Focus Narrative:

Fairytales

Key Text/Stimulus:

Fairytales

Writing Outcome:

Overview

Focus Grammar

• Choosing nouns and pronouns appropriately for clarity and cohesion
• Expanded noun phrases
• Fronted adverbials
• Plural and possessive Inverted commas

Debate/Discussions around events

In this unit, children explore the role of villains in traditional fairy tales and fantasy stories. Using Howl's Moving Castleas inspiration, they will investigate how authors create memorable antagonists through carefully chosen vocabulary, powerful imagery and precise description. They will analyse how appearance, actions and atmosphere combine to reveal a character's true nature before creating an original villain for their own fairy tale.

Writing Task (Independent & Edited)

Create an original fairy tale villain and write an engaging introduction that brings the character to life. Introduce your villain through vivid description, revealing their appearance, mannerisms and the atmosphere they create, while hinting at the danger or mystery they bring to the story.

Writing Focus

Write an effective character introduction using descriptive language to create a strong first impression. Use expanded noun phrases, ambitious vocabulary and carefully chosen verbs to build atmosphere and show the villain's personality. Include figurative language such as similes, metaphors or personification where appropriate, and vary sentence lengths for effect. Organise ideas into coherent paragraphs and use accurate punctuation, including commas, apostrophes and speech punctuation where needed.

Focus Non-Narrative:
Poerty
Key Text/Stimulus:
Fairytales/SpellsWriting Outcome:

Overview

Cross-curriculum support genres:

Non-chronological reports

Recounts

In this unit, children explore the language of spells, incantations and magical poetry. Drawing inspiration from the villains they have created and the magical world of Howl's Moving Castle, they will investigate how poets use rhythm, repetition, powerful imagery and carefully chosen vocabulary to create atmosphere. Children will experiment with magical language, including invented words, onomatopoeia and dramatic commands, before crafting their own spell.

Writing Task (Independent & Edited)

Write a magical spell or incantation for your fairy tale villain. Your poem should reveal the villain's powers and explain what the spell is intended to do, using vivid imagery and magical language to make it sound powerful, mysterious and dangerous.

Writing Focus

Create a poem that uses repetition, rhythm and line breaks to build tension and drama. Choose powerful verbs and ambitious adjectives to create vivid imagery and bring the magic to life. Use descriptive noun phrases and carefully selected vocabulary to reveal the purpose and effects of the spell. Weave in words and phrases from an imagined ancient magical language, inventing spell words that sound mysterious, ancient and powerful. Use repetition and carefully crafted language throughout to make the incantation feel authentic and memorable.

Pathway: Mixed Media Land & City Scapes🔗

Explore how artists use a variety of media to capture spirit of the place. Focus upon exploratory work to discover mixed media combinations.

Disciplines:

Painting, Drawing, Sketchbooks

Medium:

Graphite stick or soft B pencil, Handwriting Pen, Pastels & Chalk, Paper, (Sketchbook Making Task: Paper, string, elastic bands, glue)

Artists:

Vanessa Gardiner, Shoreditch Sketcher, Kittie Jones, Saoirse Morgan

How do artists use different materials to show the energy or feeling of a place?Artists combine materials like pastels, paint, and ink to create layers, textures, and movement in their artwork. These choices help capture how a place looks, feels, or even sounds.

How do artists use colour and texture to show what a place is like?Artists choose colours to reflect the mood or time of day—like warm tones for sunset or cool tones for fog. They use texture by layering or blending materials to make surfaces look rough, smooth, busy, or calm, helping us imagine what the place feels like.

Mixed Media – Artwork made by combining different materials, like ink, paint, pastel, or collage.

Layering – Placing different materials or marks on top of each other.

Expressive – Showing emotions, feelings, or energy through marks, colours, or materials.

Group discussions/feedback

Judaism

Enquiry: What is the best way for Jews to live a good life?🔗

In this unit, the children look at different actions Jews can take to show their trust in God.

(Covering Northumberland Agreed Syllabus - How and why do people try to make the world a better place?)

How do Jews show care for the world and other people today?Jews may plant trees or support environmental charities on Tu B'Shevat, and take part in Mitzvah Day by carrying out acts of kindness to help their local community.

Covenant– A special promise or agreement between God and His people.

Tu B’Shevat – The Jewish 'New Year for Trees', when people celebrate nature by planting trees or supporting environmental projects.

