Saturday 30 June 2012

Dear Y6 children,

A very quick message just to let you know that the literacy homework deadline has been extended to Wednesday to give you a bit more time as some of you will probably need the weekend to recover! If you have already completed it, then brilliant! You are one step ahead! :)

Take care and see you in the right coloured t-shirt on Monday!

The Year 6 Team.

Wednesday 27 June 2012

Days 2 and 3 at Kingswood

You will be happy to know that it was an effort to wake the children this morning as they had been actively challenged to their limits yesterday by a variety of activities.
These included: orienteering, solving crime mysteries, indoor climbing, crate stacking and zip wires etc.
We have been incredibly lucky so far with the weather, sun cream and hats rather than umbrellas and waterproofs being the order of the day.

We have seen a different side to some children when we enter the dining room- boy, can some children eat a lot!

Below are, again, some pictures to show what they have been involved in.











Tuesday 26 June 2012

Day 1 at Kingswood

Hello to all the year 6 parents,

The children are having a ball here at Kingswood- the weather is sunny, the activities are providing full on entertainment and the adults are keeping up, just.

Have a look at the pictures below to see how much your children are enjoying their new experiences and we’ll upload some more in a few days.









Monday 25 June 2012

Photos

Dear Parents,

Year 6 is in the process of preparing the Powerpoint for the Leavers Concert. We asked the children a few weeks ago to gather photos of them throughout their time at Crabtree, including all class photos. We have had a very small response. Would it be possible for you to rummage through your archived pictures and bring those to the school? I currently only have a couple of class photos (Year 4 and Reception) from Elm and we would really appreciate having all of the class photos.

If you do find some whilst we are away in Kent, could you bring them to school (if you are passing by or taking a sibling) and give those to Mrs Coxon.

We will aim to update the blog regularly this week but should we not update it, please do not worry. The school should be in touch via text or email anyway.

See you later!

The Year 6 Team.

Wednesday 20 June 2012

Kingswood

Dear parents and Year 6 children,

We are pleased to be able to annouce the activities which the children will take part in next week. Please note that full details of these will be given to the children on a daily basis:

- Quad biking
- Aerial Runway
- Team challenge
- CSI Kingswood
- Crate Stacking
- Archery
- Nightline
- 3G swing
- Indoor climbing
- Mission maker
- Abseiling
- Jungle Vines
- Orienteering
- Swimming
- Leap of faith

The children have been told that they will have the time and content of activities explained to them in the mornings of each day.

We cannot guarantee what time of which day each child will be doing the activities. However, over the course of the week, there will be plenty of opportunities for the children to take part in a wide variety of activities.

As you can see, we now know that the children will definitely need a swimming costume and an additional towel. Nightline can also be very muddy (depending on weather) so please make sure your child has a bin bag and an addition change of clothes preferably old ones. As said in the meeting, please ensure your children have long sleeves and long trousers as most activities require this. Please don't forget to pack sun cream and a sun hat as well as rain wear and a re-usable water bottle.

Please rest assured, for those children who have specific medical and dietary needs, the centre has been contacted and informed of these.

We aim to update the blog regularly whilst away. However, this will be largely dependent on computer and wi-fi access. There will be regular communication from the school office about how things are going anyway.

All children need to be in school with a pack lunch by 11.15 am. Both class teachers will be in school at normal time if you need to drop your child any earlier. We are sure we can find plenty for them to do! :)

The Year 6 Team

Sunday 10 June 2012

Dear Parents and Year 6 children:
Below is an outline for the children's Literacy homework which will be set every Friday and due in every Monday. Although both Miss Renier and Mrs Doran will go through this in more detail in class, please ensure your children has read this entry and keeps the hard copy of the following guidelines to enable him or her to produce a fantastic piece of writing. 7/20 of the 2011 finalists were from Crabtree, not all children who regarded themselves as usually gifted in literacy. This competition really is open to any child who wants to have a go at expressing themselves on paper. If you would like more information, here is the website:http://www.wickedyoungwriters.com/about_the_award.html.

We hope the children enjoy the process and we look forward to reading their ideas, plans and final pieces!

Maths homework will be set on Monday and Science/Topic homework will be set on Wednesday.

Can we also take this opportnity to remind you about providing a white t-shirt for your child as they will be designing their own Leavers T-shirts in the next couple of weeks. Please also bring back the final forms for the school journey as sent to you earlier in the week.

Finally, the script for the leavers concert will be coming home very soon. We would really appreciate it if you could support your child in rehearsing his/her lines as much as possible at home. We have planned many rehearsals but we also have an extremely busy half term ahead of us. Your cooperation will be a huge help to us. Some of the children may well also need to wear a costume (there will be nothing too complicated!) which will need to be ready for Friday 13th July.

We hope you have all had a great half term and we look forward to welcoming the children back tomorrow.

The Year 6 Team

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Literacy Homework:
Your homework in the next five weeks is to plan, write, edit and publish your entry for the Wicked Young Writers award.  All of the following detail can also be found on the Year 6 blog.
The following homework is set on each Friday and should be handed in on the following Monday. Please ensure your piece of work comes in your homework folder, not loose. By the 13th July, your folder will then include five pieces of work.

Quick reminder of the key rules:
• The story should be 750 words max.
• Typed, not hand written
• Possible themes: friendship, trust, tolerance, prejudice, propaganda, exclusion
• Can be a story, a poem or a playscript.

Use the following guidelines to help you.

Friday 15th:
• Decide the theme for your story. Talk it through with your parents.
• Write a quick summary of the plot in bullet form.
• Write a quick character description for your main characters, not just a physical description:
o Personality
o Strengths and weaknesses
o Character’s background, aspirations etc
• Write a quick setting description:
o Where is the story taking place?
o Create an atmosphere (positive, negative, scary, cheerful)
DO NOT WRITE YOUR STORY YET!

Friday 22nd:
• Use your ideas from last week
• Use this planning format so you stick to a clear structure (or your own)
• Plan your story in detail.
DO NOT WRITE YOUR STORY YET!

Friday 29th:
• Write your story
• Refer to your steps for success
• Stick to your plan
• When finished, read your story aloud to your parents.

Friday 6th July:
• Think about yours and your partner’s comments
• Re-draft your story, try to improve:
o Vocabulary
o Punctuation
o Sentence structure
o Tension where necessary
o Personality of your characters
o Overall structure

Friday 13th July:
• Hand in your last draft, typed
• On the back, write with your age, full name, parents’ email address/phone number


ALWAYS REFER TO THESE STEPS FOR SUCCESS! :)

Steps for success:

StructureI have included all 5 parts to the story
I have an interesting opening which hooks the reader
I have included a build up to a problem which increases tension
I have ended with a resolution to the problem

Language FeaturesI have described the character's feelings, emotions and conveyed his personality
I have used a variety of description techniques
I can vary my sentence structure
I have included speech to move the story events forward
I have included questions to intrigue the reader

Year 6 Target!I have used a range of punctuation to structure my sentences and add effect.