Year 6

WB 19.6.23

In Year 6, we have experienced our last Sports Day and Sports Day Finals at Dilkes Academy and have started our Graduation rehearsals. In English, we have been writing a character profile of Katniss Everdeen, the protagonist of the Hunger Games (which we are reading in our Guided Reading sessions). In geography, we have been discussing the pros and cons of building The Lower Thames Crossing and have created leaflets explaining the impact that it might have.  

WB 9.5.23

Year 6 have been studying hard for their SATS exams. This week, they have completed a reading paper, GPS paper, a spelling paper, arithmetic paper and two reasoning papers! They have been arriving early to school for breakfast club where they have been dancing along to music and eating breakfast in preparation for their exams. Once the final exam was completed, we celebrated with some music in the hall where we all danced along in celebration! 

Year 6 have worked exceptionally hard all year in preparation for their SATS and we are all extremely proud of them all. Well done, Year 6! 

WB 24.4.23

Year 6 have started their investigation ascertaining which surfaces contain the most bacteria. As part of the investigation, children recorded the aim, hypothesis and method in which they explained how to ensure it was a fair test by using independent variables (the different surfaces chosen), a dependent variable (the bacteria growth) and control variables (the loaf of bread, the temperature of the room, the light in the room and the pressure applied when wiping the bread). Over the course of a month, we will monitor the growth of bacteria on each piece of bread to ascertain which surface contains the most bacteria.

WB 20.3.23

This week, the Year 6s have worked extra hard, completing their Mock SATs assessments in order to check where they are in their progress and so that they are prepared for the real conditions of the test that we carry out in the hall.

WB 6.3.23

This week in year 6 we started our new topic in geography: Antarctica. We discussed what we knew about Antarctica already and discovered that polar bears do not live in the Antarctic and that Antarctica is actually a desert due to the fact it does not rain or snow a lot there.

We then labelled a map of Antarctica using atlases and maps to help us. We were able to locate: the Antarctic Circle; the South Pole; East Antarctica; West Antarctica; the Ross Ice Shelf; the Filcher-Ronne Ice Shelf; the Antarctic Peninsula; the Larson Ice Shelf; the Transantarctic Mountains; the Weddell Sea and many more.

WB 6.2.23

In history, this week, we continued learning about the Victorians – and specifically – the plight of poor Victorian children. After learning about the jobs they were doing from an age as young as five and doing drama, we put ourselves in their shoes and wrote diary entries, describing a day in our lives.

WB 23.1.23

In Year 6, we continued our Victorians history topic by learning about the life of the poor in the Victorian workhouse. After collecting information, we wrote a report from the point of view of  a rich Victorian (a politician) whose job is to inspect Victorian workhouses.

WB 3.1.23

This week, in English, Year 6 started exploring a fateful day in the history of a Roman city – Pompeii – which was buried by the eruption of a volcano in Mount Vesuvius. We found out that its existence was discovered nearly 1700 years after the tragic occurrence killing nearly 2000 people who happened to be in Pompeii on that day. We took notes after watching an animated re-creation and wrote the introduction of a recount.  

WB 12.12.22

In Year 6, in English, we wrote diary entries in role based on a German advert. We took on the role of a grandpa whose family have been calling him for three years in a row to tell him they won’t be able to spend their Christmas with him.

WB 5.12.22

In Year 6, in geography, pupils looked at physical and human features of Mexico and taking the role of a tourist, we wrote a letter describing some geographical features of Mexico as well as described a favourite physical and human landmark of theirs.

WB 14.11.22

This week, in Year 6, as a follow-up to our English unit on Anne Frank when we wrote her biography, we went to Vue Cinema at Lakeside to watch a film dedicated to Anne Frank’s life and the valuable messages from her diary left to posterity called ‘Where is Anne Frank’.

We also had drama workshops with the casting directors of a film production and are looking forward to letters being sent to individual pupils, inviting them ton an audition.

WB 31.10.22

In geography, this term, Year 6 are learning about Mexico. In our initial lesson, the Year 6s revisited the continents and oceans in the world and were able to identify the Prime Meridian, the Equator and the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. In our second geography lesson, the Year 6s were to decide if a number of statements about Mexico were True or False by looking at a physical map of Mexico. They also interpreted specialized maps of Mexico and answered a number of questions based on those.

WB 10.10.22

In history this week, we continued with our Tudor topic and after learning about Queen Mary I (the first female monarch of England), who was called ‘bloody’, we were more inclined to think she was misunderstood. This week, we focused on learning about Mary’s half-sister – Elizabeth I and the main challenges she faced as a sovereign: being a female; being single and expected to get married so that her husband could ‘guide’ her and to ensure an heir to the throne; her dilemma of which religion to choose from (Catholicism or Protestantism) in order to keep the peace in her kingdom; how to show England’s military prowess to her foreign enemies.

WB 19.9.22

In Science, we continued our work on the Circulatory System, specifically focusing on the components of the blood. Children watched videos explaining the roles of each of the components and explained them in their books, using scientific terminology. 

WB 15.9.22

In history this year, Year 6 started their study of the topic of Tudors with a battle that changed the course of history by ending the Plantagenets era and starting the Tudor dynasty, namely – the Battle of Bosworth. We studied primary and secondary resources to establish how it actually happened and wrote a newspaper report recounting the event that took place in 1485 on Ambion Hill, Leicestershire, south of the town of Market Bosworth.

WB 5.9.22

In Year 6, this week, we listened to the account of a soldier in WWII, Joseph Robertson and his traumatic experience on the front when he had to kill a young German soldier and Joseph’s struggle to cope with what he has done, which affected him throughout his life ever since. We put ourselves in Joseph’s boots and wore a letter from him to a relative of his, describing his experiences.