Attendance This Week

Merlins -  93%
Kestrels -  96%
Kingfishers - 92%
Skylarks - 93%
Wrens - 98%

Overall school attendance - 95 %

This week we started our new topic "Marvellous Minibeasts". We began by investigating what plants need to grow. We planted some seeds in different conditions and now we need to be very patient and see which ones will grow. We made some predictions about what we think will happen.

In maths, we have had a very busy week exploring 3D (solid) shapes. We have looked at their properties through sorting, printing and building activities. We also enjoyed a 3D shape hunt around the school and were amazed at how many different shapes we found.  Maybe you could have a 3D shape hunt at home. We would love to see some photographs of what you find.

In RE, we have started a new topic on God.  This week we went out on a nature hunt using our binoculars and magnifying glasses to help us explore the natural world. We then asked the question "Where did it all come from?" The children did some excellent thinking and came up with some well reasoned ideas in response.

In PE, we have started a new scheme of work on "Games" which will cover the skills required to play different games including working as a member of a team, following the rules and keeping score.

The children have now moved onto Phase 4 in phonics.  They will not be learning any new sounds in this phase but instead learn to read combinations of the sounds they already know including consonant clusters.  Phase 4 does contain many "tricky" (non-phonetic) words so please continue to practise these weekly with your child using their green phonics book. Thank you.

In English, we began our new book 'How to Hide a Lion'. The children made predictions before we read the story using the front cover and blurb. They have also been sequencing events chronologically from the story. The children then began looking at diary entries and the features included in these. 

In maths, Year 1 have summarised their learning on mass and volume. They have been experimenting and using balancing scales to measure and compare the mass of different objects. Also, they have been learning about volume and capacity and have used water to measure and compare capacity. They have also been working on counting in their 2s, 5s and 10s. Year 2 have been measuring, ordering and comparing in metres and centimetres. They then began learning about mass, where they have compared and measured in grams and kilograms.

In science, we began our new topic of 'Plants'. The children learnt all about what plants were. They also identified some of the key parts of a plant and their functions, such as roots, leaves, flowers and stems. 

DT this week linked nicely with science. Our topic is all about healthy eating and will eventually result in making smoothies. This week, the children were identifying fruits and discussing what makes something a fruit. They explored plates full of different fruits and were able to organise foods into 'fruits' and 'not fruits' and justify their choices.

In English, we have been working on a newspaper report all about the shipwreck and rescue of the central character, Sophie, in our class book Rooftoppers. We have started writing the report that the children will complete next week. 

In maths, we have completed our work on fractions and have started our work on mass and capacity.

In geography, the children started their topic of 'Why are Rainforests important to us?' We began by discussing what biomes are and learning to describe them before moving on to using an atlas to find the location of the Amazon rainforest. This week we looked in more detail at the rainforest and learned about the different layers and the plants and animals that live in each layer.

We have moved on in science this half of term to look at the different states of matter. The children have been investigating the differing viscosity of various ketchup and liquids to ascertain which would be the best on a hotdog stand.  The children had a fantastic time completing a practical in this week's science lesson. We were studying the role of roots and their functions. We spent the majority of the lesson identifying weeds in the school garden and then the children completed scientific diagrams of the root systems they had discovered. 

In RE, we are looking at the Gospels. These are the "Good News" stories of the life of Jesus. This week we looked at the story Levi the Tax Collector becoming a disciple of Jesus.

In English, we have started reading our class book, 'The Wind in the Willows' and are enjoying getting to know the different characters. Our focus is on recounts for the next couple of weeks and we have looked at the feature that this genre of writing uses. The children have recapped their learning about adverbials of time as well as subordinating and coordinating conjunctions, knowledge they will use when writing their recounts.

In maths, we have started converting fractions into decimals. We have been using place value grids to help understand the difference between tenths and hundredths (and thousandths for Y5) and these grids help the children 'see' the difference between them and what each digit of a decimal number is worth.

Over the last two weeks, we have been working hard to consolidate all of our learning in preparation for our sats assessments.

In English, we have explored word class: we have revisited nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, conjunctions, prepositions, pronouns, subject and object, active and passive voice, modal verbs and identifying main and subordinate clauses. Alongside this, we have been honing our reading skills. This week we have practised answering 3 mark questions which involve giving evidence from the text and using impression and evidence to best answer complex questions about character.

In maths this week, we have been focusing on the topic of measurement. The children have learnt how to calculate the area and perimeter of any shape including compound shapes. As well as this, they have been calculating volume of cubes and cuboids. Later in the week, we moved on to measuring and classifying angles as well as calculating the angles within triangles and quadrilaterals. Next week we will be looking at how to calculate missing angles in shapes and around a point.

In science, we have started our topic of 'Animals, including Humans'. Our first lesson was all about the life cycle of humans and we had some interesting discussions regarding the different stages of life and what these entailed! This week, we were looking at how we develop in the womb. We looked at ultrasound scans and the amount of detail that they show. The children were surprised to learn that a 12-week-old foetus is the size of a lime!

In art, we have started our 'Still Life' topic. The children were focussing on trying to capture light, dark, shadow and texture in their sketching of fruit and vegetables as well as drawing with shade and tone when creating a 3D image on a flat surface.

In geography, we have begun our new topic of deserts. In this topic so far the children have learnt about the different biomes around the world and what separates them from one another. We have focused upon the characteristics of a desert and have been surprised to learn that deserts can also be cold as well as hot. The focus of our learning has been on the Mojave Desert in California. The children have written postcards describing what an experience in this desert would be like as well as identifying the largest deserts around the world, comparing their climates and trying to understand exactly why their hot seasons differ so much.