Year 6: Blog items

Year 6 Blog - Friday 17th June 2022

Date: 17th Jun 2022 @ 10:38am

Welcome to our Year 6 blog. This week we have continued with our school production auditions, with all the parts being handed out this week. Get ready for all the hard work over the next few weeks Year 6!

We have also continued practising for the ‘Dance From the Heart Roadshow’ – you will be able to see this live on Tuesday 21^st June where it will be performed with the South Ribble sports team at 9.45am. The video to learn from is now on St Oswald’s TV (YouTube channel).

Also, Year 6’s learning this week:

• In Maths, we have investigated different formulas for how to solve the difference between days, weeks, months and years. We then used clocks to discuss how to work difference between times.
• In English, we have written an apology letter to our main character, analysed and created a fight scene, and wrote as an evacuee during World War II.
• In History, for our World War II topic, we have used a museum loan to look in detail at different artefacts (gas masks, evacuee suitcase, first aid box, propaganda posters, etc), a range of photos, some letters from evacuees and video clips to help us gather enough information to understand what life might have been like.
• In Music, we rehearsed all the songs for Joseph and the Technicolour Dreamcoat. I have uploaded them onto the website (further information below).
• In French, we practised using the first and third person to write about likes and dislikes from a cafe menu. We also recapped the verbs avoir and etre that the children need to learn off by heart before year 7. Homework - please
• In Science, we consolidated our understanding of Darwin's idea of natural selection which he proposed in his theory of evolution. We also evaluated the investigation we did last week when we modelled the different beak shapes - we decided it could definitely be improved!

Home Practice

This week, there are two activities to complete (some of you will only have one).

1. Learn all the words from your script by Tuesday 21^st June
2. Keep learning as many of the songs as possible – all 14 are uploaded on a separate blog named, ‘Joseph production song lyrics 2022’

(There will be a music practice on Wednesday 22^nd June)

3. French – please keep singing the song Je suis un enfant de paix on Youtube. This also needs to be learnt off by heart soon.

Year 6 Blog - Friday 10th June 2022

Date: 10th Jun 2022 @ 2:56pm

Welcome to our first blog of Year 6’s final half term. This week we have begun our school production auditions; the Year 6 were brilliant and really showed us what they were capable of. The class have been given the challenge of preparing for more auditions next week.  

We have been practising the dance for the ‘Dance From the Heart Roadshow’ – you will be able to see this live on Tuesday 21^st June where it will be performed with the South Ribble sports team at 9.45am. The video is on our Year 6 class page, if you would like to practise it.

Also, Year 6’s learning this week:

• In Maths, we have focused on place value and calculations. With place value, we have practised how to add and subtract whole numbers which decrease into negative numbers. We used this knowledge to solve missing numbers in sequences.
• In English, we have continued our novel, ‘The 1000 Year Old Boy’, through creating dialogue which includes actions from the characters. We also wrote a letter of apology from one character to another.
• In History, we have started our new topic, World War II, and have explored pictures from the past and what they tell us about this era. We then investigated objects from the past to gain a better understanding of what life was like back then.
• In Art, we used our Geography topic of Brazil to inspire our new project, with the artist Romero Britto. He uses amazing colours, pop art and cubism to create stunning artwork.
• In Music, along with our auditions, we have practised the first few songs of our school production: Jacob and Sons, Joseph’s Coat, One More Angel in Heaven and Any Dream Will Do.
• In French this week, we looked at a cafe menu and translated any words we didn't know. We looked at pictures of famous cafes in Paris and talked about cafe culture there.
• In Science this week, we researched Charles Darwin and his work. Having read about the Finches he discovered in the Galapagos Islands and how each bird's beak had adapted to the food available on each island. We modelled 'eating' different types of food using different beaks to see which type of beak was best adapted. This illustrated Darwin's theory of Natural Selection.

Home Practice

This weekend you have been give copies of the first four songs of the Joseph production. Please learn these off by heart by next Wednesday. You may have to use the internet to search the songs to help sing along to.

• Jacob and Sons
• Joseph’s Coat
• One More Angel in Heaven
• Any Dream Will Do

Online Safety Update

This week, our update is focused on how to set up devices for children. Read our short guide below for some useful tips to safeguard young people against online risk.

Dance From the Heart

Date: 7th Jun 2022 @ 3:03pm

Here is the Dance From the Heart video to practise before the roadshow on Tuesday 21st June 2022.

Year 6 Blog Friday 27th May 2022

Date: 27th May 2022 @ 3:41pm

Welcome to the final blog of this half term. It has been a busy 6 weeks but the children have been brilliant, showing their resilience and persevering through a challenging time.

This week we celebrated the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee with Year 6 playing the ukuleles. Check out our Queen’s Platinum Jubilee video on St Oswald's TV on YouTube. Also, we had a visit from Ray Bramford, a super poet and friend of Tony Heaton, who helped us to produce some excellent poetry on inclusion.

Thank you to everyone who created a speech this week. Everyone single pupil did a brilliant job of standing in front of the class and speaking for two minutes about any topic they wanted. They were so good, we might do this again at the end of the year.

Also, Year 6’s learning this week:

• In Maths, we have focused on solving problems with number, using trial and error and working backwards. Then the most important thing is checking our answers.
• In English, we have continued our novel, ‘The 1000 Year Old Boy’, through looking very closely at the three main characters, examining their traits and how they would speak, enabling us to become better writers.
• In PE, we learnt more about the fielding and batting techniques within rounders, and developed our forehand and backhand shots, whilst always being in ‘the ready’ position in tennis.
• In Geography, we learnt the 5 regions of Brazil: North, North-east, West-central, South-east and South. We discussed what each region may be like and how that effects population. We then introduced new physical geography terms: The Amazon Basin, The Pantanal and the Brazilian Highlands. Next lesson, we will look at how these areas have different landscapes and what effect that has on the country.
• In Music, we concluded our jubilee practices through an amazing performance by Year 6, who led the celebration on Wednesday. Don’t forget to see their performances on St Oswalds TV.
• In French, we practised the sound 'gn' with a song about une araignee dans ma baignoire (a spider in my bath). Then we looked at and described various famous places around France such as the Dune de Pilat, Mont Blanc and La Camargue. In French, bien sur!
• In Science, we looked at the concept of survival of the fittest by searching for 'caterpillars' of all different colours which were hidden around the nature area. The bright colours were obviously much easier to see and so were spotted (and eaten!) first. We then thought about the implications of this for survival.

Online Safety Update

This week, our update is focused on keeping children safe when accessing online content. A lot of platforms that our children use are dependent on uploaded content. Due to the sheer number of videos added to these sites, moderators find it almost impossible to stop all harmful or distressing content from reaching your phone or tablet screens. The guide below outlines ways in which you as parents and carers can limit the risk.

No Home Practice is set, other than to read as much as you can.

Have a super half term Year 6 – you deserve it!

Year 6 Blog Friday 20th May 2022

Date: 20th May 2022 @ 2:43pm

Year 6 Blog Friday 13th May 2022

Date: 13th May 2022 @ 3:32pm

This week Year 6 completed an exam week of SATs for Spelling, Grammar, Maths and Reading.

You have all worked incredibly hard with revising, the work in class and all the home learning you completed. You should be so proud of yourselves for getting through this week.

No home learning is set, so please enjoy yourselves and rest this weekend – you deserve it!

Online Safety Update

Age ratings can be used by adults to make an informed choice as to whether a game or platform is suitable for their child. 

Year 6 Blog Friday 6th May 2022

Date: 6th May 2022 @ 4:21pm

Welcome to our Year 6 blog. This week, we have been lucky enough to watch Romeo and Juliet play by Manacto, who are a theatre company from Manchester. Our rugby team did a fantastic job in the first of a three week tournament, in which we won all three games!

Also, Year 6’s learning this week:

• In Maths, we have learnt how to answer questions on volume, converted various measurements, and improved our learning of time (especially with 24 hour clocks).
• In English, we learnt the story of Romeo and Juliet and the important themes that run throughout it. We also improved ways of answering reading questions with retrieval and inference being our main focus.
• In French, we used dictionaries to look up the vocabulary for various landscape features and then used the words to construct sentences about the geography of France, e.g. Marseille est une grande ville au bord de la mer.
• In Science, we researched plant adaptations and how these features help the plant survive in its habitat. We then presented our research to others who had researched different plants.
• In PSHE, we discussed ways of improving our memory by playing a few games. Then we developed ways of keeping calm under pressure.

