This week in the classroom
17th January
A very busy second week!
In reading, we have been looking deeper at the picturebook Rose Blanche, exploring some of the characters and their motivations. This has prompted some interesting discussions in class and the children have been making some excellent links to the work done in history so far.
In writing, we have finished our story endings. The children did an excellent job of adding suspense and tension to their endings. They have been so enthusiastic during this writing unit and it has been great to see the final independent pieces.
In maths, we have been looking at division, with remainders. Times tables knoweldge is definitely improving and I can see big changes on the children's TTRockstars heatmaps. Keep it up Year 5/6! Just five minutes every day makes a huge difference when it comes to the speed at which they are able to divide. I can see their confidence growing!
In history, we have started to look at what WW2 was like in Crewe. We learned about the Merlin aero-engines that were made at a shadow factory on the Bentley site, and we also learned that Crewe manufactured army uniforms and produced tanks!
In computing, we continued with our Vector drawings. The children are absolutely loving this unit, making their own pictures by copying and pasting shapes of different sizes. They are showing great teamwork when problem-solving and creating their super drawings.
In science, we looked at transparency and used light meters to test the transparency of a number of items. We then discussed why transparency, or a lack of transparency, is essential when producing certain items.
We also had the grand opening of our new building on Friday. We had lots of visitors in school and a number of Year 6 children were chosen to give tours of our school. The visitors were very impressed by how well-mannered, enthusiastic and articulate the children were. They really were fantastic representatives of the school and we are very proud of them!
10th January
We have had a great first week back in our new classroom: it has been lovely and quiet and we are very much enjoying the under-floor heating! The children have made a great start to 2025 already.
In reading, we have started our new class book, Rose Blanche, which is a KS2 picturebook. It tells the story of WW2 through the eyes of a young girl and is a great link to our current history topic.
In writing, we are finishing the story endings we started before Christmas. The children have written one already this week and are planning their independent write for next week.
In maths, we have been looking at short multiplication with two and three-digit numbers. The children have done an excellent job with this, looking at arithmetic and reasoning questions. They have been reminded to keep up with their five minutes per day of TTRockstars as some children are still finding recalling their tables facts very tricky. They have come home with a times tables heat map stuck into their reading diaries which will show where their current gaps are.
In history, we have started our new topic, WW2. We looked at the reasons behind why the war started and which countries were involved. This included work on the Holocaust and the children were very mature in their responses and questions.
In computing, we did vector drawings using Google Drawings. The children had to design a building using shapes and then add colour to the fill and lines. They did really well at this and there were some great designs.
In French, we started our new unit on musical instruments, which tied in well to their first music lesson of 2025 on Thursday!
We finished the week with some science work on materials, looking at how hard and soft they were, and then ended with a relaxing yoga session. Well done Year 5/6!