Summer Term 2025
I hope everyone enjoyed the Easter break and is looking forward to the start of the summer term in Year 5 with Mr Walker and Mrs Goldsack. We want to make sure that you are fully informed so please come and ask if you have any questions or queries or jot something down in the Reading Record. Remember your child needs to bring it into school every day so that messages can be acted upon and reading checked.
- This term our topic is 'The Egyptians'
- The Long Term Curriculum Overview for Year 5 can be found below.
- If you would be interested in offering assistance with other aspects of the curriculum, please contact the school office for further information.
How to help your child in Year 5:
- Support your child with daily reading and encourage them by ticking that you have heard/seen them read in their home school book. Don’t forget to add a comment yourself.
- Home School books to come into school every day, please.
- Spellings can be practised using the Spelling Shed website without the app.
- It is also very helpful if you can practice all the times tables up to x12. Don't forget your division facts too. Your child will bring home a password for Times table Rockstars.
Our Year 5 Spiritual Space
- Spiritual spaces enable children and young people, of all faiths and none, to explore life’s questions, spirituality, and faith in a safe, creative, and interactive way. In Year 5 we have a range of books ranging from bible stories, parables and collections of prayers for the children to explore.
Reading:
Reading is really important in Year 5. We have lots of different things to read. We have 100s of Beano comics and First News Newspapers. We also have 'Horrible Histories' and 'Horrible Science' magazines. There are also National Geographic Kids issues and 100s of exciting 'Phoenix' stories to jump into. Year 5 also has audio books to listen to on our class mp3 players. Children also have the opportunity to take how a 'Mystery Book'. This is a book that they take home - sight unseen - to read the first page. If they are hooked by the introduction then they keep the book until they have finished it. They can return the book if the first page doesn't spark their interest. This allows the class to try out new authors they might otherwise miss out on.
English: Secrets of the Sun King by Emma Carroll
The focus for the first half of the term will be our class story ‘Secrets of the Sun King ‘by Emma Carroll. Enter a world of Egyptian pharaohs and ancient curses from the Queen of Historical Fiction.
London, 1922.
A discovery from ancient Egypt . . .
A cursed package . . .
The untold story of a young pharaoh . . .
When Lilian Kaye finds a parcel on her grandad's doorstep, she is shocked to see who sent it: a famous Egyptologist, found dead that very morning, according to every newspaper in England!
The mysterious package holds the key to a story . . . about a king whose tomb archaeologists are desperately hunting for.
Lil and her friends must embark on an incredible journey - to return the package to its resting place, to protect those they love, and to break the deadly pharaoh's curse . . .
Listen to chapter 1 below.
Guided Reading Summer 1: Secrets of the Sun King by Emma Carroll
During the first half term Year 5 will be using the VIPERS approach to answer questions about our class reader Secrets of the Sun King. The second half term will see us using ‘Marcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx'.
VIPERS is an acronym to aid the recall of the 6 reading domains as part of the UK’s reading curriculum. They are the key areas which we feel children need to know and understand in order to improve their comprehension of texts.
VIPERS stands for
Vocabulary
Inference
Prediction
Explanation
Retrieval
Sequence or Summarise
The 6 domains focus on the comprehension aspect of reading.
Power Maths:
Based on research into effective teaching practices around the world, and authored by mastery experts, Power Maths is designed to spark curiosity, encourage a growth mindset and deepen children's understanding.
The Practice Books provide intelligent practice for children to complete independently in the final section of the lesson.
- The practice questions are for all children, progressing in small steps to build fluency and move children on in their thinking.
- Variation is used draw to children's attention to the underlying concepts, reveal misconceptions and build understanding.
- ‘Reflect' questions are designed to develop reasoning and meta-cognitive skills.
- Lovable characters model how to develop a growth mindset.
- This book can be used with the corresponding Textbook and Teacher Guide.
Following our Power Maths scheme, we will start with:
Unit 9 Decimals and percentages
Unit 10 Measure - perimeter and area
Unit 11Graphs and Tables
Unit 12 Geometry - properties of shapes
Unit 13 Geometry - position and direction
Unit 14 Decimals
Unit 15 Negative numbers
Unit 16 Measure - converting units
Have a go at some of the reasoning questions below:
Science Summer 1: All Living things and their habitats
During this unit of work, children will learn the seven life processes that distinguish living from non-living things. They will consolidate and extend previous learning on the life cycles of plants and animals, comparing and describing dierences in the life cycles of mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds and insects. They will learn how animals and plants reproduce by comparing differences and similarities between five different animal groups.
