1. Welcome to Year 6 2017-2018 Pete Collings – Deputy Head
Charlotte McDowell – Assistant Head
Sam Walter – Head of Year 6
Vision: Building on our unique local heritage, we will provide a world class British education inspiring all our students to exceed expectations.

2. Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

3. Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

4. Shining Eyes
SO Year 6 what is it all about? It is a fantastic and exciting year and it is the last one in primary. We see our children leaping in height, taking ever greater stride towards independence and changing from our gorgeous little beings into young adults, with hormones, sweat and a new level of tantrums.
It can be a tricky year with all these changes afoot, so it is imperative that we keep the fires of passion alight in the classroom to ensure all our children have Shining eyes. What do I mean by shining eyes, well I will let the great man Ben Zander explain. Awakening possibility, this is our job to awaken possibility in your children and to make sure your child’s eyes keep shining. We have got lots of shining eyes, especially at the start of the year – what we need to do is ensure they keep shining right up until the end. A huge focus across the whole primary school this year is developing and encouraging children to have a growth mindset – point to display – keeping positive can do approach to all areas of life. Keeping those eyes shining, keeping that positive growth mindset is greatly helped by being mindful. This is a subject very close to my heart and I am now a qualified mindfulness teacher and the power it has in helping our children to focus on the now and the present moment, develop an awareness of perspective and everyone having different ones and the all important quality of resilience is all wrapped up in the magic of mindfulness. I will be using mindfulness in my class and also running a mindfulness before school club for children AND parents. So how Will my brilliant team help awaken possibility and give power to your children…
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

5. Lucy Hunter, Sonia Mosheshe, Briony Emery
The Year 6 Team
Jayne James, Jade Linton, Clare McCabe, Natasha McFadyen, Sam Walter
You are so lucky that you have this fabulous line up. I am so lucky to have the most brilliant team of people working with the children’s best interests at the forefront of everything they do.
Mrs James who is willing to go the extra mile for your children both in and outside of school. He believes 'Education is about having access to learning. It should be a continuous holistic journey that enables everyone to reach their  full potential. Risk taking, creativity, enquiry, collaboration, self-belief and empathy are all key skills that underpin the journey.'
Mrs Linton – feels that it is important to create an environment where students feel secure and comfortable enough to take chances and make mistakes while achieving their full potential, where everyone’s differences are celebrated.  In my class I try to make learning as interactive as possible but above all else enjoyable for everyone involved!
Mrs McCabe– establishes a fabulous rapport with his children, shares his wicked sense of humour and therefore has fabulous relationships in his classroom. Knowing each child’s inner learner. He makes learning meaningful, fun and current
Miss Mc Fadyen believes that a successful education can only begin when each individual child feels happy, comfortable and safe in the environment they are learning in. To achieve this, positive trusting relationships must be made between adults and children and also between children and their peers. Once this is established, education should provide learners with lifelong learning opportunities of academic and social skills combined.
I am superwoman and wear my pants on the outside of my clothes and obviously do all of the above!!
We have a whole support team behind us to ensure all these beliefs come true. Lucy our TA , Sonia our LSA and Mrs Emery our Head of Primary learning support.
Lucy Hunter, Sonia Mosheshe, Briony Emery
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

6. Recording Reading in Planners each day.
What’s the same?
Recording Reading in Planners each day.
Signing planners weekly.
Break times healthy snacks.
Important stuff booklet.
In this you have a copy of the takeaway homework which I introduced last year into Year 6. Massively popular way of doing homework as there is an element of choice and all the activities have been written and designed by year 6 children – so it should peak their interests and curiousity.
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

7. Accelerated Reader Reading Scheme
What’s the same?
Accelerated Reader Reading Scheme
Reading books/Library books
Quizzes and tests
Expectations
Competitions
Library use
Charlotte Mc to speak
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

8. Goal setting, children and parent in planner
What’s new 1?
Goal setting, children and parent in planner
What’s new – thank you so much for working with your children and writing your section of the collaborative goals. It is really interesting to see and hear your perspective as parents and to find out what you would like for your child this year. This helps us establish a positive working relationship with you right from the very beginning of the Year.
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

9. What’s new 2? Take away Homework and Weekly reflection
Important stuff booklet.
Homework – there is a new BSAK Primary Homework policy and this has been shared with you. Year 6 expectations have been very clearly laid out. In the booklet you have a copy of the takeaway homework. Massively popular way of doing homework as there is an element of choice and all the activities have been written and designed by year 6 children – so it should peak their interests and curiosity. There is also a weekly learning reflection log to encourage children to think about what they have learnt and make connections between subjects across the curriculum. Involving them as much as possible in the learning process and getting them to think of next steps is essential.
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

