Year 5 have been working incredibly hard in their dance lessons this half term, learning and performing a routine to the song “Believer”. Throughout the unit, the children focused on developing their timing, rhythm and performance skills, building the routine step by step until they could perform it confidently as a whole piece.

The children practised moving in sync with one another, carefully following the beats and counts of the music. They worked hard on transitions, formations and unison, making sure movements were sharp, controlled and well-timed. A big focus was also on performing with attitude and expression, really matching the energy and mood of the music.

The children featured in the video were the ones brave enough to step forward and show off their amazing dance moves – well done to them for performing with such confidence and enthusiasm! 

To celebrate NSPCC Number Day, Year 5 spent the day developing their financial literacy, exploring how money works in real life and why managing it carefully is so important.

We began by looking at the different ways we can pay for things, developing our understanding of debit and credit cards and the key differences between them. The children also learned about loans, how banks and credit companies charge interest, and why it is vital to think carefully about repayments before deciding whether taking out a loan is a wise choice.

The main focus of the day was jobs and earnings. We started by exploring a range of different careers and learning what an annual salary is. The children then chose a job and were very excited when they divided the annual salary by 12 to calculate how much they would earn each month — or so they thought!

Next, the children were introduced to tax and National Insurance and calculated how much these deductions would reduce their monthly income. Many were still confident they would be fairly well off… until we moved on to monthly outgoings.

The class explored the cost of rent or mortgages, council tax, utility bills, grocery shopping, phone contracts, and other essential expenses. Once these were deducted, the children were shocked to see how little money was left at the end of the month. One child, who had been very excited about renting a penthouse apartment, quickly realised that after all their outgoings they were over £1,000 overdrawn!

At the end of the day, the children were asked to reflect on what they had learned. Some of their thoughtful comments included:

“I know that money is hard to earn and you have to pay tax after earning it. I was surprised by how much the government take. I didn’t know how much tax people had to pay. I now know why I don’t always get things when I ask.”

“I could not believe you have to pay council tax! It is really expensive.”

“I learned that the money left after you have paid your bills can be really low and I learned how expensive bills really are.”

“I learned how much parents have to spend to get a house and pay the bills – we don’t realise that it is so much. Money is hard to earn so you should not spend too much money on things that you don’t need.”

“I have learned how hard it can be on parents because of all of the expenses each month. I am very shocked about it.”
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It was wonderful to see such thoughtful reflections and a growing appreciation for the realities of adult life and family responsibilities. NSPCC Number Day provided a powerful and memorable learning experience for Year 5.

​This half term, Year 5’s art focus is the work of L. S. Lowry, whose distinctive industrial scenes and iconic figures are instantly recognisable. As part of our unit, the children will be using his work as inspiration to create a similar scene for their own final masterpiece.
Before starting the unit, the children spent time practising with paint. They experimented with how Lowry created a sense of depth and perspective in his scenes and had great fun developing their own versions of his famous “matchstick people.” This helped them become more confident with both paint control and observational detail.

​We also spent time acting as art critics, which is a really important part of understanding art. The children discussed what they liked, what they didn’t like, and what they thought Lowry was trying to achieve through his work. These thoughtful conversations helped them to look more carefully at artwork and develop their own opinions.

​Currently, the children are working on sketching their own scenes, inspired by Lowry’s style and subject matter. From these initial sketches, one will be selected and further developed to form the basis of their final masterpiece later in the unit.

​We are excited to see how the children’s ideas continue to grow as they bring together technique, creativity, and artistic understanding.