Curriculum coverage Year 5 – 2022-23

Each project covers all the work for half a term in history, geography, science, art and design, design technology and computing. It also has links to PE and PSHE.

Each year the teachers teach 6 projects including those listed here. They choose projects that will ensure full National Curriculum coverage and also suit the interests of the children within that year group.

Each project is based around acquisition of knowledge, development of skills and the addition of cultural capital to a child’s experience of school.

The Year 5 curriculum is enhanced by the following –

• A 3 day adventurous activity residential visit
• A Christmas show
• Participation in sporting competitions
• An enterprise project that runs throughout the year where children create goods to sell and plan events to raise money.
• Visits and visitors linked to our project work
• Outdoor learning in the Forest School
• Homework tasks that are creative and linked to the project

Sow, Grow and Farm 

In the Sow, Grow and Farm project, your child will learn about allotments in the United Kingdom and how the government encouraged people to have them to support food rationing during the Second World War. They will learn about food webs and animal life cycles, including how living things are dependent on one another within a habitat. They will investigate the different ways that plants reproduce and will dissect flowering plants to identify the different structures. They will have the opportunity to learn about farming in the United Kingdom and the techniques used in modern farming, including the challenges that farmers face. They will learn about the benefits of eating seasonally and about the pros and cons of importing food. They will also learn about world farming and how the different climate zones affect where different foods can be grown.

Off with her head 

Let’s travel back in time to meet the terrifying Tudors.

During this half term, we’ll meet a very important figure from history who will give us a problem to solve. Online research will help us to write biographies about influential people of the period, and we’ll use source materials to create a Tudor timeline. Tudor portraits will provide us with the inspiration to create royal paintings; we’ll learn a courtly dance and compose Tudor music. Our geography skills will help us to compare maps of Tudor London to present day London and plot Anne Boleyn’s journey to her execution. Internet research will help us learn more about Henry’s life, his marriages and his break from the Roman Catholic church.

At the end of the ILP, we’ll create and perform a rhyme to help us remember key dates from the Tudor period and make a life-sized model of Henry VIII. It will be huge! In PE, we’ll learn some dance moves and hold a Tudor ‘dance off’. Maybe some of the Tudor royal family will be the judges!

Help your child prepare for their project
The Tudors were a domineering dynasty who changed the course of history. Why not visit a local museum to learn more about Tudor times? You could also visit a town with Tudor architecture. Look out for black and white, timber-framed buildings. They will be easy to spot! Or visit your local library to find out more about this fascinating family.

Stargazers 

Journey through space – the final frontier! Let’s take a trip to the stars, planets and suns and discover the amazing wonders of the night sky.

During this half term, we’ll read information texts to find out about the Solar System and the Sun, using mnemonics to help us remember the facts. We’ll make a Solar System and investigate the cycle of day into night. We’ll learn about Galileo, the ‘father’ of modern astronomy and his famous astronomical discoveries. Taking on the roles of the planets, we’ll use movement to demonstrate the motions of the planets and moons. We’ll investigate lunar myths and write astronaut poetry. Then we’ll make a space shuttle or satellite, testing the materials for durability, and we’ll program toys to explore a lunar landscape.

At the end of the project, we’ll look at alien-themed comics, invent our own aliens and consider the big question: why is there life on Earth? Finally, we’ll invite you to our ‘Visitors’ centre’ and share our knowledge with you.

Help your child prepare for their project
The possibilities are endless when you’re thinking about the vastness of space. Why not work together to make a papier mâché model of your favourite planet? You could also watch a science-fiction film or read a book to see how space is presented. Alternatively, visit the local library together to find fascinating non-fiction books about space.

Time Traveller 

Time stops for no man – not even us!

This half term, we’ll meet people from different generations to find out what life was like in the past and we’ll predict how things might change in the future. Using real portraits from the past for inspiration, we’ll write character descriptions about the people in them. We’ll create a timeline of our lives and watch a time-lapse of human development. By taking close-up photographs, we’ll be able to create our own Andy Warhol style prints and experiment to see how photographs can be changed and enhanced. Smile, please! We’ll write adventure stories about the fascinating subject of time travel. Our science work will focus on puberty and why hygiene is important. We’ll also create clock artwork based on the style of Salvador Dali.

At the end of the ILP, we’ll make collages to represent our hopes and dreams and create an electronic time capsule that represents life in the present day.

Help your child prepare for their project
There’s a wealth of knowledge about history in your own home. Why not look back at photo albums to see what your parents and grandparents looked like at your age? What clothes did they wear and what toys did they play with? You could also ask family members about their favourite memories and what school was like when they were a child. Alternatively, you could visit your local museum to look at toys, packaging and other objects from the past.

Fire Damp and Davy Lamps 

Descend into the depths of Britain’s coal mines and discover how coal miners brought the precious coal up to the surface that was needed to power industry.

During this half term, we’ll visit a mining museum and see where generations of coal miners worked. Back in the classroom, we’ll find out about the many dangers of mining and why health and safety laws are important in the world today, and we’ll use geological maps to identify coal seams in the UK. We’ll also learn about the importance of coal during the Industrial Revolution, the process of the ‘no choice’ lottery and the miners’ strikes. In our English lessons, we’ll imagine we are child miners and give testimonies about the working conditions down the mines, and we’ll read letters about the General Strike of 1926 to deduce what was happening at that time. Using our science skills, we’ll examine a range of rock samples and learn about how coal is formed. Getting creative, we’ll study the work of the Pitmen Painters and recreate their style using a variety of art materials and techniques. Then, we’ll act as curators, collecting and presenting information for an exhibition about mining in our local area.

At the end of the project, we’ll use the work of the Pitmen Painters to sketch scenes from the local community that show what life is like today. We’ll also consider the future of coal mining and how a coal-free future would be better for the environment.

Help your child prepare for their project
Mining for coal, or black diamonds, was a way of life for many years in the UK. Why not visit your local library together to find out more about mining in your area. You could also visit a family member or friend who has memories of working down the pit. Alternatively, collect a variety of rocks from your garden and the local area and group them in different ways. Do they crumble? Are they sharp? What colours are they?

Pharaohs

Let’s travel back 5000 years to ancient Egypt, cruising along the Nile and entering a world of mysteries, curses and mummies.

This half term, we are going to learn first-hand about the gruesome, yet fascinating, process of mummification. We’ll write a report about Howard Carter’s famous discovery and use different sources to research Tutankhamun’s tomb. We’ll also consider whether it was right to open Tutankhamun’s tomb, or whether it should have been left as it was. Our work will inspire us to write some exciting Egyptian mystery stories and non-fiction books and the internet will provide us with information to make fact files. We’ll draw Egyptian artefacts in detail, focusing on symbols and design features. Studying historical sources will help us learn more about the Pharaohs, the Egyptian gods and ancient religious beliefs. We’ll find out about the food that was eaten at the time, make some Egyptian bread and use recycled materials to build model tombs.

At the end of the ILP, we’ll think about how the ancient Egyptians contributed to world history, then create and present a guide about ancient Egyptian sites.

Help your child prepare for their project
It’s amazing that a civilisation from 5000 years ago still influences the way we live today, from mathematics to bowling! Why not try a variety of fruits for dessert that the ancient Egyptians would buy from their local market? You could taste juicy cantaloupes, sweet dates or flavoursome plums. You could also visit your local library to learn about the amazing world of ancient Egypt. Alternatively, use online maps to look at famous Egyptian landmarks and track the course of the Nile.

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