Welcome to Year 6! 

MESSAGE FROM MISS KROPMAN AND MISS MELCHIONNO - Thursday 19th March

Dear Year 6 Children, Parents and Guardians,

We are so sorry that we, like the rest of the country, don't know when we will next be back in school. For the duration of school closure, we will contact you via ParentMail with all tasks for home learning. We will also send home our Parent Consultation notes via this platform on the day(s) that we were due to see you. 

We look forward to seeing evidence of all your hard work when we meet again!

Best wishes,

Miss Kropman and Miss Melchionno x 

STEM Week Rocket Day - Wednesday 18th March

Year 6 had a fantastic day today as we welcomed a real Skybolt rocket to the school! Accompanied by Steve, from Team Starchaser, the rocket, which had been launched into space in 2017, was left in the staff car park for us to explore. The morning started with a fun and informative assembly with Steve, where he taught us about the history of space exploration. Did you know that the first animal in space was a Russian dog? And that this was soon followed by a chimpanzee from America?! We also watched video clips of failed take-offs and of the excellent NASA work which led to the first successful launches. Steve also showed us films of rockets being launched from Morecambe in England, including the rocket which visited us! Following this, we left the hall in our house groups in order to start the rotation of four different activities. 

Miss Kropman led an Eggnaut, where groups of three were tasked to create a vehicle for a chocolate egg to withstand the perils of re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. Congratulations to Air, who amassed the largest number of points for safe landings in the re-entry zone! Miss Melchionno, meanwhile, was exploring a Space Diet with real examples! Mrs Jackson took each group outside to visit the rocket, where they completed some enquiry-based learning and also spent some time sketching it. The fourth house in each rotation was busy designing their own rockets with Steve, which were then, very excitingly, launched on the playground using an air hydraulic system (see video below!). 

After completing all four sessions, we gathered on the playground as a whole school to see the winning rockets from each session compete against each other. Congratulations to Air, who were the winners of today's house competitions, and thank you to Steve for providing us with an inspiring day of learning! 

STEM Week Fun in Topaz - Monday 16th March

In uncertain times, there is one thing for sure - Topaz have been incredibly engaged in a fun day of STEM activities! Kicking off the morning, we created A-Z of possible STEM jobs and discussed the different qualifications that each would require. We then completed some fun mathematics problems based around the concept of Space and linked to our forthcoming Rocket Day.

After break, most tables were very puzzled to find a watermelon, a grapefruit, an apple, an orange, two cherry tomatoes, a blueberry and a peppercorn greeting them! Miss Kropman introduced the topic of the solar system and asked us to use enquiry skills to discuss which planets were represented by each edible item. Some excellent reasoning took place before clues were given to lead to the correct answers. We were then shown the various radii of the planets and looked at their position in relation to the Sun, also exploring whether they were rocky or gaseous planets. In order to study their distances from the Sun, we went onto the playground and placed ourselves on a measured, scaled human solar system map. Whilst Mercury (Liliana) was very close to the large massed ball of Sun, Neptune (Rebecca) was positioned 30m away on the other side of the playground! We then brought this learning back into the classroom and created a line-graph to display our findings. 

After lunch, we used long sheets of paper to visually display a scaled pocket solar system. We then created questions to ask of the parent volunteers who had signed up to our STEM afternoon. We worked in small groups to try and decide which job they had, such as: can you work from home? Are you based in an office or a laboratory? Which qualifications do you need for your job? Does your job require you to use technology? 

We would like to say a huge thank you to all the adults that took part in this brilliant initiative. We loved talking to all of you and finding out about eleven different STEM professions! 

Week beginning 16th March

The majority of this week will be centred around STEM learning (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths), with highlights including a careers afternoon with parents on Monday and our whole-school Rocket Day on Wednesday. Outside of this,Year 6 will be learning about:

English - completing writing an explanation text 

Maths (in normal groups) - algebra  

PE - Greek dance and rugby

Music - reading music effectively to play tuned instruments 

Homework due in on Thursday 19th March 

Please can Year 6 complete the following homework this week: 

1) Reading - five entries recorded on their bookmarks, with an adult initialling once, please. 

2) CGP Maths and Grammar sheets 

3) IXL Maths:  W4 Time problems P5 Comparing percentages  Z10 Classifying quadrilaterals and IXL English:  I3 Capital errors C9 Relative pronouns 

Saltmine Theatre Company's RE/PSHE production and workshop - Friday 13th March

We were treated to an excellent performance of 'The Long Road Home' this morning, as the Saltmine Theatre Company visited our school. The company, who are a Christian charity, aim to deliver productions which are set in the modern day yet are based upon parables. This particular show (which they performed to the whole school) featured the stories of the prodigal son, the lost sheep and the golden coins, yet conveyed morals which would be suitable for those of all faiths and none. After break, Year 5 and 6 had an interactive drama workshop, where we hot-seated a character from the play, freeze-framed our ambitions and dreams, and gave each other positive affirmations, all based around themes from the play: you are loved, you are irreplaceable and there is always a place to call home. 

