Swans

Welcome to the Swans

We are the Year 5 class team:

Mrs Leach – Class Teacher

Mrs Adair - Teaching Assistant

Email contact 

SLeach@sharnbrookprimary.beds.sch.uk

For SEND contact Mrs Wildman

sendco@sharnbrookprimary.beds.sch.uk

Senior Mental Health Lead - Suzy Oakley

soakley@sharnbrookprimary.beds.sch.uk

  Year 5

Swans

Summer Term 2026

PE lessons are on a Tuesday and Friday for the duration of this term. Children are to come dressed in their PE kits on these days.

Please refer to the knowledge organisers and weekly timetable for further details of specific lessons and times.

Homework is compulsory and includes reading daily at home, one of these sessions should be to an adult. This should be for a minimum of 20 minutes and all reading should be recorded in the reading diary.  Children should also be working on their timetable knowledge through TTR for a minimum of 25 minutes throughout the week and completing the assigned spelling tasks on Spelling Shed.  Some of these spellings will be tested in our weekly spelling test, which will be held on a Monday.  With spelling and timetable work, little and often is a much better approach than doing it all in one sitting, as this aids long term memory. One longer piece of homework will be set on a weekly basis. The children have been provided with a reading a homework diary, please sign the books at the end of each week to acknowledge that you have seen the homework which has been set.

Healthy Snacks may be brought in daily to eat at morning break.

Water Bottles may be brought in each day and kept with the children throughout each lesson. Water bottles will need to go home daily to be cleaned and refilled.

Pencil Cases:  All pupils should have their own stationery for lessons and all writing will be in blue pen. In pencil cases children will need: a blue ballpoint pen, a graphite pencil, a ruler, a rubber and a sharpener (pencil crayons and felt tips are optional). It would also be helpful to have a small glue stick, pair of scissors, a compass and protractor. Please make sure your resources fit into one pencil case.

Curriculum
ENGLISH

In the first half of the term, we will be exploring the thoughtful and engaging story The Paperbag Prince by Colin Thompson. Through this text, the Swans will develop their understanding of themes such as community, kindness and looking beyond appearances. They will explore how the author uses descriptive language to create vivid settings and characters, as well as how illustrations can enhance meaning. This work will support children in writing their own recounts, using clear structure and rich vocabulary to retell events effectively.

In the second half of the term, we will study the inspiring picture book Radiant Child by Javaka Steptoe. This unit will introduce the our class to non-fiction writing, as they learn about the life and achievements of Jean-Michel Basquiat. The children will explore how information can be organised clearly and effectively, and how language can be adapted for a more formal style. They will then apply these skills by completing their own non-fiction piece of writing for assessment, inspired by the remarkable life of this influential artist.

MATHS

Maths for the week commencing 20.04.2026.

Please click here for the link to this week's lessons.

Unit 19: Find unit and non-unit fractions of whole numbers exploring parts and wholes. 

SCIENCE

In first half of the term the Swans will learn about the changes that humans experience as they grow and develop into late adulthood. They will explore the human life cycle, including how babies develop, and compare the gestation periods of humans with other animals. The children will also learn about the changes that occur during puberty and understand why these happen, as well as looking at how other animals grow and change. They will investigate how the human body changes with age and explore how life expectancy has changed over time. Some aspects of this unit include sensitive topics, and these will be taught in a careful and age-appropriate way. Please make sure you consult the knowledge organiser below for further details.

For the duration of the second half of the term we will be learning about famous scientists and inventors linked to our studies throughout year 5. 

In the mornings Swans will be expected to walk independently to the classroom from 8.40; a member of the Swans team will be in the room to greet them from this time and the children will be expected to complete their morning work. The children will be dismissed from the classroom at 3.20pm. The children have been told that they must return to the classroom if an adult that they are expecting to meet them isn’t on the playground, ie they are not to just walk home. Please reinforce this with your son/daughter. If your son/daughter is going to be walking home independently, please communicate this in their reading/homework diary or by dropping me an email.

Mobile phones: We recognise that some pupils may need to/wish to bring a mobile phone to school if they are walking to or from school by themselves. All phones need to be named and turned off once on school grounds. In the classroom they will be collected and placed a secure box, the children will collect their phones prior to leaving the classroom at 3.20pm. If pupils have phones out in the classrooms they will be confiscated and a parent will have to collect it from the office. No phones will be allowed on any school trips or visits.

As always, please don’t hesitate to ask if there is anything you are unsure of or require further clarification on.
Mrs Leach and Mrs Adair