Year 6 Class - Sarah-Jayne Kenyon

Welcome to Year 6

Year 6 draws together all of the many threads of learning woven through the children’s path from Reception to this, their final year in primary school. We pull on all of that prior learning to solve problems, discuss issues and begin to evaluate the world around us. Exciting Geography topics about Brazil and environmental sustainability bring the wider world to our doorstep, demanding that we think deeply about our responsibility for its future. History lessons help us to see the role of our country in the past – both positive and negative – through a local history study of the Victorians and a broader look at the slave trade as part of our study of the kingdom of Benin in Africa. English and Science topics are interwoven, allowing us to dive headfirst through our arteries as we journey with our blood cells through the circulatory system, or to create our own weird and wonderful creatures adapted to their environment.

Great literature and a joy in the use of language underpin our English work, particularly through the choice of guided and whole class reading – from the old (Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’) to the new (John Boyne’s ‘Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’). Our maths work is grounded in problem-solving (developing our ability to reason) and supported by regular fluency work.

Autumn 2018

Dear Year 6 parents,

Welcome to the new school year and the new term! It’s great to feel familiar with the new class, even before we begin and I hope that the children are looking forward to the year ahead, as am I. This is going to be a term packed with exciting and inter-linked learning.

We begin the year with an in-depth look at our class country, Brazil. We will learn about the lives of people living both in the cities and in the rainforest and focus in detail on rainforests during our whole-school Environmental Sustainability week in mid-October (more on this to follow). English work will be linked to this through the use of beautiful picture/story books about the rainforest in peril. I also hope to work the Brazil theme into our art and music work this term, while RE will focus on how religions can help to build a fairer world by looking at the work of Christian charities in Brazil. Science work on classification and variation will enable us to make links between local flora and fauna and those found in the rainforest.

Towards the end of the first half-term, our thoughts will turn to commemoration of the end of WWI and year 6 will be studying some of the poetry of the period, as well as writing their own poems to honour those who died. This work will continue after half-term, culminating in our annual commemoration of the fallen at the Hayfield memorial.

Autumn Term Letter 2017

Dear Parents,

It’s been lovely to see everybody after the long break and hear all about the fun they have had over summer. I have enjoyed watching your children grow as they have moved through primary school and I am looking forward to helping them progress in Year 6 and get ready for the next step in their educational journey. I am very keen to ensure that the children understand the expectations for both their learning and behaviour now that they have reached Year 6; everyone has signed a class contract that reflects the increased responsibility, independence and hard work required.

Teaching arrangements this year are as follows:

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday morning, Thursday, Friday – Mrs Horton

Wednesday afternoon – Preparation, Planning and Assessment cover

(this will be provided by different staff, leading different activities throughout the year)

English:

Fiction: Science Fiction / Fantasy

Non-Fiction: Non-chronological reports / Instructions

Poetry: Benjamin Zephaniah / Classic Poetry

Electricity Investigation

We had been learning more about conductors and insulators. We discovered that graphite is a non-metal conductor. We wondered if the type of pencil changes how the electricity is conducted. We tested HB, 2B 4B, 2H, 4H and 6H pencils.

Our results varied, suggesting the need for further testing but we all agreed that not all pencils can conduct electricity.

Apple Juicing

As we reach the end of October it is time to harvest the last of our school orchard apples. Today Mr Moss and Mrs Hanney brought in an apple juicer and we were able to have a go. We enjoyed drinking the fruits of our labours. It was absolutely delicious.

Apple Day

Year 6 have been busy thinking about apples in preparation for Apple Day (Saturday 15th October). First we made pompom apples. Then we harvested apples from the trees in school. We carefully studied them, sketched them and then ate them! After that we researched famous apples; Adam and Eve, Snow White, William Tell, Isaac Newton, the Big Apple. Finally we presented all our work in a wall of apples. The children are proud of what they've done. Why not pop in and have a look while you visit Hayfield's Apple Day?

An Artist Visits

We were lucky enough to have a real artist come in and work with us this week. James Horton shared examples of his work and helped us to create some of our own. Our study of insects links in with a "top secret" mission we have been working on this term for Professor Walter Lotterbugs. Our English , Maths, Science and Geography have all been important in the work we have been doing.