Welcome to Year 6 – Diamond Class!

SATs Meeting 2024 Year 6 Meet the Teacher 2023

Maths

For the first two weeks, we shall be looking at the place value of numbers up to ten million. We will learn how to compare and order numbers, how to round numbers and how to calculate with negative numbers. We will then move onto using the formal calculation methods for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. These will include column methods, long and short multiplication, and long and short division. After this unit, we will learn about fractions. This will include equivalent fractions, adding and subtracting fractions, multiplying and dividing fractions and finding fractions of an amount. Our final unit for Autumn term is converting units of measurement between metric and imperial, and miles and kilometres. The children will also be practising their times tables using TTRockstars.

English
We shall begin the term with a unit linked to our History topic on WW2. For guided reading, we shall read a book called 'When We Were Warriors' which is about evacuees. In writing lessons, we shall read a book called 'Star of Fear, Star of Hope' which is about a young Jewish girl living in France during the Nazi occupation. We will secure our use of basic punctuation as well as develop the skills needed to write a 'flashback' story focusing on vocabulary choice to imply certain emotions. We shall learn spellings and read for pleasure, every day, and will have regular handwriting practice until the children have developed a joined clear handwriting style. The children will be expected to read at least three times a week at home to help them to develop their decoding skills and comprehension.

World War 2 (History & Geography)
We shall be studying the theatres of war during WW2, the axis of powers and the significant figures from all the countries involved. At the beginning of the term, the class will be visited by Mr King – a history expert with an extensive collection of WW2 artefacts and memorabilia. The children will also learn about the main aspects of the Holocaust and we shall link this to our RE by considering the courageous advocacy of St. Maximilian Kolbe. We shall develop our history skills by considering causation, evaluating evidence, impact/pace of change and significance of evidence, and will continue to build upon the Golden Threads of history running through our curriculum by examining this crucial period in relation to the concepts of Leaders, Invasion, Religion, Communication and Innovation.

Science
In Science, the children will be learning about light; how it travels in straight lines and how it interacts with different types of objects. They will investigate: shadows and how they change; how light splits; reflects; and how coloured light mixes. They will learn to work scientifically by planning lines of enquiry, using measuring equipment and recording results. They will also begin to learn about electricity, investigating simple circuits and drawing diagrams. They will also find out about what affects the brightness of a bulb.

Creative
In D&T this term, the children will use the knowledge they have gained from science to create an electronic steady-hand game. In Art, we will be studying the work of several artists from varied times and cultural backgrounds. For music, the class will have the privilege of learning the violin from a Love Music Trust peripatetic teacher.

RE
For the first half-term, we shall study the key aspects of Hinduism and consider how beliefs about God have changed over time. After half-term, we shall think and reflect on how religious and non-religious people explain suffering. We shall explore the roles of 'Father, Son and Holy Spirit' (Trinity) in the Christian view of God. We shall also think about why Christians say Jesus is the 'Son of God'; the 'Christ' and both 'God and man', and explore what the Old Testament prophesied about the Messiah/Jesus.

Computing
In Computing, the children will create their own video game relating to online safety. We will then move onto coding, completing various activities requiring the debugging and programming of sprites and backgrounds before beginning to learn how to use Microsoft Excel to help us create spreadsheets of data – and using formulae so the application does the hard work for us.

We look forward to an exciting new term.

Mr Blenkiron

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