It is hard to believe that Christmas is here!

Last night, we had our annual Carols by Candlelight Concert. The children did a fantastic job at sharing the festive joy as they sang a range of Christmas carols and took part in a Christmas medley – it was a magical evening enjoyed by our school community. This morning, we had our Christmas church service. It was special to come together to celebrate our achievements this half term and to celebrate the story of Christmas. We then had our annual Christmas Quiz where the children worked in teams to answer a variety of questions linked to films, music and food. The quiz was enjoyed by all and won by Aylward 2.

This week, we have been finishing off all our topics alongside completing end of term assessments. The children completed English assessments: reading, spelling and grammar and punctuation. In Maths, they also completed an arithmetic and reasoning test. The children all worked really hard on these – well done!

To complete our Science topic, the children looked at the work of great naturalists: David Attenborough and Jane Goodall. They spent time finding out about their work, conservation and education programmes. The children then completed their life cycles EUQ (End of Unit Quiz).

In R.E. this week, the children thought about how the nativity story is told through Christmas carols. The children listened to Silent Night, O’ Little Town of Bethlehem and The 12 days of Christmas. They then had to select one of these carols and change parts of it to ensure it reflected the sacred meaning of Christmas. The children also took time to retell the nativity story, considering what Christians learn from this story: peace, love, hope and humility. The children then completed their EUQ, showcasing everything they have learnt throughout this topic.

We completed our RHE unit by discussing if everything we read online should be believed. The children took part in a game where four people were lying and the rest were telling the truth. The children suggested that it was easier to see who was lying when you could see them in person as they often hesitated or even in some cases, struggled to not smirk! This led us to discussing how online, it can be extremely hard to see if people are being honest as you don’t know who is behind the screen. This led us to discuss how people often portray the positive aspects of their lives but it doesn’t mean this is always how their life is. We also discussed how our behaviour can positively or negatively impact someone, depending on the choice we choose. We discussed how if someone fell, by helping them, they would feel extremely grateful, however, by laughing at them, they could feel extremely embarrassed. The children then reflected upon this unit by adding what they had learnt in green pen to the sheet they completed prior to the unit.

The children also completed their ‘Drawing: I need space’ artwork today by drawing a futuristic image on their printed background. The children’s ideas ranged from flying cars to robots living in society. The children made use of black pens and oil pastels to allow their futuristic image to stand out amongst their printed backgrounds.

Thank you for your continued support this term. The children have worked extremely hard and definitely deserve a well-earned rest.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Miss Bill

This week in English, we continued with reporting on ‘The Lighthouse’. The children analysed an exemplar newspaper, identifying the key grammar, punctuation and spelling features. They then wrote their own newspaper report before editing and re-drafting it. Next week, we will be completing end of term assessments: reading, grammar and punctuation and spelling.

In Maths, we have been adding fractions with different denominators that total more and less than 1. The children then learnt how to add to a mixed number. Again in Maths next week, the children will complete end of term assessments: arithmetic and reasoning.

This week in Science, we looked at comparing the life cycles of different animals. The children had to look at the life cycles of animals such as a dragonfly, an otter and a red lionfish. They then compared it to their partner’s animal, discussing how its reproduction and growth differed.

In Geography, the children used atlases to locate the major rivers in the UK. While doing this, the children identified that the longest river in the UK is the River Severn. We also defined the word ‘river’ and looked at their features: meander, tributary, source, mouth and delta. If the children could see these features on their map, they labelled them. They also completed their Geography EUQ.

In R.E., we continued with our unit, ‘Seeing Christmas through Music and Art’ by looking at Christmas cards. The children were able to identify how Christmas cards can be scared, featuring depictions of Jesus, Mary, Star of Bethlehem, or secular, featuring Christmas trees, presents, baubles. The children were then tasked with creating their own sacred Christmas card that depicted elements of the Christmas story.

In RHE, we listened to ‘The Land of the Red People’ which is a tale about different people coming to live together. It made us reflect on our current society and the different groups and communities within it. Like ‘The Land of the Red People’, our school has lots of different people with similarities and differences. We considered what qualities our school needs to function and ensure that nobody feels excluded. We talked about the importance of celebrating these differences. We discussed how working together can help us to not only recognise others contributions and differences but also that they help us to be a better society and person.

On Wednesday, we had a workshop from Coram Education all about e-safety. The children were on a journey through Risk Ravine, Kindness Cove, Mind Mainland, Influence Island and Digital Domain to practice how to stay safe on the online world. There was a discussion around influencers and how they appear online. They discussed how these people appear very friendly however are making money by advertising these products. The children also discussed fake news: misinformation and disinformation. Misinformation is when someone gives incorrect information but they believe it is correct. Disinformation is a deliberate lie, they know it is not true. They then discussed cross-checking against different sources to work out if it is accurate. The children used critical thinking to think carefully about information that could be presented online, to check if it was accurate information or not.