Here are some of our comments:

'It was an amazing morning. The play was so fun to watch!' - Micah

'The acting was really good and they tried their best to make all of our school laugh. It also told the parable in a modern way really well.' - Jake

'I liked that it was a funny play, but that it carried an important message.' - Tilly

'It was very creative and funny. I really enjoyed it. Also, the actors were really good at singing and acting.' - Eva

'I really enjoyed the show because it made me laugh and they were really good actors. It also taught me a really inspirational message.' - Alessia

'I liked that the show represented so many things and that it handed over an important message, whatever religion you are.' - Charlie 

Topaz's RE lesson - Jesus: ordinary man or son of God? - Wednesday 11th March

Topaz have been absolute superstars in RE this half term, where we have spent the last two lessons exploring Christian Holy Week. In our lesson last week, we studied both a piece of art and a Christian hymn in order to learn what Christians believe about the importance of Jesus' resurrection. We then read witness reports (bible verses) to find evidence both for and against Jesus being the son of God. Today, we held a conscience alley, where individuals from each side had to present a piece of information to sway Miss Kropman to agree with them - some arguments were exceptionally persuasive! Topaz were then asked to share their own opinions, which had to be justified with supporting evidence, and were tasked with recording some of the strongest conclusions in their books. Well done especially to Tilly, who demonstrated cross-curricular learning at its best when she linked the story of St Alban (which she first learnt about on a history trip to the Abbey in Year 4 and also through choir performing a musical cantata about Alban at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday) to Jesus, suggesting that someone could have taken his place on the cross in order to save his life. 

Week beginning 9th March

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - writing an explanation text 

Maths - pie charts, line graphs and conversion graphs 

Science - how light travels

Computing - coding 

PE - gymnastics and rugby

RE - Jesus: ordinary man or the son of God?    

Topic - Geography cold task 

Music - reading music effectively to play tuned instruments 

Art - creating an Ancient Greek vase 

Homework due in on Thursday 12th March 

Please can Year 6 complete the following homework this week: 

1) Reading - five entries recorded on their bookmarks, with an adult initialling once, please. 

2) Reading comprehension - Time will be given in class for the children to read the extract, but they will need to complete the questions at home. 

3) CGP Maths and Grammar sheets 

4) IXL Maths  CC11 Volume and U15 Pie Charts

           English D3 Modal Verbs 

Week beginning 2nd March

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - exploring the features of an explanation text 

Maths - volume, converting measures and pie charts 

Science - light cold task 

Computing - coding 

PE - gymnastics and rugby

RE - Jesus: ordinary man or the son of God?    

Topic - Ancient Greece - comparing the lives led by Spartans and Athenians 

Music - reading music effectively to play glockenspiel accompaniments

Art - creating an Ancient Greek vase 

Homework due in on Thursday 5th March 

Please can Year 6 complete the following homework this week: 

1) Reading - five entries recorded on their bookmarks, with an adult initialling once, please. 

2) Reading comprehension - Time will be given in class for the children to read the extract, but they will need to complete the questions at home. 

3) CGP Maths set B 1 and Grammar set B 1

4) IXL Maths  O4 Equivalent ratios  O5 Ratio tables 

           English C3 Pronouns 

NB: Please remember that Thursday 5th March is World Book Day and children are encouraged to come into school dressed as a character from a book. 

Week beginning 24th February

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - completing writing our zoos discussion text 

Maths - ratio and scaling 

Science - light cold task 

Computing - coding 

PE - gymnastics and rugby

RE - symbolic features found within a Christian church   

Topic - Ancient Greece - Olympics  

PSHE - managing worries

Music - exploring features of a pop ballad 

NB Please remember that there is a SATS and Wales meeting for parents on Tuesday 25th February at 7pm. This will take place in the hall and we hope to see you all there. 

Homework due in on Thursday 27th February

As it is the half-term holiday week, Year 6 are only required to do two pieces of homework as follows:

1) Reading - five entries recorded on their bookmarks, with an adult initialling once, please. 

