Autumn 1
English
Our stimulus for writing in Autumn 1 will be 'The Canal’- a warning tale full of action. To support our understanding, we will be reading ‘Kensuke’s Kingdom’, the Children’s Book Award-winning novel by Michael Morpurgo. Set on a desert-island, it is an adventure about friendship, trust and humanity.
Our Grammar focus for the term will be to develop our understanding and range of narrative tenses, as well as increasing our range of vocabulary to describe character. We will also focus on writing dialogue. Learning to edit and attention to neat, cursive handwriting will play a crucial role in this too.
Vocabulary: narrative, character, setting, atmosphere, action, dialogue, word class, noun phrase, noun, adjective, verb, modal verb, adverb, adverbial, preposition, conjunction, co-ordinating clause, co-ordinating conjunction, subordinate clause, subordinating conjunction, causal conjunction, inverted commas
Guided Reading - Reading for Inference
We will use a variety of texts - both fiction and non-fiction - about to enable us to apply our learning to a range of question types, and to make links between different books and our own growing general knowledge. We will use text annotation as a method of exploring a text, and will build on our retrieval and inference reading skills. In order to support your child with both their grammar and reading at home, please use the following links:
https://gb.education.com/games/grammar/
http://www.eslgamesworld.com/members/games/grammar/index.html
Maths
This term, we will start our Maths journey with Place Value. We will also further our Maths fluency by working closely on our Addition and Subtraction, and Multiplication and Division skills. Times tables and generating new facts from those known will be a focus within our morning task time. It is imperative that pupils are able to recall these facts in order to access the Year 5 curriculum thoroughly. We will be using Number and Lightning as the basis of our knowledge to support our arithmetic skills. Pupils will be taught operations in depth, and will be tasked with using these in a variety of different contexts.
Vocabulary: number, place value, addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, digit, numeral, column
In order to support your child with their times table knowledge at home and with arithmetic in general, please use the following links:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/subjects/z826n39
Science: Forces
Our Science learning in Autumn 1 will focus on the forces of gravity, friction, air resistance, and water resistance. We will plan, investigate and evaluate experiments on these forces. We will also use learn about using smaller forces for greater effects.
Vocabulary: force, contact force, friction, motion, air resistance, drag, parachute, streamline, independent variable, dependent variable, controlled variable, repeatability, precision, surface area, anomalous result, gravity, weight, contact force, non-contact force, lever, gear, pulley, machine
History: Anglo Saxon Britain
The children will learn where the Anglo-Saxons originated from and when they lived in Britain. They will also learn why they chose to make Britain their home. They will learn about artefacts that show us more about Anglo-Saxon life, including the Sutton Hoo burial site. We will complete local history research about Hereward the Wake.
Vocabulary: Picts, Scots, pillaged, Saxons, Germanic, Jutes, Angles, North Sea, pleas, Anglo-Saxons, battle-axe, throwing axe, Frankish, axe head, Britons, legends, overcome, migrating, migrate, chief, garnet, Sri Lanka, grave, goods, conclude, amber, buckle, artefacts, high-born, nobleman, noblewomen, high-status, glassware, settle their differences, compensation, status, ranks, widowed, Augustine, overlord, Canterbury, monasteries, monks, scholarship, Bede Hilda, missionary, missionaries, Columba, Easter, Synod of Whitby, Cynethryth, authority, Charters Offa, worn on security, barrier, Offa’s Dyke, abbey abbess, trowel, unearthing, self-taught, earthen mounds, rivet, meandering, silverware, helmet, decomposed
Religion and Worldviews: Standing up for our beliefs
In our Religion and Worldviews learning this term, we focus on the Big Question: Why do people have to stand up for what they believe in? Looking at belief from both religious and non-religious viewpoints, we will learn how people in our communities, countries and the world at large have different beliefs. We will learn what freedom looks like. We will also discover how beliefs have been challenged in the past. We will discuss how we can stand up for our beliefs, and how light can be used to represent this stance.
Vocabulary: religion, worldview, agnostic, atheist, theist, denomination, oppression, persecution, discrimination, religious freedom, divine authority, emperor, guru, martyr, ordained, religious stereotype
PE – Hockey & Netball
In Hockey, we will be learning the key skills and tactics required within field hockey. We will play competitive matches with plastics sticks, in addition to practicing using wooden sticks in non-competitive situations.
In Netball, we will be learning the key skills and tactics required within netball. Some children will be picked to represent Norwood in the KS2 Netball tournament.
Vocabulary: stick, ball, pass, shoot, dribble, goal, forehand, attack, defend, position, transition, footwork, space, movement, communication
RSE and PSHE: Families and Relationships
In PSHE, we will be thinking about families and relationships, developing an understanding of families, including marriage and what to do if someone in our family feels unsafe. We will also learn about friendship, as well as exploring the impact of bullying and what influences a bully’s behaviour. We will learn about appreciating our individual positive attributes.
Vocabulary: friend, friendship, ups and downs, solution, strengthened, wedding, marriage, choice, religion, legal, lifelong, attributes, proud, skills, self-respect, family, help, support, bullying, bystander, cyberbullying, victim, unkind, gender, stereotype, equality, race, religion, discrimination, racism.
Art and Design - Drawing – I need space
Children will be exploring retrofuturism, developing skills in evaluating images and creating art through various drawing processes, including collagraph printmaking.
Vocabulary: abstract, composition, mono print, ornate, pattern, plaque, representation, shading, sketch, symbolism
Music: Blues
In Music, our focus is on 'Blues', learning about its history, musical composition using chords and 12- bar blues.
Vocabulary: Blues, chord, bar, 12-bar Blues, scale, beat, notes, ascending, descending, improvisation.
Key dates:
3.9.25 – Term starts
9.9.25 – Genes for Jeans day
23.10.25 – Halloween disco
24.10.25 – Halloween lunch
24.10.25 – Term ends