Oak Class

Teaching Team: Miss Mercer, Ms Swannell and Ms Edmed

oak@st-barnabas.kent.sch.uk

Oak Class – Summer Term 2023

Hello all and welcome to the final term in Oak Class and primary school!

I hope everyone has had a great Easter break and is ready for the hard work – and fun – of the summer term. SATs week will run from Tuesday 9^th to Friday 12^th May; these will test their attainment in maths, reading and spelling, punctuation and grammar. Their writing will be moderated separately at the beginning of June. More details on the KS2 assessments will be provided in a separate letter. Obviously, we appreciate that some absences cannot be avoided but it is important for your child to be in school as much as possible in the run-up to the assessments as we will be covering a lot of material each day and revisiting any areas the class seems to have found particularly difficult.

Our main topics this term will be the year six production (see below) and our Young Enterprise Challenge. Young Enterprise is always something the class enjoys hugely. They are each given the opportunity to obtain a £5 investment loan in order to start up a small business; they can pool their money by working in groups. We have had many different businesses over the years: milkshakes, cakes, ice cream, homemade lemonade, stationary, slime, art and much more. After coming up with a business plan that includes market research, costing and profit projections, the children must successfully pitch their ideas to our business manager in order to secure their loans. They will then have a few weeks to get their businesses up and running before selling their goods. Once all loans have been paid back, the profits are split; half goes towards costumes and props needed for the end of term production and the other half is used to finance a treat for the whole class. The team that makes the biggest profit gets to choose the treat. Previously, we have ordered pizza for the whole class or taken everyone to Creams in Tunbridge Wells.

English

This term, our class book will be Wonder by RJ Palacio. Alongside this, we will be looking at extracts from Jaws by Peter Benchley, to help us with our dual narrative pieces, and The Viewer by Shaun Tan and Gary Crew. Next term, we will read Coram Boy by Jamilia Gavin.

Our spelling, punctuation and grammar work will focus on building cohesion across our writing using devices such as conjunctions, adverbials and pronouns. We will also be consolidating our learning across year 6.

As I am sure you have already heard, we have chosen the play ‘Mission Implausible’ for our end of year production. Auditions for roles will take place the weeks before and after SATs (everyone will have the opportunity to play a part) and the children will be rehearsing in time for performances near the end of term. Although some children can be apprehensive about this and feel nervous about performing, the feeling of accomplishment they get is wonderful and it is always a huge delight to see their proud faces after a performance.

Maths

This term we will begin by covering the final two units of the KS2 curriculum: properties of shape, which includes some more work on angles, and position and direction, which covers coordinates across four quadrants and translation and rotation. We will also revise common problem areas such as fractions and percentages.

Once the SATs have finished, we will continue with maths input through financial education which will teach them key aspects of finance such as bank accounts, spending, saving and being critical consumers. They will also be using their skills in the Young Enterprise challenges as they will be required to carefully budget their spending to maximise profit.

For the first half term, we will be studying Buddhism. They will begin by learning about the life of Buddha, before moving onto Buddhist teachings such as the eightfold path and the five precepts. We will also look at some traditional Buddhist stories from the Jataka Tales and make comparisons between Buddhism and other religions we have studied.

For the second term, our topic is Christianity with a focus on the concept of the ‘Kingdom of God’. We will study Bible texts and consider how Christian teachings relate to our own lives and the problems we may face.

Topic

The children will be covering two small topics this term. The first will look at trade, exploring the UK’s different imports and exports, and asking the question: is all trade fair?

We will also be learning how to read maps, key points of latitude and longitude, use eight points of a compass, four and six-figure grid references and symbols and keys.

Science

This term’s topic is electricity.

We will begin by exploring the discovery of electricity and consider how it has changed the way we live. We will then recap our knowledge of circuits and learn how to draw them accurately using electrical symbols. Finally, we will investigate different things that may have an impact on variables such as the volume of a buzzer or the brightness of a bulb.

