Leaders is an exciting time for the children at Sleights as they are the oldest children in school. Leaders class includes children from Year 6. They are taught by Mrs Porter and supported by Mr Everall in their own building on the school playground.
In Leaders, children are taught maths and English daily and they also gather together with the rest of the school in collective worship.
Children in Leaders class love to read. The children are very lucky to have an amazing school and class library, filled with a diverse range of books that they can enjoy reading for pleasure. Children also enjoy listening to the class story at the end of each school day. In addition to reading for pleasure, Leaders also enjoy sharing a range of texts during whole class reading sessions, where they have the opportunity to read fiction, non-fiction and poetry texts as well as a whole class reading book. Reading at home is also incredibly important. Please record the reading that your child does at home in their reading record and ensure that this, alongside their individual reading book, is in school every day.
Children in Leaders class are very lucky to be taught by specialist teachers throughout the week. On a Tuesday, children will have swimming lessons at the Leisure Centre in Whitby. Children will continue to bring home their instruments to practice throughout the week and these will need to be returned on a Thursday morning ready for music with Ralph. Computing with Mrs Gurney will also take place on a Wednesday afernoon,
Each week, homework will be set on Sumdog on a Thursday. Children will also receive spellings every two weeks; these will be sent home on a Thursday. Spellings tests will happen on the second Wednesday.
Our class blog will be updated each week so keep an eye on this for exciting updates throughout the term.
Tuesday 9th June 2020
Good Morning Leaders
Although not quite as sunny, at least it was dry yesterday, I hope you all managed to get outside for a walk again.
All the rain will make the plants grow but unfortunately, it will also make the weeds grow too so you might need to top up your knowledge on which are weeds and which are your seedlings.
We will all have grown very green fingers if our plants produce fruit and flowers. ??
Rain Before Rainbows – English
Many of you have taken part in the Eskdale Festival at some point and I would like us to imagine you are taking part in your own festival today.
Adding you list to the lines from yesterday, read your additional lines aloud.
Have a go at videoing yourself and watch it back – you might want to do this more than once to see I if you can make your expression or fluency better.
Upload your video if you would like to, I’d love to see you performing your new lines.
Money – Maths
Think about the difference between a need and a want.
Today, look at the notes and split them into the categories of need and want. Can you name anything where the distinction between a need and a want is not always clear?
https://natwest.mymoneysense.com/students/students-8-12/how-a-bank-works/
Night Before Daybreak – Geography
I would like you to pick a time of the day and then record what time it is in different countries at the same time. Pick 9 other countries to put in your list.
Is there a pattern to the times in different countries? Follow the link to find out more about time zones.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/zvsfr82/articles/zjk46v4
Monday 8th June 2020
Good Morning Leaders
I hope you have all had a good weekend albeit much colder than it has been recently. The gardens will be thankful although let’s hope the sun returns soon.
We are going to be using a beautiful book called ‘Rain before Rainbows’ for some of our learning and we will be investigating the themes that it contains. You might have seen a rainbow over the weekend, heard thunder or even seen hailstones (in June!). There will be lots of things to talk about and we will start off today with a ‘big question’.
Happy chatting.?
Rain Before Rainbows – English
This week we are going to be using a beautiful book called ‘Rain Before Rainbows’ which you can hear being fully read on a different post.
Here are a few lines from the book;
Rain before rainbows, Clouds before sun.
Night before daybreak. The old day is done.
See if you can find any other pairs of things where one would come before the other. Make a list of the ones you can think of.
Money – Maths
This week we are going to be focussing on money and using some of the MoneySense activities from NatWest
Today, you are going to find out more about how a bank works. Use the link below to find out more.
https://natwest.mymoneysense.com/students/students-8-12/how-a-bank-works/
Big Questions
Having time at home and being made to slow down often makes us look at things more closely. It makes us ask questions and notice smaller things that we might not notice in our busy lives.
Today, I’d like you to talk about one of these big questions with your family. Remember that not everyone might have the same answer or opinion.
Where in the world would you like to be right now? Why?
There is no need to record anything, just take time to talk to each other.
