Hi,
It looks like we might have seen the last of the snow for a few days. I remember when I was your age, the snow was so deep it covered the entire back door! Let’s hope it doesn’t get that bad.
I’ll put this reminder up for a few days to save anyone having to search back through old posts. You can send your child’s work through to me at class6@shawburystmarys.co.uk. It’s great if you don’t let it build up as I try to respond promptly and the children can then react to any feedback they receive.
BBC Bitesize are showing a range of educational programmes each day. On CBBC (and available afterwards on the iplayer) are a few programmes linked to today’s science. It would be great if you could catch them.

We have another Zoom session this morning to catch up and look at Literacy. Can I just remind you to read Parent and Pupil Zoom Acceptable Use Policy for school.
Mr Chiverton is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/98818907656?pwd=cWZxS09qSndLZDZsYkJScTNkZ0daQT09
Meeting ID: 988 1890 7656
Passcode: fNyEh0
Maths
I hope you were okay with the first day of percentages. If you have any questions you can either email me or check out a percentages video.It’s American, but it works.
Teaching slides Equivalent Fractions, Decimals and Percentages
Developing-Step-2-VF-Equivalent-FDP-2
Expected-Step-2-VF-Equivalent-FDP-3
Greater-Depth-Step-2-VF-Equivalent-FDP-4
Reasoning and Problem Solving
Developing-Step-2-RPS-Equivalent-FDP-2
Expected-Step-2-RPS-Equivalent-FDP-3
Greater-Depth-Step-2-RPS-Equivalent-FDP-4
Literacy
The Machine Gunners Episode 8: Closing in
One day, as he’s leaving his house for the Fortress, Chas senses he’s being followed. He thinks it’s a policeman, but despite his best efforts, can’t shake him off. He’s forced to confront Boddser on the mud flats below Nicky’s house. With no one around to help, Boddser easily gets the better of Chas. But eventually Chas plays dead and Boddser lets go of him.
Does anyone feel empathy for Boddser. If so, why? If not, why not? Consider if you think Chas and Boddser will ever stop fighting one another. How do you think Boddser would tell the story you have heard so far, what would his perspective be?
Reflect on why Rudi doesn’t escape when given the opportunity. What does this reveal about his relationship with the children and also the life he would have if he escaped, either as a prisoner of war or on return to Germany?
There’s lots of twists and turns in the story, and Robert Westall likes to introduce the odd time jump to keep things interesting.
Activity
Think back about the pursuit of Chas through the bushes, over broken glass covered walls and out onto the mudflats.
I’d like you to rewrite an account of what happened when Chas and Boddser confront each other. Remember to use powerful adjectives to describe feelings (both mental and physical). If you use dialogue, take care to ensure that it’s punctuated accurately.
Focused reading
- What do the children get Rudi to do for them and what does Rudi want in return?
- Why does Robert Westall suggest that they were no longer children?
- What is a cul-de-sac?
- Why do you think Stan Liddell went round to both boys’ houses?
Science
This week, we will be looking at how the fossil record helps us understand evolutionary relationships.
I’d like you to ‘walk’ around on all fours. Before humans evolved, early common ancestors with other mammals walked on all fours, but that the fossil record tells us that early humans (australopithecines and homo species) ‘evolved’ to walk on two legs (anatomical evidence, but also bipedal footprint fossils). Can you suggest any advantages to being able to walk on two legs that this might have given early humans? (ability to pick foodstuffs from low branches, freeing hands to carry food, hold tools, carry babies, etc. enabling early humans to appear larger and more intimidating, see predators more easily, and helping early humans to move over wide, open landscapes quickly and efficiently) and disadvantages (e.g. back pain and other skeletal problems, less ability to climb steep slopes (see goats for a good example of this) or trees, more easily seen by predators). So although there are some disadvantages, in terms of survival, the advantages (literally!) outweigh them.
Bipedalism is a unique evolution in terms of the great apes and contributed to helping humans to survive in a diverse range of environments. As ‘great apes’ we are related to other primates (the chimpanzee is our closest living relative with around 97% identical DNA), we did NOT evolve from them – we share a common ancestor from about 14 million years ago. Evolution is not a straightforward linear process and that many species become extinct along the way (see hominid evolution diagram), often simply being ‘related’ rather than direct ancestors.
Have a look at the tree of life video then think about how you would order a set of biscuits, ordering them by complexity (You could have simple digestives to biscuits with an added ingredient; then maybe layers; and eventually layers and chocolate coated). By laying out the biscuits and drawing a ‘v’ between the most complex (and closely related) biscuits and then drawing relative links between all biscuits as per the example (see resources), we are identifying ‘common ancestors’ and features that ‘evolved’ – this is called a cladogram.
Why do some early biscuits continue to be popular today and others aren’t (digestives keep well, are not too rich or indulgent, and don’t melt. They are also great to dunk in tea! So overall they are a success story and are fit for purpose). This happens in nature too (e.g. cockroaches – they have changed over time, through evolution, but the basic ‘model’ remains the same, as with ferns). It is not always the strongest or most successful at that moment in time that necessarily survives long term, but the most adaptable – see bacteria!
Activity
You will be exploring how scientists examine the fossil record and make connections between species that ultimately lead to evolutionary theories. Explore the evolution of birds here. Once you have completed the activities and demonstrated an understanding on the final section, try to create your own simple cladogram using animals alive today (see instructional video). Choose your own animals, or use the ones in the video example. Then watch whale evolution video to see how the fossil record has enabled scientists to infer how these creatures evolved.
Evolution resources
Have a good day.
Mr Chiverton
Maths answers
Year-6-Spring-Block-2-Step-2-VF-Equivalent-FDP-5
Year-6-Spring-Block-2-Step-2-RPS-Equivalent-FDP-5