ICT

Our first topic is spreadsheets where children will learn how to use Google Sheets and apply formulae - this will be useful for their budgets in Young Enterprise too.

The final unit is 3D modelling where they will be using Tinkercad to create a variety of models.

PE will still take place on Monday afternoons. Please remind your child that they need to bring their PE kits to school on that day.

Home Learning

There will be a spelling test each week – children will be given a list of words to learn.

Homework will be handed out on a Monday and will be due by the following Monday at the latest. The homework they receive this term will vary; in place of the usual maths and English work, the children may sometimes receive work on financial education, Young Enterprise and drama too.

If you have any other questions, please feel free to catch me after school. Do also email me at oak@st-barnabas.kent.sch.uk anytime, if you have any questions or concerns, or even if you just want to say hi.

Best wishes

Miss Mercer

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Dear Oak Parents/Carers,

Oak Class – Spring Term 2023

Hello all and welcome back. I hope you all had a great Christmas break.

Things start to heat up in Oak Class this term with the upcoming SATs tests in May. This is particularly true for their writing as each piece they create from now on will go towards their final assessment. All though the pressure has gone up a little, we still intend to have a lot of fun..

English

This term much of our work will be linked to our topics of World Wars one and two. For the first half of the term, we will be focusing on WW1. We begin by looking at the causes of the war and create a newspaper report on the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the final spark that lit the conflict. We also go on to write a letter home from the trenches on the Western Front and create a poem inspired by the work of poets such as Siegfried Sassoon. After half term, we will move onto WW2. This will include diary entries from the perspective of an evacuee and a flashback explaining what it was like to storm the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. In addition to this, we will be working on using punctuation to separate clauses, active and passive voice and formal writing.

Maths

This term we will begin by covering units on ratio and proportion, including scale drawings and scale factors, before moving onto the topics of decimals and algebra. Regular times tables tests will also take place so any practise with your children will be a great help.

The topic for the first term will be Gospel which looks at the life of Jesus and the teachings he gave to his followers on how to live their lives. The children will also get the opportunity to work in groups to design their own church and outreach projects. We then move onto our Salvation unit which covers the topics of funeral rites, hope for the future and the resurrection.

Science

In the first half of the term, our topic is animals including humans which looks at how blood and the circulatory system works, what our bodies need to stay fit and healthy, and the impact of smoking, drugs and alcohol on the body. After half term, we move onto the topic of light which investigates how we see, reflection and refraction of light.

ICT

Our first topic of the year will be programming. We use Scratch for this. The children begin by learning how to create and manipulate variables, building towards designing their own game. We then move on to using spreadsheets which will come in very useful when planning their Young Enterprise projects in terms 4 and 5.

PE will take place on Monday afternoons. Please remind your child to come in wearing their PE kit on that day.

Home Learning

There will be a spelling test each week on a Wednesday. Children will be given a list of words to take home to learn but they can also be found on Google Classroom. Spare copies will also be pinned on the homework board in class.

A times tables test will take place every Thursday and children will identify which times table they need to practise. Times tables are linked to almost every aspect of the maths curriculum and a secure recall of all tables up to twelve makes a huge impact on their understanding of each topic, so we would really appreciate your support. Just a couple of minutes practise a day or a few quick fire questions as you are cooking dinner can make all the difference. If you require any practise sheets or other materials, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Regular reading has a positive impact on a child’s comprehension and writing skills. For this reason, we are asking students to read for a minimum of 25 minutes a day. They can comment on what they have read in their reading journal which will be checked weekly. The children are responsible for changing their own books if they are reading from the selection of class books. Please can I also ask that parents check and sign their children’s reading records at least once a week so I know their reading is being monitored at home. Thank you.