No Home Practice this week.

But make sure you spend the weekend doing at least one or a number of the following things:

• Rest and enjoy doing something you love
• Do something active
• Spend time with your family
• Read a good book
• Watch a film

Online Safety update

Lately, we have seen a huge increase in the number of children accessing the Roblox gaming platform. This includes children in our infant classes. This week's guide dives into what to expect your children to find when they use Roblox including any potential risks they may meet. These risks include in-app purchases and chatting to strangers online.

Year 6 Blog Friday 29th April 2022

Date: 29th Apr 2022 @ 3:41pm

Welcome to our Year 6 blog. This week we worked in groups to create our own sporting activities to help us prepare to become mini coaches to the infants. Year 3 were kind enough to let us test each one out, with some giving great feedback to help us make them even better. At golden assembly, Mrs Stone’s dance crew performed their routine for the competition brilliantly, and although they did not get through to the finals, they showed they were a credit to St Oswald’s.

Also, Year 6’s learning this week:

• In Maths, we have been improving our learning of 2D shapes and used that knowledge to help with perimeter, area and coordinates. One main area we have been improving is fractions of numbers and percentages of numbers.
• In English, we have focused on our descriptive writing, and learnt how to better use similes and personification to create a more detailed image for the reader.
• In PE, we learnt how to improve the accuracy of throwing and catching within cricket and how to perform the basics of batting. Also, as mentioned above, we designed our own sporting activity to help improve the fundamental movements of the infants, during future lunch times.
• In Music, we learnt the National Anthem and the platinum jubilee song. We sang and performed two action songs. We also played ukuleles revising the chords A and C from last lesson, and now starting to learn chord G.
• In French, we learnt les points cardinaux – the compass points. Then we used the map of France to find places or features that are in each part of France and wrote sentences about them in a hexagon-shaped book, because France is known as l’hexagone.
• In Science, as part of our topic on Evolution and Inheritance, we practised the ‘working scientifically’ skill of explaining the method used to test the strength of egg shells. If the egg shells aren’t strong enough, the species may not survive. Then we evaluated our investigation to decide how reliable our results were. After this, we did some research about how birds have survived while other dinosaurs have died out.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. It is important to keep reading, right up until the end for the year.

• NO SPELLING LIST THIS WEEK (We will be recapping our knowledge of the Year 5/6 spellings). Next week’s test will be on a random 15 spellings from this list so please look through those which you need to practise on.

• Sumdog challenges:

• Coordinates
  • This challenge will help you notice coordinates in all four quadrants. We have looked at these in detail on Friday so this will help to cement that learning.
• Simple and Progressive Verbs
  • This challenge will help you practise the simple and progressive verbs that we have been learning about this week.

Online Safety Update

This week's Online Safety Update is all about age-appropriate content online. Children can chance upon inappropriate content in various ways, from pop up ads to TikTok or YouTube videos. In this guide you will find tips on a number of potential risks such as social media, gaming and adverts.

Year 6 Blog Friday 22nd April 2022

Date: 22nd Apr 2022 @ 1:09pm

Welcome to our first Year 6 blog of the Summer Term. It has been great to see the children back in their summer uniforms. They have all come back with a super attitude after having two weeks off and have done brilliantly with all the tricky tasks set this week. Keep up the hard work Year 6!

Also, Year 6’s learning this week:

• In Maths, we have been learning how to solve problems with our place value knowledge by making sure we underline the important parts of the question and to check our answers. We have also learnt about ratio (the relation of one quantity to another) and proportion (which is a number, a share or a part of something in relation to a whole – like portions).
• In English, we have written an explanation text, a story and a poem using a range of conjunctions and noun phrases. We have also been improving our grammar knowledge by revisiting the names of all the word classes.
• In History, we completed our topic of the Mayans by presenting what we had learnt about the discovery of the Chichen Itza and how it shows how life was like back then.
• In Music, we completed our final performance of ‘Sailor, Sailor’ on the recorders, created an action song called, ‘Hands on my head’, and used the ukuleles to learn the C and A minor chords.
• In French, we labelled a map of France with the important cities, rivers, mountains and seas. We talked about why France is called l’hexagone and what each of the places is famous for. We learned how to say the points of the compass so that next week, we can describe where places and features are in France.
• In Science, we began our new topic of Evolution and Inheritance by looking at animals’ adaptations to their habitats and what would happen if, for example, the polar bear did not have white fur or large feet. The children researched an animal of their choice and how it is adapted to its environment.
• In Computing, we used code.org to learn how to use sprites, variables and loops in coding.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. It is important to keep reading, right up until the end for the year.

• NO SPELLING LIST THIS WEEK (We will be recapping our knowledge of the Year 5/6 spellings). Next week’s test will be on a random 15 spellings from this list so please look through those which you need to practise on.

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in 60s and 600s
    • Start with 225 or 850 or 575
    • Then count up in 60s ten times and back again
      • 225, 285, 345, 405, 465, 525, 585, etc
    • Then count up and back in 600s
      • 850, 1450, 2005, 2650, 3250, 3850, etc
    • Number facts:
      • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 17 – 9 = 6, 15 – 8 = 7.
      • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (13 – 5, 18 – 9, 16 – 8, 15 - 9, etc)
      • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (1.3 – 0.5, 1.8 – 0.9, 1.6 – 0.8, 1.5 – 0.9, etc)

• Sumdog (Multiples and Factors)
  • This challenge will be great to apply your multiplication knowledge to practice revising multiples and factors.
• Sumdog (Antonyms and Synonyms)
  • This challenge will help you become more familiar with words that are the same (synonyms) and words that are opposites (antonyms).

Maths and Spelling Training.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

This feature is great for anyone wanting to challenge themselves further.

Year 6 Easter Blog 1st April 2022

Date: 1st Apr 2022 @ 3:33pm

Welcome to the last Year 6 blog this spring term. We are so pleased with everyone’s effort throughout the term! This week the juniors attended Mass together, along with the parishioners. We also had a visit from Eileen McNamara who is a volunteer for CAFOD to deliver a workshop on Catholic social teaching. We learnt that we all see good and bad things daily and with Catholic social teaching we think about it and choose how to act, using the terms: human dignity, common good, solidarity, stewardship and participation.

Also, Year 6’s learning this week:

• In Maths, we learnt that algebra means ‘the reunion of broken parts’, what algebra symbols mean and how to solve them. We also improved our learning on how to add, subtract, multiply and divide fractions.
• In English, we wrote a letter to Tower Wood to thank them for our amazing time there. We also learnt the difference between informal and formal writing.
• In PE, we completed our orienteering unit with an intra competition of pairs trying to find the points hidden around the school grounds. The children did an amazing job with most completing the course in under 10 minutes.
• In History, we completed our Mayans topic through researching Chichen Itza, a historic site that was discovered in 1841. We used the information that we gathered, and our knowledge of the past 6 weeks to explain what life was like during the Mayan civilisation.
• In French we practised conjugating regular ER verbs – we are get much more confident with now. We then wrote Easter sentences using the pronoun ‘on’ which is used a lot in France as an informal way of saying we.
• In Science, we completed the last lessons in the topic of Healthy Lifestyles. We discussed the dangers of smoking and the ill effects it has on the body. We recapped the messages from the last few weeks – eating a balanced diet, exercising regularly, taking medicines properly and avoiding those things which are bad for us, are all ways for us to live long, healthy lives.

For the Easter holidays, I have included a few revision documents that are printed and also attached to this blog. They include:

• Easter letter from Mr Mears
• Easter Home Practice Log
• Easter Revision Guide 2022
• Easter Reading Diet

The Easter holidays are to rest, relax and enjoy time with your family. The documents I have included above (as explained in the letter attached) are for those who wish to do some extra practice during the two weeks, for just a small amount of time each day. It is not a requirement to complete everything but little and often of reading, maths revision and spellings will go a huge way when you return on Tuesday 19^th April. Please bring in your timetables and logs on this Tuesday.

