“ “The human body is the best work of art. The more that we learn about it, the more we appreciate its complexities.” ”
BLOOD, sweat and tears - we have made blood this week, worked incredibly hard and had enormous fun in doing so. Teaching the human body and the systems within it, is one of my favourite topic areas. It amazes me on a daily basis, just what it is able to do. This week, we have continued to learn about the circulatory system - in particular blood and its components. Love and compassion are at the centre of everything that we do in class. We have be working a lot in pairs - a perfect opportunity to be loving and compassionate to each other.
Before I share the wonderful learning that we have mastered this week, please enjoy a video of some of my favourite moments.
Loving to learn
This group of children are so intrinsically motivated with their work, they really want to do well for THEMSELVES - not anybody else. This week we spent over an hour talking about high school and the change that it will bring. Some fantastic questions were asked and myths dispelled. No question is a bad question.
In English, the children have been busy writing their story of The Piano with flashbacks to significant moments in the man’s life. We will be using these skills next week when we write Jesus’ Journey to the Cross. On Monday we will be watching the passion of Christ through the PG film, Jesus of Nazareth. We will be starting at the point of Palm Sunday and watching through to the Ressurection of Christ. Having watched this with Year 6 for many years, it always provokes such emotion within them and gives them a true insight into the pain and humiliation that Jesus felt as he was crucified.
In maths, we have been continuing with all things area and I think we have pretty much mastered the skill! We have been able to apply our understanding of area of rectangles to triangles and parallelograms. Next week, we move onto volume!
Our favourite moment of the week, has to be the making of BLOOD! Some children are still washing the food colouring off their hands they used that much. Bringing science to life is so exciting for us in Year 6 - next week is all about the pulse.
For homework, the children have been asked to research what happens to the body when we exercise, they will need this information for Tuesday.
As we discussed high school on Monday, we also discussed homework and the skills that they will need in Year 7. Homework is one of those subjects that divides children, however, the skills that the children gain from it are invaluable. When the children head off in September, they will receive homework in lots of different ways: weekly, nightly, twice a week, it will not be as structured with time as it is now. We have discussed in class how we are like puppies in training, the children need to be in a position in July where they are able to complete homework independently, on time and with the correct quality. This will only aid them at high school. We are using the final term as a high school training camp!
Please do have this conversation with your child at home and check in with them with their homework. Are they completing the task that they have been set? Have they answered all of the questions that they have been asked to complete? Is the standard what it should be? Each week we will be marking and then setting redos on the work that needs pushing just a little bit more. I am going to create a display board on Purple Mash where the work can be shared and ideas from each other can be generated.
Congratulations to our two certificate winners this week. Callum-Sean and Elizabeth have been instrumental in class this week. They have led learning, asked questions in class and really challenged themselves to complete the work to the highest of standard. Well done to you both!
Looking ahead
It is so hard at the moment not to be consumed by the current climate. Whilst we are constantly being told that better days are coming, it is hard to not think beyond the now where there are still so many restrictions in place. Whilst many places are preparing to open and gain some kind of normality, in school, we are still under the same guidance that we received in September. Keeping the children safe, continuing to learn, make progress and minimising contact are our main priorities.
It is therefore with a heavy heart, like last year, we have had to make the decision that the week residential stay at Water Parks will not go ahead. This is never a decision taken lightly but in the current climate safety has to always come first. Presently, we are unable to add any school trips at all onto the Lancashire system as visits beyond school are not permitted for any year group. We know this news is sad for everyone and as the Year 6 teacher I know how much the children look forward to this week.
However, after discussing this with the children in class, we now have ‘what can we do?’ attitude. We may not be able to go away together for a whole week, but what may we be able to do by June? I am hopeful that I can give the children some of these experiences, just in different ways. The week after half term, Monday 7th June, will be our ‘adventure’ week. I have provisionally booked Water Parks for the day on Tuesday 8th June so that the children get some experience of the water activities on the lake. I then have a few other plans up my sleeve - current climate and restrictions pending. Please be aware that I am trying so hard to provide as many experiences as I can but this continues to be an unpredictable time and as we all know things can change very quickly. Please bear with me! I will cost all experiences up and provide information after Easter. I know for some families the pandemic has stretched finances to extremes and I will also be very mindful of this.
The week before half term, the children will audition for their end of year play. It will be different this year and we are going to have to be really creative - but leave it with me and I will confirm plans as soon as I am able to.
Regardless of the circumstances of this year, the children have been true ambassadors of Our Ladys from their entry in Reception through to Year 6. We want to celebrate their individual journeys how best we can.
Have a lovely weekend with your family.
Mrs Gregan and Mrs Webster