Solar system presentations

In Year 5 this past week, the children worked in pairs to research different planets in the solar system. Using a range of sources, they gathered key facts about each planet’s size, appearance, atmosphere, and any unique features. The students then created Google Slides presentations, showcasing the information they had learnt. To see these presentations, scan the QR code below:
 

 

Some strings attached

In Science, Year 5 were identifying the effects of air resistance. They conducted an experiment to see whether the surface area of a parachute would impact the time taken to descend to the ground. Scan the QR code below to see what they got up to!

A 'map-nificent' trip

In this creative and exploratory workshop, Year 5 looked at a selection of maps from around the globe and across time. They explored unique maps on display in the Treasures of the British Library gallery as well as digitised sources in their Learning Centre. In groups, they thought critically about the many uses and styles of maps and considered the kinds of maps they would like to create and why. This will be very useful when it comes to making their own 3D maps in art this half-term, as well as later on this year when the children will have to mark different symbols on, and understand, maps of the local area. See some pictures of our trip below:

Gilwell Park

On Thursday 17th and Friday 18th October, our Year 5 children headed off to Gilwell Scout Camp for a couple of days of outdoor learning. They really enjoyed sharing rooms with their friends and taking part in exciting activities such as crate stacking, bouldering, archery, low-ropes and wobbly pole.

The children spent time playing outdoor games and exploring the woods, identifying trees and looking for hidden secrets. One of the highlights for many was the amazing sight of two stags just outside their windows when they woke up Friday morning – it was worth the early hour!

Some children were a little nervous about taking part, but everyone challenged themselves to overcome their fears, showing our values of resilience and courage as well as fantastic teamwork and responsibility. We were really lucky with the weather and the children had a fantastic time, enjoying taking part in activities they may not have tried before.

"Cam You Believe It? Our Animal-Themed Automaton Toys Are Complete!"

In DT, we finished our automaton toys. Previously, we met the first aspect of our design specification: the box to hold the cam mechanism should be a cube made of a wooden frame 13cm x 13cm x 13cm, and last week planned out our designs. This week, our two design specifications were that the automaton toy should include at least one cam mechanism and the theme for the automaton toy is animals. We discussed using a taskboard before we commenced with the completion of our toys, identifying all the actions required to complete the task, ascertaining each other’s strengths and assigning each other roles to finish the toy. We needed to add a cardboard top and sides to our frames that fit before creating our cam mechanisms. See below for our finished products:

Cam mechanisms

This week, in D&T, we were introduced to automaton toys, considering different varieties of these such as a jack in the box. We learnt that a cam is a non-circular disc that can come in all different shapes and sizes, all of which produce different kinds of movement and that a follower is a slider or lever that is moved by a cam. We learnt about the different kinds of movement, seeing them in action in different automaton toys. Finally, in groups, we made our own cam mechanism using a slider to create vertical reciprocating movement. See below for some examples of our work.

 

 

 

 

New beginnings

It’s been a fantastic start to the academic year down in Maple Building and the Year 5 children have displayed determined attitudes towards their learning. In English, the children have been focusing on the wordless text Journey,  which follows the tale of a sad and lonely girl who is transported into a fantastical world and her journey through it. Many of the children have really enjoyed the text and have written their own extract from the story, detailing how the girl escapes captivity and the amazing sights she sees on her journey to freedom.
In Science, the children have been learning about Properties and Changes of Materials. They have discussed what the property of a material is before comparing the various properties of different materials, as well as learning about solutions, experimenting with which materials will dissolve in warm water.
In Geography, the children have been pondering the question of what indeed makes California so thirsty! They have learnt about the drought and ramifications of such conditions on Californian residents, especially farmers of rice and almonds who perhaps have had to change their farming habits due to the volumes of water their products require to grow properly.
Lastly, in PSHE, the children discussed friendship and what were some of the qualities in a good friend. Popular answers included being kind, trustworthy and funny!