Homework will still be handed out on a Monday and will be due by the following Monday at the latest. They will receive one piece of maths work and one piece of English, which could be reading, writing or SPAG focused. Google Classroom has been set up for this year’s homework to help with homework getting ‘lost’ or damaged. Your children have been shown how to log in, in our ICT lesson and should all be able to access their accounts. However, I advise that they check this out at home at the beginning of the week to give me a chance to help with any issues. Paper copies will be given to any children that do not have access to a laptop or tablet at home and there will ALWAYS be spare copies pinned on the homework board in class for anyone that loses theirs. I expect EVERYONE to be completing their homework and will ask anyone who does not bring it in on time to complete it during break or lunch time. They will be receiving a lot more homework when they move onto secondary school and I feel part of my job as a year six teacher is to get them into a regular routine of getting it done so they avoid detentions next year.

Logging into google classroom for the first time:

Go to classroom.google.com and click Go to Classroom.
Enter the email address for your Classroom account and click Next.
Enter your password and click Next.
If there is a welcome message, review it and click Accept

Dojo points I will be using the dojo points reward system this year. They will receive points for regular reading, scoring well on their spelling tests, improving times table scores and completing homework. They can also be awarded points for participation and effort. Points can be removed for persistent lack of homework or poor behaviour. I like this system because it gives every child the same chance to earn points and rewards those that continually put effort in. It can also be a good incentive! Each child was given a code to log into the class dojo at home. This will enable them to customise their avatars and will allow you to see how they are doing in class and what they are earning points for. At the end of each term, the children are allowed to exchange their points for rewards.

If you have any questions, please feel free to catch me after school. Do also email me at oak@st-barnabas.kent.sch.uk anytime, if you have any questions or concerns, or even if you just want to say hi.

Best wishes

Miss Mercer, Miss Swannell and Miss Edmed.

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We are so excited to welcome all pupils back to school this week. We are writing to inform you of the home learning provision that is in place for your child this year so that we can work together to best support your child while at school and at home. Please read the following information carefully and do not hesitate to contact your child’s class teacher directly if you have any questions or queries.

Here is the diet of home learning activities that your child will now receive in Year 6:

· Weekly Learning Update: Each week we will publish a weekly learning update on Google Classroom. This will keep you updated on your child’s main learning activities for the upcoming week.

· Reading: Regular reading has a positive impact on a child’s comprehension and writing skills. For this reason, we are asking students to read for a minimum of 25 minutes a day. They can comment on what they have read in their reading journal which will be checked weekly. The children are responsible for changing their own books if they are reading from the selection of class books.

· Spelling: There will be a spelling test each week on a Wednesday. Children will be given a list of words to take home to learn but they can also be found on Google Classroom. Spare copies will also be pinned on the homework board in class.

· Times Tables: A times tables test will take place every Thursday and children will identify which times table they need to practise. Times tables are linked to almost every aspect of the maths curriculum and a secure recall of all tables up to twelve makes a huge impact on their understanding of each topic, so we would really appreciate your support. Just a couple of minutes practise a day or a few quick-fire questions as you are cooking dinner can make all the difference. If you require any practise sheets or other materials, please don’t hesitate to ask.

· Maths and English: Homework will be handed out on a Monday and will be due by the following Monday at the latest. They will receive one piece of maths work and one piece of English, which could be reading, writing or SPAG focused. Google Classroom has been set up for this year’s homework to help with homework getting ‘lost’ or damaged. Your children have been shown how to log in, in our ICT lesson and should all be able to access their accounts. However, we advise that they check this out at home at the beginning of the week to give us a chance to help with any issues. Paper copies will be given to any children that do not have access to a laptop or tablet at home and there will ALWAYS be spare copies pinned on the homework board in class for anyone that loses theirs. We expect EVERYONE to be completing their homework and will ask anyone who does not bring it in on time to complete it during break or lunch time. They will be receiving a lot more homework when they move onto secondary school and we feel that in Yr6 it is important to get into a regular homework routine.

If you have any questions or queries relating to any matter discussed in this correspondence or indeed any matter relating to your child’s learning, please do not hesitate to contact us via the class email address.

Many thanks for your continued support,