Well, here we are –  the final night has arrived and it feels like only Wednesday!!! The evening culminated with a campfire that lit up the hearts and minds of the children; they thoroughly enjoyed the sing-song and performing their group compositions to the rest of the year group and Fairthorne staff!

Some challenging weather conditions earlier in the day didn’t hamper the children’s pursuit of outdoor adventure, with all drawing on their inner grit and resilience to master the challenge of Jacob’s Ladder – a stairway of horizontal poles, each one further apart than the other. This imposing structure demanded great teamwork if pairs were to be successful.

Many thanks to all parents who provided their children with plastic bin liners – they have been worth their weight in gold!

Wow – time certainly does fly by when you are having fun! We cannot believe it is Wednesday already.

The children really are fully into the swing of daily routines, managing their time and resources wisely. Yesterday was their first visit to the ‘Manor Shop,’ and we can confidently assure readers that they have all achieved their goal of maximum sugar intake versus £ spent! Some groups of friends have even combined their tuck money and have a ‘pot’ from which to spend. St Peter’s have definitely earned their rewards though as we are on our feet from 9:30 – 5:30 with little down time in between.

Challenges faced and conquered today have included raft building, kayaking, crate tower building and climbing. We were all once again very grateful that the rain stayed away

How much can we each have? A future maths problem we think!

We are sure the children are looking forward to busting some moves on the dance floor this evening.

With a good mix of water and land-based activities planned in, thankfully the weather looked kindly upon us for Day 2 of the Fairthorne Adventure.

Groups have enjoyed taking part in archery, orienteering, abseiling, climbing, blind trail and SUP – Stand Up Paddleboarding- and are quickly mastering the fine art of selecting the appropriate clothing and footwear for the challenge ahead!

After a filling dinner, it was all outside for ‘Operation Jungle’ – a nocturnal wide-game. After this, all the children have settled down to enjoy a well-earned ‘al-fresco’ hot chocolate and biscuit.

As we speak, the children are currently sleeping, re-charging those batteries ready to go again tomorrow!!! The children have really responded to the ‘Challenge by Choice’ tasks presented to them on the first full day here – they have also realised too, that they can push themselves that little bit more within the tasks which sets a good mindset for the rest of the week!!!

Sorry there are no photos – a genuine malfunction with cropping them to size!

Year 6 adults.

The eagle has landed!!!

We are here and the children are already up to their knees in mud!!!

The children have settled into their dorms and they have had a tour of the site! On top of this, they have already carried out two activities – some Orienteering and Team Challenge! It was a huge success – no-one has been lost!

They are about to enjoy their first dinner of the week and the children have a Night Walk tonight (in the dark!) and Sports Hall Games to wear themselves out before Hot Chocolate and ‘Lights Out’ at 9:00 pm!

Check in with you all at the same time tomorrow!

Year 6 have been extremely busy in the final week before their Fairthorne Manor adventure, applying strategies for addition and subtraction and learning how to pickpocket!

Could you draw a bar model to represent and solve this problem:

‘A cup of tea and a biscuit cost £1.30. A cup of tea costs 60p more than a biscuit. How much does a biscuit cost?’

After using counters to represent similar problems surrounding boys and girls in the playground, children were able to show what the cup of tea problem looked like. Maybe you could have a go!

We have been totally immersed in Dickens within our writing and guided reading sessions, culminating in acting out and explaining how to pick a pocket. Be on your guard – a Year 6 child may be sizing you up from the shadows of the playground!

We hope all have a restful weekend, prior to an action packed week ahead!

Keep an eye on the blog for regular daily updates!

The Year 6 Team

We have enjoyed an interesting week of mathematical investigations, with a particular focus on efficient addition and subtraction strategies. Children practised using redistribution, rounding, number lines and written methods with a range of calculations, thinking deeply about which they preferred and why. By the end of the week it was good to see pupils manipulating the original number sentence in order to apply their chosen strategy.

Guided reading and English lessons blended together this week to give the children a taste of Dicken’s portrayal of the moment that Oliver Twist first entered Fagin’s hideout. After analysing his text and playing around with new language, our week ended with a re-write of the film scene to be sent to his publishers. We are looking forward to finishing and editing these on Monday.

Our topic work is ongoing, and we spent time this week completing timelines to compare the Ancient Greek, Mayan and Celtic civilisations; did you know that the Mayans were stuck in their own stone age while the Greeks were masters in bronze?

We are now just a week and a few days away from our Fairthorne adventure. Hopefully you are feeling well prepared. If not – please keep an eye on your email for the Fairthorne welcome pack which includes a copy of the suggeted kit list.

Have a lovely weekend.

The Year 6 Team