As part of this term’s ‘Faith-Based Careers’ focus, Year 5 were joined by Malcolm Cunningham, a local Pastor at Trinity West Church. Malcolm described how one of the most important qualities to have for his job is people skills, especially communication skills. He described how many people come to him for help and advice, and he needs to have these skills to work with others in the community. He described how he went to Bible College to study, which taught him the history of religion too. He also explained how every day is very different, not always having set hours.

Have a restful weekend! Please continue to encourage your children to practise their lyrics for the Christmas Carol Concert.

Miss Bill

Carols by Candlelight is rapidly approaching, and if you could all please play your part with our rehearsals by having your child/ren practise their songs, that would be greatly appreciated. PDFs of the lyrics can be found below, alongside their accompanying mp3s:

5 Blackman Song – Mary Did You Know?

5 Silverstein Song – Have You Heard the Sounds of the Angel Voices?

Finale – Silent Night

Finale – Traditional Carol Medley

Finale – Popular Medley

Year 5 have continued to be in role as journalists this week, preparing to write their own newspaper report. They began by interviewing three people from the scene of the incident: the lighthouse keeper, a local villager and the captain of the approaching ship. The children then used inverted commas to record this direct speech as well as using parenthesis to provide additional information. They then began to plan their newspaper report by noting and developing initial ideas for each paragraph.

In Maths this week, the children have continued with fractions. We have been converting improper fractions to mixed numbers and mixed numbers to improper fractions. The children also practised ordering and comparing fractions less than 1. It is vital that the children are continuing to practise their timestables knowledge as this is essential for this topic.

In Science this week, the children compared the life cycles of animals in the UK to the life cycles of animals in different countries. We looked at a woodland habitat and the animals that may be found here: field mice, woodland ant, jay and a common toad. We discussed how these animals have adapted to living in this environment having sources of food and shelter. We then compared this to other habitats across the world such as Death Valley in California, the Arctic Tundra in Russia and a Savannah in Kenya. We discussed the difficulties of living in these environments but also the adaptions animals in these habitats have made to thrive here.

We have continued to look at the UK in Geography this week. We discussed the seas and coasts of the UK. We began by defining the term ‘coastline’: where a sea or ocean meets land. We then looked at different images of coastlines in the UK (Brighton beach and pier, Watergate Bay, Newquay and Old Harry’s Rocks, Dorset) and identified geographical features: pier, chalk cliffs, erosion, headland, arch, limestone rock, rock pools, caves, bay, stack, pebble and sandy beaches. In pairs, the children annotated images of coastlines in the UK using their geographical language.

This week in R.E, we begin our new unit: Seeing Christmas through Music and Art. The children looked at sacred art. We discussed how something sacred is religious and holy, linking to a God. The children had to annotate the paintings, writing what they could see that linked to Christianity. They then wrote down the impressions that these paintings gave them of Jesus.

Yesterday in RHE, we started our lesson by playing a ‘stand up and sit down’ game depending on our similarities and differences. We reflected that everybody stood up or sat down at different times and that actually we all like different things. We then heard the story of Rosa Parks and how she was discriminated against as a black person in the U.S. in the 1950s. After the story, we discussed how she might feel: angry, sad, frustrated and scared. We then discussed different scenarios and considered how those being discriminated against might have felt in each scenario. We finished the lesson by thinking about the actions we can take to prevent discrimination and decided: being welcoming, not questioning people too much, not invading personal space, asking if you could help them with anything (should they need it) and not drawing attention to anyone in a negative light.

In Computing this week, the children used their knowledge of the SMART rules to comment on other children’s blogs that they wrote last week. We discussed how blog writing can allow people to stay in touch with friends and family abroad but it can also be an opportunity to learn about new things and ask questions to find out more.

This afternoon in Art, we continued to look at images associated with the Space Race. The children had to select an image and recreate it using different types of media. They had the opportunity to use 2B and 4B pencils, charcoal and oil pastels. They discussed how some of the media recreated their image more clearly due to the colours, lines and tone being more visible.

Have a great weekend!

Miss Bill

Another busy week in Year 5!

This week in English, we began our new unit, writing from visual media. Using the short film, ‘The Lighthouse’, the children had to use their retrieval and inference skills to report on what happened at the scene using the 5Ws (who, where, when, what and why). In this unit, the children will be writing a newspaper report and to get started with this, they used their reporter notes to create a headline and short orientation paragraph. Today, the children interviewed people from the scene and recorded notes, which they will need to use in their newspaper report.

We began fractions in Maths this week. We began by recapping that a fraction is part of a whole and reminded ourselves of the language of unit fraction, non-unit fraction, numerator and denominator. This week we have found equivalent fractions and converted an improper fraction to a mixed number. Next week, we will convert a mixed number to an improper fraction and order and compare fractions less than 1.

After looking at sexual and asexual reproduction in flowering plants, this week in Science we looked at sexual reproduction in animals. The children learnt that animals can produce offspring by internal or external fertilisation. They defined internal fertilisation as the male and female sex cell meeting in the female body and combing to fertilise and external fertilisation as a male fertilising an egg that has been laid by a female. The children then used a Carroll diagram to sort animals into the correct category based on their type of fertilisation.