10. What’s new 3 ? Year 6 2017 H/W Expectations
Take away homework
Set on a Sunday – to be completed and submitted –class teacher to decide.
___________
English, Humanities, Science, Art, Food technology
Takeaway homework is like having Take-away from a restaurant. You can choose what to do and when you want to do it. It does not have to be done in any particular order. Each activity has a different star rating and you all have to get a minimum of 20 stars by the end of Week 15. (If you want to get more – go for it!)
You can only do each activity once.
One activity to complete each week – day of submission to be decided by the individual teachers.
Expected time taken: (40-60 minutes depending on how many stars the activity is worth.) It is up to you to manage your time and the activities you do.
Maths
Set on a Sunday to be submitted on Wednesday.
Homework will be set each week.
Expected time taken: Each piece should take 30 minutes ie 60 minutes per week. (If it takes significantly longer than this, please inform your Maths teacher.)
Spellings
Set on Sunday tested on Sunday.
Statutory word lists will be given out alternate.
Expected time taken: minutes per week.
Reading
Everyday- planners to be signed each day and end of week.
Year 6 Expectation is that you are reading 5 times a week. Record in your planner – name of book, pages read and get this signed by parents each day.
Expected time taken: AT LEAST 20 minutes a day. The more the better.
We have laid out the expectations for homework – with clear time frames etc. Spellings – Sunday.
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

11. What’s new 4? Student Positions of Responsibility
Anti-bullying ambassadors
Class Prefects
Year 6 School Council Representatives – involved in School Charity and School Improvement Plan
House Leaders
Head Girl and Head Boy
We have also included a curriculum overview for Term 1 so you know the areas that we are looking at and in response to parent feedback last year we have given a more detailed break down of the learning objectives that we will be covering in Maths each week too. Hopefully this is sufficient. All this info has also been posted on Weebly.
Franklyn Saunders
Grace Maguire
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

12. What’s new 5? Transition from year 6-7 Primary to Secondary
Year 6 – Primary learning support
Term 3 – Year 6 teachers specialise
Briony Emery Primary LS
Primary learning support continues into Year 6 this year, whereas last year it stopped in 5 and we got our support from secondary LS. There will be a thorough and detailed handover of information during transition in Term 3. It is essential that those children who will need that extra support in the initial weeks are known to the secondary team, relationships will already have been made thus making the process seamless. To make the whole process for all our children seamless we have changed the way we transition. As a through school from the age of 3-18 transition should really be a strength of the school. In previous years, the children in Yer 6 would have a day where they had the opportunity to go over to secondary and have some lessons. We didn’t feel this bridged the gap and built their confidence enough. We reviewed the whole process and last year implemented a new transition procedure which was received extremely positively by the children, by the parents and by the staff both primary and secondary. To start the process off and get the children used to having more specialised teachers from the start of term 3 all the year 6 teachers specialised. This meant for example we all taught our own classes for English as always, Maths remains with the banded maths teacher. For the rest of the subjects however, humanities, science, computer science and art, each of the year 6 teachers specialised – thus getting children used to moving around to different classrooms and having all the necessary equipment etc. After 8 weeks of this, all lessons will then move over to secondary, in secondary classrooms with secondary teachers. This enables the children to become familiar with their new surroundings, meet many of the people who are going to be teaching them in year 7 and create some good impressions. It highlights expectations from the beginning, it shows the year 7 teachers what our kids are really made of thus enabling them to plan exciting and challenging lessons right from the get go in September. Feedback over the last two years has been incredibly positive from both children and parents, with the process reducing anxiety and raising standards.
4 weeks transition over to Secondary School
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

13. Year 6 Weebly Class teachers – end of day/email Communication
bsaky6.weebly.com
Your first port of call is always your class teacher. You can either see them at the end of the day at pick up or and you are welcome to make an appointment.
Once you have contacted your class teacher, if you need further support you contact myself. Please do not jump straight to me or straight to Mrs Mc Dowell or Mr Collings because we will always contact the class teacher first.
Weebly is our blog where we communicate necessary info to you. 2 main tabs are what’s going on and homework. Starting to promote more independence so won’t be spoon feeding the children with lots of additional information.
Our way to communicate with you – Weebly – need to get into the habit of checking every evening - what’s going on, notices that you need to know about, homework, celebrations will be on twitter which is linked into our Weebly blog. BSAKY6 weebly – no password needed etc will all be posted on the blog.
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

14. Remembrance assembly Monday 13th November.
Events Term 1
Remembrance assembly Monday 13th November.
Evacuation Day – (costume required)
British tea party Wednesday 15th November set up help required.
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

15. Evacuation Day – British Tea Party – setting up
Help!
Evacuation Day – British Tea Party – setting up
Sewing – Make do and Mend – Patchwork project during the school day
Year 6 Year Book
Year 6 End of Year Party
Inspiring Futures
Library volunteers
Volunteers to help Dave Peatfield – Science and DT Technician.
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.

16. Natasha McFadyen - Cambridge Nmcfadyen@britishschool.sch.ae
Questions
Sam Walter – Oxford
Jade Linton – Royal
Jayne James - Sapphire
Natasha McFadyen - Cambridge
Clare McCabe
Mission: Providing the best teachers, leadership and support in a not-for-profit environment, we nurture a genuine passion for learning.