Year 5 at Heron Hill School
From left to right: Mrs Dodd-Hemingway, Mrs Gorst, Miss Cadas, Mrs Wilkinson, Mrs Osborne
Welcome to Year 5 - we are passionate about creating a welcoming, safe and stimulating teaching environment
Year 5
Mrs Wilkinson (Head of Department)
Miss Cadas (Mrs Patrick is currently on maternity leave)
Mrs Dodd-Hemingway (Planning, Preparation and Assessment, PPA, teacher)
Mrs Osborne (PPA)
Mrs Gorst (teaching assistant)
Residential Visit
A List of Equipment:
Food and Drink
Please provide your child with a water bottle, clearly labelled with their name. Children can drink from the water bottles during lessons, but only water should be in the bottles, no juice/squash etc. Morning break snack can be fruit, vegetables or cheese – no sugary snacks please.
School meals should be ordered on-line by 9.30 am on the day and can be booked up to 3 weeks in advance. Our school kitchen prepares the delicious hot meals on site, providing 3 meal choices each day, including a vegetarian option. Meals cost £2.40 per day. Please remember to cancel your child’s school meal by 9.30 am if they are unwell or you will be charged for the meal. Contact the school office if you have lost or forgotten your log-in details.
Lunch boxes are stored on shelves before lunch, please put a coolpack inside the lunchbox during warm weather and clearly label the lunchbox.
School milk is available on a daily basis at a cost of approximately 23p per day. If your child is not already registered in this scheme and would like to have milk please ask the office for further details.
PE and Games
Indoor and outdoor kit required; please ensure kit is in school on the Monday back after each half term. It should stay in school and will be sent home for washing at the end of each half term.
Mathletics
The school has subscribed to Mathletics for Years 4, 5 and 6. This is a fantastic resource and evidence demonstrates that regular use leads to significant improvements in children’s mental agility. All children have been given an individual login and password which is kept in their homework diaries. We will use this in school. However, the children can access this site at home. It is fun to use and very informative – topics covered within class are also accessible on the site together with help and advice sections. We strongly recommend regular use at home. As the term progresses focussed Mathletics homework activities will be set. We will run Mathletics competitions during the year to encourage pupils to practise and develop their mental and arithmetic skills. Children who do not have access to a PC are welcome to attend the home learning club on a Monday lunchtime and Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday lunchtimes can be used for Mathletics if pupils do not have access to the internet at home.
Learn Its
‘Learn Its’ are addition, subtraction, multiplication and division facts that children need to know by heart and be able to recall instantly. Your child should be able to tell you which Learn Its they are working on so that you can support at home with these. They will be recorded in pupils’ home-school books, it is useful if you note in the home-school book when your child practises at home.
Home Learning
Please sign the home-school diary on a weekly basis and use the diary to pass on any important messages.
Writing, mental maths, arithmetic, Learn Its and Mathletics home learning (linked to current learning) will be set on a regular basis. In preparation for SATs, Year 6 will do weekly arithmetic and reasoning practice questions which will be marked and discussed with the children, in school.
There are lots of spelling and maths games ideas on our website to support your child’s learning at home.
Reading
Children should record their reading in their home-school diary. We use this to monitor the children’s reading choices and enable us to guide and support your child’s reading developments. We strongly encourage you to discuss the storyline’s characters and events in fiction texts to support children to build their understanding of texts. Children may appear to be fluent readers but can fail to grasp deeper meanings in text. Please encourage your child to read a wide range of genres; poetry, historical fiction, mysteries, biographies and non-fiction.
Teachers monitor children’s reading ‘diet’ each week by checking their diary, so please ensure your child records the date, title and pages they have read, perhaps adding a brief comment on the book. Do recommend your favourite childhood reads and try to read and share special books together.
Home Learning Club
This will take place on Monday lunchtimes. Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday lunchtimes can be used for Mathletics if pupils do not have access to the internet at home.
Parent Consultation Evenings
To keep parents well informed of children’s progress, we will send home termly attainment and attitude to learning reports. These will be followed by parent consultation meetings to discuss the reports; the meetings will take place in November, February/March and July. If you have any concerns or issues about your child at any time, staff are always willing to meet with you. If this is not possible immediately, please telephone and make an appointment.
