Year 6

Welcome to year 6 - with Mr Lloyd, Mr Willis and Miss Batchelor (TA)

Hello and welcome to Year 6.  We have a very challenging but exciting year ahead of us, with many things to look forward to.  Year 6 is extremely hard work, with lots of high expectations however we also have lots of fun which will make it one of the most memorable years at Micklem Primary School.

Curriculum

We work at a rapid pace in year 6 to cover many fun and exciting topics.  This term we will be looking at the following;

English – Biographies and Auto-biographies

Maths – We will be focusing on calculation and place value

Science – Micro-Organisms

Topic – World War 2

Art – Portraits and Landscapes

Music – Sounds of WWII – Led by Miss Jellis

RE – Christianity and Buddhism

French – simple Vocabulary

PE – Gymnastics and Invasion Games

Computing – Led by Mr Willis

Design and Technology – Led by Mr Willis

Reading

The children are expected to read for at least 20 minutes every night, at least once during the weekend (Friday to Sunday) and sometimes during holiday periods. If a child finishes the book then they should continue to read (any book) for the remaining time up to 30 minutes. Children change their own book as and when they need to, although teachers will remind them.

Children are given a reading/homework diary and parents are asked to sign it every night to confirm that their child has read. If a child does not read then they will have to read during lunchtime break. We place a lot of emphasis on reading and find that this system helps to develop good reading habits.

Homework

The children are given English and Maths homework every week. English is set on a Friday and due to be completed by Monday and Maths homework is set on a Tuesday to be handed in on Thursday. Spellings are given out on a Monday when appropriate and the children are tested on the following Monday - it is the children's responsibility to learn their spellings. I expect the children to complete this work; otherwise they may be kept in for a lunchtime session to finish it. Periodically, the children will be given project homework tasks, which are linked to our History or Geography topics. 

It is essential that the children realise the importance of doing their homework. It is good training for Year 7 in Secondary School.

PE Days 
During the Autumn Term Year 6 will be undertaking various indoor and outdoor PE. Please make sure that full PE kits are brought to school on a Monday and go home on a Friday. Year 6 will undertake PE sessions on Thursday and Friday.  A child will only be excused from taking part in PE if a letter is sent in on the day of a PE lesson.  We encourage all pupils to take part as PE is a fun and exciting part of our curriculum.

As secondary school is fast approaching, we encourage the pupils to be more self-reliant and self-sufficient.  They need to take more responsibility for their own behaviour, learning and progress.

SATs

During the week 11^th – 15^th May 2015, Year 6 children, together with all children aged 10-11 years across the country, will be taking the Standardised Assessment Tests (SATs).  The children will have had many opportunities during the year to practise test papers to become familiar with the expected format. The content of the SATs papers are based upon the National Curriculum work covered throughout Key Stage 2.  They will have worked hard and covered all aspects of work to be tested.

We would welcome your support in helping us to encourage a calm, confident, positive approach to this time of the year. The SATs timetable is organised nationally and we will share the timetable with you in the Summer Term when we have had official confirmation dates.

If there is anything that I can do to help you or if you would like to discuss any aspect of your child's education please do not hesitate to contact me through an appointment through the school office.

Thank you for your continued support.  Here is to a successful year with a wonderful year group

Mr Lloyd