Literacy and maths information evening for parents Wednesday 24 th September 2014

What is Literacy? Learning to read, write and spell, together with general speaking and listening skills, are called Literacy at primary school.

What is Mathematics? Using and applying – problem solving Counting and understanding number Knowing and using number facts Calculation Understanding shape Measuring Handling data

What do the levels mean? End of Year 2:Level 2 Higher abilityLevel 3 End of Year 6:Level 4 Higher abilityLevel 5 and 6

How are levels assessed? Maths – a mixture of teacher assessment and the completion of formal papers for all year groups. Literacy – writing is assessed through teacher assessment. Reading is a mixture of teacher assessment and formal papers. Gaps test -Year 6 will sit papers in reading, grammar, spelling, written and mental maths.

Speaking and listening Progress in English is enhanced through talking Talk for writing Storytelling Debate Drama Discussion Presentations

Reading Choose subjects your child prefers - factual books or stories. Look for words in everyday life, not just books. Read newspaper headlines, shop signs or menus in cafes. Discuss the storyline together, make predictions. Talk about character motivations. Reading should be fun – that way it will be more effective. Here are some tips:

Reading Of all the help you can give your child, the most important job you’ll probably do is helping with reading. That’s because you can teach reading on a one-to-one basis, so giving your child a bit of shared reading time every day will make a big difference. Even older, more able pupils benefit form this support as wider reading skills can be taught through questions and discussion. Read anything and everything especially non – fiction texts.

Writing As with other subjects learned in school, writing skills can be improved when integrated into a child's home life. There are many things that parents can do to encourage a love of writing in their children and to provide them the regular practice they need to become proficient in this area. Do refer to your child’s writing targets at the back of their reading records and feel free to let us know in book diaries what you are doing.

Writing genres As a school all children are taught to write: Narrative this includes stories with familiar settings Plays Myths and legends and traditional tales Adventure and mystery stories About significant authors and letters

Writing genres Non fiction including: Reports Instructions Information texts and poetry

Writing Handwriting All children are taught handwriting in school. Year 6 are practising a cursive style and are working towards their ‘pen licenses’. Please encourage pupils to present their homework to the best of their abilities at all times, this reinforces good habits.

Writing and spelling Spellings - All children have spellings to learn. There is now a KS2 scheme that year 6 will be starting soon. Children have spellings linked to the specific phonics pattern they are learning in class. All children will be directly taught regular spelling patterns in class.

Maths Ma1: Using and Applying Problem Solving Communicating Reasoning Ma2: Number Numbers and the number system Fractions, decimals, percentages, ratio and proportion Operations and relationships between them Mental, written and calculator methods Solving numerical problems Algebra

Maths Ma3: Shape, Space and Measures Properties of shape Properties of position and movement Measuring Ma4: Handling Data Processing and representing data Interpreting data and discussing results

Maths Year 6 Key Objectives Express one quantity as a percentage of another (e.g. express £400 as a percentage of £1000); find equivalent percentages, decimals and fractions Use knowledge of place value and multiplication facts to 10 × 10 to derive related multiplication and division facts involving decimals (e.g. 0.8 × 7, 4.8 ÷ 6) Use efficient written methods to add and subtract integers and decimals, to multiply and divide integers and decimals by a one digit integer, and to multiply two-digit and three-digit integers by a two-digit integer Visualise and draw on grids of different types where a shape will be after reflection, after translations, or after rotation through 90° or 180° about its centre or one of its vertices Select and use standard metric units of measure and convert between units using decimals to two places (e.g. change 2.75 litres to 2750 ml, or vice versa) Solve problems by collecting, selecting, processing, presenting and interpreting data, using ICT where appropriate; draw conclusions and identify further questions to ask Year 6 Using and Applying Mathematics Solve multi-step problems, and problems involving fractions, decimals and percentages; choose and use appropriate calculation strategies at each stage, including calculator use Tabulate systematically the information in a problem or puzzle; identify and record the steps or calculations needed to solve it, using symbols where appropriate; interpret solutions in the original context and check their accuracy Suggest, plan and develop lines of enquiry; collect, organise and represent information, interpret results and review methods; identify and answer related questions Represent and interpret sequences, patterns and relationships involving numbers and shapes; suggest and test hypotheses; construct and use simple expressions and formulae in words then symbols (e.g. the cost of c pens at 15 pence each is 15c pence) Explain reasoning and conclusions, using words, symbols or diagrams as appropriate

Maths What can you be doing at home to help your child? Practise times tables Discuss maths when you are out shopping (What does 50% off mean? Have you got enough money for that? How much more do you need? How much change have you been given?) Practise number facts together (What do I need to add to 65 to make 100?) Encourage your child to help with cooking; measuring for carpets/curtains; planning a day out; etc Look at timetables for buses/trains and help your child to read the time on analogue and digital clocks Easter ‘starter for 10’ Refer to the Maths Booklet for more ideas…

Useful websites for maths and literacy iteracy.shtml iteracy.shtml

Useful websites for maths and literacy Year 5 to Year 6 (Supporting success in Literacy) k/node/ k/node/65002

Homework activities Supported homework has the best outcomes-even if that’s checking with your child-letting them explain what they did to get to their answer. GR homework will focus on comprehension, please discuss texts and questions with your child. Spelling-signed by a parent. Reading for pleasure-share a novel together.

Parent leaflets We have available a set of support leaflets, all of these will be placed on the school website. The leaflets outline the objectives to be covered, useful terms and targets in reading and writing for each year group. The maths parent guide outlines the written methods the school uses to teach each of the operations (+,-,x and division.)

You can make a difference, your year 6 needs you!!