Alder Class Learning
English
In the first half term, we will be exploring the amazing work of William Shakespeare- reading a variety of plays and evaluating the language features used. During our reading focus, we will be identifying themes and discussing characters and settings in the hope that we can write our own play based on the features we have found.
Just before the end of the the half term, we will be linking our English work with our History focus on The Tudors and writing our own diary from the viewpoint of Henry VIII, building on recount work we have already focused on, we will be trying to convey the feelings of Henry at a particular time in his reign.
We will be moving on after the half term to focus on the novel ‘The Boy in the Tower’. This fantastic story focuses on strange events within a little boy’s life and explores themes that encourages children to discuss and debate with growing confidence. We will be writing our own chapters and a Non Chronological report based on events form the text.
Across the term, we will be focusing heavily on securing SPaG features- we will be identifying the features and applying them in our own writing.
Please encourage your child to complete all homework set and always ask if they are unsure.
Maths
This term in Maths, we will be securing place value of numbers: reading and writing numbers correctly, identifying the value of each digit, ordering and rounding numbers and working with negative numbers in context. This place value work will be revisited frequently across the year, as it is a fundamental skill for all ages.
We will also be looking to improve our addition and subtraction skills, both mentally and using strategies for more complex questions. We will then apply these skills when solving word problems.
Later in the term, we will develop our understanding of fractions; applying all four operations to fractions and again, solving word problems and develop our reasoning skills.
To complete a busy term, we will work on position and direction skills – recapping co-ordinates and using them to further our understanding with translations and reflections in all four quadrants.
Across this term, we will be sharpening our arithmetic skills on a daily basis. Times tables are crucial for our understanding and Year 6 children should be fully secure with rapid recall in order to apply them to various questions. Quick strategies for all four operations will help immensely as we work towards our SATs tests at the end of the year. Please support your child by encouraging them to complete any homework and by accessing TT Rockstars at least three times per week.
Science
In the first half term, we will be looking at Living things, life cycles and reproduction.
We will look at the life cycles of various animals, plants and insects and make comparisons. We will also carry out an experiment where we can hopefully reproduce a plant from a cutting, exploring asexual reproduction.
After the half term, we will move on to look at Earth, Space, and unbalanced forces. We will be carry out several investigations to explore forces in motion and how we could change the direction of a force and measure the strength of a force acting upon an object.
Foundation Subjects
Our first History topic this year is The Tudors. We will be exploring the life of Henry VIII and discussing why he had six wives. We will also be looking at primary and secondary sources and making judgements on the information given.
In our Geography work, we will be studying what life is like in the Alps- locating the Alps on a world map and studying the physical and human characteristics of the area. We will also be making comparisons between the Alps and a local environment.
In Art, we will be analysing famous paintings and identifying their meanings. We will be using a piece of art as inspiration for drama and discussing how art helps to convey emotions and personal preferences. We will be studying various artists and using similar techniques as inspiration for our own work.
We will be producing stuffed toys in our DT work and developing our textile skills by trying new and different stitches. We will analyse the features of stuffed toys and see if we can use them in our own work.
In RE, we will begin by discussing why people think that God exists and their opinions. We will also be looking at whether we could use the values of Jesus within the 21st century.