Enjoy your Easter break!

Year 6 Friday 25th March 2022

Date: 25th Mar 2022 @ 2:31pm

• Kayaking
• Canoeing 
• Tree climbing
• Ghyll scrambling
• Long walks
• Jumping in a freezing cold lake
• Persevering when things became tricky
• Showing great trust in one another
• Being supportive to everyone
• Organising themselves
• Becoming independent

They should all be very proud of what they have achieved in their time there.

• In Maths, we learnt how to better use the formula of volume to solve problems. We then investigated how to present and interpret various bar charts.
• In English, our novel Skellig delved into the main character, Mina, in more detail so we wrote our impression of her using the text as evidence. We then wrote in role about the time when she first met the mysterious Skellig.
• In PE, we continued our unit of orienteering to read our unique map of the grounds to find different markers. We then played hide and seek with cones and mapping skills. 
• In Art, we completed our Mother’s Day project by using the skill of pointillism to show the colours of an iris. The end result was brilliant. Please visit the Year 6 gallery to see a few.

Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. It is important to keep reading, right up until the end for the year.

NO SPELLING LIST THIS WEEK DUE TO TOWER WOOD (We will be recapping our knowledge of the spellings taught so far in lessons). 

Maths challenges:

Counting:

• This week we have been counting in 250s and 750s
• Start with 2250 or 8500 or 5750
• Then count up in 25s ten times and back again
• 2250, 2500, 2750, 3000, 3250, 3500, 3750, 4000, etc
• Then count up and back in 750s
• 8500, 9250, 10000, 10750, 11500, 12250, 13000, etc

Number facts:

• To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 17 – 9 = 6, 15 – 8 = 7.
• The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (13 – 5, 18 – 9, 16 – 8, 15 - 9, etc)
• Then get them to change the place value of these digits (1.3 – 0.5, 1.8 – 0.9, 1.6 – 0.8, 1.5 – 0.9, etc)

Sumdog has not been set due to Tower Wood. Have a good rest (and a nice book to read). There will be overnight home practice every day next week.

Year 6 Friday 18th March 2022

Date: 18th Mar 2022 @ 7:47am

Welcome to our Year 6 blog. This week the South Ribble Coaches organised  a ‘Pass the Baton Relay’ event to celebrate the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. As part of this, many primary schools in South Ribble took part in passing the baton from school to school. Please check our twitter account to see New Longton Primary School arriving to pass the baton to Year 6 and our two chosen baton runners heading off to pass the baton to Ashbridge Primary School.

Reminder:

With Tower Wood being next Wednesday, I have attached a more detailed kit list on to this blog.

Also, on Monday, we will be using our amazing school grounds to complete an orienteering course, so please bring any spare trainers or wellington boots that you do not mind getting a little dirty.

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In Maths, we have been learning how to work out volume of cubes and cuboids. We now know that we must use the formula of length x width x depth.
• In English, we learnt that the main character, Mina, is home schooled and loves to read about William Blake. We then used one of his poems to inspire us to do the same.
• In RE, we used the topic of Unity to create our own dance to show our understanding of the topic.
• In PE, we developed our teamwork skills of orienteering to navigate around the two courses.
• In Art, we started our Mother’s Day project by looking closely at an iris and sketching what we saw. Then we used pastels and the skills of blending, edging and layering to create our artwork.
• In Music, we recapped the notes E and D from last lesson, then practised ‘Peace like a river’. Then we learnt about 4 beats in a bar and 2 beats in a bar with the songs, ‘Everybody loves Saturday night’ and ‘Lil’ Liza Jane’.
• In French, we practised conjugating a regular ER verb in French. It is quite tricky but we will practise lots of times before Year 7.
• In Science, we had a visit from Rachel, a hospital pharmacist, who works in a very busy Major Trauma department. She talked about her job and the path she followed to become a specialist pharmacist.  She came to St Oswald's a few years ago so children can see they can go on to do anything they like from here! To celebrate National Science Week, we watched a live lesson to compare animal life cycles. We met a brand new born belted Galloway calf and even saw some live lambing!

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.

• NO SPELLING LIST THIS WEEK DUE TO TOWER WOOD (We will be recapping our knwoeldge of the spellings taught so far in lessons).

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in 25s and 75s
    • Start with 225 or 850 or 575
    • Then count up in 25s ten times and back again
      • 225, 250, 275, 300, 325, 350, 375, 400, etc
    • Then count up and back in 75s
      • 850, 925, 1000, 1075, 1150, 1225, 1300, etc
    • Number facts:
      • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 17 – 9 = 6, 15 – 8 = 7.
      • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (13 – 5, 18 – 9, 16 – 8, 15 - 9, etc)
      • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (1.3 – 0.5, 1.8 – 0.9, 1.6 – 0.8, 1.5 – 0.9, etc)

• Sumdog (Multiplying Fractions)
  • This will be great practice to use your times tables knowledge to apply them to multiplying fractions and mixed numbers.
• Sumdog (Volume of cubes)
  • For this challenge, make sure you use the formula we have been using in class: length x width x height.

Maths and Spelling Training.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

This feature is great for anyone wanting to challenge themselves further.

Year 6 Friday 11th March 2022

Date: 11th Mar 2022 @ 12:42pm

Welcome to our Year 6 blog. This week, the Year 5/6 Indoor Athletics team completed another Athletics Finals in Blackpool. The competition was extremely tough as we were against the top 15 schools in Lancashire. Everyone did brilliantly and we are still awaiting the final results.

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In Maths, we have been learning how to work out the perimeter of different shapes, whilst improving our fractions knowledge (counting, adding and multiplying fractions).
• In English, we learnt that one of the main characters of Skellig, Mina, is home schooled. We discussed this in detail and learnt how to debate and write up a balanced argument of Home Schooling vs Public Schooling.
• In RE, we continued our new topic, ‘Unity’, by investigating the ‘Our Father’ and how it sums up everyone’s prayers and hopes. We then designed a bookmark with some of the words from the Our Father and how we apply the prayer to daily life.
• In PE, we completed our gymnastics topic using a range of travels, balances, jumps and rolls, whilst working in a group of up to 4. We then evaluated each other’s performance giving accurate praise and areas to work on next time.
• In Music, we learnt a song for Science week, ‘Everything starts with a seed’. We used recorder to practise ‘The boat song’, using a new note, E.
• In French, we practised conjugating and using regular ER verbs in the present tense. We wrote some super sentences by looking back at previous lessons and using vocabulary and connectives from other topics.  
• In Science, we began by reading and discussing answers to our questions that Dr Ahna Skop sent from America. We then reflected on what we have learnt from our interaction with her. She has really made us realise that anybody at all can be a scientist and there are many different ways to communicate science so that it is accessible to all. Our learning this week was about medicines and drugs such as caffeine and alcohol. We looked at their effects on our bodies but also how they can affect behaviour and the other people around us. Next week, we have a visit from a hospital pharmacist who will talk about her job and answer questions about medicines. 
• In PSHE, we continued the theme of ‘becoming independent’ with more games and scenarios to help with any worries, as we think about the challenges of Tower Wood.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday – Roller Coasters
    • Tuesday – Big Dippers
    • Wednesday – The Waltzers

• Spellings (challenge words)
  • Sumdog (Year 6 Sp 2 wk 4 Prefix dis, un, im)

disadvantage, disappear, disappoint, discovered, dishonest, unacceptable, unachievable, unbelievable, uncomfortable, unforgivable, immature, impatient, impolite, impartial, impossible

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in fraction steps. Try to do the same out loud or with paper.
    • Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
    • Start with these numbers: 5 ¼, 7 1/5, 13 3/5 and count up 10 times then back again in 1/4s:

5 ¼, 5 2/4, 5 ¾, 6, 6 ¼, 6 2/4, 6 3/4

and in 2/5s :

7 1/5, 7 3/5, 8 8 2/5, 8 4/5, 9 1/5

• Number facts:
  • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 6 + 8 = 14, 8 + 7 = 15.
  • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (8 + 6, 6 + 5, 3 + 8, 5 + 9, etc)
  • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (0.8 + 0.6, 0.06 + 0.05, 0.3 + 0.8, etc)

• Sumdog (Perimeter)
  • Throughout this week we have used strategies to find the perimeter (the length all the way around the outside of a 2D shape) of simple shapes like rectangles and triangles to complex rectilinear shapes. Make sure you count how many sides the shape has before you add the numbers together.
• Sumdog (Adding and Subtracting Fractions)
  • For this challenge, make sure you check whether the question is an add or subtract. Try to see the relationship between the two denominators and change them if they are different, just like we do in class.

