Blakehill Primary School

Welcome

Welcome to 6S!

Teacher: Mr. Sidebottom

Teaching Partner: Mrs. Bedell

Key information

Entry / exit procedures

It is important that pupils arrive at school on time and we would ask that all pupils in Year 6 are ready to come into school between 08:30 am and 08:40 am each day, ready for their morning task.

Please bear with us at the end of the day, 03:00 pm, as we see pupils out. Please also let us know if your child is being collected by a different adult or is not walking home / attending extra club as usual.

Please see ‘A Guide for Parents’, sent via email by Mrs. Keighley, for more information regarding the arrangements for Year 6 drop offs and pick ups. A copy has also been saved below.

Hygiene Routines

As a result of Covid-19, we will be following government guidance to keep pupils and adults as safe as possible in school. This will include: staggered start and end times (as above); virtual assemblies; pupils remaining in year group bubbles and pupils being reminded to wash and sanitise their hands regularly.

Mobile Phones

We understand that some pupils have mobile phones and that they use these as they walk to and from school on their own. We must stress that mobile phones should be turned off once your child has entered the school grounds. Mobile phones should then be given to a member of staff so that they can be securely put away during the school day and returned at the end of the day.

Homework
Homework will typically be given out on a Friday, to be returned the following Wednesday for marking. However, as a result of Covid-19, homework does not need to be returned for marking at the current time. The homework provided is given to support and consolidate pupils’ learning from that week or a previous week. It is used to check understanding of topics covered and helps us identify areas of learning that need further development. In the run up to SATs, we must stress that homework is important in preparing your child for the tests they will take. If your child needs extra support with their homework, please contact a member of the Year 6 team via the school office.

Spellings
Spellings will be handed out to pupils on a Wednesday and tested the following Wednesday. These spellings will cover the Year 5 and 6 spelling curriculum. It is important that pupils are learning their spellings and we ask that you support your child with this. Spelling is a big part of your child's SAT tests. 20 marks are dedicated to the spelling test within the Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling (GPS) tests and children’s spelling is also taken into account within the GPS paper. In addition to this, pupil’s spelling is taken into account when the overall judgement is given for writing.

Home Reading
In Year 6, children are typically given daily opportunities to change their reading books and we expect them to be independent enough to identify when they need to do this. However, as a result of Covid-19, pupils will now be given a weekly slot to change their home reading books. During this time, pupils may choose 3 home reading books from our banded reading boxes or from our classroom reading corner. If your child finishes reading all 3 books within a week, they may read a book from home or from our classroom reading corner.

It is essential that your child reads as frequently as possible to build their stamina for reading and we are looking for children to read at least three times a week at home – this should be recorded in their home reading record. Every time your child reads and records this in their reading diary, they will receive a house point. We understand that parents/carers live busy lives but any time you can spare to listen to your child really would be extremely beneficial.

If your child has a book ‘on the go’ at home, they are welcome to bring it to school to read during independent reading time. Please also ensure that your child brings their home reading book in a book bag rather than a rucksack as we have limited space in the classrooms for storage.

PE
Indoor PE: this takes place on a Tuesday afternoon. It is important that children have the correct, named kit for this: a white or blue plain t-shirt; black or blue shorts (tracksuit bottoms are also permitted) and black pumps.

Outdoor PE: this takes place on a Thursday afternoon. It is important that children have the correct, named kit for this: a white or blue plain t-shirt; black or blue tracksuit bottoms; a plain black or blue sweatshirt and a pair of trainers.

Mr Simmons, our Sports Coach, will lead both PE sessions.

As a result of Covid-19, pupils are requested to arrive to school in their PE kits on their PE days.

Water Bottles
To enable your child to have a drink of water, we would encourage a named water bottle be brought into school. Try to ensure your child’s bottle is of the non-spill variety. Bottles should be taken home daily to be cleaned.

Uniform
Please ensure that your child has the correct uniform (named so that it can be easily returned if lost), including black school shoes (not trainers). If your child does not have black school shoes, they will be given black pumps to wear throughout the day. Children can wear trainers at play times and lunch times but these must be changed back to school shoes ready for returning to lessons. From this year, pupils are also required to wear a school tie.

School Councillor
Our School Councillor, elected by pupils, is Eve! Eve will represent her class at School Council meetings.

Transition letter

Hello 5L (soon to be 6S)!

I hope you are all well and staying safe during these strange times!

I wanted to write to you personally to introduce myself before we all come back to school in September. My name is Mr. Sidebottom and I am your new Year 6 teacher, alongside Mrs. Bedell who will be your new teaching assistant. We will all be moving into Mrs. Gould's current classroom at the end of the Key Stage 2 corridor.

As I'm sure you already know, Year 6 is an extremely important year. Not only are there lots of exciting things to learn about but also, this is the time that you and your parents start thinking about the next chapter in your education: secondary school! I always feel it a privilege that I get to support and guide Year 6 pupils in their transition to secondary school - and I know Mrs. Bedell feels the same! On top of this, you are now the oldest children in the school; therefore, there is an expectation that you 'set the standard' for others to follow - from what I know about you in Year 5, I'm sure you will be able to rise to the occasion!

Over the course of the year, we will cover some really exciting topics together such as the amazing Mayans and the vicious Vikings! We will also explore some fantastic books as part of our English curriculum. One of my favourite things to do with a new class is to read a chapter from one of our class readers at the end of the school day (Mrs. Bedell loves to do this as well!) In addition to our topics and English work, we will of course also cover all the different parts of our Maths and Science curriculum including fractions, shapes, data handling, electricity, the human body, living things and habitats. Over the course of the year, we will also go on lots of exciting trips, from exploring the depths of the Amazonian rainforest at Tropical World in Leeds, to being transported back to the times of the Vikings at Danelaw in York. In addition, we are keeping everything crossed that our Year 6 residential will be able to go ahead next year and that you will be able to access all of the fantastic activities on offer at Robinwood.

Mrs. Russell and Mrs. Feather will be teaching in the other Year 6 class and Mrs. Hall and Mrs. Keighley will be teaching small groups of children for Maths and Reading. In Year 6, you will have more time mixed with the other Year 6 class and will have the chance to work with more members of the teaching staff. Year 6 has a real 'team' feeling to it - from the staff working very closely with one another to the children working in mixed groups. By giving you the opportunity to move to different classes and work with different teachers, we are able to provide you with a small snippet of what life will be like in secondary school.

I know some of you might feel a little nervous about coming back to school after such a long time. You may have seen or heard things on the news or online that has upset you or made you worry. I want to reassure you that everyone in the Year 6 team - teachers, teaching assistants, learning mentors - will do everything we can to help and support you. We are always here to listen and talk things through and we place a particular emphasis on emotional wellbeing, becoming resilient and developing independence. We are all in this together Year 6! I would also like to reassure you that, as a team, we will do everything we can to 'close any gaps' in your learning that may have occurred due to school closing early.

On our class learning page, which can be accessed via the school website, you will find a video of your new classroom along with some transition work packs that I would like you to complete over the summer holidays. These are also included as an attachment to this letter. As you can see from the video, our class is looking a little bit empty at the moment without all of you so me and Mrs. Bedell are both really looking forward to seeing each and everyone of you in September. We can't wait to get to know you all.

In the meantime Year 5 (soon to be Year 6), I want you to stay safe; look out for each other; and be kind.

See you in September.

Kind regards,

Mr. Sidebottom.

Maths Transition Pack

English Transition Pack