Class Story: - Our class story this half term is called 'The Boy in the Tower' written by Polly Ho-Yen.

Spring term - Week 11:

In our final week of term, we have been learning about angles in Maths.  We got to put masking tape on the tables and draw on them to work out angles in different shapes, on a straight line and around a point.  We really enjoyed this lesson and learnt so much!

In Science, we learnt about how we see objects.  We were really surprised to learn about how the objects we see are flipped upside down in our eye when projected onto our retina.  It is only when the image is in the brain that this image is then flipped back to the correct way up.  We produced double-page spreads to show our understanding.

In English, we completed our informal, persuasive pieces of writing based on Room 101.  We particularly enjoyed writing these and using informal language throughout.

Spring Term - Week 10:

This week, we have begun writing informal, persuasive speeches based on the TV show 'Room 101'.  We watched clips of the show, where celebrities chose objects or everyday things which annoy them to put into 'Room 101'.  We then read examples of speeches which other children had written where they had explained the reasons for choosing their annoyances to be put into 'Room 101'.  We are really enjoying this unit of writing, and look forward to sharing these with you on the website next week.

In Science, we learnt about how we see objects.  We found it amazing how the eye flips the objects we see upside-down when the image hits our retinas, and then how the brain flips this back the correct way again.  We have begun to create double-page spreads about this topic which we will hopefully share on the site next week.

This week, we finished our class story of 'Kensuke's Kingdom' by Michael Morpurgo.  It was a really emotional ending, especially the very final page where Michael gets a letter from Kensuke's family.  We would really recommend this book to other classes, and we have now begun to read 'The Boy in the Tower' as our class story.

Spring Term - Week 9:

This week, the children have all worked really hard with their assessments.  It has been so pleasing to see that they have all made progress in their Reading, Maths and Grammar papers, and their hard work is really paying off.

During the week, the children took part in Science Week.  They carried out an investigation which looked into the relationship between the angle between two mirrors and the number of objects which could be seen.  They formed predictions, conclusions and drew line graphs about their results too.

Spring Term - Week 8:

In Maths this week, we have been investigating volume.  We used cubes to create different shapes and discussed how these created three-dimensional shapes which is why we measure in cubic units rather than squared units for area.  We then used the cubes to solve problems involving volume.

We have continued to learn about electronics and robotics using the Crumble kits.  We have investigated how to use motors and sensors and are now ready to plan and build robotic models later this term.

Spring Term - Week 7:

The first week back after half term has been really busy but great fun!

The children enjoyed taking part in World Book Day and watched an interview with the children's author Michael Morpurgo.  They then wrote their own diary entries based on his book, Kensuke's Kingdom, and created artwork which depicted Michael on the island.

On Wednesday, the children began their computing topic on robotics.  Using Crumble Kits, the children began by programming a set of flashing lights (otherwise known as sprites) which they thought were fantastic!  We shall explore the kits further next week.

Spring Term - Week 6:

This week has been the final week of half term at school.  The children really enjoyed the end of the week when they all made homemade soup and bread as part of their Design Technology work.  They split up into groups and some children made leek and potato soup by using the claw and bridge techniques using knives to cut up their vegetables.  The children then sauted the onions and leeks and then added stock to this to create a soup before blitzing it up to make it smooth.

The other group of children made two five-plaited loaves.  They enjoyed making the dough, followed by kneeding this over ten minutes before letting it rise.  Once risen, the children learnt how to make a five-plaited loaf which they were all really proud of.

During the afternoon, the children had the chance to taste and evaluate their food and they really enjoyed it!

Spring Term 1 - Week 5:

This week has been Children's Mental Health Week.  We have been discussing the theme of connections and how we connect with different people in our families and societies.  We made our own class jigsaw to show the links which we make with each other in our class.  Also as part of the week, we had a visit from the school nurse who discussed the importance of sleep to both our physical and mental health.  She talked about how regular sleep patterns are important to ensure we feel relaxed and refreshed each day at school, and how it is important to have time away from screens and devices at least an hour before we go to bed each evening.

