Reading
Our Class Text and Comprehension
In term 3 and 4, our reading comprehension lessons will be based upon our non-fiction texts used to support our geographical learning. These will include: “A farmer’s year”, a transcript; “Modern Farming”, information sheet; “Potato farming in Jersey”, case study; and “Veganisim”, a balanced argument.
Over the course of the term, we will also continue to read, enjoy and study our wonderful text from last term, “Bronze and Sunflower” by Cao Wenxuan. In this story, Sunflower has moved to the countryside in China with her father. As her father works all day, Sunflower feels lonely. She watches the river and the people across it who live in a village called Damaidi. She meets a boy called Bronze from Damaidi and the two become friends. When a tragic event brings Sunflower into Bronze’s home, the two children must work together to survive the hardships of village life. To find out more about this text, view our Bronze and Sunflower Knowledge Organiser.
For further information about the reading skills we will focus upon this term, please view “Holmes’ Sequential Reading Curriculum”
Independent Reading
In class, we will continue to use the Accelerated Reader program. For further information about this, please view a Parent’s Guide to Accelerated Reader. (https://help.renlearn.co.uk/AR/ARParentGuide) If you need your child’s AR password, please contact me (Miss Wood).
Writing
Over the course of the spring term, we will be writing a non-chronological report, a diary entry, a balanced argument and a persuasive letter.
Firstly, we will write a non-chronological report about the farming in the United Kingdom. Writing non-chronological reports enables children to use a range of layout devices, such as subheadings, bullet points and tables. Children will use their knowledge, learnt in our topic lessons and from further research, to plan and write their non-chronological reports.
We will also write a write a dramatic diary entry from the point of view of a UK farmer. Writing a diary entry teaches the children how to express the thoughts and feelings of the writer and recount events. The children could use a range of topic-specific vocabulary and focus on choosing appropriate verb tenses.
In addition, we will write a letter to persuade families to buy fair trade produce. Writing a persuasive leaflet enables the children to adapt the structure and content of their writing to the audience and purpose. They could also include relative clauses and topic-specific vocabulary. The children should use their geographical knowledge of farming in developing countries to write their leaflet.
Furthermore, we will write a balanced argument about a chosen farming topic. Writing a balanced argument encourages children to consider both sides of an issue and support their arguments with evidence. It provides a meaningful context for using a range of cohesive devices to structure writing, such as conjunctions and adverbials.
For further information about the writing skills, we will focus upon this term, please view “Holmes’ Sequential Writing Curriculum”
Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling
Punctuation
This term, we will explore brackets, dashes and commas for parenthesis; the purpose of a comma; the use of a comma in a list; bullet points; and continue to revise the need for commas when using a relative clause.
We will continue to review other types of punctuation through editing deliberate punctuation errors and adding punctuation to dictated sentences.
Grammar
During term 3 and 4, we will review the four sentence functions; determiners; fronted adverbials; different tenses; conjunctions; modal verbs; and different verb forms.
Spellings
During our spelling lessons in term 3 and 4, we will complete the following Read Write Inc units:
- Words ending -ence
- Words with the ‘ee’ sound spelt ‘ei’
- Homophones
- Other easily confused words
- Words ending in –ant, -ance and -ancy
- Words ending in ‘shus’ spelt ‘-cious’
- Words ending in ‘shus’ spelt ‘-tious’
- Words ending in ‘shul’ spelt ‘-cial’ or ‘-tial’
For an overview of our weekly breakdown of our spellings, please view our Term 3 and Term 4 Homework Grids.
In addition to these weekly spelling rules, we will continue to learn and spell words from the Year 5 and 6 statutory spelling list. For an overview of these spellings, please view the Spelling word list for Year 5 and Year 6.