Maths and Spelling Training.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

This feature is great for anyone wanting to challenge themselves further.

Year 6 Friday 4th March 2022

Date: 4th Mar 2022 @ 8:35am

Welcome to another Year 6 blog. We cannot believe we have been in Year 6 for 6 months – how time has flown! This week, we prepared our Lenten promises and took part in the Ash Wednesday mass where Father blessed us with ashes. Year 6 did a brilliant job of supporting the Receptions on their first whole school mass.

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In Maths, we have been learning how to describe the features of 3D shapes and create them using various nets. We then used our recent learning on area and volume to understand how to find square and cube numbers.
• In English, we created our own adventure story using various scenes as the stimulus. We focused on introducing the story by either describing the scene, the characters, using dialogue and starting with action.
• In RE, we continued our new topic, ‘Unity’, by creating images/symbols in a stained-glass window design to show that even though we are different, we may all be one with Jesus Christ through the gifts we have been given.
• In PE, during to the poor weather, we focused our learning on improving our skills in athletics: running, long jump, high jump, triple jump and speed bounce.
• In French, as it was Mardi Gras this week, we had a pancake-themed French lesson. The children practised using all parts of the verb 'aimer' with various pancake fillings orally, then they wrote some sentences using all the different subject pronouns and the correct verb endings. 
• In Science, we learnt why each of the food groups are important to keep us healthy. We planned a healthy meal plan for a day, checking that over the day, there was a balanced diet, not forgetting plenty of water! Then we researched different deficiency diseases and worked out what you would have to do if you were suffering from any of them. We also read the information on some food packaging and weighed out the amount of sugar in each. The jam was shocking, but it was also surprising how much sugar is in some carton juices which are supposedly healthy. 
• In Design and Technology, we began our project (Design and make a healthy Granola Bar) by tasting and evaluating a selection of shop-bought granola bars. We read the nutritional information on the box to see how much sugar each contained. We decided which was the healthiest bar, and which was our favourite. Next we'll make some, following a recipe. Finally, we'll adapt the recipe to make it our own.
• In PSHE, we discussed the themes of ‘responsibility’ and ‘becoming independent’ and how they interconnect with each other, especially as we approach our residential trip of Tower Wood. We looked at different scenarios and discussed the advice we would give if someone was worried about becoming independent and what they might do to overcome this feeling.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday, Tuesday Wednesday. Anyone from any group can change their book on these days.

• Spellings (challenge words)
  • Sumdog (Year 6 Sp 2 wk 2 Short /y/ sound)

rhythm, system, physical, symbol, mystery, oxygen, symptom, hymn, myth, physics, syrup, cylinder, pyramid, syllable, symmetry

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in decimal steps. Try to do the same out loud or with paper.
    • Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
    • Start with these numbers: 1.4, 2.64 and 3.726 and count up 10 times then back again in 0.3s:

1.4, 1.7, 2.0, 2.3, 2.6, 2.9, 3.2, etc

and in 0.4s :

2.64, 3.04, 3.44, 3.84, 4.24, 4.64, etc

• Number facts:
  • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 6 + 8 = 14, 8 + 7 = 15.
  • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (8 + 6, 6 + 5, 3 + 8, 5 + 9, etc)
  • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (0.8 + 0.6, 0.06 + 0.05, 0.3 + 0.8, etc)

• Sumdog (Square and Cube numbers)
  • Throughout this week we have investigated different square and cube numbers and the notation for both. This practice will help in you understanding them better and recalling which are square and cube numbers.
• Sumdog (Identifying 3D shapes from nets)
  • For this challenge, look carefully at each net. You will eventually see a pattern. It will be the same pattern that we looked in detail at on Friday. Lots of this practice will help in you being able to recognise nets of 3D shapes quickly.

Maths and Spelling Training.

Do not forget to keep using this extra feature: the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult. Once your challenges have been completed, use this feature to challenge yourself in both spelling and maths.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

Year 6 Friday 25th February 2022

Date: 25th Feb 2022 @ 3:52pm

Welcome to our first Year 6 blog since the February half term. This week we have been busy improving our leaderships roles around school: our reading ambassadors have continued to support the Reception team with daily reads; the Sport Captains have planned the next term of sporting events and competitions; the Science ambassadors have continued their role with more play time experiments; the class have been going above and beyond with helping the infants during lunch times; and the Golden Team have completed their first whole school assembly, which was a super event welcoming all the school together for the first time in years! Well done Year 6 – keep it up.

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In Maths, we have learnt how to calculate area of simple 2D shapes, rectilinear shapes and solved problems with them. We have also improved our strategy of how to find percentages of numbers.
• In English, we have begun a new novel, ‘Skellig’, and learnt how to use dashes when writing informally as the main characters.
• In RE, we started our new topic, ‘Unity’, and discussed and created an information text for ways to be a good friend to others.
• In PE, we continued our learning of gymnastics by creating a group routine of jumping, rolling, travelling and balancing using all the equipment, including the climbing frame.
• In Music, we listened to two versions of the same song, ‘You’ve got a friend’ by Carole King and James Taylor, and discussed the similarities and differences between them. We learnt a new song, ‘Everybody loves Saturday night’. We have also started learning recorders again, since Year 5, by recapping B, A and G to the song ‘Sailor, sailor on the sea’.
• In French, we researched the Carnaval de Nice which takes place every year at this time. The theme this year is Animaux. We admired the massive floats and the amazing costumes. Quelle spectacle!
• In Science, we were invited to ask Dr Ahna Skop, a cell biologist and science artist in Wisconsin, some questions about her background and research – which we did by learning about her work in genetics. We then videoed the children asking questions and sent it to her. Hopefully she will answer our questions soon. This was a brilliant opportunity to find out about a new aspect of Science, but also stress the importance of diversity and inclusion in science which Dr Skop feels very strongly about. Also, for our topic on ‘Healthy Lifestyles’, we discussed ways to make a balanced diet and the dangers of eating too much or too little of certain food groups.
• In PSHE, we continued our topic of online safety by learning about the age ratings system for films and other media. We can now recognise the different symbols related to the age ratings for films and can explain what each mean.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday – Roller Coasters
    • Tuesday – Big Dippers
    • Wednesday – The Waltzers

• Spellings (challenge words)
  • Sumdog (Year 6 Sp 2 wk 2 -ture / -sure)

adventure, capture, creature, furniture, future, immature, mixture, measure, nature, signature, treasure, leisure, pressure, pleasure, enclosure

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in single digit steps to prepare us for future division learning. Try to do the same out loud or with paper.
    • Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
    • Start with these numbers: 1, 2 and 3 and count up 10 times then back again in 3s:

35, 38, 41, 44, 47, 50, 53, 56, etc

and in 6s :

365, 371, 377, 383, 389, 395, 401, etc

• Number facts:
  • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 6 + 8 = 14, 8 + 7 = 15.
  • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (8 + 6, 6 + 5, 3 + 8, 5 + 9, etc)
  • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (0.8 + 0.6, 0.06 + 0.05, 0.3 + 0.8, etc)

• Sumdog (Multiplication 2 and 3 digit numbers by 3)
  • We have practiced a lot with these types of questions over the past month. Make sure you read the numbers in the question correctly and you should be able to work them out mentally.
• Sumdog (Area of 2D shapes)
  • For this challenge, make sure you read the measurements in the questions. For example, if the measurements are cm x cm then the answer would equal cm squared (with the 2 next to the cm). The same goes for mm x mm.

Maths and Spelling Training.

