DT

In our textiles topic, we explored and evaluated real textile products, considering how they look, how they are used and their impact on the environment. We investigated how pattern pieces are used to create fabric items by deconstructing a bag and developed our own design ideas through labelled drawings and diagrams, carefully planning how pattern pieces would fit together. We created and tested prototype pattern pieces before making a prototype bag from our design. Using suitable fabrics and materials, we measured, cut, folded and joined fabric to create accurate 3D shapes. We practised joining materials securely with stitches or knots and some of us added decorative features to improve appearance and function. Finally, we evaluated our finished product against the design criteria, suggesting possible improvements that could be made and looking for positives that we would want to include in other projects.

Geography 

To complete our Geography topic, we carried out practical fieldwork in Pocket Park to collect and record data. We completed three tally charts in three different locations, carefully numbering each site so it matched our sketch maps. At each area, we recorded the types of litter we found and took photographs of litter, plants and any evidence of animals.

Science

Year 6 have been learning about Charles Darwin and how he observed that finches on different Galápagos Islands had different beak shapes and sizes. These variations helped them survive by being adapted to the food available on each island. We explored the idea of natural selection (survival of the fittest) and carried out a practical investigation to model this. Using tweezers and our fingers as different “beaks”, we tested which type could pick up the most rice in 10 seconds. We repeated the test and calculated the mean average to make our results more reliable. We found that some “beaks” were better adapted than others and discussed how this links to survival and reproduction in the wild.