This week, the class have been busy exploring our science topic on habitats through an exciting practical activity, grafting willow. Although our attempts did not work out quite as we had hoped, it provided a valuable learning opportunity and sparked lots of thoughtful discussion about what plants need to survive and grow. During our time outdoors, we also made a lovely discovery of a stray caterpillar, which quickly became a focus of interest. Josh, in particular, has been making some fantastic observations about the caterpillar and has linked his ideas brilliantly to our learning about the life cycles of mammals, well done Josh! Year 6 have also shown incredible perseverance this week as they tackled their SATs with determination and maturity, and they should feel extremely proud of all their hard work. To celebrate the end of a busy week, we enjoyed a well-deserved class picnic together. We would also like to invite parents to come into the classroom tomorrow from 8:40am to take a look at the wonderful writing the children have been producing, we look forward to sharing it with you!

This week in Science, we have been learning about the different parts of plants and discussing the important jobs they do, as well as exploring the fascinating ways seeds are dispersed, including by wind, water and animals. The children have enjoyed making links between what plants need to grow and how seed dispersal helps plants survive and spread. In English, we have been focusing on writing speech, thinking carefully about how dialogue is punctuated and how it can be used to show character and move a story forward. In Maths, Year 6 pupils have been developing their skills with co‑ordinates, plotting and reading positions accurately, while Year 5 have been working hard to match fractions with their equivalent percentages and explaining their thinking clearly. We would also like to remind families that May Day dancing will take place on Bank Holiday Monday at the village hall just after midday, and we hope you can come along to support our fantastic dancers and enjoy the celebrations.

Well done to the group of children who visited the University of Plymouth today to take part in a fantastic art workshop. During the session, the children learned about early photography methods and explored how images were created before modern cameras. Using photo-sensitive paper, they produced their own beautiful pieces of artwork inspired by leaves and flowers. The work created was thoughtful and creative, and we are very proud of the care and focus shown by everyone involved. These artworks will be used alongside poems as part of an exhibition in October, which is very exciting. Above is an example of the work that was produced.

Back in school, learning has continued across all subjects. In Maths, Year 6 have been developing their understanding of graphs and charts, while Year 5 have been finishing their unit on fractions, focusing on finding fractions of amounts using clear and accurate methods.

In English, we have been studying a text inspired by Oliver Twist. The children have been exploring how authors bring characters to life through speech, thinking carefully about how dialogue can reveal personality, mood and relationships between characters.

In History, we have been looking closely at the design of the £5 and £10 notes, discussing why certain historical figures have been chosen. This led to some excellent discussions as the children considered who they think should appear on the £50 note from history, giving thoughtful reasons for their choices. It has been another busy and productive week, with lots of creativity, curiosity and excellent thinking on show. Well done to everyone for their hard work!

Over the past week, our class has been hard at work writing up our non-chronological reports inspired by the incredible creatures of Pandora. Using their imagination and carefully chosen vocabulary, pupils have created fantastical species, describing everything from unusual habitats and diets to fascinating adaptations and behaviours. We have been so impressed with the quality of the writing, and it has been wonderful to see pupils take such pride in refining their work. Some truly fantastic pieces have emerged, and these reports are a real celebration of creativity, detail and descriptive language. We are excited to be able to share this work with parents soon and would love to invite you in to read through the amazing pieces your children have been writing. Please look out for further details coming shortly about how and when you can join us.

Alongside our writing success, we also enjoyed some brilliant Rock Steady performances this week. Pupils impressed us all with their confidence and enthusiasm, particularly showcasing some amazing guitar playing. The performances were full of energy and talent and were thoroughly enjoyed by everyone watching. Well done to the whole class for another fantastic week of learning, creativity and performance!

This Week in Class: Exploring Space, Solar Power, Fantastical Creatures, and Fractions!
What an exciting and busy week we've had! Our learning has taken us on adventures across Geography, English, Maths, and even into outer space. Here's a look at what we've been up to:

Geography: Finding the Best Spot for Solar Panels
In Geography, we've been using our problem solving skills to investigate the best place to install solar panels around the school. We explored:
• Which areas get the most sunlight,
• Where shadows might block the panels, and
• How the angle and direction of the sun affects energy production.
Everyone worked like real environmental scientists, thinking about how renewable energy can help our school become more eco friendly.

A Visit from the Space Dome!
This week became truly out of this world when the Space Dome arrived!
Inside, we learned about:
• The planets in our solar system
• What the constellations are like at the time of year in the night sky

English: Creating Non-Chronological Reports About Pandora Creatures
In English, we began planning our non-chronological reports about fantastical creatures from Pandora, inspired by the world of Avatar. We focused on:
• Writing clear subheadings,
• Organising information into sections,
• Using formal language,
• Expanding our vocabulary to make our creatures sound believable (and magical!).
We're excited to continue building these reports as our creatures start to come alive on the page.

Thanks to Nick Hart and Luke Wallace, a world renowned musician who came to join us all he way from Canada, who ran the music event at Liskeard Church this week.  It was quite terrifying to be performing in front of everyone but Year 6 were great and it was brilliant to join in all the singing activities with the other schools.  Music really does bring people together. 

This week we have also been starting to write up our non-chronological texts about the mighty Thanator from Pandora.  There have been some great opening sentences.  More of this will be shared next week when we completed our first piece with our partners.  We have also been looking at energy sources for a proposed new town and deciding whether it should have solar or wind power.  We wrote some powerful letters putting forward our points of view about the benefits of wind power and why a new town should build wind turbines.  

In Geography this week, we have been exploring different sources of energy and discussing the advantages and disadvantages of each one. We compared options such as nuclear energy-which can produce large amounts of power but creates long‑lasting waste-and hydropower, which is renewable but can affect river habitats. In Maths, Year 6 have been practising multiplying and dividing decimals, while Year 5 have continued developing their long‑multiplication methods. In English, we've also been learning how to use parentheses to add extra detail to our descriptions, especially when writing about the fantastical creatures of Pandora, like the fierce Thanator (a powerful predator from the rainforest).