Do not forget to keep using this extra feature: the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult. Once your challenges have been completed, use this feature to challenge yourself in both spelling and maths.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

Year 6 Thursday 10th February 2022

Date: 10th Feb 2022 @ 3:52pm

Welcome to our Year 6 blog before the February half term. This week we have completed a new competition, named ‘Autumn/Winter Competition’ created by Cross Curricular Orienteering. After a tight competition, in which everyone did really well, the winning pair are … Adah and Kitty! Congratulations to them both – they have been put forward to the national event so fingers crossed their time was a quick one!

Today, your child has been given an envelope with Tower Wood documents in. Please complete the medical form and photo conset form and return them by Wednesday 23rd February. 

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In Maths, we have improved our learning on coordinates by plotting points, completing shapes and translating them in two quadrants.
• In English, we used Tom’s Midnight Garden novel on adventure to create our own adventure story. We learnt that stories use one of the following four strategies when introducing a story: describing a setting, describing a character, using action or speech. We then chose our favourite one to create our story.
• In PE, we completed the new orienteering competition (as mentioned above) by learning the skills of how to orientate a map and follow instructions for north, south, east, west and all the ones in between. We also worked on utilising teamwork when competing in a hockey game.
• In Music, we listened to another composer (Afrodeutshe) about how she started recording music. We then continued with our raps and each recorded a final performance for the class.
• In French, the children spent time recording themselves reading some of their best pieces of writing from this half term.
• In Science, we looked at the work of Dr Ahna Skop. She is an American cell biologist who is also an artist. She uses art to communicate her amazing scientific research into cell structure. We then produced a piece of scientific art based on blood cells. Our next topic is named, Keeping Healthy.
• In PSHE, for Children’s Mental Health week, we discussed how we can support others who are feeling down and ways we can improve our own mental health. Also, for internet safety day, we learnt ways of making and keeping positive online relationships and what to do when something feels uncomfortable.

Home Practice for this half term is slightly different. You have been given a sheet with the days of Monday to Friday. For every day, we would like you to complete as many of these activities (if it is possible) – all of which will help towards remembering the learning we have done and for any future learning we will do when you return. These are the tasks we would like you to complete:

• Reading
  • Reading for 20 minutes a day will have a huge impact on your learning.

• Spellings (Year 5/6 spellings)
  • You have been given the Year 5/6 spelling list to use for your half term home practice. There will be a test on a random 15 spellings from the list on Friday 25^th
• Maths challenges:
  • Sumdog (Half Term Spring Maths Challenge)

These questions are a mixture of coordinates, shapes, multiplication and division – most of the things we have learned about this half term. Try your best at answering them all by Friday 25^th February.

If you would like any more practice, then Sumdog’s Maths and Spelling Training is for you.

Try to spend some time training so the program can learn the skills you need to work on and practise. 

Have a super half term!

Year 6 Friday 4th February 2022

Date: 4th Feb 2022 @ 12:40pm

Welcome to our Year 6 blog for 4^th February 2022. This week we have been preparing for a new competition, named ‘Autumn/Winter Competition’ created by Cross Curricular Orienteering, who helped to set up our orienteering programme a few years ago.

This Friday, All Hallows’ visited Year 6 for the ‘NSPCC Number Day’ which was hosted by the Maths department. The children worked in groups and had a great time solving math questions together.

Also, we had a visit from Mr Ainsworth, who helped our class to plant trees to enhance the look of our pond area. Please see the pictures on our Year 6 gallery where the children did a super job choosing the best place to plant them.

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In Maths, we improved our shape knowledge by accurately naming the features of sides, vertices, angles and symmetry to help us group various quadrilaterals and polygons. We have also been improving our quick multiplication method for up to 4 digit by 2 digit.
• In English, we have been working on improving our use of punctuation through a written recount as the gardener, Abel, who witnessed Hatty’s fall.
• In RE, we learnt about Paul’s letter to the Corinthians which explains how love has many positive qualities. We used these qualities to imagine what life would be like in our school, community and the world if we all followed Paul’s words.
• In PE, we introduced our new orienteering competition (as mentioned above) by learning the skills of how to orientate a map and follow instructions for north, south, east, west and all the ones in between. The competition will take place during the PE lesson next week, where the pair with the quickest time will be put forward against other school in our area.
• In Music, we listened to Eska (a composer) talking about jobs in the music industry, composed raps to ‘Beat 2 Banger’ then performed them, and also practised the song, ‘Each and Every Day’ for Children’s Mental Health week.
• In French, we described a person from a Francophone country using the 3^rd Person (il or elle). Lots of us chose to do a footballer from the AFCON tournament. The children’s writing is very impressive.
• In Science, we planned and carried out our own investigation into how different yoga poses affected our pulse rates, using what we already knew from last week’s investigation.
• In PSHE, we discussed how personal growth can be developed when we learn a new skill. We then created a mini comic strip to show how we have done this.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday – Roller Coasters
    • Tuesday – Big Dippers
    • Wednesday – The Waltzers

• Spellings (challenge words)
  • Sumdog (-gue / -que Sp1 wk 6)

league, tongue, antique, grotesque, cheque, guess, guest, argue, queue, request, dialogue, technique, unique, sequence, consequence

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in single digit steps to prepare us for future division learning. Try to do the same out loud or with paper.
    • Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
    • Start with these numbers: 1, 2 and 3 and count up 10 times then back again in 4s:

1, 5, 9, 13, 17, 21, 25, 29, etc

and in 7s :

1, 8, 15, 22, 29, 36, 43, etc

• Number facts:
  • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 6 + 8 = 14, 8 + 7 = 15.
  • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (8 + 6, 6 + 5, 3 + 8, 5 + 9, etc)
  • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (0.8 + 0.6, 0.06 + 0.05, 0.3 + 0.8, etc)

• Sumdog (Multiplication of two and three digits by one)
  • This challenge is to help push your learning with the quick multiplication method which we have practiced over the last few weeks. Try to take your time with each question by reasoning with yourself on why it has to be a certain answer.
• Sumdog (2D Shape)
  • For this challenge, there will be questions on sides, corners and angles of the 2D shapes we have investigated this week. Most of the questions will hopefully seem simple but this practice will be important as we move our learning towards coordinates.

Maths and Spelling Training.

Do not forget to keep using this extra feature: the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult. Once your challenges have been completed, use this feature to challenge yourself in both spelling and maths.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

Year 6 Friday 28th January 2022

Date: 28th Jan 2022 @ 4:15pm

Year 6 have had another busy week, with lots of learning and some super leadership roles working hard throughout the school. All of our buddies have received glowing remarks from the lunchtime staff, the reading ambassadors are supporting reading every day with the Receptions and our Learning Times team has expanded with even more writers!

Next Tuesday, Year 6 have been given the incredibly fortunate job of planting trees, which were generously donated to school. Mr Ainsworth will be joining us so please do not forget your wellies or old shoes on Tuesday.

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In Maths, we learnt about angles, how to identify them, draw them and even find missing angles within them. We also learnt how to multiply using the compact multiplication method, so from now on try to use this instead of the grid method – it will help us to become even quicker mathematicians.  
• In English, we have improved the way we write dialogue, by accurately using the punctuation in our speech and adding various verbs to blend action into our stories.
• In RE, we learnt about the Bible and how it is divided into 73 book with two main sections: the Old Testament and the New Testament. We used references to find a range of genres within the Bible (drama, history, poetry, prayers, letters, etc).
• In PE, with having learnt the basics of Hockey, we divided ourselves into mini groups to play competitive matches in 4v4 or 5v5 games. In gymnastics, we explored ways of using apparatus to show various partner balances. We then applied them to a gymnastics sequence of 2 balances, 2 rolls, 2 travels and 2 jumps.
• In History, we introduced our main topic of the Mayans by investigating clues from a village found a few hundred years ago. We used these clues to predict what the Mayan civilisation was like.
• In Music, we started to learn ‘Each and Every Day’ for Children’s Mental Health week, listened to and discussed music composed by Shiva Feshareki and also played Denadon in 3 parts with the Djembi drums.
• In French, we learnt some facts about Cameroon (a Francophone country) and watched a video about a child’s daily life there.
• In Science, we have worked at improving the level of detail and scientific facts in our predictions and conclusions. We have planned a comparative test about how different yoga poses will affect our pulse rates, ready to start next week. It would be really beneficial if the children could bring their phones or Fitbits to help measure their heart rates accurately again (but do not worry if you don’t want to as we have shared before and it has worked out brilliantly these past few weeks).
• In PSHE, we explored what social media is and how it can affect us in positive and negative ways.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday – Roller Coasters
    • Tuesday – Big Dippers
    • Wednesday – The Waltzers

