Sarumhallschool.co.uk

INFORMATION FOR PARENTS

TARGETS FOR THE YEAR

 The central aim of Year 5 is to provide the girls with the skills and knowledge that will enable them to cope with the demands of Year 6.  The girls will be encouraged to foster a sense of independence in terms of their classroom behaviour, completing their academic work and in developing their organisational and time management skills.
WORK TO BE COVERED DURING THE YEAR
English: Miss Burgess
The English curriculum is based on The Renewed Primary Framework for Literacy. It is designed to
prepare the girls for the rigours of Year Six, including the secondary school entrance examinations.
The girls will be set regular compositions, some of which will be based on the class readers.
Compositions will include both narrative writing and non-narrative writing. Examples include
stories, story boards, poems, play scripts, note taking, discursive essays, descriptions, letters, diary
accounts, instructions, book reviews and newspaper reports.
Examples of the class readers will be as follows: Carrie’s war by Nina Bawden, Marianne Dreams
by Catherine Storr, Midnight for Charlie Bone by Jenny Nimmo, Goodnight Mister Tom by Michelle
Magorian, The Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Stig of the Dump by Clive King, Skellig
by David Almond, Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder, Stormbreaker by Anthony
Horowitz and Holes by Louis Sachar. So as not to spoil the girls’ enjoyment of the class readers,
please ensure that your daughter does not read any of these books for her home reader.
The girls will study the works of specific poets. Poems will be discussed, analysed and reviewed.
The girls will use particular poems as inspiration for their own poetry writing. Poets studied include
Edward Lear, Lewis Carroll and Robert Louis Stevenson.
The girls will be set regular comprehensions, some of which will be timed. The girls will be
particularly encouraged to draw from the information given in the text when expressing and
justifying their ideas and opinions. Their answers should be detailed and should include quotes
from the text when appropriate. Focus wil be placed on developing the girls’ inferential thinking
and on encouraging them to consider aspects of the author’s craft.
The girls will complete weekly language or handwriting exercises. They will be expected to apply
any language rules learnt to their written work.
Corrections are of vital importance in the learning process, spelling mistakes are to be corrected
and repeated three times, errors in grammar and punctuation exercises are to be corrected, and
comprehension answers that display a lack of understanding are to be repeated.
The oral component of the syllabus is of vital importance. Regular class and group discussions will
take place in which the children will be encouraged to express and to justify their ideas and
opinions with clarity and confidence. They will also be expected to give due consideration to the
thoughts and opinions of other pupils. Speeches will be prepared and presented to the class and
drama activities are incorporated into some of the Language and Composition lessons. All of these
speaking and listening activities are designed to help prepare the girls for the interviews they will
undertake in Year Six.
The girls will be given a weekly set of spellings to learn for a test. They will continue to use Spell
Write as a tool to help them to learn their spellings and they will complete written exercises utilizing
the spelling rules.
The girls will be expected to read for at least 15 minutes per day in addition to completing their
homework. They will be issued with a Reading Record which should be filled in and signed on a
daily basis. The record can either be signed by the girls or by their parents. It is recommended that
parents sign the Reading Record at least once a week, preferably at the end of weekend reading.
Upon completion of each book, the girls will be expected to write a short review following the guide
which can be found inside their Reading Record. The girls will be encouraged to read a wide range
of authors, variety is of the essence. A recommended reading list is included in the Reading Guide
but it should be stressed that this is for guidance only and is by no means exclusive.
During the second half of the spring term and throughout the summer term, as the preparation for
the Year Six entrance examinations intensifies, the girls will be taught in half classes for their
English lessons. This will allow them to receive more individual attention and thus will encourage
them to strive to reach their full potential. At the end of the summer term, they will be tested using
an 11+ Consortium paper.
In order to help your child with their English homework, it would be helpful if you could purchase
the following books: Oxford English Dictionary For School, Oxford School Thesaurus.
Holiday homework will be set during the Christmas, Easter and summer holidays.

