Year 6 Curriculum Outline Summer 2020
Year 6 Curriculum Outline Summer 2020 Would I lie to you? ~ Bionic Bodies
Humanities - Social Understanding The theme ‘Would I lie to you?’ links to the commemoration of 75 years since VE Day and pupils will compile a research portfolio about WW2. They will address and devise historically valid questions about change, cause, similarity, difference and significance, gathering knowledge from several sources to draw conclusions. Pupils will also study propaganda to understand that there is often more than one answer to a question. As 2020 was supposed to have been an Olympic year, ‘Bionic Bodies’ will focus on sport and medicine and pupils will have the opportunity to use Ordnance Survey Maps, learning specifically about features, scales and grid references. In R S pupils will recognise that all religions have guidelines that people of that faith follow. They will find out more about some of these guidelines and then write their own guidelines for living. Moving on from this they will use a range of thinking skills to learn about the key aspects of humanism. They will consider humanist views on atheism and agnosticism, celebrations, values, ethics and the importance of happiness.
Language and Communication (English and ML) In English Year 6 will start the term with the non-fiction topic of Persuasion. We will consider how to structure a persuasive argument and write persuasive texts on a range of topics to support our overarching theme ‘Would I lie to you?’. To finish the first half term we will move from Persuasion to Debate and consider the differences between the two styles of writing. Where possible using technology, we will look to support our writing with debates where we will focus on the core skills of speaking and listening. There will be an independent writing assessment at the end of this half term based around one of these themes. After half term we will turn to fiction writing and use the genres of Fantasy and Science-Fiction to provide inspiration for our work. From here we will continue with further fiction writing after half-term, using the Dystopian genre to support our writing. In Modern Languages, pupils will use the Summer term to consolidate and extend their learning of basic vocabulary and grammar. There will be plenty of opportunity to explore digital resources and pupils are encouraged to make good use of the many apps and websites explored in lessons. In Spanish, there will be a particular focus on nouns and verbs and pupils will prepare a presentation about themselves and their family, using verbs in the first and third person. The focus will be on speaking and listening and on applying phonics rules when reading. In French, the pupils will continue to consolidate pronouns, look at the process of conjugating regular ER verbs and focus on the verbs AVOIR and ETRE. Pupils will look at the topics of family, home and animals, linking in a variety of grammatical concepts and consolidating vocabulary. Mathematical Understanding Year 6 will start the term focusing on geometry. This will include looking at properties of shapes, drawing 2-D shapes using given dimensions and angles, comparing and classifying geometric shapes based on their properties and sizes and finding unknown angles in any triangles, quadrilaterals and regular polygons. Pupils will learn how to recognise angles where they meet at a point, are on a straight line, or are vertically opposite, and find missing angles. Our next topic is statistics and pupils will start by Illustrating and naming parts of circles, including radius, diameter and circumference and know that the diameter is twice the radius. They will move onto interpreting and constructing pie charts and line graphs and using these to solve problems as well as calculating the mean as an average. Pupils will also be given the opportunity to solve a variety of maths challenges, investigations and word problems which will allow them to develop their reasoning skills by explaining their mathematical thinking and methods and making links between different areas of maths.
Physical Education and Well-being In PSHEE we will cover two units of work: our Personal Safety unit, pupils will look at ‘Networks of Support’, assess the school and local environment from a personal safety perspective and understand how to make informed judgements to help keep themselves safer. They will work on the concept of honesty and explore dilemmas including peer group pressures, acknowledge personal boundaries and body language and will be able to identify and distinguish between ‘yes’ and ‘no’ touches and ‘good’ and ‘bad’ secrets. In our Identifying Changes unit of work, pupils will recognise that a range of changes take place throughout everyone’s lifetime, identify a range of situations which involve loss and change (and the emotions associated with this) and consider a range of coping strategies. In the Sex and Relationships Unit, pupils will learn about the main stages of how a baby is made, using some scientific vocabulary. They will be able to describe some emotions associated with the onset of puberty and consider strategies to deal with these positively. Pupils will understand that puberty affects people in different ways both physically and emotionally and understand that the way they behave affects others. They will consider the characteristics of a loving trusting relationship and understand some basic reasons why a couple might choose to have children. They will also be able to show awareness of some family arrangements which are different from theirs. Creative and Performing Arts Each week in M usic the pupils will practise their own instruments/use the keyboard on Garageband to develop their instrumental technique and expand their repertoire. With this regular practice (which should support the students’ individual instrumental tuition), they will build their confidence and fluency with reading staff notation alongside learning how to convey expression and more detailed musical markings. As part of this process, students will be encouraged to add their own creative ideas and interpretations into their performances, and we will explore the various stylish options that are available. Students will regularly submit finished performances for feedback, evaluate and reflect upon their own work, and will potentially have the opportunity to provide feedback for one another. This process of identifying aspects of their performance which could be improved/refined and then honing in to work on these aspects encourages active listening and increasingly mature musical awareness. During the course of this term, pupils will also continue to study aspects of musical evolution through the exploration of the Romantic and Contemporary periods. Through studying key works in the musical canon from these periods, the pupils will explore more complex musical aspects within composition, and will continue to develop an increasingly broad and mature bank of music terminology. We will focus on the impact of technology in music in particular, with a focus on how this opens up new and exciting contemporary opportunities for modern composers. In D rama, we will be exploring the theme of ‘Would I lie to you?’ T his will be through the medium of the play adaptation of Golding’s “Lord of the Flies.” We will look at antagonist
characters and how we can show their deceptive nature through acting choices. Students will also be introduced to subtext, thought-tracking, dramatic irony and historical context. Students will devise their own laws for the island- building on the idea of truth and lies. Students will rehearse their own monologues with a focus on pace, dramatic pause, atmosphere and tension. Lastly, students will complete writing in role and costume design tasks to help with character development. In the second half term, we will be exploring the theme ‘Bionic Bodies,’ through the personification of different body parts and exploration of emotion with the film ‘Inside Out’ as inspiration. Students will also create their own ‘monster’ looking at Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein,’ as a stimulus. In C DE, we will be looking at the art of the impossible, in relation to the work of M. C. Escher and the mathematicians he was influenced by. We will learn about and consider the mathematical concepts behind his drawings as we have a go at creating our own studies by hand and digitally, before attempting to create our own impossible drawings. We will then look at how optical illusions in art can be used to create form and movement and develop the impression of 3D in our drawings.
