Hello and welcome to Year 5!

This will be an exciting year, and one that will prepare your child for their final year at primary school. We will be identifying and filling any gaps in your child's learning and ensuring that they make the most progress they can. We will also be recognising your child's strengths and stretching them to reach their potential.

If you have any questions or concerns about your child's learning, or any other aspect of Year 5, please contact me by email:

Catherinedevonshire@stonehill.herts.sch.uk

If you prefer to speak to me in person, you can catch me briefly at the classroom door, either just before or just after school.

                            Many thanks,

                                              Mrs Devonshire 

Spring Term 2023

This project teaches children about the features and characteristics of land use in agricultural regions across the world, including a detailed exploration of significant environmental areas.

'Human reproduction and Ageing':  Science

This project teaches children about animal life cycles, including the human life cycle. They explore human growth and development to old age, including the changes experienced during puberty and human reproduction.

This project teaches children about the visual qualities of line, light and shadow. They explore the work of Pablo Picasso and Rembrandt and are introduced to a range of shading techniques. They take black and white photographs and use pencil, pen and ink wash to reimagine their photographs in a shaded drawing.

'Eat the Seasons':   Design & Technology  SPRING 2

This project teaches children about the meaning and benefits of seasonal eating, including food preparation and cooking techniques.

Autumn 2 Curriculum

This project teaches children about our Solar System and its spherical celestial bodies. They describe the movements of the Earth and the other planets relative to the Sun, the Moon relative to Earth, and the Earth's rotation to explain day and night.

This project teaches children about the history of ancient China, focusing primarily on the Shang Dynasty, and explores the lasting legacy of the first five Chinese dynasties, some of which can still be seen in the world today.

This is a companion project to 'Dynamic Dynasties'.

This project teaches children about the significance and art of the taotie motif, including ancient and contemporary casting methods. 

Year 5 will be making their own moulds and casting their own taotie motifs using plaster.

Year 5 are very fortunate to have been given the opportunity to have 5 Mindfulness workshops with Anne, who is an expert Mindfulness tutor. 

We are having four sessions during Autumn 1, and one after the half term holiday.

The sessions are teaching the children to recognise when they are feeling stressed, and is giving them important tools for how to deal with difficult situations. The sessions include teaching methods to help children remain calm and focussed, as well as giving them the ability to self-soothe. The sessions give children the knowledge to recognise when they need to ask for help and support, as well as the skills to enable them to better cope in the future.

The Mindfulness boxes that the children made as one of their first home learning tasks are an important part of this learning. Having different items appealing to the 5 senses, means that children can use the boxes to help them feel grounded and focussed when overwhelmed.

Autumn 1 Curriculum:

This project teaches children about the forces of gravity, air resistance, water resistance and friction, with children exploring their effects. They learn about mechanisms, their uses and how they allow a smaller effort to have a greater effect.

This essential skills and knowledge project teaches children about locating map features using a range of methods. They learn about the Prime Meridian, Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), and worldwide time zones and study interconnected climate zones, vegetation belts and biomes. Children learn about human geography and capital cities worldwide before learning about our very special garden city of Letchworth.

This project teaches children about colour theory by studying the colour wheel and exploring mixing tints, shades and tones. They learn about significant landscape artworks and features of landscapes before using this knowledge to create landscape paintings.

'Moving Mechanisms':     Design & Technology    AUTUMN 2

This project teaches children about pneumatic systems. They experiment with pneumatics before designing, making and evaluating a pneumatic machine that performs a useful function.