Mathematics: Mrs Worth
The maths curriculum is based on The Renewed Primary Framework for Mathematics. It is
designed to prepare the girls for the rigours of Year Six, including the secondary school entrance
examinations. The syllabus content consists of the skills and knowledge required at the end of Key
Stage 2 as well as a few additions. The Primary National Strategy for Mathematics consists of
seven strands. These are:
In the first term we will complete the topics from the Year 5 textbook of our maths scheme, which was started in Year 4, and in the spring and summer terms we will cover the Year 6 textbook topics. The pace of work is considerably faster than in Year 4 and the emphasis changes during the year from learning new processes to being able to apply their skills in problem solving. As the year progresses the ability to use and apply their mathematical skills will become increasingly important. As four of the seven strands deal with number skills it is vital that children have fast and accurate recall of multiplication tables as early in the year as possible. The girls are taught to present their work in a neat and logical fashion and to use mathematical equipment efficiently. The importance of showing adequate working is also impressed upon them as the more complex questions they now encounter have method as well as answer marks allocated. The girls are taught in two groups for some of their maths lessons. They are encouraged to do as much practice as possible in each topic as this is the best way to help them to retain the work. They take a mental maths test each week and then share and discuss mental maths strategies.
During the year they will have several topic tests, as well as the school exams, with the summer
exam being a Common Entrance paper.
Homework will be set during the Christmas, Easter and summer holidays.

Science: Mrs de Cock
The emphasis is on experimental and investigative work: planning, obtaining and considering
evidence. Girls will be taught: to suggest questions that can be tested and make predictions based
on scientific knowledge wherever possible; to design a fair test and how to collect sufficient data; to
choose what apparatus to use and what to measure; to make observations and comparisons; to
make measurements of length, time, temperature and force; to think about why measurements
should be repeated; to present results in bar charts, tables and graphs; to suggest explanations for
observed patterns; to explain what the evidence shows and whether it supports any prediction
made to link the evidence to scientific knowledge/understanding.
Science is the third core subject of the school curriculum. The National Curriculum KS2 syllabus is
followed incorporating the Common Entrance syllabus at 11+. The girls will have two double
science lessons, taught in half classes, and one piece of homework each week. There will be a test
each term during exam week, mainly on the previous two half term’s work.
In science, as for any other subject, comprehension, writing clearly using appropriate vocabulary
and the ability to apply knowledge are paramount. Interpreting data in terms of the events in the
real world is important and an area with which children can have difficulty. Kitchens, buildings,
garages, gardens, keeping pets, reading a daily newspaper or watching the news, all provide
valuable material about everyday situations that will help them enormously with understanding
scientific concepts.
Girls are tested for knowledge, skills and understanding in four areas of science:
 scientific enquiry(investigative science) Knowledge and understanding of scientific practice, paying due regard to safety, will also be tested. Science, along with other subjects, enables girls to communicate clearly, collect and analyse data, problem solve, improve their thinking skills and how to work with others. Girls are encouraged to use scientific vocabulary at all times during their course. Two to three units of the KS2 National Curriculum syllabus are studied each term. Autumn term: Keeping healthy (unit 5A) and Micro-organisms (unit 6B) Forces in Action (unit 6E) CREST investigations will continue and it is hoped that by the end of YR5 girls will have gained their Superstar Award. They will have one investigation during each long holiday and one over the summer half term which can be completed over a following weekend if their half term is too busy. History: Miss Gayton
During the autumn term, the girls will be studying the Aztecs. They will study the development of
the Aztec Empire, Gods and Goddesses, Pyramid Temples, life in Tenochtilan, Moctezuma and
Cortés and the fall of the Aztec Empire.
During the spring and summer terms the girls will be studying the Tudors. They will study the
sequence of rulers; the break with Rome; Henry VIII and his wives; the succession of Edward VI,
Mary Tudor and Elizabeth I; Elizabeth I and the Armada; Mary, Queen of Scots; Elizabethan
theatre; rich and poor in Tudor times.
Geography: Miss Gayton
During the autumn term, the main topic will be traffic. During the spring term we will be studying
water and doing some map work. During the summer term, the girls will be looking at coastal
regions and coastal settlements within Britain and ports in Britain and Europe.

