Friday 17th October 2025

It's hard to believe that term one of Y6 is over already, but great to see how well children have settled in. They are becoming used to the rigours of the work and have already proved themselves worthy of their leadership and mentoring roles. 

The final week found us knee-deep in multiples, factors and prime numbers and underlined how important times tables knowledge is. Please take some time over the holiday to learn or maintain your recall of these key facts. 

English lessons focused on editing a piece of writing for accuracy and impact before publishing and illustrating the content ready for display. The class also began rehearsals for a poem they will perform at our Remembrance service next month. Everyone is already captivated by the first few chapters of Letters From the Lighthouse by Emma Carroll. We do have a good quantity of copies to share in school, but if you wish to provide your child with their own book, you are very welcome to do so. 

Next term's topic centres on WWII and features, among other elements, the popular Make Do and Mend DT project. If you have any items of clothing that are unloved or no longer wearable, please dig them out and bring them into school when we return. Do think of us before donating anything to the charity shops. We are also on the lookout for volunteers to help with elementary sewing so, if you are able to spare time on Thursday or Friday afternoons, please let the office know. 

All that's left to do is to wish you a very pleasant break and we'll see you all again soon(ish).

Ms Wright and Mrs Glover

Homework

Maths:

Atom Learning - multiples and factors

Times tables facts

Friday 10th October 2025

Weeks of preparation have led to a final piece of non-fiction writing in which Year 6 wrote about tigers, why they are endangered and how we might protect them. Children showed incredible focus and stamina to produce lengthy pieces of work demonstrating a wide range of grammatical techniques and strong vocabulary. A very impressive start to the year.

In maths, we have continued to think about division and how to present remainders as fractions. Good times tables recall makes these calculations easier and will be increasingly necessary as we move to learn about multiples, factors, prime numbers and fractions in the coming weeks. Your Times Tables Rock Stars account can be an enjoyable way of memorising these important facts and keeping them up to date. Alternatively, there are plenty of exciting apps, such as Hit the Button, and also colouring activities that might appeal.

In history, we have learned about army officer and professional footballer, Walter Tull, and considered how WWI impacted people on the Home Front. 

Thank you all for your contributions to our Harvest Festival and today's Wear it Blue day. Both were highly enjoyable events and your donations will make life a little easier for others.

Have a very good weekend.

Ms Wright and Mrs Glover

Homework:

After an excellent start to the term when all children completed their homework on time, there is a growing number of pupils who are not doing the work that we set. Please make sure you find time in the week to manage your homework as it is useful for your learning and prepares you for the rigours of Year 7.

Maths: Atom Learning - Written division, written multiplication and word problems. Due on Thursday. 

Please note that, when questions say 'use long division' you should use your preferred method.

Do have some scrap paper and a pencil to hand for workings. 

Friday 4th October 2025

This week the children enjoyed their computing session with Mr Miles where they learned about Morse code in World War I and used coding to programme their own Morse code messages.  We have been busy practising our dance as we prepare for the Harvest service next week and on Tuesday we had our school photos, with everyone looking very smart.

In maths, we have been moving on to division and extending our times table knowledge beyond 12 × 12. This will help us as we develop strategies for dividing by two-digit numbers. In English, we have been learning about endangered species, with a particular focus this week on the vulture. We have been developing our persuasive and information writing skills to raise awareness of this issue. The spelling focus this week has been on investigating the many ways to make the long a sound in English and learning the rules that help us apply each one. For example, we discovered that “ei” is usually found in the middle of a word. We also looked at the letter string (quadgraph) ough and were fascinated to learn that it can make seven different sounds in our language.

A reminder that our Harvest Service takes place next Wednesday. Please could your child bring in a decorated envelope with a donation for Bondeni School. We would also greatly appreciate donations of tinned or non-perishable goods for the Edenbridge Food Bank.

Thank you for your continued support.  Have a lovely weekend.

Mrs Glover and Ms Wright

Homework:

English - Atom Learning

Hyphens and parenthesis (we have been learning about this grammar in class) 

Maths - Atom Learning

Written division, written multiplication and order of operations (BIDMAS)

Friday 26th September 2025

Long multiplication and estimating has been our mathematical focus this week and children will have the opportunity to practise these skills in their homework.

In English, we have read about rhinos, Partula snails and the Kakapo parrot and used our new knowledge to write short information leaflets using modal verbs, adverbials for possibility and brackets, dashes and commas for parenthesis.

Y6 now understands that, due to advances in weaponry, WWI was considered to be a modern war. Children were fascinated to learn about the mechanics of Maxim machine gun and asked many thought-provoking questions about warfare. 

On Thursday, we welcomed two members of the Parish Council to the school. They explained that they are hoping to create a Neighbourhood Plan for the parish and that they are seeking the people's opinions about what is important for the community in the future. Children took home a leaflet which tells you how you can take part in the survey. 

Enjoy the last few days of September. Autumn beckons.

Ms Wright and Mrs Glover

Homework

Atom Learning: written methods of multiplication and estimating. 

Please also make sure you practise your times tables. You can log into your Times Tables Rock Stars account (forgotten passwords can be obtained from the school office) or use a different method, but it is important to know these key facts well. 

