Decimals and Percentages - Rounding Decimals - Planning

The Year 5 curriculum for the spring term includes a focus on Decimals and Percentages, with the second week dedicated to rounding decimals. The National Curriculum objectives for this period involve recognising and working with thousandths, understanding their relation to tenths, hundredths, and their decimal equivalents. Pupils learn to round decimals with two decimal places to the nearest whole number and to one decimal place, while also recognising the percent symbol (%) and its meaning as 'number of parts per hundred'. They are taught to write percentages as a fraction with a denominator of 100, and as a decimal, as well as solving problems that require knowledge of percentage and decimal equivalents of common fractions.

Key vocabulary for the unit includes terms such as decimal, rounding, place value, and percentage, among others. The lesson on Rounding Decimals begins with a starter activity to refresh previous learning, followed by a class teaching input where students use place value counters and number lines to understand rounding to the nearest whole number and tenth. For instance, they learn that a decimal like 3.4 rounds down to 3, while 4.5 rounds up to 5. Differentiated worksheets and presentations are provided to facilitate independent learning, with a plenary session at the end to consolidate understanding. The lesson aims to clear common misconceptions and ensure that students can confidently place numbers in relation to others on a number line to make informed decisions about rounding.