Year 6 have worked extremely hard this term and we are very proud of them. They have been very sensible, mature and responsible as they have settled back into our school routine.

In literacy, we have been reading ‘The Invention of Hugo Cabret’ the story of an orphan who inherits a mysterious automaton and enters a world of secrets as he learns all about the mechanical man, a secret filmmaker and what all of it means for his future! The children have been hooked as we have read the book and written dialogues and narratives. We have been very impressed with children’s writing skills as we have focused on effective descriptions through adjectives, verbs and varying sentence types!

Linked to our literacy work our theme is ‘Lights, Camera, Action. The children have been fascinated with learning all about how films began. We have learnt about and made our own optical toys such as a ‘Thaumatrope’ and ‘Flip Book’ to learn about how inventors created the first moving image. Year 6 have also explored early films such as Fred Ott’s Sneeze, A Trip to the Moon, Safety Last and films that star Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. The children loved the simplicity of the films, the chase scenes, the stunts and comical elements. We have been learning about different camera angles and shots used in films. Our aim is to create our own mini-black and white films inspired by Hugo Cabret using everything that we have learnt!

We have also been learning from professionals in the industry; after a visit from Mr Bebb from Screen Alliance Wales and Bad Wolf studios we found out about the many amazing career opportunities there are in the Film and Media industry that use some of the skills that we have refined in our theme!

Erika Hossington, an award winning TV producer who used to attend St Julian’s Primary, visited the school to talk to the children about her work within the film industry. She has produced episodes of Land Girls and Casualty. She explained the writing process, how it is made into an episode and all the work behind the scenes that we don’t see. It was really exciting to watch some of the episodes she had worked on. We had the chance to ask her questions about her role and she has even won a BAFTA and an NTA award!

A real highlight of the theme was the prosthetics lesson from local make-up artist Jenna McDonnell. The children learnt all about artificial wounds and theatre make-up. It was lovely to see such enthusiasm and enjoyment from the children within the workshop and it demonstrated the importance of ‘Pupil Voice’ within our curriculum.

Recently, Year 6 visited Raglan Barracks to attend the ‘Crucial Crew’ workshop, where valuable health and safety information was provided.At the event, they learned about how to keep themselves physically and emotionally safe in a variety of different situations. Among the ‘Crucial Crews’ delivering these important messages were the Fire Service, Western Power Distribution, Resolve it, Samaritans, and Changing Minds. It was a busy, fun- filled, informative morning and, as usual, the behaviour of our students was exemplary. Well done Y6!

In preparation for making our own movies, Year 6 worked with Mr Jones and some Post 16 students from St Julians Comprehensive school. They worked in our media suite where the children learnt about the process of filming, camera angles and tips and techniques used to enhance films. The children will apply their news skills and knowledge when we come to create our own films after half-term.

In STEM, we have been finding out about light sources, how light travels and how we are able to see objects. We have watched some shadow theatre and have planned and conducted our very own shadow investigation. We will be learning more about the eye, conducting an investigation linked to the best material for sunglasses and completing a double page spread all about ‘Light’.

We have thoroughly enjoyed music lessons with Mr Banks this half term where we’ve been learning to play ‘Memories’ by Maroon 5 on the Keyboards. Each class was split into two groups and were responsible for reading music, learning the correct notes and performing their section of the song. In their final performance they played collaboratively to produce a wonderful rendition of the song. Da iawn pawb!

We hope Year 6 have a fantastic half term and stay safe as they enjoy any autumnal activities. We look forward to welcoming the children back for a new half term full of exciting activities and learning! Well done Year 6!