Year 6

PGL Parent's Information 

Please click on the link below to download the presentation slides from the PGL Information Session for Parents.

PGL Parent's Information Session Slides

SATs Information Session for Parents

Please click on the the link below to download the presentation slides from the SATs Information Session for Parents.

SATs Information Session Presentation Slides

SATs Revision

To help with your revision in English and maths in the run up to SATs, don't forget to use your CGP books!  We recommend that you choose revision topics from the books according to your least confident areas and complete tasks in regular short bursts – with a reward at the end! Answers are provided at the back of each book for you to self-mark. Before turning to these however, if you need help to understand or remember a strategy then we have compiled a ‘Sway’ with links to video tutorials and websites that will support your revision.  You can access the Sway links on your Class Dojo Accounts or by clicking on these links:

English: https://sway.office.com/c5JsBRRmy673lv6h?ref=Link

Maths: https://sway.office.com/w4qo1ep6cLBDRyW9?ref=Link

You can also revise key skills for the SATs by using your https://www.maths.co.uk/ and https://spag.com/ accounts.

Welcome to Year 6

Welcome to Year 6!  We would like to take this opportunity to say how excited we are about the new year. The children are about to start their last year at The Discovery School (and of their primary school education) and throughout their time in Year 6, they will be making many happy memories to take with them when they leave us.

For the Year 6 Meet the Teacher 2022 video - please click here.

What to expect in Year 6

Being in Year Six comes with a lot of responsibility; the children are expected to be role models and ambassadors for the school.  Year Six pupils are the children that the rest of the school look up to and the students that define our school vision and values.  As such, we expect exemplary behaviour from all the children in Year Six at all times during the day.

Although there is a lot of hard work in Year Six, there are lots of things to look forward to as well, including fun and exciting topics, the residential trip and the end of year production. 

Year 6 Classes and Staff

Galileo Class is located in Pavilion One, on the right-hand side as you come into the door.  Miss Marle is Galileo Class teacher and Miss Ledeczky is the Teaching Assistant. This class was named after the famous scientist, polymath and astronomer Galileo Galilei. 

Winston Class located in Pavilion One, on the left-hand side as you come into the door.  Mrs Repsch is Winston Class teacher and Mrs Colegate is their Teaching Assistant. This class was named after the famous scientist Robert Winston (not Winston Churchill!).

Turing Class is located in Pavilion Two, on the right-hand side.  Mrs Patel and Mrs Bates are the Turing Class teachers and Mrs Miller is their Teaching Assistant. The class was recently renamed after Alan Turing who was a mathematician and helped to crack the Enigma machine during WW2.

Should you need to contact any member of the Year 6 team, please use the following email addresses:

Mrs Repsch: jrepsch@discovery.kent.sch.uk

Miss Marle: lmarle@discovery.kent.sch.uk

Mrs Patel: fpatel@discovery.kent.sch.uk

Mrs Bates: rbates@discovery.kent.sch.uk

PPA time and covered lessons

PPA time is time set aside for teachers, during their timetabled teaching day, to allow them to carry out planning, preparation and assessment activities. PPA time is covered each week by the Year 6 Teaching Assistants.  The lessons are planned by the class teachers and delivered by a Teaching Assistant.  PPA cover lessons in Year 6 take place every Wednesday afternoon and the subjects they will be teaching will change on a termly basis.

Weekly Timetable

You can download our Y6 timetables below. Please note that Computing is not included on the timetable as each Year Group has dedicated time to teach the Computing curriculum across the year.

Winston Class Timetable

Galileo Class Timetable

Turing Class Timetable

General Reminders

Homework

In line with the school's Homework Policy, children in Year 6 are expected to complete homework tasks in English and maths which should take approximately one hour.  Reading is in addition to these tasks.  If children do not complete the tasks on time, they will be expected to complete them during a lunch hour.

This year, we will continue to use our online system for setting and monitoring homework in Year 6.  Each child has their own unique login with which they can access their own Class Dojo page.  Each week, the homework tasks will be uploaded on their page with relevant links to access the learning platforms for English and maths.  If your child is having difficulty accessing their Class Dojo account, please contact their class teacher.

Reading

Regular reading is of vital importance to support children's academic progress so please encourage your children to read as much as possible. We expect children to complete their set reading tasks on the Reading Plus online platform while in school.  In addition to the Reading Plus tasks, we would love children to read as much as possible for pleasure at home and at school.  

Recommended Reading List to support your children's reading at home:

Maths

Children should complete the tasks set on the online learning platform My Mini Maths and/or Purple Mash.  The tasks will consolidate learning from the week's lessons. This will be checked on a weekly basis. Homework tasks are set each week on Monday and are to be completed by the following Monday.

