English and Maths

During this half-term in English, we will be studying the life of Ernest Shackleton. We will find out about his plans for an expedition and the crew he took with him.  We started by immersing ourselves in what the life of an explorer of Shackleton’s standard would have been like and, over the term, we will write letters of application to be on his crew and take part in mock interviews. We will consider the feelings of members of the crew during the journey, create soundscapes and write diary entries and motivational speeches. Linked to this, we will research Antarctica – the landscape and the animals – to create a non-chronological report. 

In Maths, children will continue to develop their skills of understanding and using decimals. They will find out about percentages and learn how to find the percentage of an amount.  

Violet class will continue to have weekly arithmetic tests, so any practise the children have at home in learning their timetables will be very beneficial.

Science

Our topic this half-term is evolution and inheritance.  We asked the children to complete a family tree over Christmas, which we will be looking at later in the term.  It would also be great if children could bring in some photographs of them when they were younger and also if, as parents, you were able to share your 'baby' pictures to support our discussions about what characteristics are inherited.  We would need these by week 3 of Spring 1 term.

Homework

Please continue to promote homework each evening by completing the weekly spelling set on a Tuesday, reading and aiming for 30 minutes a week on TTRS.

English and Maths

In English, we will be studying biography and autobiography.  We will focus on courageous and significant figures, including Malala Yousafzai, and consider how to write a biography on this person.  Children will have the opportunity to write their own autobiographies too. Following this, we plan to study the book Oranges in No Man’s Land by Elizabeth Laird and will write our own stories from a different perspective.

In Maths, children will build on their knowledge of calculations, learning how to add, subtract, multiply and divide fractions. They will develop confidence in placing fractions on a number line and in finding fractions of an amount. The children will also develop their understanding of coordinates. This half-term we will have a weekly arithmetic test. Any practise the children have at home in learning their times tables will be very beneficial.

Crucial Crew

After half-term, a letter regarding the next Y6 trip to Crucial Crew on Thursday 20th November will be sent out.  The cost of the trip for parents is £10 and school will be subsidising the remainder of the fee to attend.

P.E

P.E days will continue to be Monday and Wednesday - as the cold weather draws in, children are welcome to wear black tracksuits (no logo) for when they are outside.

L3 Bikeability

Those children who completed L1/2 Bikeability last half-term have the opportunity to move up to L3.  This will take place on Monday 8th December and Thursday 10th December for all children and will involve 2 hours out on the roads working at a higher level of road safety.   Your child will bring a letter home letting you know which date they will need their bike.

Residential- May 2026

The Year 6 residential is an overnight stay at Gulliver's Valley theme park in Yorkshire and this will be taking place from 21-22 May 2026.  Letters regarding overall cost and when a deposit is required were sent home at the end of last half term.  The non-refundable deposit of £30 is due by Friday 14^th November

Homework 

The children will continue to bring home reading books each day as part of the daily homework.  These are checked each day and this is recorded as you may have seen in their reading record.

It does make a real difference if the children have the opportunity to enjoy and share their books with their parents, although by Year 6 it is expected that children are able to independently read and record asking for an adult signature afterwards.

TT Rockstars is launching as part of homework from this half term with the expectation of 30 minutes each week.

Spellings will continue to be given on a Tuesday and tested the following Tuesday.

A very warm welcome to Violet class. We hope you have had a lovely summer and are feeling refreshed for the year ahead.

Maths and English

In English, we will continue to build on the reading and writing skills already learnt, developing extended writing, extending the use of grammar and perfecting our joint handwriting skills. Our unit focusses on learning how to show emotions in our writing, so we will be studying scary stories, love stories and poetry. This will involve studying campfire ghost stories, followed by three weeks of work on Shakespeare.

In Maths, Violet class will build on their knowledge of place value. They will learn how to order and calculate with decimal numbers to three decimal places, multiply and divide by 10, 100 and 1000 and investigate prime and square numbers. Your child will develop their understanding of multiplication and division and learn the correct written method for these calculations.

Science: As part of our Science topic about the body, part of our work will involve dissecting a 'sheep pluck', which is the heart and lungs. If you have any concerns regarding this activity, please contact school by Monday 22nd September, but please be reassured that no child will be made to touch the plucks if they prefer not to.

To facilitate the above, we are asking parents for £1 towards the cost of the plucks-which can be handed to the office or through Parent Pay.

The experience of seeing organs is the key objective of the lesson.

P.E. is on a Monday and Wednesday.

Please ensure that your child comes to school wearing their PE kit on both occasions and this must be in line with the school uniform policy of no branded clothing- a simple white t-shirt and black shorts/tracksuit bottoms and trainers.  Children are to wear their school jumper/cardigan.

Wider curriculum

R.E - Believing - What do religions say to us when life gets hard?

Geography - Natural Resources

Science - Animals including humans.

Art - 3D Sculpture – Our exhibition 

Music - Sing Up- Hey Mr Miller!

Computing - Blogging

PHSE- Being Me in My World

P.E- Gymnastics + Handball

Homework will remain focused on the three areas: reading, multiplication and spelling.

Each Tuesday, your child will receive the new spellings for the week, and they will also be tested on their spellings.

The expectation is that at least 3 times a week, spellings and timetables are independently practised and children read at home with their reading booking being signed by an adult.

Reading records will be checked daily by an adult in school, and it is important that your child brings this in alongside their reading book every day.

In Year 6, children should read for a sustained amount of time in preparation for the end of Year 6 SATs, which will be around 20 minutes.  We ask that children read each evening, if possible, at least 3 times a week for a minimum of 10 minutes.

Whitworth Art Gallery

Year 6 have a trip to Whitworth Art Gallery on Thursday 23rd October and a letter will be going out about this later in the term.

Bikeability

For those who have signed up, Bikeability will take place the week beginning 29th September and your child will be allocated a date that they will need to bring in their bike.