Onward and Upward!

Well, we managed to get through what seemed like a VERY long week last week! At one point, we didn't think we would ever get to Friday afternoon and THAT CAKE! We were extremely pleased with how hard all the children worked during their tests and we know that they all tried their best. The papers have now been sent off to be marked, courtesy of those 'nice' Parcelforce people! We shall be eagerly awaiting their return at the beginning of July...as soon as we know, you'll know!

As the half term draws ever closer, we shall be tying up a few assessments in order for us to be able to plan the last half term's work. Can you believe that for some of you, this will be your last six weeks at St. Vincent's??!!

Material hunt

We were slightly ambitious last week in trying to get our Spanish artwork completed, so Monday and Tuesday will be Operation ART! We have some material already in school, but we need lots more. Any colour, texture or size is needed...just make sure you don't bring your mum's favourite dressing gown, as it will be cut up!

Creativity Week

Remember the Blooms activities that we did during our revision? Well, we have lots of them for you to have a go at this week. Each activity will have a number of points allocated to it, and you will be told on Monday the number of points you have to score, in order to complete the task.
Here's how it works...

• On Monday, you will get a score card, on which you will collect your points throughout the week - don't lose it, or you might have to start again!
• You will be given a Bloom's sheets which contains about 25 different activities for you to choose from, each with a different number of points allocated to them; the harder the activity, the greater the number of points
• The activities you choose, will be up to you - writing, music, artwork - whichever way of learning suits you best
• On Friday, whatever you have made, learned, produced etc., you will need to share with the rest of your class.

This will be a great opportunity to show off all those creative skills and I can't wait to get the sparkly stuff out...(I'm sure I was a magpie in a former life!)

These websites will help you find out information when completing your Blooms Sheet. You will also have access to all of the text books etc. in class and in the library.

http://www.brims.co.uk/tudors/index.html

http://www.britainexpress.com/History/tudor/armada.htm

http://www.theotherside.co.uk/tm-heritage/background/span-armada.htm

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/adams_armada_01.shtml

http://www.historyonthenet.com/Tudors/spanish_armada.htm

http://www.snaithprimary.eril.net/ttss.htm if you scroll down and click on the guitar on this one, you can hear some Tudor music!

http://www.coxhoe.durham.sch.uk/Curriculum/History.htm#Year%205%20Links%20to%20Tudor%20Sites I know this is a long one! If you can’t find it, then just Google COXHOE SCHOOL and click on their HISTORY resources. Then, click on Year 5 Tudor resources.

http://www.schoolshistory.org.uk/spanisharmada.htm

http://www.schoolshistory.org.uk/walterraleigh.htm

http://www.schoolshistory.org.uk/francisdrake.htm

http://www.schoolshistory.org.uk/phillipofspain.htm

Numeracy

The children will be working on the key objectives for Year 5 (Year 6 children will be starting the transition units). As in previous blogs, there a number of sites that are really useful for this. These were stuck into the Y5 diaries, but just in case they have been misplaced, here they are again:

http://www.mathszone.co.uk/ click on the Key Objs tab at the top of the page and then select Year 5

http://www.freewebtown.com/weddell/mw/x10x100/x10x100.swf a really useful site for multiplying and dividing by 10 and 100

http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/online/negnumorder.swf order a set of positive and negative numbers

http://www.freewebtown.com/weddell/mw/decimals/tenths-hundredths.swf use decimal notation for tenths and hundredths

http://www.freewebtown.com/weddell/mw/rounding/nearest1.swf rounding a decimal to nearest whole number

http://www.amblesideprimary.com/ambleweb/mentalmaths/fracto.html relating fractions to decimals - I love the name of this...The Decifractor!!

http://www.freewebtown.com/weddell/mw/add_sub/sub%20large%20nos.swf can you calculate the difference between two large numbers mentally?

http://www.freewebtown.com/weddell/mw/tables_backwards/tables%20speed.swf how fast can you do your times table? Be warned - the FAST is like lightening!!

http://www.freewebtown.com/weddell/mw/short_multiplication/3x1contents.swf short multiplication

http://www.freewebtown.com/weddell/mw/division/3x1%20division.swf short division - remember the bus stop method?

http://www.freewebtown.com/weddell/mw/shape/area/area.swf find the area of a regular shape

As well as all of these links, remember to have a look at the Delicious links for any area of numeracy.

Here I Am

We will continue the second week of our new topic 'Freedom and Responsibility'. The children will learn about the Commandments and how these help Christians to be free and responsible.

http://www.refuel.org.uk/curric/festivals/pentecost/index.html

http://www.request.org.uk/main/basics/rightandwrong/rightandwrong01.htm scroll down to read the excerpts from the Bible.