English 

Children should complete the work set on the online learning platform www.spag.com and/or a range of online platforms.  Homework tasks are set each week on Monday and are to be completed by the following Monday.

Children can also practise their English skills by accessing this website: IXL - Year 6 English practice They can complete short exercises covering reading strategies, writing strategies, vocabulary, spelling, grammar and punctuation. 

The Year 6 Curriculum

 The curriculum at The Discovery School is based on enquiry; children are encouraged to ask and answer questions about their learning.  

Through our enquiry based learning approach, children will get the opportunities to experience a range of learning activities which will help to develop their knowledge and skills of the wider world. 

Year 6 Learning experience guarantees 2021 - 2022 

Throughout the year the children in Year 6 will be trying to discover the answers to these 'Questions for Discovery':

Term 1 and 2: What was the Home Front?

WW2-topic-web.pdf

English: key texts - The Little Ships (Louise Borden) Friend or Foe (Michael Morpurgo)

Writing genres: Diary writing, poetry, letters home, discussion, instructions.

Mathematics: number skills, place value, calculations (written methods), fractions, decimals, percentages and ratio.

• History - Aspects of British History during World War 2
• Geography - Understanding and creating maps/ using grid references
• Music - WW2 Composers and War-time songs
• Art - Artist study - Michael Foreman: War images in watercolour
• DT - 'Make do and mend' - VE Day
• Science - Light/ Electricity (periscopes and Morse Code machines)
• Computing - Block Coding/understanding the internet/Internet safety/checking the reliability of sources online 
• PSHE - Diversity/Choices and Consequences in society
• RE - What do religions say to us when life gets hard?
• PE - Outdoor: Invasion games Indoor: Gymnastics
• French - Consolidation of key vocabulary and prior learning
• Educational Visits - Kings Hill WW2 walk and Horton Kirby

Term 3: How powerful is the earth?

Extreme-earth-topic-web.pdf

English: Non-fiction information texts about Earthquakes and Volcanoes.  Instructional and explanation texts.  Survival stories and Michael Morpurgo's 'King of the Cloud Forests'.

Mathematics:  Fractions, decimals and percentages, algebra, ratio and proportion, scaling, measures, area, perimeter and volume.

• Geography - Physical geography and World map work (Earthquakes and Volcanoes)
• Science - Amazing Humans: understanding/ describing the main functions of the human circulatory system
• Computing- Internet safety, checking the reliability of sources online and exploring apps
• PSHE - E-safety/ staying safe online/ how to be a responsible digital citizen
• PE - Rugby and dance
• RE - Is it better to express your religion in arts and architecture or in charity and generosity?
• Music - composition based on natural disasters. The inter-related dimensions of music/ playing and performing together:'Happy'
• French - Les vetements (clothing) et Ma journee (talking about daily routines)

Term 4 and 5: Who were the Ancient Maya?

English:  Key texts - Mayan myths. Extended narrative, descriptive diaries, formal letters and persuasive writing.

Mathematics: Measures, geometry, statistics and revision in preparation for SATs.

• History - The Mayan civilisation, including culture, reliability of sources, comparisons with other cultures
• Geography - Compare UK with Central America (Mexico), Physical and human characteristics of Central America.
• Science - Evolution and inheritance/ Living things and their habitats
• RE - What do religions say to us when life gets hard?
• Art - artist study - Nikki Farquharson
• Computing- Internet safety, checking the reliability of sources online and exploring apps/ Programming and coding using Scratch
• PE - Tennis, multi-skills
• PSHE - Strategies for coping with the pressure of school e.g. SATs/ strategies for coping with mood changes, beneficial and harmful substances
• Music - The inter-related dimensions of music/ composing, playing and performing - 'Music at Malling' festival
• French - Ma journee (talking about daily routines) et Les transports (talking about forms of transport)
• Educational experiences - 'Ancient Mayan Day'

Term 6: What makes a successful entrepreneur?

English:  Biographies, playscripts, drama, oral presentations, persuasion and character monologues

Mathematics: finance, spreadsheets, event planning, using a calculator, mathematical investigations

• History - Continuation with the Mayan civilisation, including culture, reliability of sources, comparisons with other cultures
• Geography - Continue comparing UK with Central America (Mexico), Physical and human characteristics of Central America.
• DT  - market research and design linked to Young Enterprise
• PE - Athletics and cricket/ rounders
• PSHE - relationships, sex education, living in the wider world, careers talks and mental health
• Music - performing together - Y6 production
• Computing - Spreadsheets, multimedia presentations
• Educational visits - PGL residential
• Science - Continuation of Evolution and inheritance/ Living things and their habitats

Prefects

The children can 'apply' to be a prefect for Term 1 & Term 2 by writing a letter to their class teacher in their first week back at school. The new prefects will be announce in Week 2.