Year 6 Class News

Showcase of skipping skills

Posted on Wednesday 26 June 2019 by Mrs Taylor

Thank you to all parents, carers and family who came along to see the fantastic skipping skills on display at our recent skipping assembly.

Jodi, from Skipping School, provided skipping sessions for Reception class, Year 1, Year 3, Year 5 and Year 6 throughout the day and it was great to see all the new skills learnt. Year 2 and Year 4 have already been involved in their skipping projects this year and have taken part in festivals representing the school.

Skipping is one of the ways we encourage the children to achieve their 30 active minutes at school by providing short and long ropes at playtime and lunchtime.

If you didn’t get chance to buy a skipping rope after the assembly, we do have some available for sale.  Please come to the Year 2 classroom on Monday or Tuesday, after school, if you would like to purchase one.

What is Light?

Posted on Wednesday 26 June 2019 by Mr Roundtree

It’s been getting spooky in the Year 6 classroom this half term while we investigate a very serious crime.

A laptop has been stolen from school and there’s a mountain of evidence to trawl through, most of which seems to require specialist knowledge of light and how it behaves. Therefore, we have all become physicists to investigate the evidence and find out ‘who dun it’.

We’ve explored how light can be reflected because it can travel in straight lines.

We’ve found out how the angle of the light beam entering a mirror affects the angle at which it is reflected.

We’ve also investigated what factors change the length of a shadow.

So far, we’ve eliminated two suspects from our investigation. We’ll keep you posted on how it progresses in the coming days.

Wimbledon themed menu

Posted on Tuesday 25 June 2019 by Mrs Taylor

Catering Agency, our school meal provider, will be running a special themed menu on Tuesday 9th July.  Please contact the office, as soon as possible, if your child would like a school meal on this day (no action needed if your child normally has a school meal on this day). Subject to the weather on the day, we hope the children can enjoy this picnic themed meal outside.

We are Total Warriors!

Posted on Sunday 23 June 2019 by Mr Roundtree

Year 6 had a fantastic morning at Bramham Park on Friday conquering the Total Warrior junior course.

Before the event, we enjoyed getting our race numbers attached and our bandanas on – truly warrioresque.

The course threw muddy obstacle after muddy obstacle at us and we took them on head first.

Very muddy and very pleased with ourselves, we celebrated each of us crossing the finish line.

And the prize for muddiest warrior goes to…

Total Warrior – what you need

Posted on Thursday 20 June 2019 by Mr Roundtree

Tomorrow, Year 6 are going to Total Warrior in Bramham Park – it’s going to be great fun!

You need to come to school wearing clothing you can run comfortably in and you don’t mind getting VERY muddy (especially your trainers). You also need to bring the following with you:

  • clean clothes to change into (don’t forget shoes)
  • an old towel (to wipe mud off)
  • a plastic bag (to put muddy things in)
  • a packed lunch
  • a water bottle
  • your homework book (with homework completed)
  • your script

Can’t wait! See you tomorrow.

Clean Air Day

Posted on Thursday 20 June 2019 by Mrs Taylor

Today is Clean Air Day to help tackle air pollution and protect the health of everyone in Leeds.  It is all about making people more aware of the changes they can make to their day-to-day life to support this aim.

We support the aims of Clean Air Day to create a safer, healthier and more enjoyable environment for people around school.

‘Improving the air we breathe in Leeds is a huge priority and one we can all play a role in. We can’t always see it, but air pollution has serious effects on our health and our environment. As one of the biggest cities outside of London, Leeds has not surprisingly been identified alongside many other UK cities as one which needs to reduce pollution levels as quickly as possible. By working together to improve the air we breathe, we can protect the health of the people of Leeds.’

We promote active travel to school such as walking, biking, scooting and park and stride (using our preferred site at Marks and Spencer) to reduce congestion around the school gates and therefore to improve air quality.

Have you spotted our new banner outside school aimed at reducing engine idling?

Hot Shots total

Posted on Wednesday 19 June 2019 by Mrs Taylor

Thank you for all the sponsor money raised following the Hot Shots event during our Money Matters themed week.

We are pleased to announce that we have raised a fantastic total of £665.75 for our school charity, WWF.

Sports day

Posted on Monday 17 June 2019 by Mrs Taylor

This year’s sports day will take place on Thursday 04 July 2019, at Roundhegians Rugby Club. Access to Roundhegians will be off Chelwood Drive.

Key Stage 2 events will take place at 9.30am and Reception and Key Stage 1 at 1.30pm.  Children will be walking to the field, escorted by adults.  We will require additional adult helpers so please let the office know if you can help with this.

If weather conditions mean we have to change the date, the reserve date is Thursday 11 July.

The format of this year’s event will be competitive races and field events with children having the opportunity to compete for medals.  However, all children will be rewarded for taking part.

Our teams will be: green, blue, white and red and your child/children will be told their team colour by their class teacher.  If possible, please could your child wear a t-shirt to wear to match their team colour.  Pupils may wear PE kit for the whole day.

As we are off site, please could you provide your child with a carrier bag to sit on.  If you are coming to spectate, you are welcome to bring rugs or chairs to sit on.

Please could you ensure your child has their water bottle and a cap/hat at school; it would also be useful if you could apply sun cream before your child comes to school.

Normal lunch time and end of school collection arrangements will still apply on this day.

In the event of bad weather, updates will be sent via Twitter and posted on the website.

Your support is valued to make the event memorable and we hope you are able to come and cheer your child on at sports day.

 

Moving on to secondary School: A road safety guide for parents and carers

Posted on Sunday 16 June 2019 by Mrs Taylor

Safer Roads Leeds have produced this useful guide to support Year 6 children and their parents/carers with their new journey to secondary school.

