We have had a really good week, and everyone seems to have come back refreshed from their break.  The ‘extra’ week at the start of January was great.

This week, literacy has focused on writing instructions.  We started with some of the basic features, and your children were quickly into writing out full instructions.  Some of them had a brief to write instructions about something that they felt we would not understand, so we learned a lot about ‘How to play Fortnite’ and ‘How to annoy my sister’.  We then moved on to looking at very specific instructions for how to make Greek flatbread.

We didn’t help them read or interpret these – part of the task was careful, accurate reading and following of a set of instructions (a recipe).

They turned out really well (despite a modicum of mess and quite a few sticky hands through the morning).  Big thanks to the parents who helped with ingredients and dips, and to Kites Kitchen for helping with the baking.

Taste-testing and washing up was complete by lunchtime.  The conclusion – following carefully through a set of well-written instructions in the form of a recipe actually works!

Next week they will be asked to re-write what they did (from memory!).  We’ll be encouraging them to use suitable time adverbials – first, next, after that – and prepositions – over, above, beside, before moving on to look at Greek myths (Prometheus and Pandora).

Maths has moved on to more and more levels of complexity in multiplication – multiplying 4-digit numbers by a 1-digit number, then 2 x 2 and then 3 x 2.  Plenty of practice and explanation of how it works.  Next week maths will continue with multiplication and perhaps onto division.

PE today moved on to basketball, and this term’s PSHE is all about ‘economic wellbeing’ and money – today we tried to draw the distinction between what we need and what we want!  There were some differences of opinion – with £50 to spend, do you start by buying the bread and the milk, or should you perhaps get a pair of fancy trainers first?  Interesting!

Have a great weekend everyone and Happy 2024.

Y5 Team