In Geography, the children used an interactive topographical map to identify hills and mountains across the UK. The children were able to define that when a hill is higher than 600m, it is generally considered a mountain. The children used the topographical map to identify the tallest mountain in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. They used the recorded elevation to create a bar graph representing this data.

In R.E., we discussed the lives of those in monastic communities, particularly the lives of those in monasteries and convents. The children then unpicked what it meant to live in a community by listing the positives and negatives of being in the community we are all a part of, St Stephen’s. They then compared this to life in monastic communities and the positives and negatives associated with living in monasteries and convents. We discussed that the negatives didn’t mean it was ‘bad’ being part of this community, it just meant that there would be challenges to face and overcome. The children then completed an EUQ (End of Unit Quiz) to showcase their learning.

This week, we got creative and started our Art unit: ‘Drawing: I need space’. The children began by exploring the purpose and effect of imagery by looking at imagery from The Space Race. We discussed how it dominated popular culture at the time through art and design. The children annotated the ‘Family playing on the moon, as imagined in the 1960s’ image and wrote what they could see and what they thought the purpose of the image could be.

In RHE, we looked at how to respond respectfully to others. In groups of three, one person was the talker, the other was the listener and another was an observer. The observer had to give feedback on their listening skills. From this task, we created a list of good listening skills: eye contact, good body language, answering and asking questions.

This week in Computing, the children worked in pairs to write a blog entry. This blog entry could have been about their week, travel, fashion or even their own fictional story. Next week, the children will have the opportunity to comment on each other’s blogs, discussing the pros and cons of being able to do this, thinking carefully about our SMART rules.

Last week, was UK Parliament Week. To mark this occasion, the School Council visited the Houses of Parliament. During their trip, they visited Westminster Hall, the House of Commons and the House of Lords. They were then luckily enough to have a Q&A session with our local MP for Hammersmith and Chiswick, Andy Slaughter. Today in Collective Worship, we had the opportunity to hear the School Council share their learning. They emphasised the importance of using your voice to vote, when you are 18 years old, so all our thoughts and opinions can then be represented in the Houses of Parliament.

Have a lovely weekend!

Miss Bill

On Monday, we visited Gunnersbury Park and Museum and took park in a Victorian Classroom Workshop. As we learned about the Victorian’s last term, this was a great opportunity to reflect on our learning and build upon our understanding of this topic. At times, the Victorian teacher was quite intimidating and after this experience, we all agreed that St. Stephen’s is much better off with the rules we have for children!

In Maths this week, we completed our multiplication and division unit. The children finished this unit by completing an assessment. The children did well but must still be practising their multiplication and division recall to further support them with this learning. These are skills we will also continue to revisit in school. Next week, we will begin fractions.

This week in English, we read ‘The City of My Birth’ by London based poet, Karl Nova. We spent time analysing the poetic devices and figurative language as well as discussing what image and meaning he was trying to portray. Taking inspiration from Karl Nova, the children then wrote their own free verse poem about a place special to them. The children made great use of figurative language (onomatopoeia, similes, personification and alliteration). Next week, we will began our new unit, writing from visual media.

In Geography, the children used an atlas to locate cities on a map of the UK across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. They also used the atlas to locate towns. They then researched a city in the UK finding out population numbers, landmarks and history.

This week in R.E, the children used their research about monastic communities to create an information text. This explained that this is a community of people that often live a secluded life away from others so they can grow closer to God and not sin. Monks and nuns form part of different monastic communities around the world, worshipping and serving monasteries and nunneries.

In RHE, we considered important qualities of friendship and what damaging qualities are. This helped us revise our lesson on ‘healthy’ and ‘unhealthy’ relationships last term. We used charades to think about and identify what these qualities look like in action. We took a class vote and found that trust, being supportive and being loved were considered to be the most important qualities in our friendships. These may well change with time. After reflecting on this, some of us had suggestions on why a friendship might end and found that lacking the qualities listed above could lead to an ‘unhealthy’ relationship and the friendship falling apart.

Year 5 and 6 were also treated to a performance of Aladdin at the Lyric Theatre. They embarked on an adventure with Aladdin and Jasmine. A hilarious, high-flying adventure packed with magic, mayhem and mischief. This definitely got us all in the Christmas spirit!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Miss Bill

Another busy week in Year 5, including Parents’ Evening. It was great to meet with you all to discuss the wonderful progress your children are making.

This week, we celebrated Anti-Bullying Week at school. This year, the theme was ‘Choose Respect’. On Tuesday, we had Odd Socks Day, which gave the children the chance to show their individuality and celebrate differences. Throughout the week, the children engaged in discussions and activities focused on bullying, what it means and how we can work together to prevent it. In particular, Year 5 focused on how rumour-spreading and name calling can be bullying behaviours if they happen repeatedly.

On Monday, we honoured and remembered those who have lost their lives fighting for our country. We all held a 2 minute silence at 11.00am in our classes and had a discussion about the importance of recognising Remembrance Day. As part of this discussion, the children learnt about the relevance of the poppy and how and why it is symbolic of the day. During Collective Worship, we heard Year 6 read a selection of their remembrance poems.

