At Gordon Primary School we are writing a yr5/6 unit of work based Hiroshima. This unit of work will look at the reason for Japan being involved in WWII, the effects of the atomic bomb and the aftermath of the bomb. Students will complete a variety of engaging, empathetic activities with the aim of gaining a greater understanding of the Japanese culture and ultimately changing their attitude towards learning Japanese.
We have carried out our initial pre data, where we observed that while our focus students had small understanding about Hiroshima, they were unable to connect the images to their emotions. As you can see in the attached pre data (Student focus 1) they only described the images and did not write about their feelings. At the end of this unit we are hoping that these students will be able to empathise with the images after gaining a more indepth understanding of the situation.

Student Focus 1 - This student is an 11yr old boy in year 6 who is a low academic student and struggles to focus in class. He has difficultly soundings out words and reading and also struggles following simple instructions. It is our hope that through participating in this project, that student 1 will become engaged and produce work that is of a higher quality and will also be able to describe and empathise with the effects of the atomic bomb.

Student Focus 2 - This student is an 11yr old boy in year 6 of middle range academic ability. In the past this child has not engaged with any Japanese lesson, however we have found he enjoys learning about historical events. It is our hope that student focus 2 will become engaged with this unit, and want to continue his learning about the Japanese cultural.

Student Focus 3- This student is a 10 yr old girl in year 5 with a strong academic ability. Despit her academic skills this child lacks the ability to describe her own feelings and empathise with other people. The focus for this child, through the unit of work, will be developing her empathetic abilities and it is our hope that she will begin to relate to other people and their situations.