Forward planning

After the holidays, the first week back will be a rich task week - yes, more artwork!!! The children will need a fairly large box, (about the size of a large box of crisps) and an old one of dad's/ grandad's/ older brother's shirts for painting. We will be keeping our fingers crossed for fine weather, as we intend to make our very own Tudor Galleon on the patio area. We have even saved some large tubes to use as the oars! If anyone has access to any large cardboard carpet rolls (aka the mast) that would be great! Depending on the number of boxes brought in, we could even have our very own Spanish Armada!

ICT

I came across an on-line 'add-on' for Google, that some of you may be interesting in. http://www.google.com/google-d-s/tour1.html This will take you on a tour of a word processor and spreadsheet that you can experiment with on-line. Why not give MSN a rest over the holidays, and use this to write collaborative stories with over the net. If you manage to save some, then we could post some of them on the school website!

Can you hear the bells?

Well, if you listen really carefully during the holidays, you may be able to hear the faint ringing of bells from Cyprus. What am I talking about you may wonder?! Well, Miss Wilson will become Mrs Morgan over the holidays! We wish her and her future husband all of our very best wishes and look forward to seeing the gorgeous photographs on her return.

Have a really restful holiday and enjoy the break! You have earned it!

Year 5/6 team.

SATs Week

Well, after all of the revision and preparation that has gone on for what seems like forever, the chance to show off has finally arrived.

I promise that I will try to keep this blog short this week, (ooh that'll be difficult!) so that you can spend some time relaxing in-between the tests. If you really can't resist the urge to do a bit of surfing, then either use previous week's blog entries, or have a look through some of the 'fun stuff' on http://del.icio.us/amworrall

Here's a quick reminder of the things you should bring with you on Monday morning:

• yourself (not an impersonator!)
• your pencils, pens, maths equipment, rubber and pencil sharpener
• a water bottle (with a sports cap)
• a SMALL good luck charm (not the biggest teddy in your collection!)

Remember you need to arrive in school in PLENTY OF TIME - set your alarm a few minutes earlier, so that you are up and awake before having a hearty breakfast. This is not the week for grabbing a piece of toast on the way out through the door - make time to eat properly!

The Year 6's have to follow a set timetable, which should have gone home on Friday. Just in case that piece of paper has shuffled off to where all letters in Year 6's bags go, here's a reminder of what tests you will be doing on which day...

MONDAY

• Science Test A and Test B

TUESDAY

• Writing (short and long papers) and the Spelling Test

WEDNESDAY

• Reading Test

THURSDAY

• Maths Test A and Mental Maths Test

FRIDAY

• Maths Test B (calculator paper)

The Year 5's will also be following this timetable as far as possible, to allow for staff to supervise tests for both year groups.

Because of all of the tests this week, there will be NO HOMEWORK for either Year 5 or Year 6 (is that a cheer I can hear??!!)

Final thought...

I came across this piece of writing, called Perspective, which does kind of make sense of what we have all been working towards over the past few months. It does have a 'hidden message', so you may need to read it a few times for it to make sense. Try showing it to your parents too!

Perspective by Katherine Kehler

“Jesus replied, ‘The Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the Lord your God; serve only him’’” (Luke 4:8)

I had spent much of the week cleaning. It was very hot. We were having a group of people over for a barbecue. Because of the heat, it seemed better to serve the food in the garage rather than on the hot sundeck. So I washed the walls, washed the floor and painted it.

It did look a lot better – clean and pleasant and cool. But it took a lot more time than I expected. Just to take everything out of the garage, sort it all and put it back was a mammoth job.

On Saturday, as I was sweeping the sundeck and pavements, I began to wonder if all the work was worth the few hours they would be here. These thoughts came to me:

“Whatever you do, do it as unto me” and “Whatever you have done unto the least of these, my brethren, you have done it unto me.”

So I decided to focus on the fact that Christ was my guest that night. For some reason, I was suddenly motivated to set the tables more carefully and make sure the table centerpieces looked prettier. When the guests arrived, I greeted them with much more enthusiasm.

Perspective! Christ was at the barbecue that night – in the lives of each one of the people who came.

Lord Jesus, You came to serve and not to be served. And we are to have the exact same attitude. Sometimes I forget. I get tired of serving and I become self-centered. Forgive me, Lord. Burn into my heart and mind the realisation that I am serving You, no matter what the job is or who the people are. Amen.

Wishing you all the very best of luck for this week - you will be fantastic!!

5/6 team.

7th May 2007

This week, we thought that it may be an idea to go through each of the SATs subjects in a kind of ‘list’ of possible areas that could come up on the tests. Of course, you still have your revision books and the SAT Attack books for reference.