In English this week, we have continued to explore different types of poetry and figurative language. We extended Malorie Blackman’s poem, ‘Cloud Busting’, by adding another verse personifying what could be seen in the sky. The children made great use of verbs to personify the object. We then looked at limericks and the rules associated with them. We identified the AABBA rhyming pattern, as well as the rules associated with syllables. The children then used the set rules identified to write their own limerick.

In Maths, we continued with multiplication and division. The children learnt about prime numbers, square numbers and cube numbers. We are now working on multiplying and dividing by 10,100 and 1000. After completing our end of unit assessment, we will be beginning fractions. It is vital that the children are continuing to practise their multiplication and division facts so they have a rapid recall to support them in their learning.

We have continued with ‘Life Cycles’ in Science this week. After looking at sexual reproduction last week, our focus was now on asexual reproduction. We looked at how strawberries, potatoes and dandelions asexually reproduce. Using the example of strawberries, the children specifically described how small shoots called ‘runners’ grow from the stem of the parent plant. Along this runner, plantlets start to develop. These plantlets then grow roots and stems, developing into new plants that are clones (genetically identical) to the parent planet.

In Geography, the children put their map skills to the test by locating the counties in England. We discussed how England is made up of different regions, and in these regions there are counties that have their own council which is responsible for education, social services and emergency services. The children were able to identify that they live in the county of Greater London.

This afternoon, Year 5 welcomed in actors from ‘The Riot Act’, who delivered an immersive, drama-based workshop on road safety. The children were in role as investigators and had to listen to witnesses from the scene of a road traffic incident: ambulance crew, a cyclist and the driver of a car who had hit a young boy. After hearing their statements, the children had to decide who was at fault for causing the incident. This session highlighted the importance of focus and concentration when crossing the road: listening and looking around you, using zebra and pelican crossings, putting your phone away and removing any headphones playing music.

Have a restful weekend,

Miss Bill

Today was our annual Hispanic Day! We began with a morning assembly, where the children sang ‘What a Wonderful World’ in Spanish. The children also watched an amazing flamenco performance by Ilusion Flamenca. During the day, each class took part in either a percussion, clapping or dance workshop and studied a Spanish speaking country, focusing on the natural world within that country. For lunch we enjoyed a Spanish feast and finally, at the end of the day, we all came back together to watch and listen to a live rumba band. In Year 5, we studied Columbia. We were very lucky to be joined by Ana and Gon, Julia’s parents, who read us a selection of Spanish poems. We then spent the day studying Columbia, specifically looking at the Amazon rainforest that stretches into Columbia. The natural world inspired our artwork as the children used printing to create poisonous dart frogs. The children then collaged their frogs amongst leaves.

This week in English, we began our new unit, poetry. The children discussed what poetry meant to them, with one child sharing, “It tells a story through the creative use of words.” We then looked at the dictionary definition and explored its meaning: ‘Literary work in which the expression of feelings and ideas is given intensity by the use of distinctive style and rhythm’. We then read, ‘Facing the Truth with Haikus’ by Malorie Blackman. We listened carefully and began to think about what the poem is about and what style of poetry it is. We identified that it was a haiku, following the pattern of 17 syllables per verse, consisting of 3 lines with 5 syllables, 7 syllables and then, 5 syllables. As a class, we then analysed sections of the poem. Yesterday, we watched Michael Rosen perform his poem, ‘No Breathing in Class’. We discussed how this performance enticed the audience due to his actions, expression and tone of voice. The children then worked in groups to perform ‘Facing the Truths with Haikus’ by Malorie Blackman.

In Maths, we began our new unit, Multiplication and Division. We started with recapping our multiples to help us find common multiples. The children were then tasked with identifying factors and then common factors. Next week, we will be looking at prime numbers, square numbers and cube numbers. It is vital that the children are continuing to practise their multiplication and division facts so they have a rapid recall to support them in their learning.

This half term in Science, we are looking at animals including humans, specifically focusing on life cycles. The children used their knowledge from Year 3 to help label the parts of a flower. The children labelled the male parts (stamen) which includes the filament and anther and the female parts (carpel) and labelled the stigma, style and ovary. The children then used lilies to help identify these parts. The children then explained the process of pollination and fertilisation to describe the process of sexual reproduction in flowering plants. Next week, we will be learning about asexual reproduction in flowering plants.

This half term, we will be doing Geography and specifically focusing on the United Kingdom. We began this week by recapping the four countries that are in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. We also revised the capitals of each of these countries. The children used their world maps in their books to help them discuss the positioning of the United Kingdom within Europe and the wider world. The children also found the main language, religion and population numbers of the UK. Next week, we will be using maps to locate the counties in England.

This half term in R.E., we focus on Christianity. We began by unpicking what life is like in a monastic community. The children discovered that a monastic community is a community of people that often live a secluded life away from others so they can grow closer to God and not sin. Monks and nuns form part of different monastic communities around the world, worshipping and serving monasteries and nunneries.

