Rowan Class Home Learning Week beginning 22nd June
This week our whole school focus is Mexican festivals. See below for some suggestions, but feel free to work with brothers and sisters on anything related to this.
Spellings: ie and ei
This week we are going to use the “i before e, except after c” rule.” Like most rules in English, there are exception words that don’t follow it! However, it does work for most words where the letters ie or ei make an ee sound.
Arithmetic: Fraction Calculations
– Last week we revisited how to add, subtract and multiply fractions in Maths. This week I would like you to practise this so you remember how to do it.
– Can you make a poster to explain how to + or – fractions?
– Can you draw a bar model to prove why multiplying fractions is the same as adding them repeatedly?
– Write yourself 5 questions and see how quickly you can answer them. If you do this every day, can you improve your time by the end of the week?
– Year 5s should remember to check if their answer can be simplified.
Mexico Suggested Focus for the Week: Festivals
You might like to find out:
- What kinds of festivals and celebrations do they have in Mexico?
- Can you find out when, where, why & how they are celebrated?
- Research the Mexican Day of the Dead – you could compare it to how people in our country celebrate Halloween.
- What kind of foods might you eat if you were taking part in a Mexican celebration?
- Can you learn how to say Happy Birthday in Spanish (which is spoken in Mexico)?
- What are the main religions in Mexico? What religious festivals do they take part in?
Suggested Activities:
- Watch a video about the Day of the Dead festival here.
- Make a skull model, lantern or mask to celebrate the Day of the Dead.
- Try some Mexican cooking. You can find recipes suitable for kids here and here or download the Pan de Meurta & hot chocolate recipes from below.
- Learn some Spanish words (download an activity on this below).
- Can you find things at home to make a Day of the Dead costume, make a mask or use face paints and make-up to dress up?
- Make decorations for any of the other festivals you have learnt about.
English Suggestions
Monday: Reading
– Download the reading comprehension below about the Mexican Day of the Dead (I suggest Year 5s try the two star ** version and Year 4s the one star * version but feel free to challenge yourself more if you can!).
– Or do your own research into Mexican festivals. For each festival try to find out: what it is called, when it is held, why it is celebrated, how it is celebrated.
Tuesday: Conjunctions
– Today we are going to practise using conjunctions to compare two festivals, in particular using: whereas, however, similarly & which is also. Year 5s should correctly place the comma between the main & subordinate clause too.
– Examples to show differences: The Day of the Dead is celebrated in Mexico, whereas Halloween is celebrated in the UK and USA. Halloween lasts for one day, however the Day of the Dead lasts for three days.
– Examples to show similarities: The Day of Dead celebrations start on the 31st October, which is also the same day as Halloween. During the celebration people dress as skeletons and decorate their faces, similarly people wear fancy dress costumes for Halloween.
– Can you write some sentences of your own to compare a Mexican festival with a celebration that you have experienced? You could even try and compare a Mexican festival to one of the Japanese festivals you learnt about before half-term.
Wednesday: Features of Instructions
– Can you find different sets of instructions at home? You might find instructions for games, recipes or making something?
– What are the features of instructions?
– Can you read and follow a set of instructions?
– See the downloads below for some instructions for making bread, hot chocolate or a skull model.
Thursday: Writing Instructions
– Today you are going to write a set of instructions. You will find this easiest if it is instructions for something you have actually done: something you have made or a recipe you have cooked.
– Features of instructions include: a title and introduction to make the reader want to follow them; an equipment or ingredients list; a method sub-heading; imperative (bossy) verbs; adverbs; written in chronological order (the order you should follow the steps).
– Last week you learnt to punctuate bullet points correctly. You can use these in your instructions today.
Friday: Instructions
– If you need more time you can finish writing your instructions from yesterday.
– Now I want you to test them out. Is there someone else who can read and follow your instructions? Do they work? Do you need to add or change anything to make them clearer to follow?
Maths: Data Handling
This week’s data handling activities are all based around the weather. If possible, can you record information about the weather every day ready to use on Friday? Possible data to collect:
– Make a rain gauge and record the amount of rain every day. You can find instructions here.
– Make a chart to record weather observations on, e.g. sunny, cloudy, partly-sunny etc.
– If you have a thermometer at home, can you measure the temperature at the same time every day?
– Does someone in your family have a smart phone with a weather app? If so, you can get lots of information about the weather each day. You can also look this information up in a newspaper or on the internet.
– Can you go online and find out what the weather is like in Mexico each day?
– You can also find lots of data about the weather on the https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/met office website.
Monday: Draw tables for collecting and organising your weather data. These could include:
– a tally chart for recording types of weather.
– a table with headings for each day of the week & measurements (e.g. temperature, amount of rain).
Tuesday: Interpreting Graphs
Look at this climate information for two places in Mexico. 
What do they tell you about the weather pattern in Mexico throughout the year?
Can you answer these questions:
– Estimate the maximum temperature during the hottest month of the year?
– Which months of the year are the coldest?
– Which month has approximately 5 hours of sunshine?
– In which month does the amount of rain start to fall below 100mm?
– Which is the driest month in Tijuana?
– Is there more rain in Tijuana or Mexico City in April (check the units carefully before you answer)?
– CHALLENGE: Can you calculate how many hours of sunshine there would be in total during the month of January?
– SUPERCHALLENGE: Can you work out the total hours of sunshine for a whole year?
Wednesday: Calculating Averages
– To calculate the mean average of a set of data, we add all the values up and then divide by the amount there were.
– For example if I roll a dice 10 times and score: 3, 4, 3, 1, 1, 2, 6, 3, 5, 3. To work out the average add them all up (3+4+3+1+1+2+6+3+5+3) = 31. Then divide by ten = 3.1
– Roll a dice ten time and calculate your average score.
– Can you calculate the average age of the people in your household? (You might need a calculator for the division!)
– Can you calculate the average temperature or rainfall from your weather data so far?
Thursday: Draw a bar chart
– Can you draw a bar chart using some of the data you have collected this week?
– Or use the Tijuana data in the table above to draw a bar chart.
– Make sure your chart has a title and clearly labelled axis (numbers & units).
Friday: Draw a line graph
– Line graphs are used for continuous data such as time where the points in-between the measurements have a meaning.
– To draw a line graph you first need to work out your scale (what are your numbers counting up in on each axis?), then you put a small cross for each measurement, finally join them up with a line.
– Can you use one of the sets of data you have collected or looked at this week to draw a line graph?
Downloads
Day of the Dead Reading Comprehension
Pan de Meurta & Hot Chocolate Recipe
Printable Skull Model
Lantern Instructions
Spanish words activity
Useful Links
National Geographic for Kids https://www.natgeokids.com/uk/