Hello everyone!
Week 4 has come to a close, and the weather still seems to be making up its mind! Are we still in Summer? Is Autumn/Fall just around the corner? Hopefully, the cooler days will arrive soon and we’ll start to see the leaves changing.
Here is what Year 5/6 have been up to this week:
Maths
Y5
| Place value & Addition and Subtraction |
| Aut.1.13 – Round within 100,000 |
| Aut.1.14 – Round within 1,000,000 |
| Place Value – End of unit assessment |
| Aut.2.1 – Mental strategies |
| Aut.2.2 – Add whole numbers with more than four digits |
Y6
| Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication and Division |
| Aut.2.4 – Rules of divisibility |
| Aut.2.5 – Primes to 100 |
| Aut.2.6 – Square and cube numbers |
| Aut.2.7 – Multiply up to a 4-digit number by a 2-digit number |
| Aut.2.8 – Solve problems with multiplication |
Literacy
This week in Literacy, we continued our work on Queen of the Falls while focusing on some important grammar skills. We explored subordinate clauses and how they can be used to add extra information to a sentence. For example, the students took a simple sentence such as “Annie came up with a daring plan” and developed it into sentences such as “Because Annie needed money, she came up with a daring plan.” They then practised creating their own sentences about Annie using a range of subordinate clauses.
We also explored the difference between active and passive voice and how we can change the focus of a sentence. For example, “Annie designed the barrel” can become “The barrel was designed by Annie.” The students practised spotting who or what was carrying out an action before changing active sentences into passive ones.
Alongside our grammar work, we continued reading Queen of the Falls and discovered more about Annie’s story and her preparations for her incredible stunt. This will give the students plenty of ideas and information to draw upon as we continue with our writing next week.
IPC
This week in IPC, we continued exploring how the different parts of our bodies work together to keep us healthy. We began by following the journey of food through the digestive system, from the mouth and stomach to the intestines, and discovered how nutrients from our food eventually enter the bloodstream and are transported around the body.
We then took a closer look at some of the nutrients our bodies need, including carbohydrates, protein, iron, calcium, fibre, fats and water. The students explored what each nutrient does, which parts of the body need it, where we can find it and what can happen if we do not get enough. They used their research to create informative posters and become our class “nutrient experts”.
Later in the week, we ventured into the fascinating world of genetic engineering! We learnt that scientists can deliberately change the genes of living things and explored a range of possible uses. The students considered both sides of each example, discussing who or what might benefit as well as the possible risks or problems.
Finally, we investigated what happens inside our bodies when we catch a cold. We discovered how viruses enter the body and how our immune system fights back, including the important role played by white blood cells and antibodies. We also found out that some of the things that make us feel miserable when we are ill, such as a runny nose, fever and swollen glands, are actually connected to our body’s response to infection.
Useful Information
Next week will be a short one as we will only be in school for three days before the Chuseok holiday on Thursday and Friday. Please note that the Week 4 homework sent home this week does not need to be handed in on Wednesday 23rd, but it can be if the students want to. The following Monday is absolutely fine, as I don’t want anyone to feel they need to rush through it before the holiday.
I will send home some Maths homework next week based on what we cover during our three days in class.
Have a lovely weekend! ☺️
