Welcome to Year 5; below you will find details of the children’s learning for each curriculum area.

Book List

Year 5 Book List – a selection of books from this list will be studied in English and reading lessons in year five.

Autumn 1 Learning: Maya History and American Society

Exciting learning this half term includes using our exploration skills to learn about the Maya civilisation, from reading different sources of information to analysing evidence. Within our English and reading lessons, we will be learning about significant moments within American history, such as the Roaring Twenties, Civil Rights and 9/11. Through this, the children will understand and appreciate how society looked and acted in the not-so-distant past. The children will receive a visit from Chemistry with Cabbages, who will teach each class about acids, alkalis and chemical reactions using red cabbage! This will enrich and expand the children’s knowledge and understanding of our science topic.

English	Mathematics	Religious Education	Science
Computing	Design Technology	History	Music
Physical Education	Physical Education	PSHE	Spanish

Autumn 2 Learning: Exploring Space and South America

This half term, we are going out of this world! Our science provides us with such exciting learning, like exploring Space and all the planets in our solar system. To enhance our learning, we have a visit from a scientist who specialises in Space. Slightly closer to home, but still quite a distance, in geography, we will be studying the continent of South America! From Rio de Janiero to Angel Falls, the children will explore the human and physical features of such a diverse part of our earth. In Art & Design, we will be studying the work of Brazilian artist Beatrice Milhazes who will inspire us in creating our own abstract art. As well as this, we will be having a workshop with The Lowry to further understand Beatrice’s artwork.

English	Mathematics	Religious Education	Science
Art & Design	Geography	Physical Education	PHSE
Spanish

Spring 1 Learning: The Tudors and Black History

We are going back in time this half term. Our history topic allows us to explore The Tudor reign in Britain and specifically Henry VIII’s relationship with the church and how that changed over time. Within our English and reading texts, we will be building on our learning from Autumn 1 and continuing to consider the history of black people throughout Britain and America. In English, our text will be a story of hope within the confines of slavery in America, while in reading we exploring a non-fiction text called ‘Black and British’, which will delve into usually untold history of black people within British history. We shall also welcome an expert visitor to explain bodily changes throughout puberty.

English	Mathematics	Religious Education	Science
Art & Design	Computing	History	Physical Education
Physical Education	PSHE	Spanish

Spring 2 Learning: Working Scientifically

Spring Two will be an exciting term full of investigation, creativity and exploration. Pupils will plunge into the world of rivers; the children will explore the features of rivers and identify the significant rivers of the world. Within English and reading lessons, we will explore the works of the prominent British author, poet and playwright, Michael Morpurgo. The pupils will read the myths of Beowulf and the legend of Sir Gawain. During D.T lessons, Pupils will turn their hands to the world of cookery; we will be creating Spanish-inspired bread! In computing, we will be taking part in a coding workshop to improve and refine our skills.

English	Mathematics	Religious Education	Science
Computing	Design & Technology	Geography	Music
Physical Education	Physical Education	PSHE	Spanish

Summer 1 Learning: Revolutionary Structures

To start our Summer term, we will be transported back over a hundred years in our English and reading lessons as we’ll be learning about the most famous ship in history – The Titanic! Our English text, Kaspar: Prince of Cats, will follow a fictional story of a young boy who finds himself stowing away on the “unsinkable” ship, whilst we will be building our historical knowledge in our reading time by studying a non-fiction text based on the infamous event. In R.E., we will be learning about the religious festival of Pentecost and why St Paul is a key person in Christianity. Pupils will be inspired to think creatively in D&T as we study different types of bridges with the aim to build their own structure in groups – will they reinforced enough to remain standing? 

English	Mathematics	Religious Education	Science
Computing	Design & Technology	History	Physical Education
Physical Education	PSHE	Spanish

Summer 2 Learning: Staying Safe

As we enter our final half-term in Year 5, the exciting and memorable learning does not stop! In our PSHE lessons, pupils will learn ways to boost their mood and improve emotional wellbeing. We will need to cast our minds back to our Space topic in Autumn 2 during our English lessons as our final text is a retelling of the story of how the Mars Rover (Curiosity) was created and launched on its mission. Geography will have us exploring our local area and contemplating if Warrington really does meet the needs of all its people. We will be taking a trip to explore Warrington town centre on the bus and identifying key places that are necessary for its residents. As we study public art, pupils will critique and evaluate the work of famous artists, such as Magdalene Odundu, and the message behind their creations. Pupils will learn that visual language has been used throughout history and that they can convey messages – even through creating their own emoji message! One of our final adventures, we will be travelling to London to study the architecture of bridges, see an exciting West End show, head onto the London Eye and so much more!

English	Mathematics	Religious Education	Science
Art & Design	Computing	Geography	Physical Education
Physical Education	PSHE	Spanish