Have a restful weekend,

Miss Bill

On Monday, we kick-started Black Voices Week with a ‘Hidden Figures’ assembly by Bigfoot Education. The children joined Focus, an entertaining storyteller, on a voyage of discovery. They were transcended through time, where they were told of the fascinating stories of brilliant black British people, often omitted from National Curriculum history lessons, who have shaped our country. The children were exposed to a dynamic insight into our real British history; a history that includes black people as fundamental to creating the fabric of our society and the rich tapestry of who we are today. Year 5 then explored the life of Sarah Forbes Bonetta, who at the age of five, after being born into a Royal, West African dynasty, was taken to England and presented to Queen Victoria as a “gift” from one royal family to another. The children created a timeline of the significant events through Sarah’s life and then wrote a diary entry in first person, detailing the challenges she overcame alongside describing her success. The children discovered what a unique and admired figure in history she is, spending her life between the British royal household and her homeland in Africa.

In English this week, the children wrote their first draft of an information text about either a fennec fox or beluga whale. The children used their research well which allowed them to create interesting, factual texts. They then edited this work and wrote their final draft, focusing on included edits and working on their handwriting. Next half term, we will be doing poetry.

This week in Maths, we completed our addition and subtraction unit and finished it by completing an assessment. The children showcased their knowledge of mental strategies, column addition and subtraction, rounding to check answers, how to compare answers and find missing numbers. After half term, we will begin our next unit, multiplication and division. It is so important that the children continue to practise their timestable and division facts.

This week in Science, we looked at how gears and cogs allow a small force to have a greater effect. The children were able to explain that when the cog’s teeth meshed with another cog, this was called transmission as the force was being transmitted to the following cog, making is turn in the opposite direction. The children then completed their EUQ (End of Unit Quiz). It was clear in their knowledge that they have thoroughly enjoyed this unit.

In R.E., the children reflected upon how Jews worship and drew similarities and differences to that of Christianity. They noted how in a synagogue, men and woman sit separately, however in a most churches, the congregation can sit where they want. They also recognised that although they have different names, both religions have a holy book. The children then completed their EUQ, demonstrating all their knowledge from this half term of R.E.

This week in RHE, we reflected on our physical needs. The children then created a character and thought about how this character could feel safe, happy, maintain good mental health, feel rested and secure. We realised that our character needed to do, or experience, certain things every day to ensure their emotional needs were actively being met. The children also learnt about how tone, body language and volume can effect what we are saying in person. We identified that if we do not have the person in front of us, it is quite hard to get the full understanding from the conversation. We accessed scenarios on the SCARF website and tried using different tones in a conversation to really understand that if we don’t want to confuse people when we communicate, we need to be careful with what we say and how we say it.

It is hard to believe that the first half term of Year 5 is done. Wishing you all a restful, enjoyable half term.

Miss Bill

Today, St Stephen’s showed support for the charity ‘Show Racism the Red Card’ by raising money and wearing something red. This morning in Collective Worship, we had a conversation around what racism is and how these behaviours cannot be tolerated. We discussed the contribution we can make to ensure society is an inclusive place to be. We all agreed that we need to work hard to respect everyone and stand up to racism when we see it in order to ensure that every single person in this school, and society, feels safe, respected and loved. This is not a one off day for us. We know that every single person has a responsibility to help stand up to racism.  Next term, we look forward to spending a whole unit in Relationships and Health Education on ‘Valuing Difference’.

Throughout this week in English, we have been using our research of beluga whales and fennec foxes to write sentences using relative clauses, practise our use of commas to avoid ambiguity and also analysed an exemplar information text. Next week, we will use this knowledge to write our own information text for our chosen animal.

This week in Maths, we have continued with our addition and subtraction unit by using inverse operations, rounding to check answers and completing multi-step addition and subtraction problems.

This week in Science, we looked at how pulleys and levers allow a small force to have a greater effect. We made our own catapults and placed a rubber on the lever. We used a small force to push down the lever, which built up energy. When the lever was released, this energy converted to a motion and our load (a rubber) catapulted across the air. We concluded that the more the lever was bent, the further the load would travel as more energy had built up.

In History this week, the children explored some of the activities that The Victorians did during their leisure time. We identified that there are a lot of similarities to leisure activities that people take part in today; however, the main difference is that during the Victorian Era, these activities were only available to the wealthy. The children acted out watching a Punch and Judy show, going to the seaside and visiting a circus. The children finished by completing their History EUQ (End of Unit Quiz).

In R.E. this week, we looked at how Jews worship in a synagogue. We watched a video which took us on a tour through a London synagogue, highlighting the important features. We discussed the Ner Tamid, Ark, which stores the Torah scrolls, as well as the bimah, where the Cantor and Rabbi stand.

In RHE, we learned about the word assertive. We discussed how there will probably be times in the future where our friends try to make us do something we do not want to do. In order to maintain healthy relationships and keep ourselves safe, being assertive is a skill we need to learn. The children learnt that being assertive is using firm language and being confident, while remaining calm and respectful. We used role play to practise being assertive by making eye contact, using firm language and remaining confident. We learnt that being assertive does not mean being rude or aggressive. We discussed that there is no need to apologise for being assertive, it is an important life skill, which will come in handy one day!

