All children have access to a wide variety of books. Children have the opportunity to choose a book of their choice and will be given a book levelled at their ability. Parents can support their children’s learning through reading with them every day, taking children to the local library to read about our themes, and by practising maths with them.
Reading at home: Children will be set an amount to read at home from their ability levelled book. To develop their comprehension skills, they will be set a short task linked to what they have read. The opportunity to read with an adult is still very valuable for children in Y5/6 as it provides opportunities for children to respond to the book: discuss and interpret what is happening; comment upon author’s use of language; and make predictions based upon evidence. All of these skills are key aspects of age related expectations. Varying reading experiences can help motivate children. During reading time, adults can take their turn in reading aloud.
Wider Reading: The children have the opportunity to choose a book of their choice from either the school or their class library to encourage reading for pleasure and to strengthen their reading skills. You can support your child’s learning by reading with and to them as often as possible and using a variety of texts, including magazines, comics and auditory texts. When reading and discussing a text it is beneficial to develop an understanding of the text, its structure, reading between the lines and commenting upon author style/ intent.
Other Homework: Little, often and fun is the key! Especially for core knowledge of spellings and retention of basic number facts. See the table above for how often this homework is set but we encourage all parents to routinely practise with their children.
Please remember, if you need help or ideas on how to support your child with their homework, please see your child’s teacher who will be happy to help.
Weekly spelling lists
Recommended Reading Lists
Maths
Please note, all children have a Times Tables Rock Stars Account and should be using the resources to practise their tables. Where children cannot access the website from home, they can evidence practising their tables at home on paper to bring in and share with their teacher.
Useful websites
Maths games and practice: http://mathszone.co.uk/
BBC Bitesize Maths for the 2014 curriculum including games and clips to explain: http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/subjects/z826n39
Tables Practice (Evaluation versions that are free to play online): http://www.teachingtables.co.uk/
Maths and English games: http://www.topmarks.co.uk/
Spelling and Grammar: http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks2/english/spelling_grammar/