Mitzvah – A good deed or act of kindness carried out to help others and follow God's teachings.

Cross Curricular Writing Opportunity:

Children step into the role of Rosa Parks and write a diary entry reflecting on the day she refused to give up her seat on a segregated bus. They will recount the events in chronological order, expressing thoughts and feelings through the first-person perspective while using historical detail to create an authentic and reflective account.

Context Link:

As part of their work for Portal Radio, children become podcasters, researching trailblazers who challenged injustice and fought for equal rights. They explore the campaign for votes for women through the Suffragettes before investigating the Civil Rights Movement, including segregation and racism in the United States through Rosa Parks and the significance of the Bristol Bus Boycott in the UK. They combine their historical knowledge to create an engaging podcast, sharing the stories of those whose courage helped shape a fairer society.

Who was Rosa Parks and what did she stand up for?Rosa Parks was an African American woman who became an important figure in the fight for civil rights in the United States. In 1955, she refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on a bus in Alabama, which was against the unfair laws at the time. Her brave action led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott and helped inspire a wider movement for racial equality. Rosa Parks is remembered for standing up peacefully against injustice.

Who were the Suffragettes and what did they fight for?The Suffragettes were a group of women in the early 1900s who campaigned for women to have the right to vote in Britain. They used marches, speeches, and sometimes protests to draw attention to their cause. Their motto was "Deeds not words," and they believed in taking bold action to make change. Their efforts helped bring about voting rights for women in the UK.

How are the Suffragettes and Rosa Parks similar and different in their fight for change?Both the Suffragettes and Rosa Parks stood up against unfair rules and helped make life more equal for others. The Suffragettes campaigned for women’s voting rights in Britain, while Rosa Parks challenged racial segregation in the United States. The Suffragettes sometimes used loud and dramatic protests, while Rosa Parks used peaceful resistance. Their actions happened in different countries and times, but both had a powerful impact on history.

What are civil rights and how have they changed over time?Civil rights are the rights people have to be treated fairly and equally, no matter their gender, race, or background. In history, people have fought for these rights—like the Suffragettes for women’s votes, Rosa Parks for racial equality, and campaigners in the UK for marriage equality, which became law in 2014. These movements helped change unfair laws and make society more inclusive. Learning about civil rights shows us how people can stand up for fairness and help create a better future.

Suffragettes – A group of women who campaigned for the right to vote in early 20th-century Britain using marches, speeches, and protests.

Civil Rights – The rights all people have to be treated equally and fairly, regardless of race, gender, or background.

Segregation – The practice of keeping people apart based on race, often through unfair laws, especially in the USA in the past.

Protest – An action taken to show disagreement or push for change, such as marches, speeches, or boycotts.

Equality – The idea that all people should have the same rights and be treated fairly, no matter who they are.

Peer feedback/instructions

Pathway: Net and wall games

Focus: Movements, balances and sequence composition🔗

Pupils already have a strong knowledge of how to beat an opponent by creating space for shots and starting to use both forehand and backhand. In this unit, pupils have the opportunity to expand on their understanding of net based games as they develop and apply their understanding through tennis. Pupils will show self motivation to learn how to use forehand and backhand in tennis and later in the unit learn how to execute a serve and a volley, in order to beat their opponent. Pupils will learn to competently execute a range of shots, understanding when and why they need to use them in games.

Newcastle United Foundation:

Dance

Pathway: Gears and pulleys🔗

Making and designing gear and pulley systems and exploring their uses.

Disciplines:

Mechanisms

Why is it important to research and plan carefully before designing something?Market research helps designers understand what people need or what problems they want to solve. They also think about constraints like cost, safety, or materials, which might affect their design. Good designers come up with original and innovative ideas that improve on what’s been made before. Clear plans with annotations help them explain and test their thinking.

How can we improve our designs and make them more sustainable?Designers use feedback to improve their work, making changes based on what others notice. They think about the materials used, how safe the tools are (like hot glue), and how the product affects the environment. Choosing better materials or techniques can make a product stronger or more sustainable. Reflecting on what worked well or not helps designers make better products next time.

Gear - A wheel with teeth that turns to move another part in a machine, like in a bike or clock.

Pulley - A wheel with a rope or chain used to lift or move something more easily.

Market Research - Asking questions or gathering information to find out what people need or want.

Sustainability - Thinking about how something is made, what it's made from, and how it affects the planet.