Before you start wading through the books though, remember that there is only one week left and it is important that you get enough rest, exercise, nourishment and sleep, in order for you to be alert enough to show off how much you know.

If you are planning to get the things that you need for the tests together over the weekend, here’s a list of what you need to bring each day:

3 pens and 3 pencils
A rubber
Pencil sharpener (the ones that have their own container built-in are really good!)

(All of these need to be in a see through plastic bag, as you aren’t allowed to take pencil cases into the hall on the day)

We do have all of this in school, but we know lots of you prefer using your own favourite pencil or pen! This is also the case with the maths equipment, such as calculators, protractors etc.

You can also bring a water bottle each day, but make sure it has a sports cap so that you don’t spill it all over your paper! Also, if you do have a lucky mascot (aka a SMALL teddy) you are allowed to have that on your desk too – just make sure you still have enough space to put your test paper on!

Of course all of this applies to the Year 5 children as well, as you too will be doing your tests the same week.

Literacy

http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/jeather/writingfun/writingfun.html If you click on this link, it will give you the key features of all the genres listed below AND examples of what they should look like when they are written.

Here is a list of possible genres that you may either have to read or write about. Do you know the key features? What should each of them look like? Should you write them in the first or the third person? How should you end it?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/words/reading/typesoftext/index.shtml this site helps you to identify what each genre, or text type should include .

Click on each of the links to give you further information and some possible questions or examples.

Information Report
http://www.schooltrain.info/powerpoint/elephant_report.ppt you will need to have PowerPoint on your computer for this example. If you were editing this piece, what would you do to improve it?

Instructions
http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/words/grammar/texttypes/instructions/
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/vtc/Phase2delivery/Wales/Literacy/Keystage2/Writing/Instructions/Introduction/default.htm
Recount
http://www.lancsngfl.ac.uk/curriculum/literacy/lit_site/html/non_fiction/war/index.htm
http://www.innovationslearning.co.uk/subjects/english/activities/statements_opinions/state_opin_home.htm
Explanation

Persuasion
http://www.little-g.com/shockwave/hotel.html
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/writing/index.asp?topic=Persuasive
http://www.kidsonthenet.org.uk/dragonsville/poster.htm making a persuasive poster – remember all those verbs you could use!
http://www.dragonsville.com/ a fun site to navigate around for lots of ideas to boost your writing

Discussion

Narrative
http://www.coxhoe.durham.sch.uk/Curriculum/Literacy.htm scroll down to Key Stage 2 Fiction and there are some fantastic links there for you to use.

Diary
http://www.athena.bham.org.uk/diary.htm

Autobiography
http://www.athena.bham.org.uk/autob.htm

Description

Poetry
http://www.lancsngfl.ac.uk/curriculum/literacy/lit_site/html/fiction/narrative/index.htm
http://www.lancsngfl.ac.uk/curriculum/literacy/lit_site/html/fiction/my_monster/index.htm

E-Mail
Letter

http://www.athena.bham.org.uk/formalletter1.htm

Invitation
Newspaper Report

http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/vtc/big_news/eng/Introduct/default.htm
http://www.headlinehistory.co.uk/swf/main_launcher.htm we looked at this one last week, and you wrote some fantastic reports about the Pelican Tooth Puller!!
http://www.innovationslearning.co.uk/subjects/english/activities/playscript/play_home.asp click on this link to write your own play. You have to choose your own setting, scenario and characters, but it gives you some fantastic ideas of how to really get to grips with a play.

Numeracy

http://del.icio.us/mathslinks This link is your ‘one stop shop’ for all of the following maths. Just look down the menu on the right hand side of the screen, and click on the are you wish to follow.

Calculating – using all four rules

Counting and Understanding number – multiples, decimals, fractions, estimating, greater than and less than, percentages, place value, partitioning, ordering fractions and numbers, ratio, positive and negative, functions, rounding

Handling Data – classifying and sorting, line graphs, bar graphs, discrete data graphs, mode, median, mean and range, probability

Knowing and using number facts – times tables, number bonds, division, doubling and halving,

Shape – 2D and 3D shape, angles, co-ordinates, symmetry, position, movement, tangrams