• Spellings (challenge words)
  • Sumdog (Homophones Sp1 wk 5)

isle, aisle, aloud, allowed, past, passed, prey, pray, coarse, course, rain, reign, knight, night, stationary, stationery

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in single digit steps to prepare us for future division learning. Try to do the same out loud or with paper.
    • Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
    • Start with these numbers: 1, 2 and 3 and count up 10 times then back again in 6s:

1, 7, 13, 19, 26, 31, 27, etc

and in 8s :

1, 9, 17, 25, 33, 41, 49, etc

• Number facts:
  • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 6 + 8 = 14, 8 + 7 = 15.
  • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (8 + 6, 6 + 5, 3 + 8, 5 + 9, etc)
  • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (0.8 + 0.6, 0.06 + 0.05, 0.3 + 0.8, etc)

• Sumdog (Divisions mix of 7-12)
  • Each child has their own tables target which they should know. The Sumdog challenge may relate to their target but if not, you can always use the ‘trainer’ section of Sumdog for extra Tables Practice. Every Tuesday there is a tables test.

• Sumdog (Angles challenge – 150 questions)
  • For this challenge, there will be questions related to less or more than a right angle, identifying which are acute and which are obtuse. Then there will be questions to read protractors to the nearest 10 degrees and 5 degrees. I have increased the challenge to 150 as this practice will be incredibly beneficial to you in the coming weeks.

Maths and Spelling Training.

Do not forget to keep using this extra feature: the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult. Once your challenges have been completed, use this feature to challenge yourself in both spelling and maths.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

Year 6 Friday 21st January 2022

Date: 21st Jan 2022 @ 5:47pm

Year 6 have had a very exciting week. On Tuesday, we received a visit from Mr Pickles (who has trekked up to base camp of Mount Everest) and showed us many pictures and videos of the journey up there. Year 6 had a great time learning what it is really like up near the top of the world, so thank you Mr Pickles! On Thursday, our swimming team had a great time competing at Hutton Grammar against 10 other schools. The competition was very tough and we managed to come 4^th overall out of 11 schools – a super achievement! Finally on Friday, we had a super taster day at All Hallows’ high school where we enjoyed meeting the teachers, went on a scavenger hunt around the whole grounds, took part in a PE lesson and even burnt crisps in Science!

Please remember to bring your wellies, boots, or really old trainers to school on Tuesday 25^th January as our class will be planting some saplings around the school grounds.

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In Maths, we built on last week’s knowledge of equivalent fractions to help us add and subtract mixed numbers, improper fractions and proper fractions.
• In English, we have been introduced to new characters in our ‘Tom’s Midnight Garden’ novel: Hatty, Hubert, Edgar and James. We developed our reading skills with how to give impressions and evidence them, along with how to scan the text for clues.
• In RE, we learnt about World Religion Day, which was on Sunday 16^th January and to celebrate, we split into groups to learn about four different religions (Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Sikhism) and then presented them to the class.
• In PE, we improved our hockey skills and how to defend within different scenarios. In gymnastics, we progressed our partner sequences to include various apparatus throughout the hall whilst focusing on smoother transitions between moves.
• In Music, we have continued our learning of the djembe drums through creating rhythms in small groups and performing them for the class.
• In French, having learnt the verb ‘avoir’ = to have, we then learnt how to make it negative (e.g. You do not have any apples). We then learnt about the Francophone countries in Africa – those that have French as their official language – as The African Cup of Nations football tournament is taking place in Cameroon at the moment.
• In Science, we modelled how the circulatory system works (by carrying blue and red bands to represent oxygenated and deoxygenated blood). Then we planned and carried out a comparative test to see how different types of exercise affected our pulse rate. We realised it was important to repeat our readings in order to improve the accuracy of the results. Next week, we will be conducting a second pulse rate investigation so phones or Fitbits would be a welcome addition for Thursday 27^th January, if you have one.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday – Roller Coasters
    • Tuesday – Big Dippers
    • Wednesday – The Waltzers

• Spellings (challenge words)
  • Sumdog (fer Sp1 wk 4)

Differ, different, difference, differently, prefer, preference, preferred, preferring, referred, referring, reference, referral, transfer, transferred, transferring.

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in mixed number steps. Try to do the same out loud or with paper.
    • Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
    • Start with these numbers: 4/5, 4 1/5, 3 ½ , 8 ½ and count up 10 times then back again in 3 1/5 and 3 2/5:

4 1/5, 7 2/5, 10 3/5, 13 4/5, 17, 20 1/5, etc

and in 4 ½ :

8 ½, 13, 17 ½, 22, 26 1/2, etc

• Number facts:
  • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 7 + 8 = 15, 9 + 7 = 16.
  • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (7 + 8, 9 + 7, 3 + 8, 5 + 9, etc)
  • Another great way is to use HIT THE BUTTON which you can access by clicking here
  • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (0.7 + 0.8, 0.09 + 0.07, 0.3 + 0.8, etc)

• Sumdog (Times tables (missing numbers))
  • Each child has their own tables target which they should know. The Sumdog challenge may relate to their target but if not, you can always use the ‘trainer’ section of Sumdog for extra Tables Practice. Every Tuesday there is a tables test.

• Sumdog (Add and subtract fractions)
  • For this challenge, there will be questions with similar denominators and some with denominators that have similar multiples, like halves added to quarters. Remember what we have learnt in class and try to answer them quickly. If you end up getting some wrong, do not worry as Sumdog will make the questions easier.

Keep working through the Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult. Once your challenges have been completed, use this feature for challenge in both spelling and maths.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

Year 6 Friday 14th January 2022

Date: 14th Jan 2022 @ 3:07pm

Welcome to our second blog of 2022. Year 6 have been working incredibly hard this week, continuing their leadership roles throughout the school. The school council have been preparing the new Learning Times, which should be ready by the end of this month. Do not forget that next Friday 21^st January, we are at All Hallows’ for a taster day. Please go straight to the high school where you can leave your child at the entrance gate between 8:40am and 8:50am. The children will have a fantastic day with school finishing at 2:30pm.

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In Maths, we have been improving our mental and written addition strategies to become more efficient. We then looked in detail at what makes a fraction, finding fractions of shapes and amounts.
• In English, we have continued our novel, ‘Tom’s Midnight Garden’, where Tom discovered a new garden at the back of his Aunt’s flat. We wrote as Tom about this discovery and improved our descriptive setting writing through our adjectives and verb choices.
• In RE, we learnt how the Bible is made up of 73 books (46 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament) which took over a thousand years or more for all the books to be completed. We then learnt how to use the numbered code to find out what the piece of writing was in the Bible.
• In PE, we learnt how to apply the skill of hockey to attacking situations, and how to create a gymnastics sequence with travels, turns, jumps and a partner balance.
• In History, we placed the history of the world (from 0AD to present day) in chronological order, whilst working in groups.
• In Music, we have creating our own rhythms and copying them in groups using the djembe drums.
• In French, we started to learn the verb ‘avoir’ = to have. We practised with songs and a game.
• In Science, we interpreted bar charts of the class pulse rates and observed some lamb’s hearts to try to identify the structures we could see. Next week, we will be conducting a pulse rate investigation and it would be very helpful if those children with phones could download a free app that will measure their pulse, such as ‘Heart Rate Monitor’ or another app that is similar and bring them into school next Thursday 20^th January (where their phone will be kept locked away until the lesson begins). This is not a requirement as we can share the devices we already have in school; your child will not miss out on any part of the lesson because of this (heart rate apps just provide us with more accurate results).