In Science this term we will be learning to:
Lesson 1: What is a naturalist?
Lesson 2: How do mammals reproduce?
Lesson 3: Do animals reproduce in the same way?
Lesson 4: How do plants reproduce?
Lesson 5: What is a life cycle?
Lesson 6 What are the stages in a life cycle of a plant?
Science Summer 2: Animals including Humans
During this unit of work, children will learn about the different stages of the human life cycle. They will discuss a simple timeline first before going into more depth about what happens in the womb, during puberty and when you are older.
In Science this term we will be learning to:
Lesson 1: How do humans change throughout their life?
Lesson 2: How do we develop in the womb?
Lesson 3: How do we change through Puberty?
Lesson 4: How do we change when we are senior?
Religious Education at Isleham Primary School
Isleham is a proud Church of England school where Religious Education is a subject of the utmost importance to us. We teach from a Christian perspective based on the teachings of Christ and the theology of the Church of England. We believe that RE helps children develop empathy and an understanding of their own beliefs and the faith of others. We also teach our children about other faiths and religions too. We expect that all children know about the significant events in other religions, understand how these promote faith for their followers and that these events or practices deserve our respect. Each year the children will work through the Understanding Christianity scheme and this is supplemented by the local Cambridgeshire Agreed Syllabus
In EYFS, we introduce children to the similarities and differences between different religions and cultural communities through questions such as which people are special and why, and what is special about our world?
In KS1, we cover a wide range of themes such as sacred books, sacred places and the celebration of special and sacred times with specific, focused units on Islam, Judaism and Christianity.
In KS2, we cover a wide range of themes, building on KS1 content. We look at why festivals are important and why people pray, to what do religions say to us when life gets hard? Focused units are based around Islam, Humanism, Christianity and Buddhism.
Art Summer 1: Ancient Egypt
In art, we will be looking at different patterns created by the Egyptians. Year 5 will learn how to use a pencil, pen and charcoal, how to make clay faces and model in paper and papiermache to create quality artwork that shows progression in their skills.
Lesson 1: Drawing Faces in Pencil
Lesson 2: Drawing faces in Charcoal
Lesson 3: Drawing Masks in Pen
Lesson 4: Making Ancient Egyptian masks in Clay
Lesson 5/6 Makiing Large 3D Deaths masks using card
Watch the videos below if you would like to draw or make an Egyptian Death mask.
Design Technology 2 – Automata Animals
During Summer 2 this ‘Automata Animals’ unit gives children opportunities to further develop their understanding of mechanical systems. Children learn about controlling movement with a cam mechanism as part of an automata animal. They develop their designing skills through using information sources to research ideas about animals which are then incorporated into the design criteria and designs. They make a simple cam mechanism to formulate an understanding of how different shaped cams can be used to produce different movements. Children extend their making skills by developing techniques in cutting, shaping and joining to combine components and by selecting tools and equipment to measure and cut wood and card accurately. Through these activities they gain an understanding of the working characteristics of the materials and components and how they can be combined to create more useful properties. Peer assessment is used to improve designs and evaluate final products.
Watch the video below to see how to these cam mechanisms work:
History Summer 1: The Ancient Egyptians
In History, we will be learning about The Ancient Egyptians. We will be learning about the following:
-
- Who were the Ancient Egyptians?
- What was Ancient Egyptian life like compared to life in Ancient Rome and Greece?
- Who were the Egyptian Gods and how were they worshipped?
- Social structure
- Egyptian buildings
- Significant people in Egyptian times
- Egyptian Legacy
Geography Summer 2 – Would you like to live in the desert?
In Geography, we will be using Kapow Geography lessons to investigate whether you like to live in the desert. Watch the video below to find out more.
Lesson 1: What is a hot desert biome?
Lesson 2: Where are deserts located?
Lesson 3: What physical features are found in a desert?
Lesson 4: How can people use deserts?
Lesson 5: What are the threats to deserts?
Lesson 6: Would you like to live in the desert?
Computing – Unit 5.7 Concept Maps
In computing, we will be using the Purple Mash app. In Summer 1 the children will explore and create simple concept maps using 2Connect. Watch the video below to give you an idea of how concept maps are used.