Friday 5th June 2020
Good Morning Leaders
‘Thank Crunchie it’s Friday’, was used on a television advert which has always stuck in my head.
With that mind, I thought we’d have a bit of a chocolate theme to our topic task for today in the hope that you will have something to enjoy with your families over the weekend.
Happy Friday everyone.
Graphic Novel – English
Today is your last day to complete your novel (unless you want to continue over the weekend) and conclude your story.
I can’t wait to see them!
Happy drawing. ✏️
Function Machines – Maths
Today, we are going to take away the function machines and replace them with arrows. This will lead to us being able to follow the algebraic expressions.
For example, one expression would be 5x+12
Complete the equations if x=5, x=11 and x=24
Chocolate Bar Baking
As it’s Friday, (and possibly raining ?) I thought we’d get back in the kitchen. Have you ever cooked using your favourite chocolate bar?
Today, I’d like you to see if you can find a recipe using your favourite bar and have a go at making it. I’ve attached some ideas if you’d like to use them.
Kit Kat – http://jensfavoritecookies.com/2015/03/23/crispy-kit-kat-blondies/
Bounty – https://www.janespatisserie.com/2016/09/09/no-bake-bounty-cheesecake/
Mint Aero – http://maverickbaking.com/aero-mint-chocolate-brownies/
Crunchie – http://shewhobakes.co.uk/recipes/crunchie-shortbread-biscuits/
Thursday 4th June 2020
Good Morning Leaders
Oh dear – where did the sunshine go, I wonder? Let’s hope it returns soon although our gardens will be glad of the rain and I know that lots of you have been planting so keep an eye on how quickly the water will make things grow. With water in mind, ? I thought we’d have a go at something water based this afternoon – can’t wait to see your creations.
Maybe we could have our own boat race!
Graphic Novel – English
Continue working on your graphic novel so that you have a complete story by Friday.
Happy drawing. ✏️
Function Machines – Maths
Today, we are going to include algebraic expressions in our function machines. This may sound difficult but it’s not!
You are just going to use ‘n’ to express your number, which means that ‘n’ can stand for any number that you decide to use to put through the function machines.
Rubber band Boats
Have a go at making a boat propelled by a rubber band. You should be able to attach the sticks enough without necessarily needing glue if you use more rubber bands. If you don’t have spoons, see what else you could use to propel your boat; strong card or plastic from a carton
How fast can you make your boat travel? Which is the best design bottle to choose?
Wednesday 3rd June 2020
Good Morning Leaders
Mr Grason has sent out details of this year’s summer reading challenge although it is starting earlier than normal on the 5th June. This year’s theme is Silly Squad and is all about funny books, happiness and having a laugh!
To complete the challenge you just need to read six books that make you happy – whether it be a comic, joke book, poetry, fiction or non-fiction, in digital or print format, from e-books borrowed from the library or from what you already have at home.
North Yorkshire Libraries are still closed for the moment but there are a terrific selection of children’s’ eBooks and eAudiobooks available to download for free. A library card and PIN is needed to download them but if you are not yet a member it’s easy to join – just call call 01609 533878.
It would be fantastic to see ALL Leaders part of the summer reading challenge – I know how much you all love a good giggle! ?
Graphic Novel – English
From your story plan, decide how many pictures you are going to need to tell your story. Remember that you might want to have a page with a full picture or, like The Arrival, you many have multiple smaller pictures on a page to tell smaller parts.
You will have the next 3 days to put together your graphic novel so take your time to build up the pictures for your story.
Function Machines – Maths
The function machines today include using decimal numbers. Can you work out the functions of the machines? Do you think this makes them harder?
Fact File Top Trumps
We have all been enjoying time outside in the wonderful weather so I thought it might be a good idea to use some of the things that we have probably seen on our travels.
Today, I would like you to make a fact file or Top Trump card about something you have seen, it may be an animal or an insect – the choice is yours. ? ? ?
You might want to make a few different ones to make your own Top Trump card game.
Tuesday 2nd June 2020
Good Morning Leaders
Yet another lovely day yesterday – I hope you managed to enjoy the sunshine as well as getting back into doing some of the activities set yesterday. Well done everyone. I really like how some of you are now using Tapestry as a dialogue for your learning – you are truly empowered, it’s awesome.?