Scientific Understanding With a view to the warmer weather and longer days of summer, when the children will hopefully be able to take part in more outdoor activities, even if still at home, the underlying theme running through this term’s Science topics is sport. In Biology, we will be focusing on Human Biology, including the structure of our muscles and the effects upon the body of various fitness and training methods. We will also cover the biological aspects of human reproduction, in a lesson which will complement what the children will be learning in PSHEE. In Physics, we will be investigating how we can calculate the speed of humans and various vehicles by measuring the time taken to cover a set distance and looking at the role of Physics in optimising our performance in sports. In Chemistry, we will be learning about the pH scale, including how it is used to identify substances as acidic, alkaline or neutral, the role of indicators and the various practical uses of acids and alkalis in everyday life. Then, continuing the sports theme, we will look at chemical changes in the body during exercise and the difference between aerobic and anaerobic respiration. How you can help: We would normally recommend visiting local museums, such as the Cambridge Science Centre, Saffron Walden Museum and Cambridge University Zoology Museum, to help enrich
your child’s Science learning. During the current lock-down, these institutions are still providing learning opportunities via their websites, with two notable examples being: Cambridge Science Centre ‘Cosmos’ - free online activities http://www.cambridgesciencecentre.org/cosmosonline/ Cambridge University Zoology Museum highlights tour https://youtu.be/VV722mhy9Tk Many museums are offering virtual tours of their collections, which you can access online. Some helpful examples are: Oxford University Museum of Natural History https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=bkx57o7jbCk Natural History Museum, London https://www.nhm.ac.uk/visit/virtual-museum.html Smithsonian Museum of Natural History https://naturalhistory.si.edu/visit/virtual-tour Other helpful online resources include BBC Bitesize Science and look out for science programmes on TV.
Digital
The Inner Wheel With the Google apps at the heart of digital curation our pupils use Google Classroom to complete work digitally and hand in work that is produced in a variety of ways. We have identified 7 main apps, our EverGreen apps, that help to showcase our pupils’ learning. An animation, movie or annotated piece of work provides richer feedback for the teacher and ultimately helps to make greater progress. Explain Everything www.explaineverything.com Green Screen www.doink.com Stop Motion www.cateater.com Strip Design www.vividapps.com/Strip_Designer/ Notability www.gingerlabs.com Book Creator www.bookcreator.com Puppet Pals www.polishedplay.com
The Outer Wheel We have a number of apps that we use consistently throughout our curriculum that lend themselves to our creative approach. We avoid apps that are specific to a particular outcome, preferring content free apps that can help to enhance our pupils work and understanding. Some examples are: Minecraft, iMovie, KeyNote, Pages and Padlet.
Coding Another aspect of our digital curriculum is the coding/programming skills that are embedded in all subjects or taught discretely in Years 5 and 6. We have identified a progression of apps that help to develop our pupils ability to code. The apps provide variety and challenge and help to develop the computation skills that are crucial learning in our digital work. We combine the coding experiences with physical output. Using Spheros, BBC Micro:Bits and Ozobots provides visual outcomes that bring our code to life. As our pupils develop further they transition on to written code.
Thinking Toolkit Alongside and underpinning our curriculum we ensure that our pupils are developing as active learners and active thinkers. Throughout each subject area pupils are encouraged to use their range of thinking tools and reflect on when and how they are using them. Pupils are encouraged to reflect on how their thinking tools underpin all aspects of their learning and not just in the more obvious ways. How are they creative in maths? How do they enquire in English? How are they critical in Music? How do they think computationally in PE?
Inclusion This curriculum map outlines the core curriculum for each year group each term but at the heart of our wheel is the individual learner. Each subject area has a progression of skills which enables staff to stretch or support individuals as and when they need a little help, a bit of a push or a just a different way in. Within our classrooms through planning, teacher knowledge and interactions work is differentiated to suit the needs of each individual.