Despite the chill in the air, we are now into Summer Term!  This is going to be a very full-on half term with only 5 weeks before the SATs.

In English we are going to be working hard to gather evidence for writing moderation as well as looking at areas of comprehension that will support us in our tests.

We have nearly finished our maths curriculum and will be learning shape, statistics and sequence before revising other areas of maths already taught earlier in the year.

Science this term is the topic of light and we will be learning how we see light and the way it travels.  In history we will be looking at the Tudor era and considering the impact that decisions made 500 years ago still have on life today. Maps is our topic for geography and we will be finding out about different types of maps as well as creating maps of our own.  We will be continuing with our music and pshe curriculums and in computing we will be re-visiting on-line safety and focusing on the choices that we make and how to keep ourselves safe in the virtual world!  And let's not forget our Matilda! trip during the last week of this term.

We are going to be very busy and need to ensure that we are in school regularly and on time.  SATs results are not everything but we need to be trying our best and being in school will support this.

Ms Gaia :) 

Year 6 Gallery

We have been looking at the Ordnance Survey symbols in geography and have done our best to match up the symbols and the meanings.  It's been tough but we have persevered!

Keeping our fingers crossed that the clay wouldn't crack didn't have the desired results!  While some people have been able to try and use 'slip' to fill in the hairline cracks, others have not been so fortunate and the clay has just crumbled from the interior frames.  The children have taken this in their strides and have used it as a learning opportunity - we will know to make a thicker layer next time and to ensure that the clay is smoothed carefully.

We have been having an incredibly busy last week of Spring 2, rushing to get all of our topics finished before the Easter Holidays!

Today we have extracted DNA from strawberries.  We worked in pairs and used extraction solution to isolate the DNA strands before adding isopropyl alcohol to allow the DNA to float to the surface.  We all had to listen carefully during the demonstration and then write our own instructions from what we could remember.

Today we have completed the clay work with our mythical creature sculptures.  We will now leave them for a while to cure before thinking about how we can add colour to further enhance them.  Fingers crossed they don't crack!

We are continuing to work hard on our sculptures and today's art lesson saw us learning to manipulate clay and use different tools to add texture.

Today we were visited by David from The Naze Protection Society.  He presented the school with a certificate, and a number of books, and years 5 and 6 with individual certificates and badges for our involvement with the tree planting at The Naze in January.

We are very proud of our work within the local community and both our Head Boy and Head Girl were honoured to receive the framed certificate, which will be hung in the entrance foyer for everyone to see.

Photos of progress as promised!  Today we have covered our wire frames in tin foil to create 3D shapes that will support the clay.

We are incorporating art into our classification focus this term and have begun work on our mythical creature sculptures.  Having designed our new creatures, we have made wire armatures to create a 'skeleton' for our clay work.  Photos of our progress will be posted during Spring 2.

Our PSHE focus this term is 'Working Together' and we have been thinking about what skills and qualities it takes to work successfully as a team.  Building on these sessions, we have worked in groups to classify animals for our science lesson.  We think we are becoming much more confident in our team working abilities.

When Carl Linnaeus was classifying animals, the only way to record what they looked like was through detailed observational drawings.  Today we have been looking at preserved animals to see how they would have been classified.  In our cross-curricular lesson, we have produced drawings to show the different body parts, legs and wings.  We have classified insects, arachnids, millipedes and centipedes.  We have even had a close encounter with a tarantula!

This week we have been to The Naze to plant trees in commemoration of King Charles III Coronation.  We were shown how to handle the saplings and how to plant them so that they form a hedge in the future.  We planted Blackthorn, Hazel and Elder.

While some children were planting trees, others had the opportunity to take a look around and identify the ones that were already growing - we looked at both the branch types and any leaves that were still there to help us with our identification.  All of the children thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to be out in the fresh air - despite the cold chill!

We have been participating in the Tendring Young Ambassadors project and have experienced a wide range of activities culminating in a celebration event at the Princess Theatre in Clacton. 

They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old:

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

We have continued with our WW2 topic that we began last term and have been thinking about what it would have been like to have been an evacuee during that period.  Alongside our history work we are reading Goodnight Mr Tom as our reading for pleasure book, and The Lion and The Unicorn as part of our daily reading lessons.

In Year 6 we practice our writing skills every day and use a range of short burst writing activities to learn new techniques and improve our vocabulary.

Our self-portraits in a Harry Pottery style!