Graphic Novel Plan – English
Today we are going to plan our graphic novel. Remember that you are going to need to be able to tell the story, including emotion, in pictures with very little, if any, text. It might be a good idea to start with quite a simple theme – you can always add more on at the end.
You can use your preferred method of story planning for this task.
Function Machines – Maths
Have a look at the function machines. Find out what happens to the number through the first machine and then what happens through the second to get to the final number.
Animal Adaptations – Science
Today, we are going to explore how animals adapt to their surroundings. We will look at how animals change their environment if they cannot adapt. In our investigation we will look at the effect of insulation on temperature.
You will need: an empty cereal box, a thermometer (either a medical or a kitchen thermometer), a plastic clear cup, some cotton wool or other types of material like paper or old clothes and some water.
Watch the video below. Remember you can watch it multiple times if needed or save the activity until you have the resources required.
Monday 1st June 2020
Good Morning Leaders
I hope you have all had a nice week and enjoyed the fantastic weather. I’d love to know what you have all been doing and I’m looking forward to catching up with families this week to hear all about your adventures.
Graphic Novels – English
We are going to use all our artistic skills this week, having a go at creating our own graphic novel.
Today, I’d like you investigate different graphic novels to give you some ideas of how they work and how they can be used.
Here are some to get you started although they are books where the pages have been made into clips for you to watch.
The Arrival, Shaun Tan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAay4myoEDE
Journey, Aaron Becker https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRsmuveKWuk
Visualising Shape – Maths
In Maths this week, we are going to look at shape. I thought we’d wake up our brains with a little problem solving. Have a go at seeing how much paint you will need to cover the blocks.
Happy Painting. ?
Computational Thinking – ICT
You have probably seen these types of puzzles before where numbers have been replaced by symbols. Have a go at using your logical skills to solve the problem.
Good luck!
Thursday’s Learning Suggestion – Plastic Bottle Bird Feeder

Friday 21st May 2020
Good Morning Leaders.
Another beautiful day! Can you believe it’s half term already? I’m not sure where the weeks have gone but it does mean that you can either have a week doing activities with your families or you might like to try one of the activities that will be posted over the course of the week.
If you’ve ever wondered what something is on your daily exercise, now is the time to find out. Have a look at the WWF BioBlitz activity and you can download a spotter app for free.
Happy spotting!
English
Writing a letter to your children or grandchildren.
We often hear older people say ‘when I was a child…’
Today, I’d like you to imagine you are that person and write a letter to your next generation. You might want to start your letter with that phrase.
Maths
Percentage Puzzles
Today it’s time for you to put your fractions and percentages together to have a go at writing some riddles.
Mug Cake – D&T/Science
As it’s Friday I thought it might be nice to have a treat. Make this delicious chocolate mug cake and learn about the science of Microwaves ovens. Experiment with the other ingredients to customize your mug cake. What will you add to give it a whole new flavour?!
https://www.kiwico.com/diy/Science-Projects-for-Kids/3/project/Magic-Mug-Cake/3025
Thursday 21st May 2020
Good Morning Leaders.
Yippee, what a beautiful day yesterday – fingers crossed for more sunshine today! It should be a good day to spot animals and insects to help with your drawings.
Don’t forget to water all those seedlings in such hot weather – watering the pot rather than the plant otherwise you may burn the leaves.
Happy spotting!
English
Writing a letter to yourself!
Sounds like a strange idea but I’d like you to write a letter to yourself talking about what is currently happening. We are then going to bury or hide your letter (like a time capsule) for you to come back to later. You may decide to look back in a year, or when you leave secondary school or even when you leave home – that’s a long way away!
Maths
Percentage Puzzles
Using your knowledge of percentages can you solve the riddles?
Pencil Drawing – Art
Today, we are going to look at adding colour to our animal.
It is a good idea to build up the colour as you go to get the tones you want. Remember the amount of pressure you put on your colour will often by the darker the colour shows.
If you’d like to, you can once again follow this video showing you a butterfly with colour.