Guided Reading Week 1
Here are the target pages for this week’s guided reading. These need to be read by Friday 15th November.
Extra Time: up to chapter 8/page 32.
Divine Freaks: up to chapter 4/pg 39.
Mr Gum: up to chapter 3/pg 32.
How To Train Your Dragon: up to chapter 2/pg 28.
Kensuke’s Kingdom: up to chapter 3/page 25.
Guided Reading Information
Today, Year 5 have been given their guided reading books.
The class have been divided into groups and each group has been given a book to read at home. This will last for this half term.
During our Book Club sessions each Friday, each group will discuss what they have read so far and share their reading record activities related to their book. This will be a fantastic opportunity for the children to explore characters and storylines more than they might do normally!
Every Friday during Book Club, each group will be given a new page to read to for the next Friday. This information will be posted every week on our class news.
What to remember:
- Your child has a book that they need to read every week (up to a chosen point marked with a post-it note).
- The reading record activity needs to be completed using their new book.
- A comment from a grown up needs to be written in their reading record.
- Group reading books and reading records need to be brought in every Friday.
Help at home: listen to your child read their new book and ask questions about the book to help prepare them for class discussions.
I look forward to hearing the children’s discussions next week!
Anti-bullying day and Odd socks day
Me and My Community
On Monday, Year 5 were visited by Brian Abram, the author of the Grandad’s Wheels books.
As a wheel chair user, Brain first gave us an introduction to himself and then a fun discussion about wheelchairs and disability. Brain answered these questions:
o Why might someone need to use a wheelchair?
o What different kinds of wheelchairs are there?
o What might be difficult to do in a wheelchair and how do we get round these problems?
o Are people in wheelchairs (and disabled people generally) different from other people?
Brain then read one of his brilliant books! Year 5 were then allowed to ask Brian questions. To finish off the session, Year 5 got to design a futuristic wheelchair. Have a look at their creative inventions:
We also had a session about gender equality. The children were asked to draw 4 different professions: teacher, nurse, taxi driver and fire fighter. We then learnt about the gender split in these jobs.
The class were then asked to read different statements and move to either side of the classroom for if they agree or disagree with it.
The statements were:
- It is okay to say ‘Don’t be such a girl’ to someone.
- Boys can be friends with girls.
- Boys are stronger than girls.
- Boys are better at football.
We also learnt about stereotypes and how to challenge these.
In the afternoon, Year 5 looked at the Moortown Primary School Community. We discussed what our logo looks like and why there are three different coloured children interlinked together. Our idea was that the logo represents children coming together, no matter their race or religion, working together and being friends to make the school a happy and healthy place.
Help at home: Look at the designs of the futuristic wheelchairs. Which is your favourite? Why? Or discuss some stereotypes you have heard before and how you can challenge this behaviour.
On Tuesday, Year 5 started off the day with a workshop all about diversity. We discussed that diversity is essentially differences between people. Diversity should be celebrated! Year 5 then went on to talk about what the words bystander and upstander meant. A clever way to help you with their definitions is if you take the first two letters of each word and replace them with the last two letters. So, bystander becomes standby and upstander becomes stand up. What do you think these two words mean?
Well, Year 5 now know that a bystander is someone who watches bullying happen but does nothing to help. An upstander is someone who does something to stick up for the person being bullied but in a kind way. The main messages from this session were to ‘ be an upstander’ and ‘be yourself’.
In the afternoon, we went to Allerton Grange for a drama workshop. In this, the children had to act out what the Moortown Primary School Community meant to them and why it is such a positive place to be part of. Year 5 worked in small groups to create still images and a short video for an alien called Z, to welcome him to Moortown.
Help at home: Discuss what makes the Moortown Primary School community special to you.
On Wednesday, we started off the day with a zoom about protected characteristics. We identified 9 and were able to name them all: Disability, Race, Sex, Gender reassignment, Religion or beliefs, Age, Marriage or civil partnership, Pregnancy and/or maternity leave and Sexual orientation.
In the afternoon, we had a workshop about self esteem. The children discussed how it makes us feel when we compare ourselves to others; they said it would make someone feel unworthy, sad, upset and maybe even frustrated. We watched this video which showed this. Year 5 talked about how if we all looked the same it would be a boring world so we should celebrate out differences.
Year 5 then went on to describe what makes them unique and created a poster of all the things they were good at. This helped boost their self esteem!
On Thursday, we had a zoom with Scholes (Elmet) Primary School – another school in the Sphere Federation. We talked about different religions and what it meant to be part of these communities. The children showed great oracy skills when talking; they used great volume, pace and fluency.
Pumpkin picking
One of the community links for our Me and my community themed week, MHA Moor Allerton, are holding an open day next Tuesday 29 October 2pm to 4pm with pumpkin picking from their own pumpkin patch, refreshments and activities.
Living and Learning: New school charity
Every year, we vote for a new school charity to support.
Our new charity will replace our current school charity The Children’s Heart Fund. Thank you for all the donations and support given to this great, local cause, including £180 for our recent Rob Burrow Connect Challenge.
As part of our Me and my community themed week, children will be considering the following shortlist of charities. Children should start thinking about these charities and be ready to share their views.
Action Against Hunger aim to save the lives of vulnerable people affected by hunger. Action Against Hunger fights hunger and malnutrition around the world, because no child should ever suffer or die from it. Stop hunger today.
No child should live in poverty. All children should have their basic needs met so that they can achieve their full potential in life. Give every head a bed.
Each class will vote for one charity which will be brought to the Junior Leadership Team who will have the final vote on Thursday 07 November.
Maths: 10, 100, 1000
Recently, in Maths, Year 5 have been learning how to multiply and divide by 10, 100 and 1000. The children have picked up this concept incredibly quickly and have shown a great attitude to learning.
Science: Our Solar System
In Science, Year 5 talked about how models can help our understanding of the Solar System.
Scientists often use models to help people understand an idea, especially one that cannot be seen easily. As our Solar System is so big and we cannot see the extent of it, a scaled-down model is the best method to help us understand our world.
Year 5 ventured outside to create their own scaled-down version of space. Each child became the planets (or our moon) and orbited the Sun.
Help at home: Can you work out with person is which planet (an
Leeds School Sports Association cross country race 1
On Saturday, some of our key stage 2 children took part in the first of the Leeds Schools Sports Association Saturday morning cross country races. Over 100 children, from Leeds primary schools, compete in each of the Year 3-Year 6 girls and boys races.
A special mention to Ewan (Year 4) who finished in 5th place and Isla (Year 3) who finished in 13th place.
Thank you to the parents who supported and took their children to this event.
There are three more races coming up this year (see below) and details will be sent out for each race nearer the time if your child would like to get involved.
It’s nearly time to elect our new junior leaders
We have recently launched this year’s Junior Leadership Team election process. Our Junior Leadership Team is one of the ways that children are encouraged to take an active part in pupil voice.
The election process allows children to develop an understanding of one of the British Values, democracy, with two representatives from each class, chosen democratically by their peers.
Here are some of the qualities our junior leaders think are needed to be an effective JLT member.
- use the 8Rs for learning
- be respectful and polite
- help others
- be a good speaker and listener (to members of your class and in the meetings)
- share and be confident with your ideas
- let others speak
- accept the views of others even if you don’t agree
- be friendly and approachable
- follow our school rules and make good choices in class and around school
This weeks’ whole school homework is all about the election and democracy, ready for the elections on Thursday 24 October. For children who want to stand in the election, they will have the chance to share their speeches in class on Wednesday or Thursday this week.
Well done to all our current junior leaders who have represented their class so well this year. Remember, you can stand again in the election.
