Autumn Term 1

We are excited to welcome the children into Year 6. This is such an important year, and we’ve got lots of exciting learning planned for the autumn term to help them feel inspired, challenged and ready for the journey ahead.

In writing, we’ll be diving into Philip Pullman’s wonderful story, Clockwork. The children will begin by writing a recount, learning how to shift between different levels of formality through the techniques they use. They’ll then move on to crafting their own suspenseful narratives, set in the mysterious world of Clockwork.

For reading, the children will also use Clockwork, alongside other texts, to improve their fluency and develop their comprehension skills. They’ll be encouraged to think deeply about what they read and to share their own thoughts and interpretations with confidence.

In maths, we’ll be focusing on place value, addition and subtraction, and properties of shape. A big part of success in Year 6 maths comes from having quick recall of times tables, so we’d really appreciate your support at home with this. TT Rockstars is a great way to practise, but even quick recall games or quizzes at home make a big difference.

Our science lessons this term will explore how living things are classified. The children will find out about the Linnaean system and learn to use classification keys to help sort and identify animals and plants.

In history, we’ll be travelling back to Ancient Egypt. The children will investigate tomb paintings and use them to ask questions about what life was like at the time. This will give them the chance to think like historians and consider how we learn about people from the past.

Geography will take us to North America. The children will learn the countries, their capital cities, and key landmarks, building up a stronger sense of the wider world and how different places are connected.

Art this term is also inspired by Clockwork, as well as the work of illustrators Chris Riddell and Arthur Rackham. The children will practise their sketching skills, exploring tone, chiaroscuro and tonal contrast to create depth and atmosphere in their work.

In computing, the focus will be on how the internet works, how information is shared online and how remote working can be used effectively. This year, we’ll also be placing a greater emphasis on online safety. Children will learn how to spot misinformation and disinformation, and we’ll be talking about how the way we view people online can sometimes be very different to reality.

Music lessons will be lively and fun, extending their recorder playing skills to support their composition knowledge throughout the rest of the year.

In RE, the children will be thinking about the concept of the divine. They’ll learn about Christian beliefs around Jesus, explore why the idea of divine is so important to Christians, and also reflect on what the word means to them in their own lives and in the lives of others.

Our Spanish learning will help the children begin to identify some of Spain’s human features, giving them a sense of the country’s culture and geography.

Finally, in PSHE, the children will be looking at different types of behaviour and learning how to demonstrate these so that they can work well as a team, be assertive when needed, and make good choices about how to act in different situations.

We’re really looking forward to all the learning and experiences ahead this term, and we’re excited to see the children grow in confidence and independence as the term goes on.