Today, was DT day, where the children made their doodlers! They wrote their equipment list, material list and circuit components before then writing their method. They used their method to help them construct their doodlers. The children were delighted to see their doodler move, although the movement at times was very slight. They have brought the base of their doodler home with them.

Have a restful, enjoyable weekend!

Miss Bill

Yesterday, we celebrated World Mental Health Day by wearing yellow in support of YoungMind’s ‘Hello Yellow’ fundraiser. After a special Collective Worship, we used our RHE lesson to discuss the difference between mental and physical health as well as the importance of looking after our mental health like we do for our physical health. To support our mental health, we created positive affirmation cards that we can read at the start of every day to help promote a positive mindset.

This week in English, we began our new unit: Information Texts. The children began by completing a reading comprehension all about fishing. They used a range of their VIPER reading skills to comprehend the text. The children then looked at a range of information texts and had to identify the features. They identified headings, sub-headings, paragraphs, factual language, statistics etc. Today, the children began to gather research, either choosing between a Fennec Fox or a Beluga Whale, for their own information text, which they will be writing next week.

In Maths this week, we have begun our new unit: Addition and Subtraction. So far, we have looked at mental strategies, column addition and column subtraction. It would be great if the children could still practise their recall of addition and subtraction facts, alongside their timestables, to support them with their learning in Maths.

This week’s force was water resistance. Each week in Science, the children continue to showcase how much they are learning as they discuss and recap the previously taught forces. Having investigated air resistance using parachutes of different sizes, we found that objects travelling through water face a similar resisting force which slows them down. The children were presented with a statement: ‘The flatter an object, the less water resistance there will be’ and were asked to prove or disprove this statement. They used tall cylinders of water and two pieces of blue tack. They then timed how long it took for the blue tack to fall to the bottom of the cylinder when it was round and then when it was flattened. This allowed us to see how the object’s shape affected the water resistance pushing against it. The children gathered their results and began to draw conclusions.

In R.E., the children learnt about the Jewish day of rest, Shabbat. We watched a video of a Jewish family celebrating Shabbat. From watching the video, in small groups, the children had to act out a tradition or ritual that formed part of Shabbat, or happens on the day before, and the rest of the group had to identify what it was. From this, the children then considered any similarities between Jewish Shabbat and Christian Sabbath. Apart from them being on different days, the children were able to draw many similarities, such as, celebrating with their family, visiting the religious place of worship (synagogue or church) and reading from the holy text.

This afternoon in DT, the children ‘met the doodlers’. As a class, we experimented with a ready-made doodler. The children carried out a ‘product analysis’ to really think about the components and their purposes. They then took the doodler apart to see the effect of their amendments. As a class, we discussed what could be done to make the structure stronger and more stable. We also discussed what steps could be taken to make it even better.

Have a lovely weekend!

Miss Bill

I’m sure you are all feeling very proud of your children after Silverstein delivered an amazing class assembly yesterday! After lots of hard work and practise, the children showcased their excellent acting talents alongside their beautiful singing voices as they took us on a journey through Ancient Greek myths.

This week, the children showed off their creative talents. After planning their creation myth on Monday, they wrote the first draft of their creation myth on Tuesday. I was amazed by the children’s use of language, relative clauses and parenthesis. There are definitely some authors in the making! The children then edited their marked work and checked they had met the success criteria. Once edited, they wrote the final draft of their creation myths, including their edits and ensuring their handwriting was increasing legible, joining those letters that should and leaving those that should not be joined. Silverstein’s fantastic creation myths can be found in our ‘Published Work Folder’ in the reading corner. Next week, we will begin our new unit, ‘Information Texts’.

The children also showcased their excellent place value knowledge this week. As we completed our place value unit, the children completed an assessment. We were impressed with the children’s knowledge and will continue to utilise this understanding in our other maths units in Year 5. Next week, we will began addition and subtraction.

In History this week, the children looked at Victorian inventions. They already knew about the Bessemer Converter, Steam Locomotive and Spinning Jenny but found out about other inventions of the time: flushing toilets, post boxes, stamps, typewriters and vacuums, just to name a few. The children then had to consider which inventions they felt were the most important and why.

In RHE this week, we talked about what makes a good friendship by looking at a famous friendship. We chose Harry, Ron and Hermione from Harry Potter and identified that their friendships were filled with negotiation, support, responsibility, teamwork, collaboration, kindness and creativity. We then considered what makes an unhealthy relationship and found that: lying, threats, lots of jealousy, fickleness and forcing someone to do something they do not want to, does not make a good friend. Following this, we then created our own recipe for a healthy relationship using some of the features we listed above.

This afternoon in RE, the children learnt about the Jewish holy book, The Torah. the children drew similarities to the bible as The Torah contains the first five books of Moses like the Old Testament of the Bible.

On Wednesday, St Stephen’s came together to celebrate Harvest Festival. We gave thanks for all we have and also prayed for those less fortunate than us. The children brought in very generous donations, which have now been sent to the Upper Room charity.

