Year 3
Opps.... we have had a small technical issue!! The year 3 update will be sent out next week. Apologies
Year 4
'It's starting to look a lot like Christmas' and it has been a lovely week around school, with Reception and KS1 performing their nativities, ensuring we don't forget the 'reason for the season'. The Christmas lunch was absolutely lovely. Once again, the kitchen really pulled out all the stops. What an amazing array of Christmas tops on display today! The children have done really well to keep it all contained when they have needed to. Well done them.
In our learning this week:
Maths – we have continued looking at multiplying and dividing by 10 and 100, and no, it's not just adding or removing a zero! Ask your child why?
English – we have continued with our non-chronological reports.
Topic – we looked at how Alfred became King.
French – the children completed their crossword from last week, looking at food, making sure they were using the right tense and if the food was masculine or feminine. Then they started looking at a story written in French that they then translated into English.
RE – we continued looking at Islam and discussed the importance of Prophet Muhammed.
DT – the children prepared their pieces ready for sewing next week!
Christmas crafts were dotted throughout the week, including making the Christingles ready for Church on Sunday.
We will still be learning next week and won't be 'Christmasing' until the end of the week. On Friday 19th December, the children are invited to bring a game or toy to school. They will need to be willing to share with others, and it is not to be a digital toy.
I hope you had a lovely time at the fair,
Have a great weekend,
Mrs Chittock and the Year 4 team.
Year 5
William has finally been crowned in our historical saga of 1066. Fun festive fact - he was crowned on Christmas day! Although he is now the king, he does not feel safe upon his throne. He had over 1,000 Motte and Bailey castles built all over his new kingdom to help defend it from threats (of which there were several).
Y5 should be able to tell you all about the different parts of the castle, and some of the advantages and disadvantages. We also had a go at analysing some historical sources for bias. We decided that even though the Bayeux Tapestry was paid for by William's half brother, it is a reliable source.
In Maths this week, we have gone back to short multiplication, this time multiplying 3-digit and 4-digit numbers. There were actual cheers from some member of Y5 when they realised they could multiply really big numbers! In English, we have been looking at argument texts.
We have analysed a text entitled "Edward the Confessor was not to blame for the crisis in 1066" for text specific features. This is where they learnt the phrase "wholly unjust" - I've heard that's made it home into a few sibling squabbles! We also wrote some trait, trait, trait questions (a sentence structure we hope the children will include in their own argument pieces next week!)
In Science, the children conducted an experiment testing the durability of paper, which was much more exciting than it sounds! The children are getting very good at listing and controlling all the variables they might encounter in their experiments, and knowing when they've lost control of one (less dramatic than it sounds).
In Computing, children had a go at designing their own Mars Rover on TinkerCAD. They came up with some very imaginative designs and remembered to include all the features and accessories that their Rover would need to be successful on Mars.
One week to go! Have a great weekend,
Miss Rutter, Mrs Grosvenor and Mrs Marsh
Year 6
This week in English, the children have been writing powerful free verse poetry inspired by the Blitz, exploring how imagery and emotion can be used to convey historical events. Alongside this, they have begun planning a Blitz-inspired flashback narrative, carefully thinking about how memories from the past can be woven into a story.
In maths, we have continued to develop our understanding of multiplication and division of fractions, building confidence through a range of fluency and reasoning activities.
Our history learning focused on some of the key battles of World War Two, helping the children to deepen their understanding of the wider context of the war and its global impact.
In RE, we learnt about the importance of Zakat in Islam and how it is used to support those in need, encouraging thoughtful discussion about charity, responsibility and compassion.
In computing, the children continued to build their own websites using Google Sites, developing their digital design skills and learning how to organise information clearly and effectively.
Home learning this week will focus on consolidating maths learning from the past three weeks. We are also sending home Christmas home learning, which will be due on the first Wednesday back after the holidays.
Today, we were lucky to welcome Mrs Gladstone for a session in our Careers’ Corner. This is something that is hugely beneficial for the children; they are a marvellous audience and are always fascinated by learning about different career paths. If you would like to come in and share the route you took into your job — whatever it may be — we would be delighted to welcome you.
Have a super weekend!
Nuala Gilmore