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday – Roller Coasters
    • Tuesday – Big Dippers
    • Wednesday – The Waltzers

• Spellings (challenge words)
  • Sumdog (-cial / -tial Sp1 wk 3)

Social, special, torrential, official, especially, artificial, potential, essential, substantial, financial, confidential, partial, impartial, initial, unofficial

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in fraction steps. Try to do the same out loud or with paper.
    • Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
    • Start with these numbers: 4/5, 4 1/5, 3 ½ , 8 ½ and count up 10 times then back again in one fifth and then two fifths:

4/5, 1 1/5, 1 3/5, 2, 2 1/5 , 2 3/5, etc

and in 2 ½ :

3 ½, 6, 8 ½, 11, 13 ½, 16, etc

• Number facts:
  • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 6 + 8 = 14, 8 + 7 = 15.
  • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (8 + 6, 6 + 5, 3 + 8, 5 + 9, etc)
  • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (0.8 + 0.6, 0.06 + 0.05, 0.3 + 0.8, etc)
  • Play 'Hit the Button via this link, Hit the Button 

• Sumdog (Times tables x4, x5, x6, x11, x12)
  • Each child has their own tables target which they should know. The Sumdog challenge may relate to their target but if not, you can always use the ‘trainer’ section of Sumdog for extra Tables Practice. Every Tuesday there is a tables test.

• Sumdog (Fractions of shapes and on a number line)
  • For this challenge, there will be questions relating to fractions of shapes – make sure you count what the shape is divided into and then count how many are coloured in. There are also questions relating to fractions on a number line – check the gap between two numbers then divide that by how many jumps it is from one number to the next (we have practiced this in class).

Keep working through the Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult. Once your challenges have been completed, use this feature for challenge in both spelling and maths.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

Year 6 Friday 7th January 2022

Date: 7th Jan 2022 @ 3:37pm

Welcome back to our first blog of the Spring term. We hope you and your family had a great Christmas and New Year and are all healthy and keeping safe.

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In Maths, we have been revising our knowledge of place value with numbers up to three decimal places and developing our understanding of negative numbers.
• In English, we have started our new novel, ‘Tom’s Midnight Garden’, and have begun to understand the main characters of Tom, Aunt Gwen and Uncle Alan.
• In RE, we started a new topic, ‘Sources’, where we discussed what kind of books inspire us and why. We then wrote about our favourite book and how it affected our lives.
• In PE, we managed to fit in a session that we missed (due to Bank Holiday Monday) so we could assess our learning of team games through Hockey and Dodgeball. Remember, you can bring in a hat and gloves whilst it is cold to use during our PE lessons.
• In History, we discussed how we know about the past and what chronological order means. We then created our own timeline about our lives so far.
• In Music, we have been practising B, A and G chords on the recorder.
• In French, we learnt about how French people celebrate La fete des Rois- the Feast of the Epiphany, A special cake which contains a lucky charm is shared. Whoever gets the lucky charm in their slice becomes the King or Queen for the day.
• In Science, we began our new topic, ‘Health, the Heart and the Circulatory System’. We have started to look at the function of the heart, blood vessels and blood, then we research how to have a healthy heart and why it is important.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday – Roller Coasters
    • Tuesday – Big Dippers
    • Wednesday – The Waltzers

• Spellings (challenge words)
  • Sumdog (Suffixes Sp1 wk 1/2)

Next week we will be investigating the effects of suffixes on root words with -ing, -ed, -er, -est, -ly, -less, -ful, -ness

Caring, friendly, physically, nicest, happiest, hopeful, beautiful, careless, discussed, equipped, bruised, consciousness, attached, continued, luckier

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in whole numbers steps. Try to do the same out loud or with paper.
    • Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
    • Start with these numbers: 400, 165, 5000 and count up 10 times then back again in 25:

                           400, 425, 450, 475, 500, 525, etc

                            and in 250:

                            400, 650, 900, 1150, 1400, etc

• Number facts:
  • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 6 + 8 = 14, 8 + 7 = 15.
  • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (8 + 6, 6 + 5, 3 + 8, 5 + 9, etc)
  • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (0.8 + 0.6, 0.06 + 0.05, 0.5 + 0.9, etc)

• Sumdog (Times tables x6, x7, x8)
  • Each child has their own tables target which they should know. The Sumdog challenge may relate to their target but if not, you can always use the ‘trainer’ section of Sumdog for extra Tables Practice. Every Tuesday there is a tables test.

• Sumdog (Negative numbers)
  • For this challenge, there will be questions related to positive and negative numbers. The questions will ask you to decide which number is the most or least. This will be great practice for your learning next week.

Keep working through the Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult. Once your challenges have been completed, use this feature for challenge in both spelling and maths.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

Year 6 Christmas Blog

Date: 16th Dec 2021 @ 7:18pm

Our last week in December has been very exciting filled with the Christmas pop-up shop, Christmas carols sang to the parents and the Christingle, which was led very well by the Year 6s! Mrs Hall and Mrs Washington, from All Hallows’, visited us this week to say hello and answered many questions about the life of the high school. They also informed us that there will be a taster day visit in the New Year.

Our learning in Year 6 this week:

• In our Design and Technology topic of sewing, we have planned, prepped, sewn, made mistakes, corrected those mistakes, persevered and finally completed our project. Please see the pictures on our website for their brilliant work.
• In PE, we have been working on creating a range of team strategies to outwit the opposing team. We then practiced them in a dodgeball match.
• In Maths, we used various problem solving skills to solve Math questions as a group.
• In English, to complete our World War One topic, we learnt about the Christmas Day truce of 1914 between the British and the Germans, through the Sainsbury’s advert.
• In Art, we learnt a new skill of printing, with paint and polystyrene to create our Christmas cards. Please check out the Year 6 gallery for pictures of the super artwork.
• In French, following last week’s ‘Who killed Santa?’ cluedo game, we recorded ourselves to practice our brilliant pronunciation. Joyeux Noel et bonne annee tout le monde!
• In Science, we conducted an experiment which focused on the inner workings of the digestion system in animals.

You will have also noticed that there is no Sumdog being set for the Christmas break so you can have a rest and come back fresh and ready for the exciting learning in January!

BUT please keep reading as much as possible – like I always say, ‘It is the number one thing that will unlock all your learning!’

Year 6 Friday 10th December 2021

Date: 10th Dec 2021 @ 2:28pm

This week we had a great time visiting the Museum of Lancashire where we learnt how to be a soldier during World War One by some very strict sergeants who put us through our paces, teaching us many drills that we often had to repeat numerous times! It was a lot of fun with the children learning a great deal – we have sent our thanks to the volunteers at the museum. Do not forget to see the Year 6 gallery for pictures of the trip.

This week in Year 6:

• In Maths, we have consolidated our learning this week, attempting some maths quizzes on a range of topics: place value, addition, fractions and division. The class have shown great resilience with these tasks.
• Following our super trip to the Museum of Lancashire, we wrote about our day, as a soldier, making sure we explained to the reader everything we had learnt.
• In Geography, we learnt about the first two people to reach the top of Mount Everest: Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. Using their experiences, we found out just how harsh the journey up Mount Everest would be.
• For our RE topic, Expectations, we have been thinking about the arrival of Jesus and how it impacts our lives. We have continued our advent calendar of good deeds and prayers every day.
• In this PE session, we completed an Intra competition of handball, where the children focused on their performance, evaluating and suggesting improvements on how they can attack and defend.  
• We have begun our Design and Technology project of ‘textiles’, by learning ways to stitch with a needle and thread, then designing our own to complete next we
• In Music, we have learnt how to compose 12 bar blues on the glocks in groups, followed by a class performance. We have also continued practising the songs, ‘Hark the Herald’ and ‘Once in Royal David’s City’ for the carol service.
• In French, we played Cluedo, trying to figure out who had killed Father Christmas. We then wrote our own version of the game as a story.
• In Science, we explored reflections and how a mirror can change the direction of light enabling us to see behind or round corners.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Use your Home Reading to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday – Roller Coasters
    • Tuesday – Big Dippers
    • Wednesday – The Waltzers

• Spellings (challenge words)
  • Sumdog (challenge words A2 wk 7)

available, muscle, accommodate, determined, identity, competition, existence, rhyme, accompany, suggest, develop, explanation, privilege, symbol, immediately

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in decimal steps. Try to do the same out loud or with paper.
    • Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
    • Start with these numbers: 7.5, 3.9, 25.4 and count up 10 times then back again in 0.5:

7.5, 8.0, 8.5, 9.0, 9.5 etc

and in 1.5:

7.5, 9.0, 10.5, 12.0, 13.5, 15.0, etc

• Number facts:
  • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 7 + 8 = 15, 4 + 7 = 11.
  • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (8 + 6, 6 + 5, 3 + 8, 5 + 9, etc)
  • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (0.8 + 0.6, 0.06 + 0.05, 0.3 + 0.8, etc)

• Sumdog (Times tables x2 – x12)
  • Each child has their own tables target which they should know. The Sumdog challenge may relate to their target but if not, you can always use the ‘trainer’ section of Sumdog for extra Tables Practice. Every Tuesday there is a tables test.