Have a restful weekend,

Miss Bill

Another busy week in Year 5!

The children began the week by practising their dictionary skills in English to find the meaning of high level vocabulary. The children created a glossary, which they can utilise next week when writing their own creation myth. The children also completed a reading comprehension, which focused on their inference, explanation and retrieval skills, and had a grammar focus lesson on parenthesis too.

In Maths this week, the children have partitioned numbers to 1,000,000, compared and ordered numbers to 1,000,000 and rounded numbers to the nearest 10, 100 and 1,000. We will continue to practise rounding next week before we complete our Place Value assessment. Our next unit is, ‘Addition and Subtraction’.

The children are thoroughly enjoying learning about forces and the practical experiments that we have been doing. This week, we learned about air resistance. We know that the force of gravity pulls everything towards the centre of the Earth, however, the children pointed out that people do jump out of aeroplanes (parachutists) and they can control the speed at which they hit the Earth. Through our experiment, we learned that the parachute creates air resistance that acts against gravity to help slow the fall.

In History, we looked at life in Victorian Slums. The children used sources to learn about how people in Victorian Britain lived their lives. They discovered that the slums were a breeding ground for disease because of open sewers, privies and cramped conditions.

In RHE, we talked about the role of a friend. We acted out different emotions in partners. One child had to act out an emotion and the other one had to respond, first in an uncaring manner and then in a caring manner. We discussed the different scenarios as a class and then identified the most appropriate, kind and caring reaction as a friend. We then created a list of the key qualities of friendship. We then talked about what makes a friendship positive and healthy by discussing some of our own, as well as ‘famous friendships’. We chose Harry, Ron and Hermione from the Harry Potter series and identified that their friendships were filled with negotiation, support, responsibility, teamwork, collaboration, kindness and creativity.

We have also been spending time practising our class assembly. If your child has not yet brought in their costume, this must be brought in on Monday. We can’t wait to share this with you.

Have a lovely weekend!

Miss Bill

In English this week, the children were introduced to relative clauses. We created main clauses and then used a relative clause to give more information about the noun. The children were able to identify how a relative clause is similar to a subordinate clause but must contain a relative pronoun. They wrote a descriptive paragraph about Pandora’s Box using relative clauses. We also revised the use of inverted commas, ensuring they were used accurately and consistently. Today, the children were introduced to their exemplar myth, ‘The Myth of Colour’. They analysed the text and identified a range of spelling, punctuation and grammar features.

We have been working extremely hard on our handwriting. This week we looked at forming long ladder letters. The children have been really aware of then applying this letter formation into their writing across all subjects.

In Maths, we have continued to work on our place value, reading and writing numbers to 1,000,000, finding 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000 and 100,000 more or less than a number and partitioned numbers to 1,000,000. This week’s Mathletics tasks will allow the children to practise these skills.

This week in R.E, we continued to learn about Jewish artefacts. After looking at a range of artefacts last week, the children then selected four to focus on and had to describe what its purpose was and how Jews use the artefact to help them practise their faith.

We continued with The Victorians in History this week by looking at the Industrial Revolution. We analysed pictures from the past, as well as reading information recorded from the time. Using this, we then recorded the positive and negative impacts of the Industrial Revolution on Britain. The Slave Trade, Child Labour and factory deaths formed many of the negatives, however, the children were able to recognise the positive impact inventions such as the Steam Locomotive and Spinning Jenny had on the production of goods.

In Science, the children looked at another force, friction. The children conducted a fair test by using three different surfaces, a newton meter and a weighted object to discover that the smoother the surface, the less friction therefore the easier it is for the object to move. The rougher or bumpier the surface, the more friction, which meant more effort and strength was required to move the object.

In RHE, we discussed encountering conflicts/problems and how best we overcome them. We then read about friends who were dealing with difficult situations and had to advise them on how to deal with the situation. This helped the children consider that in order to resolve a problem we need to listen, be polite, forgive and ask for forgiveness as well as understanding when it is important to say sorry. We then talked about the importance of negotiation and compromise.

This half term in DT, we will be making doodlers. This week, the children looked at other motorised products. We discussed how a motorised product has a circuit with a flow of electrical energy going to the motor. We looked at how a motorised whisk works: the electrical energy was being converted into rotational movement by the motor. Next week, the children will ‘meet the doodlers’.

Have a restful weekend and enjoy the sunshine!

Miss Bill

Please see the notices below:

Homo Viator X Noiasape – FREE Art workshops for Y5-6 students.

Willow Art are curating an Art exhibition entitled Homo Viator at Noiascape High Street House in Askew Road from 10th – 24th October.

As part of the exhibition, Willow Art & Noiascape are running a series of FREE 70 minute painting workshops on Saturday 19th October. We are inviting local schools/parents to provide 10 Year 5-6 pupils with an interest in visual art to attend the workshops.

The workshops will delve into local folklore and storytelling, creating a rich dialogue between art and community.

Workshops:

The workshops are held at 83 Askew Road, London W12 9A

Each workshop will be attended by 2 of the exhibiting artists and DBS-checked supervisors from Willow Art and Noiascape.