2) IXL Maths  AA3 Reflection, rotation, translation   K5 Adding fractions

           English   M10 Using the correct word choice 

Thank you to all of the children for their hard work and effort throughout the last six weeks. We hope that you all have a good rest and enjoy the half term break! Miss Kropman and Miss Melchionno x 

Week beginning 10th February

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - exploring discussion texts

Maths - arithmetic revision topics  

Computing - Sphero coding 

PE - gymnastics and football

Art - exploring the work of Grayson Perry

In addition to the topics above, we will be enjoying Design and Technology week, where we are going to be designing, making and evaluating a cushion. We are very much looking forward to kick-starting the week with a visit and workshop with Julia, from Stitch N' Knit! 

Homework due in on Thursday 13th February

Please can Year 6 complete the following homework this week: 

1) Reading - five entries recorded on their bookmarks, with an adult initialling once, please. 

2) Reading comprehension - Time will be given in class for the children to read the extract, but they will need to complete the questions at home. 

3) CGP Maths set A 4 and Grammar set A 4

4) IXL Maths Y2 Parallel and Perpendicular lines, Y5 Adjacent angles 

           English M1 Synonyms and M3 Antonyms 

Week beginning 3rd February

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - exploring discussion texts

Maths - arithmetic, angles, rotation and translation 

Science - components in circuits assessment task 

Computing - Sphero coding 

PE - gymnastics and football

RE - exploring respect and disrespect  

Topic - Ancient Greece - studying pottery 

PSHE - managing worries

French - a visit to the market 

Homework due in on Thursday 6th February

Please can Year 6 complete the following homework this week: 

1) Reading - five entries recorded on their red bookmarks, with an adult initialling once, please. 

2) Reading comprehension - Time will be given in class for the children to read the extract, but they will need to complete the questions at home. 

3) CGP Maths set A 3 and Grammar set A 3

4) IXL Maths C2 Multiplication and CC2 Perimeter

           English D8 Irregular verbs 

Week beginning 27th January

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - writing a gripping narrative - final piece, discussion text exploring zoos: prison or paradise?

Maths - dividing fractions, area and perimeter 

Science - creating circuits 

Computing - Sphero coding 

PE - gymnastics and football

RE - exploring respect and disrespect  

Topic - Ancient Greece - the Minoan period 

PSHE - healthy and unhealthy relationships 

French - likes and dislikes for fruits and vegetables, a visit to the market

Homework due in on Thursday 30th January 

Please can Year 6 complete the following homework this week: 

1) Reading - five entries recorded on their red bookmarks, with an adult initialling once, please. 

2) Reading comprehension - Time will be given in class for the children to read the extract, but they will need to complete the questions at home. 

3) CGP Maths set A 2 and Grammar set A 2

NB There is no IXL homework this week due to our practice SATS tests having taken place. 

RE in Sapphire and Topaz - Tuesday 21st and Wednesday 22nd January

Year 6 have been working exceptionally hard to represent a Buddhist story through the creative arts in their RE lessons this week. Challenged to consider and select how to interpret either Siddhartha and the Swan or The Lion and The Jackal, they worked in small groups to create a key symbol for the story and to reinforce the meaning of the story using either drama, dance, art or music. See if you can spot the messages of being kind to all living things, not judging others before you get to know them and not spreading rumours: Miss Kropman was very impressed with the outcome of Year 6's work! 

Week beginning 20th January

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - SATS practice tests, creating a narrative opening

Maths - SATS practice tests, multiplying fractions 

Science - exploring electrical circuits 

Computing - Sphero coding 

PE - gymnastics and football

RE - Buddhist stories expressed through the creative arts 

Topic - Ancient Greece

PSHE - acceptable and unacceptable physical contact 

French - likes and dislikes for fruits and vegetables 

Art - mark making 

Year 6 Indoor Athletics - Friday 17th January

Seventeen of our most athletic Year 6 children travelled to Stanborough this afternoon to compete in a Welwyn and Hatfield Sports Partnership indoor athletics event. Pitted against the strongest children in the district, both our boys and girls teams represented the school brilliantly to finish in 3rd place. Notable successes were Oliver, who came first in the javelin throw by a clear distance and Francesca and Georgia, who were winners of the 2 x 1 lap relay. Excitingly, our girls relay team of Georgia, Enya, Eva and Francesca also came in first place and were awarded medals as a result. Oliver and Francesca were selected as top performers of the afternoon and received a medal too! Miss Kropman greatly enjoyed taking such sporty, determined children to the competition and was very proud of them all. 

Homework due in on Thursday 23rd January 

Please can Year 6 complete the following homework this week: 

1) Reading - five entries recorded on their red bookmarks, with an adult initialling once, please. 

2) Reading comprehension - Time will be given in class for the children to read the extract, but they will need to complete the questions at home. 