• Sumdog (Decimal Arithmetic)
  • For this challenge, there will be questions related to adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing decimals, all of which we have done in class.

Keep working through the Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult. Once your challenges have been completed, use this feature for challenge in both spelling and maths.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

Year 6 Friday 3rd December 2021

Date: 3rd Dec 2021 @ 4:11pm

For our fourth week back, Year 6 have had another busy week. They created an advent calendar full of good deeds to do each day during Advent, had a great time watching and taking part in the pantomime ‘Dick Whittington’ and used their artistic skills to design a war scene from their own war story.

This week in Year 6:

• In Maths, we have been deepening our understanding of fractions through finding equivalences and explaining why 2/3 is the same as 8/12. We then used that knowledge to add and subtract same multiple fractions (e.g. 2/5 + 2/10)
• We have completed out novel, ‘‘Private Peaceful’, learnt about the harsh reality of war and planned and written our own battle scene using everything we have learnt over the past 4 weeks.
• In Geography, we evaluated our PowerPoint presentation and each other’s on the effect of tectonic disasters.
• For our RE topic, Expectations, we have used the words of Isaiah to understand how Jesus’ arrival will have rewards and burdens for us.
• In this PE session, we put our attacking, defending, throwing, catching and evading skills to the test with an Intra competition using Dodgeball as the sport.
• In Art, we took part in a ‘Big Draw’ where we used music (that reflected a battle scene) and used any medium they wanted to create a scene based on their own story.
• In Music, we improved our jazz playing on the glocks by investigating the structure of jazz including head, middle 8 and improvising. We have also been learning ‘Hark the Herald’ and ‘Once in Royal David’s City’ for the carol service.
• In French, we completed our writing about the weather with complex sentences using great vocabulary.
• In Science, we explored how the shape of a shadow can be changed. We found out that a shadow is always the same shape as the object that blocks the light because light travels in straight lines.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Use your Home Reading to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday – Roller Coasters
    • Tuesday – Big Dippers
    • Wednesday – The Waltzers

• Spellings (ough words)
  • Sumdog (ough words A2 wk 6)
    • though, although, rough, tough, through, cough, nought, brought, ought, thought, fought, plough, dough, enough, thorough

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in decimal steps of:

20 000, 200 000 and x 2. Try to do the same out loud or with paper.

• Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
• g. Start with 5 digit numbers and count up 10 times then back again in 20 000s:

43 654, 63 654, 83 654, 103 654, etc

and in 200 000s:

43 654, 243 654, 443 654, 643 654                

Start at a different number and count up 10 numbers and down again but this time in x2:

9, 18, 36, 72, 144, 288, 576, 1 152, etc      

• Sumdog (All times tables x2 – x12)
  • Each child has their own tables target which they should know. The Sumdog challenge may relate to their target but if not, you can always use the ‘trainer’ section of Sumdog for extra Tables Practice. Every Tuesday there is a tables test.

• Sumdog (Add and subtract fractions)
  • Some of this task will be challenging but to help you remember how to solve them, here are some success criteria:
    • For adding same multiple fractions ½ + ¼
      • Convert ½ = 2/4
      • The question is then 2/4 + ¼ = ¾
    • For 2/5 + 5/10
      • Convert 2/5 = 4/10
      • The question is then 4/10 + 5/10 = 9/10
    • For subtracting same multiple fractions like 6/7 – 2/14
      • Convert 6/7 into 12/14
      • The question is then 12/14 – 2/14 = 10/14
    • For 8/10 – 1/5
      • Make the denominators the same, such as 1/5 into 2/10
      • Now the question is 8/10 – 2/10 which equals 6/10

Keep working through the Maths and Spelling Training. As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school. As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult. Once your challenges have been completed, use this feature for challenge in both spelling and maths.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

Year 6 Friday 26th November 2021

Date: 26th Nov 2021 @ 3:34pm

For our fourth week back after half term. Year 6 have continued to work hard with their responsibilities, with things such as: the School Ambassador team leading collective worships and announcing the results of the house points to the school; the School Council preparing for their first school learning update, named ‘The Learning Times’; Science Ambassadors continue to lead science experiments during break times; the Sports Captains helping to lead sport, look after the equipment and help set up activities throughout the school, and our Reading Ambassadors will be starting a reading club with Reception next week.  

This week in Year 6:

• In Maths, we have been learning multiples, factors and new ways to divide large numbers.
• In our novel, ‘Private Peaceful’, we have been learning how to write an action scene, based on one of the main characters rescuing their captain. We have also learnt how life was like in the trenches of the First World War.
• In Geography, we completed our research of tsunamis, earthquakes and volcanoes and presented them to the class.
• In our topic in RE, Expectations, we have been using the hymn ‘Maranatha’ to help us understand what advent means to Christians.
• In PE, we focused our learning on invasion games, by working as a team to either invade the oppositions area (through the skills of tag rugby) and eliminating the other team (through the aiming and catching skills of Dodgeball).
• In Art, we continued our learning of tone and texture with the medium of a paintbrush with water. We first sketched in felt tips, then used a paintbrush (with water) to create different effects. Then using Lola Dupre’s letters, we designed our own artwork. See the gallery in Year 6 to see some of this amazing artwork.
• In Music, we worked hard to compose 8 bar blues, then performed them on the glocks for others to hear.
• In French, we used our learning of seasons, weather, conjunctions and adverbs of frequency to help us read and understand different texts.
• In Science, we finished collecting data for the shadows investigation that we started last week. We created graphs and worked together to interpret them. Finally, we used what we now know about light to explain why shadows are the same shape as the object causing it.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Use your Home Reading to read every night for 30 minutes. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be used for the title of the book and any reading challenge chosen.
  • The days when you can change your book:
    • Monday – Roller Coasters
    • Tuesday – Big Dippers
    • Wednesday – The Waltzers

• Spellings (-ent, -ence words)
  • Sumdog (-ent, -ence A2 wk 5)
    • persistent, persistence, violent, violence, intelligent, intelligence, inconvenient, inconvenience, obedient, obedience, conference, difference, conscience, reference, excitement

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in decimal steps of 50, 90 and 900 Try to do the same out loud or with paper.
    • Draw a line with some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers as you count up or down, then double check it to make sure you have said the correct numbers.
    • g. Start with different numbers and count up 10 times then back again in 50s:

233, 283, 333, 383, 433, 483, 533, etc

and in 90s:

233, 323, 413, 503, 593, 683, 773, 863, etc               

Start at a different number and count up 10 numbers and down again but this time in 900s:

740, 1640, 2540, 3440, 4340, 5240, 6140, 7040, etc     

• Sumdog (Division of 7 – 12 times tables)
  • Each child has their own tables target which they should know. The Sumdog challenge may relate to their target but if not, you can always use Sumdog for extra Tables Practice. Every Tuesday there is a tables test.

• Sumdog (Multiples and Factors)

• To help you remember:

A multiple is a number that can be divided by another number a certain number of times without a remainder.

A factor is one of two or more numbers that divides a given number without a remainder.

Multiples and factors are best explained by using a number sentence such as the following:

5 x 4 = 20

5 and 4 are factors of 20.  20 is a multiple of 5 and 4.