellbeing and consistency across the year group.
The agreed rules are:
1. We will stay in the classroom unless an adult comes to get us.
2. We will talk at the right times.
3. We will stay in our seats unless we have permission to get up.
4. We will never use violent or threatening behaviour or language.
These rules have been introduced to ensure that we are setting high expectations for the children, with safety always being our top priority. The children have been spoken to about these expectations and understand why they are important for everyone.
As always, we recognise that there are sensible exceptions, such as emergencies or medical toilet passes, and children have been reassured about this. By getting the small things right every day, we believe this will naturally lead to bigger successes—supporting positive behaviour, readiness to learn and a respectful atmosphere where everyone can thrive.
Thank you for your continued support as we work together to maintain high standards and keep all children safe.
Important dates and messages:
Key Dates
The calendar section on the website lists all major events throughout the academic year, but here are some reminders:
- Friday 13th February - Break up for half term @ 3pm
- Monday 23rd February - Return to school for term 4
- Thursday 5th March - World Book Day
- Thursday 26th March - Mediterranean Class Worship
- Friday 27th March - Break up for Easter holidays @ 1:20pm
- Monday 13th April - Return for the summer term
- Monday 4th May - Bank holiday
- Friday 22nd May - Break up for half term @ 3pm
- Monday 1st June - Staff INSET day
- Tuesday 2nd June - Children return for term 6
- Thursday 11th June 2026 - School’s 170th Birthday
- Friday 19th June 2026 - Sports Day at King’s Park Stadium
- Saturday 27th June - St. James’ Summer Fayre
- Wednesday 22nd July - Break up for summer holidays @ 1:20pm
Worship theme:
Love - Valentine’s Day 14th February.
Relationship with Others
What is the greatest commandment that Jesus gave us?
Jesus said “Love the Lord your God and Love your Neighbour as yourself”. Mark 12:31
What does God say about relationships?
1 Peter 4:8: “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins." Ephesians 5:21: “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ." Ephesians 4:32: “Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you."
Curriculum
This week, Year 5 will continue to immerse themselves in our space topic while also taking part in a range of enriching activities.
In English, the children will explore blackout poetry, developing creativity and thoughtful word choices, alongside reading comprehension and spelling work.
In Maths, pupils will consolidate their understanding of multiplication and division, using both practical resources and written methods to strengthen confidence and accuracy.
Science learning will be brought to life through an exciting visit to the science dome, where children will deepen their understanding of the movement of the moon and its orbit around the Earth.
RE lessons will focus on personal application within our Buddhism unit, encouraging reflection and deeper thinking.
The children will also enjoy creative opportunities in Art, layering planets using mixed media, and continue their Coding unit in Computing by learning about functions.
Forest School sessions, Children’s Mental Health Week activities, online safety discussions, and a visit from a jazz music group will all add to what promises to be a busy, engaging and inspiring final week, full of curiosity, creativity and fantastic learning. 🚀🌙
Other news:
-
PPA Days - PPA Days will be every other Tuesday, and children should come in wearing PE kits.
- PE every Thursday - Children should wear their PE kits every Tuesday.
Homework:
- Please find links to the relevant information below for the Project Overview and Homework.
- MyMaths - We will set up MyMaths tasks termly, based on the learning we will be doing this term. Please let us know if you are finding them too easy or tricky, and remember that below, there are many resources you can use to extend your learning from home. Various MyMaths activities have will be set for this term. This is to allow children who like to do more to be able to. However, children do not have to complete all the MyMaths activities. One per week is our minimum recommendation.
- Reading books - we would like to remind everyone to have a reading book in school - this can be a school or home book. We want all children to be able to share recommendations and reviews of what we have read recently. We display books we've read in the classroom to get children talking about the stories they love and inspire others to try new titles.
- Reading records - All children should now have a grey reading record in which they can record how often they are reading. They will receive one raffle ticket if they read three times a week and two if they read more than five. At the end of each term, we will draw a raffle to win a trip to Costa. You have to be in it to win it! Activities in the reading records can be completed at home for fun!
Reading:
This term, we are reading The Jamie Drake Equation. We will be using Designated Reader sentence stems to support our written answers. Each lesson focuses on a different reading skill, including inferring, predicting, questioning, evaluating, clarifying, summarising and making connections.
Spellings:
Our spellings for this term are below. However, we are moving away from weekly tests, using more discreet learning techniques, and applying our spelling words across our curriculum.
|
|
Week 1 |
Week 2 |
Week 3 |
Week 4 |
Week 5 |
|
|
debt |
autumn |
island |
Knowledge |
align |
|
doubt |
column |
isle |
Known |
assign |
|
|
lamb |
hymn |
debris |
Knife |
design |
|
|
subtle |
solemn |
aisle |
Knight |
reign |
|
|
climb |
condemn |
viscount |
Knocked |
resign |
|
|
gnaw |
|||||
|
Silent b |
Silent n |
Silent s |
Silent k K is usually silent when it precedes ‘n’. |
Silent g |
Best wishes,
Year 5 Team
Miss Martin and Miss Perry
Learning as a family in Jesus, through Love, Hope, and Forgiveness.
Matthew 19:26: “With God all things are possible.”
