Shwmai Dosbarth Deri!

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I am Mr Brown and this year, with the support of Mrs Clee, I will be teaching year 6 learners in Dosbarth Deri. It has been a fantastic year already and the PS3 pupils have been enjoying the benefits of the New Curriculum for Wales throughout the school.

 

The year began with the topic 'World War 2’, which gave pupils a very in-depth insight into the the role of Welsh citizens during the conflict. Pupils use their research skills to delve deep into historical information using books and the internet which, in turn, develops their digital skills. The Science and Technology area of learning focuses on forces whilst a variety of different countries will be explored and located by using an atlas in our Geography focus. Music will introduce learners to ‘war-time songs’, discussing their importance in boosting moral and well-being.  Religious Education will focus on Jewish traditions and the holocaust.

 

Our Spring topic is Gwlad! Gwlad! which has a great emphasis on how great it is to be Welsh in a very unique country full of beautiful and interesting cultures. Our pupils will celebrate Dydd Miwsig Cymru and review many different Welsh music artists. We will also celebrate our school Eisteddfod. It is always great to see pupils taking part in Welsh traditions such as Dawnsio Gwerin (Welsh folk dancing), and singing our great Welsh national anthem, Mae Hên Wlad fy Nhadau. We also have a very special friend who visits our school…the fantastic former WRU player Gareth (Alfie) Thomas CBE. It is incredible for the pupils learning about his life and how if you worked hard on your dreams, you can achieve anything. He is certainly a great example of this. This topic also allows children to learn about different folk tales, ancient traditions as well as finding geographical information, such as local mountains and rivers. We will research about farming within our community and the importance of sustainability. For our literacy focus, learners will prepare for various debates in readiness for our trip to parliament.

 

In year 6, it is extremely important to make sure that pupils practise their reading and times tables at home on a daily basis. Times tables play a crucial factor in the work in these year groups. Pupils will need the quick recall of times tables in order to help them with their fractions, percentages, word problems, perimeter, area and time work, to name but a few. Without good knowledge of times tables, all these maths topics will seem difficult, when it really shouldn’t be, so let’s get practising!

 

As for reading, year 6 continually use technology to research our new topics, as well as skimming and scanning books found in our library. We practise a lot of comprehension work, which is all out about making sure we understand what we are reading and trying to find answers from different pieces of texts. As our topics become more complex in our last years of school, our reading ability needs to keep up trickier pieces of reading, therefore daily reading practise at home will support your child with this.

 

Hwb plays an important part in Dosbarth Deri pupils’ learning. There are so many amazing apps and software that is accessible to all, and we use these on a weekly basis. Your child has access to the HWB using their school log-in which they can also access at home. If you need any help in supporting your child accessing their account, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me.

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                                                                            Mr Brown