Miss Edney
Teacher
Well where do I begin with talking about The BFG? This book has and always will be a firm favourite of mine! As a child, I would read this book and then pick it up and re-read it to envelop myself in a world of mystery, magic and wonder. From the mysterious yet emotional beginning, where Sophie finds herself in an orphanage to the suspense-filled moment where she is snatched and whisked into a new, alluring and dominating world full of giants and adventure, you simply can’t put it down! Not only this, but I couldn’t help but love this book just that little bit more because the main character shares my name! The connection I had and still have with this book, and the enjoyment I get from this book means it has secured its place in my bookshelf forever more.
Mrs Pascoe
Support Staff
I really enjoy reading the Alfie books by Shirley Hughes. Alfie Gets In First was read to me as a child and I have since read it with my children. I also LOVE the illustrations.
Mrs Allen-Trevarton
Support Staff
One of my favourite stories to read is Zog by Julian Donaldson. This book brings back lovely memories of reading the story to my two sons. The book also reminds us that you can achieve anything with patience, perseverance and someone who believes in your abilities.
Autumn 2
Welcome back everyone, we hope that you’ve had a wonderful break. Please read on to find out about all of the exciting things we have planned for this half term.
During this half term, we will be starting our half term looking at the four operations: addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. During this time, we will be exploring a range of methods, drawing upon mental methods where possible to provide children with ample opportunities to develop their confidence as mathematicians. Once this is complete, we will be starting to think about fractions. During this unit, we will be recapping what a fraction is before looking at concepts such as finding equivalent fractions, simplifying fractions, comparing and ordering fractions as well as adding, subtracting, multiplying them. Our maths at BB is taught through a mastery approach, giving the children time to explore the concept being taught using concrete resources before moving on to pictorial and then more abstract concepts (CPA approach). We will continue to encourage the children to practise their number recall through weekly 99 Club challenges and TT Rockstars battles as well as daily Flashback4's to encourage retention. We will continue with regular arithmetic practise- the purpose of this is to expose the children to a range of calculations and to help with the retrieval and retention of key number facts.
Our topic focus for this half term will be ‘The Shang Dynasty’. During this history-based unit, the children will be delving into one of the earliest civilisations. By the end of this unit they will know what the Shang Dynasty is, why it is important and what some of the archaeological findings tell us about this period of history.
Our English for this half term will be based on the book ‘Can we save the tiger?’ by Martin Jenkins. In this unit, children will be following a small step approach looking closely at vocabulary, structural and language features before showcasing their learning by writing their final outcome: to write an independent version of a booklet based on an amazing animal (hybrid text type including information, explanation and persuasion).
In Whole Class Reading, we will continue to explore a range of texts and genres in order to practise applying the key reading skills. Some of the themes we will be exploring include: Bonfire Night, Remembrance, the environment and Christmas. In addition to this, we will be continuing to develop our love for reading by sharing our Class Read at the end of each day.
In RE this half term, we will be thinking about the question ' Was Jesus the Messiah?’ This unit continues to build on the children’s learning in LKS2 where they focussed on identifying the differences between a ‘Gospel’ and a letter, offer suggestions about what texts about baptism and Trinity might mean, giving examples of what these texts mean to some Christians today, described how Christians show their beliefs about God the Trinity in worship (in baptism and prayer, for example) and in the way they live. By the end of this unit, the children will be able to explain the place of incarnation and the Messiah within the ‘big story’, explain connections between biblical texts using theological terms as well as comment on how the idea that Jesus is the Messiah makes sense in the wider story of the Bible. Children will conclude their learning by weighing up what they have learnt to reflect on the idea that Jesus is the Messiah and why this is important in the world today.
In Science, we will be looking at the Year 6 unit focusing on ‘Light’. By the end of the unit, children will be able to explain why light travels in straight lines, how we see objects, what refraction is and how it changes the direction of light as well as why shadows have the same shape as the object that casts them. The children will also have opportunities to work scientifically during this unit with lots of practical, hands on lessons.
Our PE for this half-term is going to be netball (this will remain on a Tuesday afternoon). This Y6 netball unit will teach the skills players need to play both in defence and attack. The children will learn how to pass and catch the ball using a range of techniques. Defensively, they will develop their skills of marking, including one-on-one marking. Offensively, they will learn how to get free from a defender using skills such as the dodge and straight lead run and the skill of pivoting. They will also learn the technique for shooting and how to do a toss-up. Different netball rules will be covered each week and there will also be a focus on playing as part of a team and evaluating their own and others’ performances. The unit culminates with a High 5 Netball tournament, where the children will have an opportunity to put their newly developed skills into practice in competitive games.
For our music lessons this half term, the children will be practising a range of songs in preparation for our Christmas Carol concert in early December. The children will begin by singing a selection of Christmas carols in unison before considering how harmony could be added to create a performance in a two-part harmony.
In our computing unit this half term, we will be focusing on using spreadsheets to store information in a structured format. During this unit, children will learn about formula and will spend time exploring different formulas to display a range of information before showcasing their learning to help plan a school cake sale.
Finally, in PSHCE, year 5 will be focusing on nutrition and healthy eating and year 6 will be exploring ways in which they can keep their bodies safe.