RE: Miss Gayton
Throughout the year, the girls will be studying aspects of Christianity and Judaism.
Christianity: The girls will be studying nuns; Lent; Ash Wednesday; Jesus in the wilderness; the
death of Jesus; a church and its parish; cathedrals; Holy Communion.
Judaism: The girls will be studying Shabbat; Purim - the story of Esther; Jewish communities;
kosher foods; Israel and the Promised Land; the synagogue.
PSHCE: Ms Clarke
The girls will be studying aspects of citizenship; personal development; relationships and lifestyle.
Citizenship: Topics to be covered include telling the truth; consequences of actions; sharing
responsibilities; community services; group decisions; environmental issues.
Personal Development: Topics to be covered include individual worth; setting goals; learning from
mistakes; expressing feelings; handling emotions.
Relationships: Topics to be covered include respecting others; teasing and offensive behaviour;
belonging to different groups.
Lifestyle: Topics to be covered include choosing to be clean; harmful substances; acting
responsibly; interpreting information.
In the spring and summer terms, they will also begin doing General Knowledge questions each
week with Miss Gayton. These could include basic general knowledge questions, geography or
history questions, the arts and current events questions.

French: Madame Rose
This year the girls will continue to have two lessons of French each week. Reading and writing will
become more important this year, although the main emphasis will remain on speaking and
listening. In the autumn term, the topics covered will include clothes and travel. There will also be
a French assembly. In the spring term the topics covered will include school subjects and opinions
and in the summer term the topics covered will include hobbies and the weather. Basic language
on numbers, greetings, colours etc. will also be revised throughout the year.
During the year the girls will also work through a reading scheme called ‘Plaisir de Lire’ and have
access to Information Technology to support their language learning. There will continue to be one
homework set each week which will be either learning vocabulary or a written or online piece of
work.

Mandarin Chinese: Mr Hsaio
The girls will have one lesson per week, and they will generally receive homework every fortnight,
which will recap the last chapter from class; as well as online games to help reiterate the content
the girls have learnt. The emphasis is on vocabulary, sentences, tones, Chinese characters, and
the use of everyday phrases to help build conversations.
Topics
Autumn term:

Art: Mrs Diamond
There will be three units of work covered during the year. Each unit will last one term; where
appropriate cross-curricular links will be made. There will be at least one visit to a museum or
gallery during the year. There will be occasional homework requested (such as writing up a visit or
researching into an artist). Drawing, painting, printmaking, textile and 3D work are all covered
during the year.

Music: Mr Richards
Girls have two music lessons per week and are encouraged to participate in other musical activities
including: orchestra, chamber group, recorder group, ‘cello group, wind group, senior choir and
music theory classes.
During the autumn term the girls will compose simple pieces in binary form in 2 or 3 time (e.g.
Minuet and contredanse). They will prepare carols to perform in the school carol service.
During the spring term, the girls will study Tudor music (renaissance period). This will include
composition, singing, listening and practical activities, including Tudor dance. The singing will be in
two and three parts. During the summer term the girls will complete their study of Tudor music. The
girls will concentrate on aural skills and theory work.
Girls, who play musical instruments and are above Grade One standard, are invited to join the
School Orchestra, which rehearses on Fridays, or one of the 2 Monday morning Chamber groups.
Every girl has the opportunity to sing in Senior Choir which takes place after school on Tuesdays.
There is one recital evening and one school concert annually which enable girls to perform in a
more formal evening concert to parents and relatives. There are weekly performance assemblies in
school in which girls have the opportunity to perform. There are theory of music classes which take
place at lunchtimes for Grade 1 (Mr Myers) and Grades 2-5 (Mr Richards).

ICT: Ms Clarke
During this year, the girls will use a wider range of ICT tools, software and information sources to
support their work. They have a lesson for 1hr 10 minutes every week.
The pupils will use appropriate software to explore graphical modelling, brochure design, spread
sheets, databases, and evaluating sources of information on the Internet. They will also extend
their understanding of the Logo programming language which they started in Year 4. Girls will have
the opportunity to work through a programme of interactive touch typing lessons in order to
improve their speed and accuracy.
The pupils will also be introduced to Google Docs, an online application in which they will create
documents and work on them collaboratively.
ICT will be project based with the aim of bringing in other curriculum subjects currently being
studied to add value and meaning to their understanding. Topics such as the persuasive writing,
rainforests, the EU and art and branding will be covered.