We have also discussed our favourite interests and hobbies over the week.  We have begun to research about a topic which interests us and will begin to write a non-chronological report about this over the next week.

Spring Term 1 - Week 4:

This week, members from the local WI have been into school to teach the children some cookery skills.  They took two groups of children on Wednesday afternoon to make 'ragu sauce' using fresh ingredients.  The children really enjoyed making their sauce and learnt a lot about being safe using the utensils in the kitchen, as well as food hygine.  Further cookery will be carried out over the next few weeks.

Spring Term 1 - Week 3:

This week, we have been spending more time studying Charles Darwin and his exploration of the Galapagos Islands.  In English, the children began researching information about the islands and are beginning to write their own non-chronological reports about them.

In Art, the children have been following Darwin's scientific approach to natural selection of 'observation and documentation'.  The children used images of different species of Galapagos finches to draw their individual features within their sketchbooks, focusing on the use of line and tone.  The children really enjoyed these lessons and are really proud of their work.

Spring term 1 - Week 2:

This week began with a fantastic gymnastics lesson by Rosie from the South Derbyshire Sports Partnership.  We looked at using counterbalances in our routines and used the music of ‘Nights in White Satin’ as our stimulus and will be creating a sequence over the next few weeks which we will share on our website once it is completed.

On Tuesday, we were very lucky to have the opportunity to meet PC Alex Boniface from the Channel 5 programme ‘Traffic Cops’. He came into school with Officer Bob to talk about how he became a police officer and the role that he did as part of the traffic cops team. Alex discussed how being aspirational was important to get him to where he was in his role, and some of the different car chases he had been involved in over the years. At the end of the session, Officer Bob and Pc Boniface stated that a ‘new law’ about telling bad jokes in classrooms had been created and so ‘arrested’ Mr Rodgers to the delight of the children. After much pleading, Mr Rodgers was released ‘without charge’ but only after a couple of minutes when PC Boniface found that the key would not work to release him!

The children have also been learning about natural selection and Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.  They took part in an experiment which involved the children having different 'beaks' to collect 'food' on an island to see which 'animal' became extinct the quickest and which became the most dominent on the island.  The children really enjoyed this, and could see how the competition with their peers was similar to that of the copmetition shown between animals in the natural world.

Spring Term - Week 1:

In our first week back to school after the Christmas holiday, the children began their Science topic on ‘Evolution’.  We discussed the term inherited characteristics and how these are passed down through generations through our DNA.  Using Mr Men and Little Miss characters, the children imagined what characteristics their children may have.  The class really enjoyed this lesson and came up with some fantastic ideas.

The children also started their other topic about ‘Trade’.  The children discussed the term ‘trade’ and talked about what imports and exports were.  Then, they played a game where each table group acted as a country and had to make as much money as possible using Bly the resources that they had.  They could trade between different countries and sell resources between each other to make profit.  The children really enjoyed the game and learnt that not all countries have the same resources and that trading is important to economies around the world.

The children also discussed how sharing information online can have both positive and negative issues.  They learnt how it is important to 'Think before you share' and that sharing images of either themselves or others on social media can have effects on themselves and their reputation in later life.

Spring Half Term 1:

In Year 6 during the first half of the spring term, our topic will be Evolution.  We will carry out research about Charles Darwin and his exploration of the Galapagos Islands and his subsequent theory of evolution.  We will carry out some experiments about evolution and adaptation too.  Our topic in Geography will be Fair Trade.  We will discuss what fair trade is and find out about the costs involved in buying and producing different produce from around the world.  In Design Technology, we will make soup and bread using in-season ingredients.  We will continue to develop a deep understanding of mathematics, building up our knowledge of fractions, decimals and percentages, as well as solving problems.  In grammar, we will be focusing on punctuation and verb tenses.  For a full overview of our curriculum for this half term, please see the curriculum overview for the first half of the spring term on the previous page.