Friday 19th September 2025

Well done Year 6 for delivering your Head Student speeches ton Thursday—everyone did an excellent job presenting themselves with confidence. The new roles will be announced by Mrs Haysom on Monday.

This week we enjoyed a fantastic trip to London, visiting the Brunel Museum and Tower Bridge as part of our engineering topic. The children represented the school brilliantly and showed great enthusiasm in their learning throughout the day. A real highlight was being on Tower Bridge as it opened—a wonderful and memorable experience for everyone!

Back in school, it has been assessment week and everyone has worked hard. These assessments will help us identify any gaps and inform our planning as we move forward. In maths, we have continued to develop our understanding of BIDMAS and applied it to increasingly tricky problems. In English, the children wrote persuasive pieces of writing on the important issue of saving tigers from extinction. Perhaps your child can share their arguments with you at home. Finally, in spelling, we have continued to look at suffixes and what happens to root words when they are changed.

Well done to Year 6 for such a positive week of learning.

Have a good weekend.

Mrs Glover and Ms Wright

Homework

Atom Learning (https://atomlearning.com): Place value and rounding.

Children have been given a copy of their usernames and passwords. The office also has a list of the details should you need a further reminder. 

Answers will be reviewed in class on Thursday 25th September so please ensure that the questions are completed by Wednesday evening.

Friday 12th September 2025

This week, we have completed our poetry about endangered animals. The results were so impressive that they are now displayed around the school. Do take time to read each other's work. 

Our spelling focus has been how to add -ed, -ing, -er, -est, -en to words with more than one syllable. 

You might like to try the rules below with some of the following vocabulary:

acquit, allot, begin, control, forget/forgot, gallop, incur, omit, regret, transmit, benefit, bicker, consider, dishearten, forfeit, interpret, open, profit, travel, worship

• Key spelling rule: If the final two letters are a single vowel followed by a consonant, then double the last consonant before adding -ed and -ing. 
• Key spelling rule: If the root word ends in y, change to an i if the suffix begins with an e.
• Key spelling rule: If the root word ends in an e, drop the final e before adding the suffix.
• Key spelling rule: If the last syllable of a multi-syllable word is stressed and ends with one consonant letter which has just one vowel letter before it, the final consonant letter is doubled before -ed or -ing e.g. beginning. The consonant letter is not doubled if the last syllable is unstressed

In maths, we have practised using mixed operations, while our WWI learning has been about why it was that men volunteered to fight and which country was allied with which. Today has been spent discovering simple methods for creating strength from paper and putting this knowledge to use by designing and building prototype bridges. Next week, there is at trip to Brunel Museum and Tower Bridge to look forward to. 

There is some homework to be completed this weekend ahead of the Head Pupil Speeches next Thursday. Please read these instructions carefully.

Head Pupil Elections will take place on Thursday, 18th September. For homework, we ask that you all compose a short speech to present to the school, explaining why you are a good candidate for the role.

We have discussed this in class, so hopefully you will have already had the opportunity to think about it and discuss it with your family. The deadline is Monday, 15th September, but you may submit it earlier if you prefer. Your work can be either typed or handwritten, but it should not be a PowerPoint presentation or require any technology to deliver. Please email it to the office if possible. We would like each of you to speak for around one minute. When you have completed your piece, practise reading it aloud several times to someone at home. You are not expected to memorise it and will be able to read it on the day.

In the past, we have heard wild promises that can never be kept, so this year we would like you to think about the type of person you are and what qualities you have that would be desirable in a head pupil or in other mentoring roles. Perhaps you are confident and able to communicate well or it could be that you are fun-loving and enthusiastic. Maybe you have a strong interest in one of the subjects we learn about at school. Are you excellent at getting things organised? Maybe you are a deep thinker who has good ideas or someone who is sensitive to the thoughts and feelings of others and makes everyone feel included.

A head pupil is required to speak to people of all ages, including those of us from the school and visitors. You will need to represent the school on special occasions, be respectful and set a good example for others to follow. You will have to demonstrate leadership skills and might need to help out with events.

You all have something to offer so don’t be shy – tell us how special you are!

We look forward to finding out a little more about you.

Ms Wright and Mrs Glover

Friday 5th September

Welcome back to Year 6. We are pleased to share that the children have settled well and are getting used to our new routines in the classroom.  We are looking forward to seeing you all at pick up over the next couple of weeks. As always, if you do have any questions about Year 6, please do email or call us.

This week in maths, we have begun our place value unit, exploring numbers up to the millions.  Year 6 children have also started their maths journals, which we use to explore maths, tackle problems and develop mastery.

In English, we have started a new writing scheme and are working on a poetry unit about animals; each child will choose an animal and produce their own poem in their chosen form, developing their language and vocabulary. Our spelling scheme is now different — there is no formal weekly testing; instead, we are focusing on words and their meanings, and talking about the tricky parts of words to help with learning. Over the weekend, pupils may like to review some of the following words from this week which include: disappear, neighbour, aggressive, immediately, soldier.  Please find attached the statutory spelling list for Year 5 & 6 for your own reference. 

We have also started both our History and DT topics: World War I and Engineer. Hopefully, your child will be able to tell you the reason World War I started — do ask them over the weekend!  We are reading Private Peaceful for pleasure and have made a good start with some interesting class discussions. 

We hope you all have an enjoyable and restful weekend,

Mrs Glover and Ms Wright