1. MOUNT PLEASANT PRIMARY SCHOOL SPRING 1 YEAR 6 MATHS The children will be securing their understanding of the four operations (+ - / x) and using different methods to carry out mental and written calculations. We will also be looking at angles on a line and in a triangle and revising fractions, decimals and percentages. YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD BY – Making sure they learn their times tables up to 12 x 12 and complete homework on time. Encourage children to carry out tasks on mymaths.co.uk SCIENCE In Science we will be covering two topics. The first will be separating mixtures and investigating reversible and irreversible changes. They will be using items such as magnets and sieves to try and separate materials mixed together. The second topic will be electrical circuits; the children will be learning about series circuits, how to operate them and how to draw them with scientific symbols. YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD BY – Trying to make their own mixture of materials which they then work out how to separate. Discuss whether changes in the home are reversible or irreversible, for example, a melting candle or cooked ingredients. ENGLISH We are reading ‘Street Child’ by Berlie Doherty. Children will be exploring characters through discussion, drama and role play. We will be encouraging children to respond to questions by referring to the text. Children will be writing diary entries, persuasive letters, non chronological reports, recounts and poems. YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD BY – Encouraging your child to read daily and discussing what they have read. Please make sure all homework is completed on time. FRENCH Pupils will continue to learn French this half term. They will learn simple classroom instructions and basic conversational language, such as asking someone their name and where they live. There will also be some revision of the French they learnt last half term. YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD BY – Encouraging them to share the new words they have learnt with you and try to use them a little at home. TARGETS Reading: In year 6 pupils are challenged to read for 20 minutes everyday. Please use their planners to let the teacher know if they have been reading. Help them meet the reading challenge and receive their rewards. Maths: Each week the children will be tested in the ‘Kung Fu Maths’ challenge. They will need to learn their times tables to pass each test and move on to the next level. HISTORY We will be learning more about the Victorian era in which ‘Street Child’ is set. Our focus will be life in the workhouse and child labour as these themes are central to the novel. We will be learning about Dr Barnardo and how his ragged schools helped children like the boy in our English text. YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD BY – encouraging them to research the Victorian era in the library and on the internet and watching any suitable television programmes which will give them an idea about what life was like. ART AND DESIGN TECHNOLOGY We will be looking at the work of Van Gogh. Through investigating how he used brush strokes and colour to show emotion, we will be creating our own paintings and line drawings which show how colour can add emotion to an image. YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD BY – Researching famous Victorian artists such as William Morris and Van Gogh. Also, by pointing out Victorian architecture in your local area. ICT The children will be planning and evaluating a fundraising event which will be linked to our history topic. We will be raising money for the children’s charity, Barnardo’s. The children will use Publisher and the internet to make posters which promote the event and will use spreadsheets to calculate the money raised for Barnardo’s. YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD BY – Using the computer to help them become more familiar with designing posters and creating spreadsheets. Join us for our fundraising event on the afternoon of Wednesday 5 th February. Come along to help your child PSHCE Our theme is ‘Going for Goals’ where the children will recognise their worth as individuals, by identifying positive things about themselves and their achievements, seeing their mistakes, making amends and setting personal goals. YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD BY – By talking about their goals (short and long term) and how they are going to go about achieving these. RELIGIOUS EDUCATION We will be looking at the work of charities, in particular the work of Christian Aid and Islamic Relief and how they have changed the world. YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD BY – Talking about any charities you maybe involved in. PHYSICAL EDUCATION One our units this half-term is Gymnastics where we will be focusing on balancing. The second unit is Circuit Training which will help children in building their stamina. Our outdoor PE will be rugby. YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD BY – Make sure your child has the correct PE kit labelled with their name. PE lessons take place every Monday and Tuesday.