Spring 2022

Spring 2022

Welcome back. I hope you have all had a fun Christmas full of love and laughter! COVID still seems to be an issue in the wider community. If your child is off school but is presenting with no symptoms, please let me know so that we can set some work to keep them occupied during their isolation at home. 

Spring 1 topic - Climate Change

Attached below is this half term's topic web which shows the learning that will take place. You can just click on it to access it. PDFs of the knowledge organisers are also attached; these give an overview of the children's lessons taught in the afternoons over this half term and are also used in class by the children to review their learning.

Keeping Fit and Healthy - Blood smoothies

As part of the children's Science, Miss Bingham has been teaching the children about the components of the blood, blood groups and whether a blood group is Rhesus positive or negative. Using fruit, marshmallows and different fruit juices (and a large blender) we created all of the possible blood groups. 

After that, we got to taste them. Most children were brave enough to try the blood smoothies but they had a bit of a mixed reception!

Equivalent fractions and adding fractions with different denominators

This week, we have revisited equivalent fractions before moving onto adding fractions with different denominators. I am so pleased with the progress of the girls whose work features in the first two photos. In fact, they both got the Maths award this week for focusing during input and working hard on an area they were unsure about. I am looking forward to seeing how they progress next week. 

The causes of Climate Change

In pairs and threes, we have researched different causes of climate change. Today, we finished our PowerPoints and shared what we had learnt about each cause with the rest of the class. Now, the PowerPoints are in a folder on our display board in case anyone would like to know more.

Digital well-being

This term, we have been looking at the positives and negative uses of the internet and how it can affect our well-being. Today, we used drama to re-enact scenarios that show healthy and respectful relationships online. Afterwards, we looked at our ideas about what makes a good friend and we realised that being a good friend online is very similar to being a good friend in real-life. 

We also made Online Safety Top Tip booklets that shared some of the advice we have been talking about in class. The children were asked to create booklets that would be attractive to children of a similar age. Emma's looked appealing to the reader and was full of excellent tips too. 

Tag Rugby

After several weeks of Nick teaching us different skills, we started to play some competitive games of Tag Rugby.

Sping 2 - Plants and Seasonality

This half term, Year 6 will be preparing for the SATs. Attached below are the knowledge organisers that have been prepared for this half term's learning. Also attached as a file is our topic web. 

STEM careers linked to Keeping Fit and Healthy

As we reviewed last half-term's Science, we investigated STEM careers that were linked to aspects of the lessons taught in class. Once we had identified some that were appropriately linked, the children could choose one of their choice. After explaining the job role, the children were asked to explain how our knowledge could be used  as they carry out their job. Some children investigated influential people in that area of STEM and we were pleased to find a mix of genders as we are trying to breakdown the stereotypes we have of scientists.

RSE - creating positive friendships and identifying toxic traits

In class, we have discussed how some people are very good at creating positive relationsships. In the next lesson, we looked at some scenarios that depict positive and toxic friendships.

Seasonal frui and veg

We have been learning about the benefits of buying seasonal fruit and vegetables as we prepare for our DT topic of creating a seasonal vegetable soup. 

The Highwayman

In English, we have been studying a narrative poem called The Highwayman. We have looked at its poetic features and the language within. It is also being used as the basis for some descriptive writing that includes relative clauses and adverbials. Today, we tried to perform the first four stanzas of the poem in mixed groups. We still need to practise this some more but I loved Molly's little action so much that I hoped to upload it on here. However, I don't think my technical skills are quite strong enough. Therefore, I have taken a screenshot of the video. I should probably add that this is the first time that Alesha has performed in class and I am incredibly proud of her. By the end of term, I am hoping the whole poem will be able to be performed; we're doing well so far so I have high hopes!

Poetry Comparison

The children were asked to work in groups to compare The Highwayman to The Smuggler's Song by Rudyard Kipling and The Listeners by Walter de la Mere. Afterwards, we took a vote about which of the new poems we liked best and The Smuggler's Sing won hand's down due to its rhythm and a slightly more playful subject. Below is one of the ways the children recorded their thoughts. 

Can we clone a plant or vegetable?

In groups, we were asked to investigate whether we could clone plants and vegetables. We were given parts of plants or vegetables - or even in some cases whole vegetables - to investigate this.We will observe their growth (or lack of growth) over time. We are hoping that if we take care of the plants properly, we will get some new spider plants, geraniums, potatoes, onions and carrots. Hopefully, the children are a little more green-fingered than their teacher!

Lakeside Residential

Most of Year 5 and 6 went on residential this week. We had lots of fun doing canoeing, king swings, obstacle courses, rock-climbing and abseiling, fell walks, campfires and more. Oh and one or more of the class may have ended up a little chilly when they decided to jump into Lake Windermere; they are certainly braver than me! The weather was lovely and the view was one of the best we have encountered on a residential before. Hopefully, lots of happy memories have been made before the Year 6s leave us for their new secondary school.