St Stephen’s workshop is at 1pm.

The workshops will involve painting and drawing. All drawing materials are provided. Children should come in old clothes that they can paint in. There is a toilet on site, and we can provide water for the children.

Parents can drop their children off from 12.50pm and pick them up at 2.10pm or are welcome to remain in the building (which is WI-FI enabled) whilst their children carry out the workshop.

The work the children produce will be used to contribute to a small exhibition in the gallery space. There will be a photographer on site during the event to record the workshop. If you do not want your child photographed, please inform a member of staff on arrival.

WORKSHOP 2 – St. Stephen’s School

Date: Sat 19/10/2024, 1pm

Location: Noiascape, High Street House, 83 Askew Road, London W12 9AH

Participating Artists: Jan Valik & Yifan Jiang

Updated Theme: The Flow We Share, The Waves We Feel

Medium: Indian Ink 2 x 1000ml, water, brushes, cloths, watercolour paper, watercolour tubes, pigments

Structure: The workshop explores ideas connected to fluidity working with water based media

For further information and to book your child’s space (on a first come first served basis), please contact Mrs Wordsworth – l.wordsworth@ststephensce.lbhf.sch.uk

Please find details below of two singing groups run by the Tri Borough music hub.

Our First Voices choir (years 1-2) is a group for children who love singing and enjoy taking part in performances. The students learn fun songs, rounds and musical games, as well as increasing their confidence when performing and developing fundamental musical skills.

Our Junior Voices choir (years 3-6) is a non-auditioned ensemble where students learn and perform music from a range of musical styles and through various teaching styles, including notation. The students develop key musicianship and performance skills, whilst engaging in regular performance opportunities throughout the year .For more details please follow the link below.

Registration – Tri-borough Music Hub (speedadmin.dk)

You can also contact Evie directly via email (evie.asio@rbkc.gov.uk) if you would like to discuss further.

Our second week in Year 5 has been crammed full of lots new learning, beginning lots of exciting topics!

After completing an initial reading and spelling assessment, we then began our English unit for this half term: Myths. In groups, the children read a given myth: Jason and the Golden Fleece, King Midas and the Golden Touch, Orpheus and Eurydice, Theseus and the Minotaur and Pandora’s Box. After hearing everyone’s myth, as a class we considered what these mythical stories had in common and made a features checklist in order to ensure that the myths we will create follow a similar style. We also used Theseus and the Minotaur to practise our reading skills, using each of our VIPERS. We ended the week with a drama lesson. The children thoroughly enjoyed getting into character as they acted out Pandora’s Box.

The children were put into their Maths classes this week and began their first unit of work: Place Value. So far, we have looked at Roman numerals to 1,000 and numbers to 10,000. Next week, the children will look at numbers to 100,000 and 1,000,000. This knowledge is crucial for the rest of the units we will complete in Maths.

The Victorians is our focus in History this half term. The children learnt all about the life of Queen Victoria and the impact she had on Britain. Many of the children recognised famous paintings of Queen Victoria wearing black. We discussed how many people then had the impression that she was a rather unfriendly, grumpy character. The children were therefore surprised to learn about her dedication to her country and her popularity in Britain during the 19^th century.

This half term in Science, we will be looking at Forces. On Wednesday, we began by looking at gravity. The children were able to define gravity as the force that pulls an object to the centre of the Earth. Through an experiment, we were able to test whether the weight of an object would effect the size of a crater left in the Earth. The children discovered that the heavier the object, the bigger the crater due to the weight impacting upon the gravitational pull, pulling it down to Earth more quickly.

This half term in R.E., the children will be studying Judaism and what it is like to live as a Jew. Each table were given different Jewish artefacts and as a group, had to discuss: What could it be called? What is it used for? What would the equivalent Christian artefact be? The children were then introduced to the names of these Jewish artefacts and explored what it was like to live as a Jew by considering how they are used in practise.

In Computing, we created a poster using the acronym S.M.A.R.T., which stands for Safety, Meeting, Accepting, Reliable and Tell. These words were prompts to help us remember how to stay safe and enjoy the internet responsibly.

In our first RHE lesson, we learned about the word ‘collaborate’ which means to work together. We worked in groups of 6 and had six pieces of newspaper and a roll of tape. In groups, we had to work together to construct the tallest tower. We realised we had to negotiate, discuss, listen, respect and be patient in order to work together. We learned that shouting over one another achieved very little and made us feel frustrated and unhappy!

The children have settled well into their first Gymnastics, Music and P.E. lessons and look forward to all that is to learn in these subjects throughout Year 5.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Miss Bill

It was great to welcome the children back to school after a well-deserved summer break.

The children appear to have settled back into school life quite quickly. This week, we have looked at our class rules (Be Safe, Be Ready, Be Respectful), our class poet (Sheldon Silverstein) and completed a portfolio about our family heritage. The children also showcased their excellent artistic skills when they completed their self-portrait.

We look forward to next week and getting to know the children even better and seeing all they have to showcase!

Have a lovely weekend!

Miss Bill