PE: Mrs Cooper and Ms Hickey
The girls will have 5 P.E. lessons every week; this includes two double lessons. Hockey and
netball are taught during the autumn and spring terms. Netball and hockey matches are played
regularly and we aim to give all the girls the opportunity to represent the school in a team.
Rounders matches are played during the summer. All jewellery must be removed for PE.
The girls are taught gymnastics and dance every term. In gymnastics, we aim to develop a wide
range of skills which include balance, holes and barriers, vaulting, symmetry, counter balance and
counter tension and transference of weight. The girls work on their British Gymnastics Awards and
a number progress to their Sarum Hall Special Awards at this stage.
Our dance topics include Football, The Elements, ‘Stomp’ and musicals. These are often cross-
curricular and are performed as part of an assembly.
Other areas of the curriculum include tennis and athletics.
Year 5 now have the opportunity to be involved with the English Cricket Board “Chance to Shine”
Scheme and take part in cricket festivals and cricket matches.
In the summer term, Year 5 take part in the Queenswood Athletics Festival.
Other useful information
School Nurse: Caroline Seo
Learning Support Teacher: Ms Vanstone

Homework
The girls will be expected to do 60 minutes homework per night. In addition, they will be expected
to do 15 minutes reading per day. The girls will be set two subjects per night. Homework subjects
will include mathematics, English, history, RE, geography; PSHCE; science and French.
Homework will either reinforce concepts covered in class or will involve finishing work discussed
and begun in class. Girls should work as independently as possible when completing homework
assignments. It is essential that the girls cease working at the end of an hour whether they have
completed their homework or not. Please contact the appropriate teacher in the event of problems
arising with homework. The girls are permitted to remain at school to complete their homework.
Grades
The girls will continue having assessment grades at the end of term. These grades will be entered
on the girls’ reports. Please remember that ‘C’ is an acceptable grade that can be improved upon,
that any ‘B’ is very good indeed and that ‘A’ is extremely difficult to come by. Assessment
The girls will be set termly exams in maths, English and science. They will be given one hour to
complete each exam. Once again, this is to prepare the girls for the time limits set for the Year 6
exams. Percentages will be given for each completed exam. National Standardised Tests in
English and maths are taken in the spring term. At the end of the autumn and summer terms,
parents will be sent their daughter’s exam marks along with the class average.

Communicating and Reporting
As well as an initial meeting, there will be a parent consultation evening in the autumn term. A
written report will also be given at the end of the autumn term, including the internal exam results.
There will be grades and targets given for maths, English and science at the end of the spring
term.
In the summer term there will be a parent consultation evening, and a full written report will be
given at the end of the term.

Aylmerton residential trip
As part of their curriculum, all girls will spend time away on a residential trip this year. This is a very
important part of their academic and social development.
How you can help
Children do well when they feel supported and encouraged.
Independence
 Please encourage them to be organised and responsible for their own belongings.  They should ensure that homework is returned to school on time.  Be responsible for taking care of their own school textbooks and exercise books.  Pack their own bags and to check that they have everything they will need for the school  Help them to revise spelling and tables for regular tests. Five or ten minutes a day learning and revising spellings and tables will be of enormous benefit to your daughter.  Please provide your daughter with a quiet area in which to complete her homework, you  Talk to your daughter about her homework; encourage her to take pride in it and to check her work on completion. You may wish to discuss reading books with your daughter, ask her to explain what has already happened, what may happen next and ask her to give and explain her opinions both on specific events in the book and on the book as a whole. Try to set aside time for discussions about school, current affairs etc. The idea is to talk with them, to get them to express their ideas and to encourage the correct speech and pronunciation.  Prior to exams, your daughter will be given revision to do; please help her with this learning.
Children work to the best of their ability when they are well fed and rested – breakfast is important
and the time before school should be calm. Bedtime should be early enough so that they are lively
during the day.
Children still need time to themselves and to play; try to put aside time specifically for rest and play.
Senior Schools
You will have a meeting with Mrs Smith in the summer term to discuss in detail applications to
senior schools.
You will be given a document entitled ‘Transfer to Senior School Timeline’ which will guide you
through the process.
All schools will send you a prospectus on request. Alternatively most have very informative
websites.

London day Schools: applications are not due in until the end of November 2012.
Boarding Schools: applications need to be in sooner. If you are seriously thinking of sending your
daughter to boarding school please make sure that school is aware.
Open Days: unless your daughter is intending to go to boarding school, please do not take them
out of school for open days until the summer term. The dates set this term are primarily for the
present Year 6. It is recommended that you visit some of the schools on your own during the next
few months so that you gain some understanding of what is on offer.
Absence
As this is a crucial year please do not take the girls out of school for any reason, unless they are ill.

Source: http://www.sarumhallschool.co.uk/file/VeYNPqi/Year-5-class-guide-2013-2014.pdf