3) IXL homework

Maths - T.5 Equations

English - A.4 Complete sentences and L.7 Thesaurus entries 

4) CGP Maths set A test 1 and Grammar set A test 1 

Fantastic examples of writing to build tension in Miss Kropman's English group - Thursday 16th January

Rage pulsating through him, Harry stormed into the evening mist, instantly lost in the thick darkness of the night. An eerie silence surrounded him as a sudden flash of light stopped him in his tracks. Fear gripped every inch of his body, causing an explosion of heat that burned deep inside...

Finley

Anger coursing through his veins, Harry escaped from the daylight glories to the mist of night. The ominous darkness engulfed him and his sense of reality wavered. The streetlights started to flicker. Above his head, grey clouds swarmed, mirroring drops of rain-like tears now cascading from Harry's cheeks. A menacing growl - that of large dog - pervaded his eardrums. Then...nothing. A roaring silence filled the air...

Rebecca 

Week beginning 13th January

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - creating storm descriptions, exploring gripping text openings

Maths - working backwards, short and long division 

Science - exploring electrical circuits 

Computing - Sphero coding 

PE - gymnastics and football

RE - Buddhist stories expressed through the creative arts 

Topic - Ancient Greece map work 

PSHE - challenging stereotypes 

French - fruits and vegetables 

Art - mark making 

Spring Term Homework - Friday 10th January

This term, Year 6 will be expected to complete 4 pieces of homework each week:

1) Reading - recorded on their red bookmarks, with an adult initialling once a week, please. We will expect to see five entries each week. The children need to have their reading book in school every day, as there will be additional opportunities for them to read for pleasure (and record on their bookmark) in guided reading sessions.

2) Reading comprehension - due in each Thursday. Time will be given in class for the children to read the extract, but they will need to complete the questions at home. 

3) IXL homework

4) Maths and English sheets

Homework due in on Thursday 16th January: As it is our first full week back, we will only be expecting to see reading records and completed reading comprehension. 

Welcome back for the Spring Term!

Week beginning 6th January

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - exploring gripping narratives, vocabulary building and synonyms and antonyms

Maths - BODMAS and algebraic formulas 

Science - identifying and using the correct symbols for electrical circuits 

Computing - Sphero coding 

PE - gymnastics and football

RE - Buddhist and Christian expressions of faith through music and art 

Topic - Ancient Greece cold task 

PSHE - secrets 

Happy Holidays! - Friday 20th December

Dear Parents/Guardians and Year 6, 

Thank you so much for our vouchers, plants and chocolate gifts. It has been a long, incredibly busy term, with this blog only managing to capture some of the many highlights! Well done to all of the children for their excellent effort, work and progress, and for making us so proud whenever you have showcased your talents to the public! 

We hope you all have a lovely break and look forward to seeing you all in January,

Miss Kropman and Miss Melchionno x 

ps Please remember there is no homework set over the holidays, but we are expecting to see fifteen minutes of reading recorded on the red bookmarks each day. Thank you! 

Masterchef day in Topaz - Tuesday 17th December

For the twenty eight children present in Topaz today, a future career in cookery looks to be a real possibility! Given the task of complementing their pizza with a salad and a sweet snack, each group had planned a nutritionally balanced menu that would appeal to children. After spending a lovely morning at the carol service, Topaz then spent the afternoon creating their dishes and presenting them to an excited public audience made up of teaching staff and family members. Head judge Mrs Davies had an incredibly difficult job of deciding which group she felt should win, and gave praise to all of the children for their exceptional presentation skills. After much deliberation, however, two groups were awarded joint first place. Well done to all of Topaz class and congratulations to our winners - Francesca, Maddie and Ruby, and Alessia, Danielle and Tilly! Miss Kropman is very proud of you all. 

Week beginning 16th December 

This week, Year 6 will be taking part in the following: 

Monday - DT making our pizzas

Tuesday - DT completing our Masterchef meals, KS2 carol service 

Wednesday - singing to the elderly within the community, Christmas lunch and festive activities

Thursday - craft morning, pantomime

Friday - festive activities and golden time. School finishes at 1pm 

Homework for Wednesday 18th December:

Please note that there is no IXL or red book homework for Year 6 this week. Reading comprehension carries over from last week and is due in on Thursday 19th December. We are not going to ask for reading diaries to be handed in next week, as we will be trialling a new method of recording reading over the holidays, which will be explained to the children in class. Year 6's homework is to learn the lyrics for 'Silent Night' and 'Rudolph' in order to perform these in both the KS2 carol service and for the elderly in the community on Tuesday and Wednesday next week. 