Feet First
This scheme encourages healthier journeys to and from school. Parents are requested to give permission for their child to take part; pupils can join at anytime in the school year and receive an activity booklet and termly reward badges.
Bicycles and Scooters at School
Year 5 children can ride bikes to school if they have passed Level 2 Bikeability and parents have signed a consent form.
Please be aware of the following rules:
1. Bicycles must be in a roadworthy condition and cyclists must ride sensibly at all times.
2. Children must wear a cycle helmet. If your child is seen regularly without a helmet, the right to cycle to school will be removed. Closed off-road moto-cross style helmets are NOT suitable as they restrict children’s view.
3. Children should walk with their bicycles (on the pavement) between the school entrance and the Spar shop; this is because of the hazards associated with parked cars.
4. Bicycles should be padlocked when in the bike/scooter park.
5. It is advisable to take out insurance cover, as the school's insurance does not cover bicycles.
If your child comes on a scooter, this should also be secured with a padlock when possible, in the bike/scooter park. Children should not ride their bike or scoot within the school grounds.
Helping in School
We always need parents and grandparents to come to hear readers, help with displays, make classroom resources or to be an extra helper in the classroom; no experience is necessary! A letter will go out shortly – or just put a note in your child’s home-school book. No need to commit to a regular slot – even an afternoon once in a while is very much appreciated.
Please feel free to come into school or make an appointment if you have any issues to discuss with the class teacher.
Mrs Wilkinson (Head of Department)
Miss Cadas (Mrs Patrick is currently on maternity leave)
Mrs Dodd-Hemingway (Planning, Preparation and Assessment, PPA, teacher)
Mrs Osborne (PPA)
Mrs Gorst (teaching assistant)
Residential Visit
- Year 5 go to Manchester in the autumn term. This includes visits to the Imperial War Museum, the Museum of Science and Industry, the Lowry Gallery and the theatre.
A List of Equipment:
- Book bag (£4.50), which is available from the school office.
- Optional: a small pencil case containing a pencil, rubber, sharpener, coloured pencils. All of the children have been supplied with pens to use in class, which stay in school, so you do not need to provide a pen for your child. No felt tips or highlighters.
- Please ensure no electrical equipment is brought into school. Mobile phones should NOT be brought into school. If a phone is accidentally brought into school, it should be handed into the office immediately and collected at the end of the day.
Food and Drink
Please provide your child with a water bottle, clearly labelled with their name. Children can drink from the water bottles during lessons, but only water should be in the bottles, no juice/squash etc. Morning break snack can be fruit, vegetables or cheese – no sugary snacks please.
School meals should be ordered on-line by 9.30 am on the day and can be booked up to 3 weeks in advance. Our school kitchen prepares the delicious hot meals on site, providing 3 meal choices each day, including a vegetarian option. Meals cost £2.40 per day. Please remember to cancel your child’s school meal by 9.30 am if they are unwell or you will be charged for the meal. Contact the school office if you have lost or forgotten your log-in details.
Lunch boxes are stored on shelves before lunch, please put a coolpack inside the lunchbox during warm weather and clearly label the lunchbox.
School milk is available on a daily basis at a cost of approximately 23p per day. If your child is not already registered in this scheme and would like to have milk please ask the office for further details.
PE and Games
Indoor and outdoor kit required; please ensure kit is in school on the Monday back after each half term. It should stay in school and will be sent home for washing at the end of each half term.
- PE Kit:
- Indoor: plain white t-shirt and black shorts (not lycra/tight fitting or ‘skorts’). Pumps are worn for indoor work. Please provide spare socks for girls who wear tights.
- Outdoor: plain black or dark blue fleece, jumper, or sweatshirt, tracksuit bottoms and trainers, socks. School sweatshirts cannot be used for PE.
- PE bags are available from the school office and cost £4.00.
- Trainers are not acceptable footwear for school other than for PE. Black school shoes please. Plain black, white or grey socks.
- Everything has to be named please.
- No jewellery should be worn, in line with Cumbria LA policy. Child to take own earrings out or remove before school please.