Annotation - A label or comment added to a drawing or diagram to explain ideas and choices.

Big Question: How can we design a balloon rocket that reaches its target?

Science Enquiry Focus: Comparative and fair testing (controlled investigations)

Outline: Challenge the children to become rocket engineers! Working in small teams, they must design and build a balloon-powered rocket capable of transporting a small payload from a launch point to a designated landing point on the other side of the classroom. Using a selection of everyday materials, they will plan, build, test and refine their ideas, making careful changes to improve the success of their design. Through repeated testing, children will evaluate how well their rocket reaches its target and consider which features make it travel more effectively and reliably, using their observations to improve each new version.

What to Wonder? Wonder about what makes a balloon rocket move and what will help it successfully reach its target. Think about whether the size or shape of the rocket makes a difference, which materials work best, and what changes could improve its journey. Consider why some rockets travel smoothly while others wobble or stop before reaching the end, and how engineers test and refine their designs to solve problems.

How does the size of a parachute affect how quickly it falls?(Comparative and fair testing -controlled investigation)

Children design and make simple parachutes with different-sized canopies while keeping all other variables the same, such as the weight of the payload and the drop height. They test each parachute several times, measure the time taken to reach the ground and compare their results to identify how air resistance changes with canopy size.

How does the shape of an object affect how easily it moves through water?(Comparative and fair testing -controlled investigation)

Children investigate water resistance by testing a range of differently shaped objects moving through water. They keep the material, mass and method of testing as consistent as possible, measuring the time taken or observing how easily each object moves. They use their results to explain how shape affects water resistance.

How do pulleys make it easier to lift heavy objects?(Identifying patterns and researching using secondary sources)

Children explore a selection of pulley systems by lifting the same load using different arrangements, recording observations about the effort required. They then use secondary sources to find out how pulleys work in everyday life and identify patterns between the number of pulleys used and the force needed to lift a load. Finally, they explain how pulleys help people complete tasks more efficiently.

Friction -the force between two surfaces that are in contact with each other.

Why do things fall to the ground when you drop them?Things fall to the ground because of gravity, a force that pulls objects towards the Earth. This force acts on everything all the time, even if we can’t see it. Gravity keeps our feet on the ground and makes things like apples or balls fall when they are dropped. Without gravity, things would float away!

What is air resistance and how does it affect moving objects?Air resistance is a force that slows things down as they move through the air. It pushes against objects like bikes, cars, or parachutes. The bigger or flatter the surface, the more air resistance it creates. That’s why parachutes slow people down—they catch a lot of air!

What is water resistance and when do we notice it?Water resistance is a force that slows objects moving through water. It pushes against the object, just like air resistance does in the air. Swimmers feel it when they move their arms and legs through water. Streamlined shapes, like fish or boats, help reduce water resistance and make moving easier.

What is friction and how does it affect movement?Friction is a force that happens when two surfaces rub against each other. It can slow things down or stop them from moving. We use friction to help us grip the ground when we walk, but it can also cause things to wear out, like shoes or tyres. Different surfaces create different amounts of friction—smooth ones have less, rough ones have more.

Gravity - the invisible force that pulls objects toward each other, keeping us on Earth and planets in orbit around the Sun.

Air resistance? - the type of frictional force between an object and air particles as the object moves through air.

Water resistance - the type of frictional force between an object and water particles as the object moves through water.

Online Safety

Lesson 1: Online protection 🔗

Learning how applications can access personal information and how to alter permissions to limit the sharing of information with others online.

Computing systems and networks

Search Engines 🔗

Investigating how search engines work and developing effective searching skills to find relevant and accurate information online.

Sing, Play Perform

Pathway: Adding tuned accompaniment to part-singing🔗

In this unit we develop this further by singing songs in two parts whilst also performing simple accompaniments on tuned percussion. Pupils will apply previously taught effective rehearsal strategies when practising and performing songs in this unit. This will support pupils' future ensemble work in which they will begin to layer repetitive cells and contrasting and syncopated rhythms.

Language Angels Unit 🔗

La fonética (Phonics & Pronunciation)

In these 4 sequential lessons pupils will learn a selection of the key phonemes to facilitate accurate and authentic pronunciation as part of their language learning experience. Each of the 4 lessons is accompanied by a song that pupils will be encouraged to actively participate in, as well as a mouth mechanics guide video.