Week beginning 9th December 

This week is our Design and Technology 'Masterchef' week, which will take over the majority of lessons. In addition, Year 6 will be learning about: 

Science - the circulatory system

Computing - coding and STEM (Sapphire)

PE - gymnastics and outdoor games

Topic -  Viking settlement in Britain 

Homework for Thursday 12th December:

NB The five-day family food diary as preparation for our 'Masterchef’ week is due in on Monday 9th December.

Please note that there is no IXL homework for Year 6 this week. There is also no red book homework. We would, however, to hand in their reading diaries as normal on Thursday 12th December. Please also look out for the letter about sourcing 'Masterchef' ingredients, which will be sent out via Parentmail next week. 

RE in Year 6 - Wednesday 5th December

Both Sapphire and Topaz have worked exceptionally hard in their RE lessons this week, exploring different presentations of the Christmas story. We began by looking at Antonia Rolls (a modern artist) and her painting of the Male Madonna. We asked and shared 'deep' questions before learning about the history of the work and reading Antonia's descriptions of her approach. Each group then answered their own questions using this information to help them. Following this, we explored how Christmas is presented in traditional carols. We looked for the Christian beliefs within the lyrics and some attempted the hot challenge of creating a new verse and exploring whether or not artists and musicians can ever fully express the true meaning of Christmas. Another activity we completed was to present key ideas from the Christmas story as text messages, including selecting the most important 'moments' and choosing characters whom the dialogue would be between. Finally, Miss Kropman asked the question: Should only Christians celebrate Christmas? We had to think carefully about both sides of the argument, listing these on a coin template, before we held a table and class debate using the formal language of persuasion to agree or disagree with our friends' opinions. 

Miss Kropman's Maths Group's Circles Lesson - Wednesday 4th December

After learning about the parts of a circle and measuring radius and diameter in yesterday's lesson, Miss Kropman challenged her group to explore the relationship between radius, diameter and circumference today. They first realised that the diameter is always double the radius. Look at how brilliant they then were in discovering pi! 

Week beginning 2nd December 

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - creating a text in the style of our literary heritage narratives 

Maths - 3D shape classification and nets, radius, diameter and circumference of circles 

Science - the human body 

Computing - coding

PE - gymnastics and outdoor games

Art - Mona Lisa inspired self-representations 

RE - different presentations of the Christmas story 

Music - exploring jazz music, learning how to read and write notes in the treble clef 

Topic -  Viking settlement in Britain 

IXL Homework for Thursday 5th December:

Maths - BB.1 (identifying 3D shapes) and BB.2 (faces, edges and vertices)

English - D.14 (perfect verb tenses)

Year 6 are also expected to hand in their reading record next Thursday. There is no new reading comprehension homework this week.

NB A separate homework sheet has gone out to replace red book homework this week. Please can the children complete a five-day family food diary as preparation for our 'Masterchef’ week. This is due in on Monday 9th December.

Topaz's Positive Affirmations - Wednesday 27th November

Topaz had a thoughtful end to the afternoon today as we discussed the importance of a positive attitude towards ourselves. We had fun repeating some positive affirmations and then created some of our own. Miss Kropman is very hopeful that all of her class will remember to say these with their inner voices during any wobbly moments. 

Week beginning 25th November

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - exploring character development, effective verb choices and extended punctuation within literary heritage texts in order to create our own writing 

Maths - 2D shape classification (quadrilaterals and triangles) and properties of 3D shapes 

Science - the human body 

Computing - coding

PE - gymnastics and outdoor games, indoor athletics session 

RE - different presentations of the Christmas story 

Music - exploring jazz music

PSHE - meaningful gifts and positive affirmations 

Homework for Thursday 28th November:

There will be no IXL homework this week. Year 6 are expected to complete their reading comprehension homework, a piece of red book homework and to hand in their reading records for Thursday 28th November, please. 

Topaz's Marvellous Music-Making - Monday 18th November

Miss Kropman was incredibly impressed with Topaz this afternoon, who learnt 'Bacharach Anorak' by Ian Gray within their music lesson and demonstrated a superb first performance of this before home time! We began our lesson by learning about the jazz style and discussing the Latin American groove that accompanies this piece, inspired by Burt Bacharach. Following this, Topaz had to use their listening skills to identify different instruments that they could hear and also to recognise the structure (introduction, main melody and middle 8, improvised section, main melody and middle 8 to fade). We ended the lesson by learning the melody on the glockenspiel, which was made even more challenging when Miss Kropman asked us to read this from the score rather than just giving us the notes!