- Hair must be tied up – no headbands for PE.
- Children will only be allowed to miss PE if the teacher receives a note signed by a parent.
- No nail varnish to be worn.
Mathletics
The school has subscribed to Mathletics for Years 4, 5 and 6. This is a fantastic resource and evidence demonstrates that regular use leads to significant improvements in children’s mental agility. All children have been given an individual login and password which is kept in their homework diaries. We will use this in school. However, the children can access this site at home. It is fun to use and very informative – topics covered within class are also accessible on the site together with help and advice sections. We strongly recommend regular use at home. As the term progresses focussed Mathletics homework activities will be set. We will run Mathletics competitions during the year to encourage pupils to practise and develop their mental and arithmetic skills. Children who do not have access to a PC are welcome to attend the home learning club on a Monday lunchtime and Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday lunchtimes can be used for Mathletics if pupils do not have access to the internet at home.
Learn Its
‘Learn Its’ are addition, subtraction, multiplication and division facts that children need to know by heart and be able to recall instantly. Your child should be able to tell you which Learn Its they are working on so that you can support at home with these. They will be recorded in pupils’ home-school books, it is useful if you note in the home-school book when your child practises at home.
Home Learning
Please sign the home-school diary on a weekly basis and use the diary to pass on any important messages.
Writing, mental maths, arithmetic, Learn Its and Mathletics home learning (linked to current learning) will be set on a regular basis. In preparation for SATs, Year 6 will do weekly arithmetic and reasoning practice questions which will be marked and discussed with the children, in school.
There are lots of spelling and maths games ideas on our website to support your child’s learning at home.
Reading
Children should record their reading in their home-school diary. We use this to monitor the children’s reading choices and enable us to guide and support your child’s reading developments. We strongly encourage you to discuss the storyline’s characters and events in fiction texts to support children to build their understanding of texts. Children may appear to be fluent readers but can fail to grasp deeper meanings in text. Please encourage your child to read a wide range of genres; poetry, historical fiction, mysteries, biographies and non-fiction.
Teachers monitor children’s reading ‘diet’ each week by checking their diary, so please ensure your child records the date, title and pages they have read, perhaps adding a brief comment on the book. Do recommend your favourite childhood reads and try to read and share special books together.
Home Learning Club
This will take place on Monday lunchtimes. Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday lunchtimes can be used for Mathletics if pupils do not have access to the internet at home.
Parent Consultation Evenings
To keep parents well informed of children’s progress, we will send home termly attainment and attitude to learning reports. These will be followed by parent consultation meetings to discuss the reports; the meetings will take place in November, February/March and July. If you have any concerns or issues about your child at any time, staff are always willing to meet with you. If this is not possible immediately, please telephone and make an appointment.
Feet First
This scheme encourages healthier journeys to and from school. Parents are requested to give permission for their child to take part; pupils can join at anytime in the school year and receive an activity booklet and termly reward badges.
Bicycles and Scooters at School
Year 5 children can ride bikes to school if they have passed Level 2 Bikeability and parents have signed a consent form.
Please be aware of the following rules:
1. Bicycles must be in a roadworthy condition and cyclists must ride sensibly at all times.
2. Children must wear a cycle helmet. If your child is seen regularly without a helmet, the right to cycle to school will be removed. Closed off-road moto-cross style helmets are NOT suitable as they restrict children’s view.
3. Children should walk with their bicycles (on the pavement) between the school entrance and the Spar shop; this is because of the hazards associated with parked cars.
4. Bicycles should be padlocked when in the bike/scooter park.
5. It is advisable to take out insurance cover, as the school's insurance does not cover bicycles.
If your child comes on a scooter, this should also be secured with a padlock when possible, in the bike/scooter park. Children should not ride their bike or scoot within the school grounds.
Helping in School
We always need parents and grandparents to come to hear readers, help with displays, make classroom resources or to be an extra helper in the classroom; no experience is necessary! A letter will go out shortly – or just put a note in your child’s home-school book. No need to commit to a regular slot – even an afternoon once in a while is very much appreciated.
Please feel free to come into school or make an appointment if you have any issues to discuss with the class teacher.
