Otter Class

Class teacher’s welcome

Welcome to the ‘Otterly’ Outstanding Yr5 Otter class!

We are very excited to share with you events that happen throughout the school year. In Otter, the children are provided with the skills and knowledge required to become aspirational, curious and enthusiastic lifelong learners.

We have had a great half term ending with not only the Winter Olympics but also a visit from an Anglo-Saxon!

Spring 2 is going to be action packed too.

Please see the new Knowledge organisers, overview of this term’s learning, home learning project suggestions and new images of our written methods in maths.

Miss Hetherton

Curriculum news

At a glance – Spring 2

Maths – Decimals and Percentages; Statistics
English – Fiction: Wonderstruck a parallel story of two individuals told through words and illustrations. This text lends to our school value of compassion and respect for others, as well as the perseverance of the main characters as they search for answers to questions and family.
Science – Forces: Gravity
RE – What does the Resurrection mean to Christians? This topic promotes our school value of respect.
Geography– Trade Links and Fairtrade. This work will encourage the pupils’ understanding of compassion and respect, and the need to persevere in promoting fairtrade.
PSHE – Rights and Responsibilities
DT– Structure: Bridges
Music – Let’s Play: Tuned percussion
French –Niveau Rouge 4: Writing a letter, Number – quarante. This encourages the understanding and respect for other cultures and languages.
Computing – Data and information

Home Learning

How These Activities Show the School Value of Service: Even though these tasks are completed at home, each one offers opportunities for children to serve others—their classmates, families, and wider school community—by sharing learning, contributing ideas, and helping to build a richer learning environment.

English Activities

1. Recommend good reads

Service link:

By recommending books, children help classmates discover new stories they might enjoy.
Reviews support others in choosing texts that match their interests or reading level, serving the whole class community.
Sharing reading enthusiasm encourages a positive reading culture, benefiting everyone.

2. Create Your Own “Wonderstruck” Illustrations

3. Visual Storytelling (Wordless Comic Strip)

Service link:

A clear, expressive comic strip can help peers understand how stories can be told visually—serving others by supporting shared learning.
Children can use their comic to reassure others about new experiences, such as journeys or meeting new people, offering service through empathy and creativity.
Displaying their work contributes to the class’s appreciation of different artistic approaches.

Geography Activities

Conduct a survey of different local shops/supermarkets to find out which has the most Fairtrade goods
Create a map showing trade links between countries

Science Activities

Create a model to explain gravity
Write a biography of Newton’s life
Make a video of experiments showing forces in action

These projects are designed to run alongside the learning for the half-term and should be handed in on or before Monday 23rd March 2026

Please continue to:

Read with your child on a regular basis
Encourage positive routines
Support with home learning projects
Develop independence and organisation for each day
Help to expand your child’s vocabulary within everyday conversation
Exposure to a variety of text types

Links to support learning

Reading

Please encourage your child to read daily for a minimum of 20 minutes. At least 3 reading sessions per week should be recorded in the school Reading Record. Children should all have a school reading book (that can be changed regularly) but should be encouraged to read other material as well.

Read more about English in Y5 in the National Curriculum Programmes of Study

Maths

Times Table Rock Stars (please ask if you need a reminder of your child’s login details) – all children are expected to be fluent in their tables up to 12 x 12 so regular practice is very helpful!

Written methods for addition, subtraction, short multiplication, long multiplication and short division are taught as in the pictures below.