Week beginning 18th November

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - exploring literary heritage through The Hobbit and A Midsummer Night's Dream

Maths - area of triangles and parallelograms 

Science - the human body, exploring the heart and lungs

Computing - coding

PE - gymnastics and outdoor games

RE - The Golden Rule 

Music - exploring jazz music, learning the melody for 'Bacharach Anorak'

Topic - Viking settlement in Britain 

Art - painting our clay Viking work

PSHE - positive affirmations 

IXL Homework for Thursday 21st November:

Maths - P.3 (percentage of a number) and CC.3 (area of squares and rectangles)

English - E.5 (choosing between adjectives and adverbs)

Year 6 are also expected to complete their reading comprehension homework, a piece of red book homework and to hand in their reading records for Thursday 21st November.  

Week beginning 11th November

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - exploring literary heritage through The Hobbit and A Midsummer Night's Dream

Maths - Maths Week England challenges, percentages of amounts and exploring the area of rectilinear shapes

Science - the human body

Computing - E-Safety and coding with Spheros 

PE - gymnastics and outdoor games

RE - exploring the qualities of an enlightened person, linked to the Buddha

Music - appraisal skills for a piece of popular music, question and answer phrases using glockenspiels 

Topic - Viking settlement in Britain 

PSHE - coping with a variety of emotions 

IXL Homework for Thursday 14th November:

Maths - F.10 (decimals) and J.4 (equivalent fractions)

English - E.4 (relative adverbs)

Year 6 are also expected to complete a piece of red book homework and to hand in their reading records for Thursday 14th November. In addition, they will have a challenge set by Maths Week England to complete for Friday 15th November. 

Week beginning 4th November

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - completing a Viking newspaper report

Maths - reasoning test questions and fractions/decimals equivalents 

Science - the effect of yeast (independent assessment task)

Computing - Microbit programming 

PE - dance and outdoor games

RE - British Values

French - likes and dislikes linking to our animals and colours

Topic - The Vikings 

PSHE - coping with change 

IXL Homework for Thursday 7th November:

Maths - A.1 (place value) and K.3 (fractions)

English - G.1 (co-ordinating conjunctions)

There will be no reading comprehension or red book homework set over half term. Reading diaries should be handed in as normal on Thursday 7th November.

Thank you to all of the children for their hard work and effort throughout this busy start to Year 6. We hope that you all have a good rest and enjoy the half term break! Miss Kropman and Miss Melchionno x 

The Joy of Reading with Christopher Edge at University of Hertfordshire - Wednesday 23rd October

Year 6 had a brilliant morning meeting author Christopher Edge at the Weston Auditorium. Christopher spoke to us about how he gets his inspiration for his novels from everyday objects, such as a grain of sugar and a radioactive banana! He then introduced us to his latest book, The Longest Night of Charlie Noon, and read an extract from this which both excited and intrigued us. We were taught the pig pen code which features in the story and had to use this to decipher messages, which was challenging even for Miss Kropman! At the end of his presentation, Christopher shared some important messages from the book, such as us being able to initiate change and build the future with every action that we take. Before we left, we had the opportunity to collect the books that we had pre-ordered which Christopher had personally signed and then have our picture taken with him. This was a great experience and we can't wait to read our new books! 

Week beginning 21st October

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - sentence construction, active and passive voice, bias 

Maths - adding and subtracting fractions with different denominators 

Science - evaluating our bread investigation

Computing - Microbit programming 

PE - dance and outdoor games

RE - exploring the Christian Bible 

French - likes and dislikes 

Topic -  understanding what life was like in an Anglo-Saxon settlement 

Art - Viking clay afternoon (Sapphire)

PSHE - coping with change 

IXL Homework for Thursday 24th October

Year 6 have been given their IXL usernames and passwords today (Friday 18th) and will be expected to spend 30 MINUTES working on the following activities by Thursday 24th October, please:

Maths - C.1 (multiplication) and A.8 (rounding)

English - E.1 (adjectives)

There will be no reading comprehension homework set this week. Red book homework and reading diaries should be handed in as normal next Thursday. 

Year 6 Sing Out Event - Monday 14th October

Year 6 had a great time today attending a singing festival at Lochinver House in Potters Bar, along with students from Little Heath, Lochinver, Pope Paul and Stormont. We spent the morning sessions discussing the importance of singing to improve our health, well-being and happiness and also learnt some fun warm-up songs and collaborative pieces. In the afternoon, each school performed one song to each other, before an audience made up of family and friends had the opportunity to hear both these and our joint pieces in an incredible concert. We performed 'Electricity' from Billy Elliot absolutely brilliantly and Miss Kropman was in awe as she conducted such a talented group of singers. We hope you enjoy watching the video of our performance! Well done, Year 6 - Miss Kropman, Miss Melchionno, Mrs Dreblow and all of your families were exceptionally proud of you today. 

