Autumn Term

English

For the first half term, children in Year 6 will be reading 'The Odyssey' by Gillian Cross. Throughout this unit of work, the sequence of lessons will take children on an adventure with the greatest of heroes - Odysseus - as he battles great monsters, gods and mortals on his voyage home to Ithaca. Through the sequence, the children will discover multiple reasons to make a speech: to make a proclamation, for persuasive purposes, and for personal reflection. They will write in role as Odysseus himself, as well as record dialogue and their own take on a key scene in the style of the author. Following research into the Greek Gods and a variety of ancient Greek monsters, the children will complete the sequence by writing their own epic adventure story based on their own invented character who encounters multiple trials on their journey home.

For the second half of the term, the children will be moving onto poetry, using the poem ‘Night Mail’, which was written in 1936 to accompany the documentary film of the same year and the same title. The film depicted a London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) mail train travelling from London to Scotland. Auden’s poem was read toward the end of the film, set to music by Benjamin Britten. Lines were chopped and changed to fit the film. The intention of the film was to show the public how the mail was distributed by train. The rhythm of the film matches the train’s movement. Auden apparently used a stopwatch as he set the lines to the film. The form of the poem is made up of eight rhymed, four-beat couplets. By the end of the unit, the children will create their own poems in a similar style.

Maths

For the first half term, the children will begin with Place Value. They will then move onto the four operations (addition, multiplication, subtraction and division). Fortnightly, Year 6 will practice their investigative, problem-solving skills in a practical lesson, with a real life application. This is to reinforce the importance of Maths and remind the children that Maths is everywhere!

Check out some of our work below:

History

Our first History topic in Year 6 is the Ancient Greeks. Throughout this topic, the children will learn about the geographical position of Greece, the achievements, beliefs and the legacy of the Ancient Greeks. The lessons will build up to the children writing a historical enquiry, a chance to show off all they have learned!

Take a look at some of our learning below:

Science

Physics:

Our first Science topic is 'Light'. In this unit of work, the children will learn all about how light travels, how light allows us to see, how reflection changes the direction of light. They will conduct an experiment about shadows and also explore how light allows us to see colour.

Computing

During our Computing lessons, the children will be exploring how data is transferred over the internet. They will initially focus on addressing, before they move on to the makeup and structure of data packets. Learners will then look at how the internet facilitates online communication and collaboration; they will complete shared projects online and evaluate different methods of communication. Finally, they will learn how to communicate responsibly, by considering what should and should not be shared on the internet.

Music

Year 6 will be enjoying Music lessons carried out by a specialist music teacher. The focus will be on singing, rhythm and percussion. The children will also take part in a singing assembly every week on a Thursday afternoon. 

P.E

In P.E this term the children will we focussing on football and basketball. They will learn how to dribble, pass and play games.

PSHE

For the first term, Year 6 have been taking part in PSHE lessons based on their Health and Wellbeing. We looked at the importance of staying healthy, both mentally and physically. We explored the importance of sleep and maintaining good personal hygiene. We have also discussed what it means to have our own identities and responsibilities. 

Religious Education

This term, the focus in RE is all about different religious beliefs about life after death. The children will explore the idea of life, Hindu beliefs, Muslim beliefs and Christian beliefs, before making links between the different beliefs and ideas. Finally, they will take a philosophical approach to life after death and consider ways of dealing with grief.

Art and DT

Whole School project

Each class took part in the whole school art project based on flowers. Year 6 focused on the work of Georgia O'Keefe and Frida Kahlo. First, they explored different sketching techniques and went out into the playground to sketch flowers and plants. Then, they used pastels to create flowers inspired by their own sketches and by their chosen artist. For their final piece, the children created larger versions of their flowers on black and/or white paper.

Ancient Greek Clay Sculptures:

This term, the children have been exploring Ancient Greek pottery and sculpture, discussing the hidden stories and meanings between the artwork painted onto vases at that time. They then compared these works with those of contemporary artist, Grayson Perry. Towards the end of the unit, the children will design, make and evaluate their own Ancient Greek pot or vase that tells a mythical story of their choice!

Year 6 Residential

The children had the most amazing time visiting the PGL centre in Marchant's Hill. On the first day, the children enjoyed a morning of building shelters, orienteering and making fires with flints! In the afternoon they conquered their fear of heights during their abseiling session! On the final day, the children experienced archery, zip-wire, trapeze and the children's favourite, 'THE GIANT SWING!'. A great weekend was had by all and it was an experience they'll never forget.

Wallace Collection Trip

The children visited the Wallace Collection to take part in a workshop about Ancient Greek mythology through paintings and sculptures. They carefully scanned the paintings to identify important Ancient Greek figures, including the Gods and demi-gods. They made comments on the mood and style of the paintings and respectfully offered their opinions.