For many children, starting secondary school is the time when they experience travelling independently for the first time. You and your child should know when they have the skills and are ready to travel independently and safely, and it is a good idea to start to think about your child’s new journey with them well beforehand.

  • Talk to them about how their feel about their new journey.
  • If possible, do the journey with them before term starts.
  • Is there a safer, quieter, more pleasant option?
  • Think about potential hazards.
  • Make sure they’ve got a list of family and friends’ telephone numbers in case of emergency.
  • Keep a list of the names and numbers of your child’s friends.

Your child will travel to and from school around 400 times each year; the start of secondary school is the perfect time for your child to establish safe and sustainable travel habits that will stay with them for the rest of their life!

Part 1 Planning to walk

Walking to school is a brilliant to way for your child easily to get some exercise, develop independence and clear their head ready to concentrate. Once they start secondary school, your child is likely to be walking alone or with friends, and so they need some extra help to make sure they’ve got the skills to do so safely – especially if they’ve been driven or escorted to primary school.

Here’s how you can help:

  • Plan a safe route with your child. Google maps is a great tool – you can drag the little ‘peg kid’ to explore at street level and find safe crossings.
  • Will you pass the cymbal challenge? Watch the three short (and fun!) films about road safety that local schools made for transition students. Search ‘You Look… but do you see? Leeds City Council’ on YouTube. There’s an
    audio challenge too. Use these to find out more about what your child knows (or not) about phones and roads.
  • What else do they think might help keep them safer? Discuss things such as thinking for themselves, choosing safe places to cross and not messing about near busy roads.
  • Children who are late often take more risks – help your child get into the habit of getting their things ready the night before and leaving plenty of time to walk to school.
  • Is there a roundabout or junction on the route? It isn’t always easy to know where cars will come from; make sure your child understands how cross safely. The same goes for crossing between parked cars. This extract from the highway code covers these and other important reminders
    for pedestrians of all ages.

Remember, it only takes 15 – 20 minutes to walk a mile, and your child will enjoy all kinds of short-term and long-term benefits from walking to school.

Part 2 Planning to use public transport

Your child may not be used to travelling by public transport on their own, so there are a lot of things to consider. Even if they are, the journey to secondary school is likely to be a new one. Here’s how you can help:

  • Find out whether your child knows how to find out about buses, how to hail and stop the bus safely, and how to wait until the bus has moved on before crossing the road. Could you practice this together?
  • Discuss what they think it means to behave safely / dangerously on public transport.
  • Children who are late take risks – help your child get into the habit of getting their things ready the night before (Travel pass? Money?) and leaving plenty of time to get to school.
  • Go through some ‘what if’ scenarios. What if the bus is late? What could they do if friends are messing about on the bus? What if they leave something on the bus?
  • Use Google maps too; you can drag the little ‘peg kid’ to see what the roads look like where the bus stops. If your child needs to cross the road, remind them to move to a safer crossing place (zebra, pelican etc.) or wait until the bus has moved on, and then find somewhere where they can see clearly.

If it’s too far for your child to walk or cycle to school, using public transport is a great next option.

Part 3 Planning to cycle

If your child is lucky enough for cycling to be an option, your support and encouragement are vital. Here’s how you can help.

  • Make sure your child can cycle well enough for the road. Find out more from Cycle North.
  • Look at Google Maps to find a local off-road route or quieter streets. The West Yorkshire Cycle map includes a journey planning tool and also highlights recommended routes across the city.
  • Cycle the route together if you can.
  • If your child’s route to school can’t avoid junctions or roundabouts, they can always get off and walk.
  • Check that your child knows how to do a basic check to make sure their bike is in good working order; do the brakes work properly? Are the tyres pumped up? Does the bell work? It might be a good idea to have the bike checked in a proper bike shop every so often. Here’s a great video to show you and your child how to do a basic ‘M-check’ to make sure their bike is safe to ride. Help your child organise the right kit: helmet, fluorescent and reflective clothing, and a set of lights for winter.

Cycling isn’t just good for getting to school; your child may soon realise how easy it is to get about to all kinds of places by bike – they can even take their bike on some trains (link to info?)

Part 4 Planning to travel by car

Drivers have a huge part to play, particularly at a time when children may be unescorted for the first time, and perhaps be distracted by new phones, new friends, new routes, new timetables and new experiences – and all this when their brains still can’t accurately judge speed. Here’s how you can help:

  • Inconsiderate school-gate parking generates the greatest number of school-transport related complaints we receive and creates danger for everyone.
  • Crossing between parked cars is one of the biggest causes of child pedestrian casualties; talk to your child about how to do this safely if they must; better still, make sure you don’t create these conditions yourself.
  • Remind your child about the importance of wearing seatbelts, whether you are with them or not. Most schools in Leeds now have 20mph speed limits, to help keep children safer.
  • Could you consider car-sharing?
  • Or perhaps drop your child off a bit further away, so that they, too, can reap the many benefits of walking part of the way? You could even drop them at a friend’s house or central meeting point so they can walk in together.
  • Make sure your child knows how to get of the car and cross roads safely. They should always get out on the pavement side, not into the road.

So if your child has no other option but to travel by car, there’s a lot those who drive them can do to help keep everyone safe.

Cooking Halloumi Tikka Masala

Posted on Friday 14 June 2019 by Mr Roundtree

As Year 6 will be moving into secondary school soon, they’ll be becoming more and more independent. To help with this, we’ll be cooking this term, practising a number of essential skills: bridge method, claw method, grating, mixing, frying, using the oven and food hygiene.

This week, half of the class made halloumi tikka masala and all of them thought it was delicious! Have a go at home too – we’ve sent the recipe home.