Week beginning 14th October

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - how to write an effective newspaper report

Maths - simplifying, comparing and ordering fractions

Science - researching and completing an investigation

Computing - Microbit programming 

PE - dance and outdoor games

RE - exploring how Christianity first came to England (Anglo-Saxon topic crossover) 

French - likes and dislikes 

Music - Sing Out day at Lochinver House on Monday

Topic -  understanding what life was like in an Anglo-Saxon settlement 

Art - Viking clay afternoon

PSHE - reviewing our zones of regulation

Year 6 Saracens Tag Rugby tournament at Welwyn Garden City Rugby Club - Wednesday 9th October

Year 6 were very excited to have been invited to take part in a district rugby tournament this afternoon which was hosted by Saracens RFC Foundation. The tournament was non-competitive and, therefore, scores were not allowed to be recorded. This reporter would, however, like to praise all four of our mixed teams for some excellent rugby playing and for doing exceptionally well throughout the afternoon. Tries were being regularly scored on all four pitches and we were continually praised for also demonstrating honest, sporting behaviour throughout. Congratulations to highest scorer Enya, who managed to achieve twelve tries (!) and also to Gabriel, who was scouted by the Saracens coaches as being someone who could play club rugby at a very high level. You all played and behaved brilliantly, Year 6, and were a joy to take to the tournament. Well done!

Miss Kropman's Maths Group's Scavenger Hunt - Monday 7th October

Fantastic formal written methods for multiplication and division were on show this morning as Miss Kropman's maths group were asked to complete a scavenger hunt! They had to select a level of challenge and complete the first question. The answer could then be found anywhere around our classroom or corridor area. Each answer had a corresponding letter and then gave the next question to be solved. The challenges were inter-changeable as the children's confidence level increased and spelled phrases such as 'super job!' and 'maths star'. All of the children demonstrated excellent progress today and, little did they know, completed some very tricky past SATS questions in the process! Well done, Year 6!

Week beginning 7th October

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - beginning to explore writing a newspaper report

Maths - short and long division problems plus general arithmetic

Computing - Microbit programming 

PE - dance and outdoor games

Music - continuing with our songs for the Sing Out day on 14th October

Topic -  understanding what life was like in an Anglo-Saxon settlement 

NB All other lessons are surrounding our Mental Health Day celebrations. We are visiting Gobions on Tuesday before creating our own art installation to be displayed in the village on Thursday! 

Year 5&6 trip to Chiltern Open Air Museum - Friday 4th October

We had a brilliant time today visiting the Chiltern Open Air Museum in Chalfont St Peter in order to further our understanding of Anglo-Saxon life in Britain. First up on the exciting itinerary, however, was shelter building in the woods! Led by COAM's 'Lord' Gordon, this involved us working collaboratively in small groups in order to create a shelter that would protect us from weather extremities whilst remaining sturdy. This was quite challenging, as moving large sticks and logs also came with a long list of safety rules! When we had completed our shelters, we evaluated each one in turn and discussed natural resources which may have been effective for building a shelter two thousand years ago. These included our sticks, leaf cover and moss, but also extended to animal skins from creatures that they would have first hunted for their meat.

After a short break, we moved to Arborfield Barn for the highlight of the day - the Anglo-Saxon life interactive workshop! Centre staff created us warmly before informing us that we were Pagan Anglo-Saxons living in 450AD who were expecting a visit from a bishop attempting to convert them to Christianity. Due to this, we had to prepare our home! We took part in a carousel of preparation activities including carving into a clay slab, writing messages in Latin using ink and a stylus, creating fine jewellery, making games, dressing finely and repairing our thatched roof. Each of these activities was highly creative and really good fun! Following this, we gathered together for a role-play of the bishop's visit (well done to Rebecca, Tilly, Hugo, Charlie and Frances for particularly excellent acting!). As members of the Anglo-Saxon community, we also shared our fine entertainment riddles (great work Gabriel, Max, Enya, Francesca and Antonio!) and descriptions of our preparations (executed perfectly by Jake, Danielle, Finley and Maddie). At the end of the visit, we overwhelmingly voted to remain Pagan rather than converting at this point, which actually matched the decision made by the Anglo-Saxons living not far from us at the time! 

Lunch was another great experience as we ate in an old RAF shelter. After this, we explored the remainder of the museum and visited the varied animal residents, ranging from chickens to antelope! We also had a super time in the outdoor playground creating class games and using a very cool rope swing. Sadly, it was then time to board the coach for the journey back to school.