Using and Applying – decimals problems, money, fractions, puzzles,

Measuring – area, perimeter, length, mass, time, temperature, volume, capacity

Science

http://www.coxhoe.durham.sch.uk/Curriculum/Science.htm

Living Things – habitats, plants and animals, sorting and keys, life processes, life cycles, micro-organisms, food chains

http://www.innovationslearning.co.uk/subjects/science/activities/habitats/habitats_home.htm choose a habitat and see which animals live there in the wild
http://www.planetarkive.org/games/designAHabitat.html build your own habitat for your chosen animal
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/10_11/interdependence.shtml BBC science clips - we love this one!
http://www.planetarkive.org/habitats.html this is a lovely site! Just click the habitat you want and then remember to click again on the picture of the chosen habitat. There are some really good photographs on this site!
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/vtc/minbeasts/eng/Introduction/default.htm drag and drop the minibeasts into the correct jar, by selecting main part of the lesson 1.
http://www.crickweb.co.uk/assets/resources/flash.php?&file=lcycles5b label the life cycle diagram of a flowering plant
http://www.crickweb.co.uk/assets/resources/flash.php?&file=lcycles5b label the part of a flower
http://www.crickweb.co.uk/ks2science.html lots of great interactive activities which are particularly good at labelling diagrams in science.
http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/gpe/ the great plant escape!!!
http://www.buginvestigators.co.uk/ everybody loved this one in class!
http://www.acocksgreen.bham.sch.uk/sciencezone/science/lifecycles/LifeCyclesQuiz.html make your own food chain by clicking on the downward arrows

Humans – moving and growing, health, teeth, smoking, drugs

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/8_9/moving_growing.shtml
http://www.acocksgreen.bham.sch.uk/sciencezone/science/ourbodies/KeepingHealthyInfo.html some revision questions to help with the keeping healthy topic
http://www.crickweb.co.uk/assets/resources/flash.php?&file=teeth label the teeth, but can you say what the function of each of the teeth are?
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/vtc/need_my_teeth/eng/Introduction/ why do you need your teeth? This is quite simple to follow.
Materials – sorting and properties, rocks, solids liquids and gases, changing materials
http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks2/science/material_matters/index.htm find out about properties of materials by clicking on the dartboard.
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/vtc/rocks/eng/Introduction/default.htm exploring rocks
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/vtc/phase4_20030801/Wales/Science/Keystage2/Lifeprocessesan/Anonlinesoilexp/Introduction/default.htm investigating properties of soil
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/9_10/gases.shtml
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/8_9/solid_liquids.shtml
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/vtc/Phase2delivery/Wales/Science/Keystage2/Materialsandthe/Floatingandsink/Introduction/default.htm testing the thickness of a liquid and finding out if this affects the ability of an object to float in it
http://www.acocksgreen.bham.sch.uk/sciencezone/science/changingstate/MaterialsInfo.html changing state revision

Physical Processes – electricity, earth and space, light and shadows, sound, forces

http://www.andythelwell.com/blobz/ this is by far this best and most interesting site we have come across this year. The characters really make the ideas and facts stick in your head.
http://www.acocksgreen.bham.sch.uk/sciencezone/science/earthmoonsun/EarthMoonSunInfo.html earth and space revision
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/vtc/earth_and_space/eng/Introduction/default.htm you might be starting to realise that there are some great resources on this website!!
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/vtc/Phase2delivery/Wales/WalesSynd_20030219/Science/Keystage2/Physicalprocess/Shadows/Introduction/default.htm this site will take you through some of those important comparative questions – the ‘ER’ questions!!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/10_11/see_things.shtml can you remember which materials are transparent, translucent, or opaque? Remember when drawing arrows on diagrams, the arrow has to point FROM the light source TO the object!!
http://www.seekscience.org/interact/ click on any of the light, sound or forces adventures for your revision. We have used these since Year 3 in class, so you should be really familiar with them!

Phew! By no means do we expect you to go on all of these sites, but we thought that it may help to have some of the links we have used in class this year in one, easy to find place.
You have all worked extremely hard over the last year (well, since Foundation Stage really!) and now is your chance to shine! If you do have moments of panic and ‘I can’t remember anything’, come and speak to any of the teachers and we will do our best to help. The important thing to remember is, that we want you to do your best...after all, that’s all anyone can ask.

And finally...

There were lots of people without PE kit last week, in particular correct footwear. Unfortunately, due to Health and Safety reasons, we are not able to let you take part in PE lessons in your school shoes. Pumps or trainers have the correct soles for outdoor use, so please ensure that you have the correct kit and footwear in school every day. Because of the fine weather, we may be able to use the field and outdoor area on more than just our designated PE days, so please remember to have your kit in school every day.

Correct kit for the summer term is:

White T-shirt
Royal Blue shorts
Black Pumps or trainers
Also, remember that there should be NO JEWELLRY worn during PE sessions.

Just to let you know also, that Mrs Worrall is back with her class full time from this week, as we said goodbye to Miss Hamill on Friday.

That’s all for this week, in what feels like the longest blog ever!

Year 5/6 team