Children are having a great time. All settled in their rooms. We have seen some great examples of resilience from the children doing abseiling and the zip wire, we have seen children zooming round a sand track in a buggy and had some great examples of teamwork on the obstacle course. Lots more activities to look forward to.
23.9.2019
This week we have designed Christmas cards for our families, completed multiple science experiments and learnt about Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution and the finches of the Galapagos.
To design our Christmas cards we had to stick tissue paper to a picture of a dove and cut it out to make an abstract design for a unique touch. We have also completed some really fun science experiments were we had to test different objects: spoons, tweezers, pegs and scissors (we pretended these were the finches beaks) and picked up different objects: marbles, rice, macaroni and lentils with them. To see which beak type works better for the food that is in their area.
We also planned a ‘show not tell’ based on our literacy book, Floodland, to show the living conditions of a dwindling island.
30.9.19
This week we have finished our pictures of fish in art, typed up our finished product about characters feelings, created a game on a programing website and focused on angles in math.
For our fish we created the outline of a fish and then did the design in biro. We looked at intricate pictures of already drawn fish and then mimicked them in our own unique way.
In the computer room, on Purple Mash, we created a program so that when we clicked a turtle or pressed the space button, our game started to unfold. After playing a game that someone in our class had created, we looked at his coding and tried to make our own.
Our character descriptions in literacy this week have involved colons, semi-colons, alliteration and metaphors. In math, we have been learning how to solve angle problems and puzzles.
20.9.2019
We are coming to the end of our second full week of year 6; here is what we have successfully done: we have been on a trip; learnt how to use and simplify algebraic expressions and stared a new topic on a book called ‘Floodland’ by Marcus Sedgwick.
Our delightful trip to Crucial Crew at Bowes Lyon was quite the adventure and very informative. We learnt about the safety of railway tracks and power lines. We learnt how to treat someone in an unconscious state, tell people about our feelings and learned the importance of safety hazards.
Our literacy topic is based on a book about a girl who is stranded on an island but manages to escape, survive and find her parents. We have written a recount from the main character’s mum or dad’s point of view as well as a diary entry from her point of view using information from the text. Recently we have used weather personification to summarise Zoe’s parents’ emotions.
For our topic hook, we conducted two exiting investigations. For the first, we placed three different materials into plastic plant posts: soil, soil and dry leaves and a basil plant. When we poured water into each of them, we found out that when we poured water through the first pot, containing just soil, it came out murky. When the water was poured through the second pot, containing soil and dried leaves, the water came out a bit cleaner. On the final pot containing a basil plant the water came out relatively clean. For our second experiment we investigated the power of water by building a sea wall out of sand and pebbles to mimic the effect of erosion. We then observed our sea wall as water was poured into the tray.
This term Year 6 are learning all about the Maya Civilisation. The Mayans wore masks for a number of different reasons including celebration, death and war. After looking at some examples, the children created their own colourful versions. They are on display in the Year 6 classroom.
Year 6 spent Friday morning at Barnwell School's Science and Technology fair. They took part in a number of activities involving different elements of science, including Biology, Chemistry and Physics as well as taking part in some technology challenges.
On Friday, Year 6 were lucky enough to watch a performance carried out by Drama students from Herts College in Hitchin. They treated us to a simplistic, yet emotive performance of Romeo and Juliet. Despite using Shakespearean language throughout, Year 6 showed a great understanding of the story. When asked to feedback, Isla said, "It was so good. I could just imagine every scene in my head even though they had no props"
This term, Year 6 are focussing a lot of their learning around the plays of William Shakespeare. We are currently looking at Romeo and Juliet and have acted out key scenes creating freeze frames. As well as inspiring their writing, Year 6 are also taking part in a competition run by the Royal Opera House. They have been set the task to design and create the staging for a particular scene for the Romeo and Juliet ballet. Many schools are entering and the winning prize will be a backstage tour of the Opera House itself!
As predicted last night, the children slept soundly and have already been abseiling this morning. They are really looking forward to seeing their families in a few hours! They have had an incredible time and have shown great friendship and determination throughout their time at Kingswood. We will keep school notified of our the progress of our homeward journey.
Year 6 have had a great afternoon at Kingswood. The staff beat the kids at Aeroball (I wonder which member of staff was being competitive there?), however the children triumphed at Archery. The evening entertainment is Mini Olympics followed by hot chocolate and bed. So be sure that the children will be sleeping well tonight, ready for the last day and the journey home!
Day 3- The children slept well last night and so were well rested for today. There were a few pranks attempted on the staff during the morning Dorm time, however they haven't got one over on us....yet! The children have had a fun packed morning playing football rounders, building rockets and tackling Team Work Challenges. The children have shown great resilience, communication and leadership.
Year 6 have had a great start to their week at Kingswood. The coach journey was long and loud and the children were ready to stretch their legs and explore as soon as they got off. We have met our group leader: Harry, who, full of enthusiasm, led the group around the site for a quick tour before a delicious dinner.
After dinner, the children carried out their first activity: Nightline. Forming a single file line, the children were blindfolded and led around a tricky obstacle course in the forest while the staff got their own back (in advance for the lack of sleep) by making them jump as they went. There was a lot of mud and a lot of excitable screaming!
Next, the quiz. In groups of 4, the children completed a general knowledge quiz (which I'm relieved to say the staff team won!). Coming a close second were Harry, Liam, George and Cory. Well done boys!
The children slept well throughout the night (mostly) and are now beginning today's activities. They will be zip wiring, climbing Jacob's ladder and visiting the coast today.
They are all safe, well and very happy. Enjoy the photos!
Mrs Sparrow
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