On behalf of myself and all of the UKS2 staff, I would like to thank the Year 6 children for such a lovely day. Your behaviour was excellent and I really enjoyed spending time with you outside of the classroom. The COAM staff were extremely complimentary too!

Miss Kropman 

Week beginning 30th September

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - writing in the style of a diary entry  

Maths - short and long division

Science - microbes

Computing - Microbit programming 

PE - dance and outdoor games

French - les animaux 

Music - continuing with our songs for the Sing Out day on 14th October

Topic - exploring Saxon place names, Trip to Chiltern Open Air Museum on Friday

RE - exploring the concept of 'Right Speech' in Buddhism

Art - warrior art

Topaz's RE lesson about the Buddhist Eight-fold Path - Wednesday 25th September

During today's RE lesson, Topaz interactively explored the Buddhist Eight-fold path. The path serves as a guide for Buddhists to follow through their everyday life as they commit to seeking enlightenment. In order to fully understand each of the eight elements, we took part in the following different activities:

Knowing the truth - Topaz had to locate which of six possible statements about Miss Kropman was true, having sought all relevant information in order to make their decision

Freeing your mind from evil and Resisting Temptation - sweets were left on our tables during lunchtime and we were given the challenge of resisting the temptation to eat them throughout the lesson. Let's just say that some did better at this than others! (We were all allowed to help ourselves afterwards, though!).

Respecting life - modelled through how we care for animals and nature

Working for the good of others - we selected possible jobs that a Buddhist person could and could not apply for

Saying nothing that hurts others - we played 'compliment ball', where we stood in a circle and threw the ball to each other, only saying positive things about our classmates

Controlling your thoughts - we looked at an image that appeared to be moving and had to control our minds until we made it stop! We also saw an image that could be seen either as a young lady or an elderly woman, depending on how we asked our minds to look at it

Meditation - practised through our moments of calm and as we reflected upon our learning today.

Well done, Topaz - you were RE superstars today! 

Week beginning 23rd September

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - writing in the style of a diary entry using the first person and writing chronologically 

Maths - properties of number and multiplication 

Science - yeast investigation

Computing - Microbit programming 

PSHE - independence and responsibility 

PE - dance and outdoor games

French - saying and telling the time 

Music - continuing with our songs for the Sing Out day on 14th October

Topic - exploring why Vortigern invited Saxons to live on his land 

RE - The Eightfold Path in Buddhism

Art - warrior art

Week beginning 16th September

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - features of diary entries and writers adopting a viewpoint  

Maths - mental strategies and how to use base facts

Science - exploring living things

Computing - Microbit programming 

PSHE - health and safety in school 

PE - dance and outdoor games

French - numbers from 1-30 

Music - continuing with our songs for the Sing Out day on 14th October

Topic - Anglo-Saxons and Vikings research 

RE - Diamond 9 activity around why Buddhists meditate

Wonderful completed metaphorical poems examples - Thursday 12th September

Fire by Gabriel

The fire is a fierce lion,

Stalking its prey.

He jumps with aggression,

Blazing and burning through the air. 

When the night wind roars,

He leaps across the sky.

Glorious as a gliding bird,

Embracing the night with his warmth.

Dangerous jaws of burning flames,

Vicious as he makes his final move,

Destroying his prey beneath,

Then quiet, so quiet, he takes his last breath.

The Grass by Tilly

Vicious and green,

The grass is a snake.

Swishing and swaying,

and always awake.

With no mercy,

Snapping at ankles.

Curling and swirling,

and hiding in brambles.

A writhing beast,

As green as a lime.

Over valleys,

It climbs, it climbs. 

Week beginning 9th September

This week, Year 6 will be learning about:

English - figurative language in poetry, creating our own poems

Maths - negative numbers, rounding, multiplying and dividing by 10, 100 and 1000

Science - classification of living things

Computing - Microbit programming 

PSHE - school council and sports committee elections

PE - dance and outdoor games

French - greetings, birthdays and where we live

Music - starting to learn our songs for the Sing Out day on 14th October

Topic - Anglo-Saxons and Vikings timeline

RE - Buddhist meditation

Art - Viking warriors 

Miss Kropman's English Group - Friday 6th September

Members of Miss Kropman's English group have already been working hard this week to explore the use of figurative language in poetry. Today, we used a story map to spend time learning James Reeves' 'The Sea' in small groups. Here are some great performance examples:

PSHE during our first day!

Welcome to the Year 6 blog for 2019-20. We have had a lovely first week together and have really enjoyed our 'getting to know you' activities! Here are Topaz class creating a 'Web of Connections' during the first day of term, linking their selfies with pieces of wool to represent something that they had in common!