Year 3
We had a truly wonderful visit to Audley End House and Gardens on Wednesday. The children enjoyed exploring the grand house, learning about what life was like ‘upstairs’ for the family and ‘downstairs’ for the servants. They were fascinated by thinking about who lived there and the important visitors who came to stay - this links beautifully to our new history topic, which we are excited to begin. There was plenty of fun to be had, too, in the stables and the playpark. Staff and volunteers at Audley End were quick to comment on how well-behaved the children were and how inquisitive they are. Do look at the photos on the school website!
A quick reminder from Mrs Manning: please send your child to school in their PE kit on Monday.
Apologies, I forgot to upload last week’s spellings to EdShed – this week’s are on! Please do encourage your children to practise them, as well as Times Table Rockstars.
In Maths, we completed our fractions unit. The children worked hard on identifying unit and non-unit fractions of quantities, solving calculations and word problems, and finished the week with a consolidation task - everyone did well.
In English, we completed our ‘invent’ writing, where the children described Mary Lennox’s character with great detail. Alongside this, we revisited key grammar skills such as using conjunctions (because, when, if), writing expanded noun phrases, punctuating direct speech, and identifying prefixes and suffixes
In Science, we finished our seed germination investigation. The children carefully recorded their observations and drew conclusions about what plants need to grow well.
In French, we learned how to say “I am” – Je suis – and practised completing sentences with jobs or animals, such as Je suis footballeur or je suis un lapin. We practised the ‘j’ sound, too.
In Music with Miss Spinks, the children created storyboards for their own compositions inspired by David Bowie’s Space Odyssey. In PE, they began practising events ready for Sports Day with Mrs Crook.
In Geography, the children created posters explaining the physical and human geographical reasons why Newmarket is the perfect location for the horse racing industry.
We also enjoyed a calm and focused session in D&T, where the children produced some beautiful rows of running stitch.
Have a great weekend. I may risk it and attempt a barbecue…
Miss Murphy and the Year 3 team
Year 4
Wow what a week! Firstly may I say how very proud I am of the whole class. The first residential trip is never easy, I could tell who were cubs and brownies! They all managed really well, to sleep in a room with several other people in a different environment is quite tricky but they all did well. They fully engaged with all the activities even if they were unsure to start of with, and there were some really good team skills demonstrated. Meal times they shared nicely and helped one another. They were great at setting and clearing the tables. The staff at Burwell commented on how polite and well behaved the children were and that they had really good listening skills. It was a pleasure to take them all. Now the nerves of a residential have been eradicated they have the excitement of next year's 2 night residential to look forward to.
In our learning this week – (not at Burwell House!)
Maths – we have started looking at negative numbers and time, particularly hours, minutes and seconds.
English – we have been looking at prepositional phrases being used as sentence openers and with expanded noun phrases. On Wednesday the children did reading comprehension about why the climate is changing.
Science – They have started looking at states of matter; solid, liquid, gas.
Music – the children wrote their score for the body percussion representing a rainforest.
Topic – the children finished their newspaper article about a volcano erupting.
Dates for the diary;-
MONDAY 27th APRIL - your child needs to come to school in their PE kit. We have swapped PE to Monday because on Thursday afternoon the class are involved in a musical workshop.
Thursday 7th May - Playground Proms - a visiting comedy string quartet 'Grafitti Classics' will be entertaining the children with a playground (weather permitting, if not hall) proms.
Thursday 21st May - Reading Cafe.
Have a lovely weekend
Mrs Chittock and the year 4 team
Year 5
I’m finally back in my emails!
On Tuesday, we had our first Playmakers session. This is a course that helps children develop their leadership and communication skills by training them to be game leaders. In the first session, children set themselves targets and were taught the principles of PACE (Participants, Area, Communication, Equipment). They then headed out to play some games and think about how they could adapt the game for different groups of people. Playmakers will happen every Tuesday this half-term.
In History this week we looked at Victoria’s childhood and how this would have shaped her personality. Despite being born and raised a princess, she did not have an easy childhood. In PSHE, we discussed drugs. We talked about what drugs are, why some are legal and others are illegal, and which drugs have a positive effect on the human body. It was a very interesting discussion, particularly when we discussed vaping.
In Science, we learnt about how the human body changes as we age, with a focus on puberty. Again, lots of interesting discussions. Feel free to bounce any questions back to us if you’d rather not answer them. Trust me, I’ll have answered it before!
In English, we have started to look at Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist. We read an extract from chapter 2 (the “Please Sir, can I have some more?” scene) and researched some of the beautiful vocabulary he had used. We then looked at some photos and drawings of different workhouse activities to learn a bit more about what went on in them. We then watched the first part of Oliver , before planning a recount of a visit to a workhouse. The children worked really hard to write up their recounts, taking inspiration from everything they had seen.
In maths, we’ve been problem-solving. We have had a go at some very tricky puzzles that tested our perseverance (particularly the impossible question I’d accidentally included).
Have a lovely weekend,
Miss Rutter, Mrs Grosvenor & Mrs Marsh.
Year 6
It has been another busy and productive week in Year 6. We have now completed our unit of work on algebra—well done to the children for their hard work and resilience throughout this topic. We are now turning our attention to revising the key maths skills taught across Key Stage Two, ensuring everyone feels confident and well-prepared.
In English, we have continued to develop our reading skills, focusing on comprehension and inference. Alongside this, the children have written another assessed piece: a diary entry written in role as the main character from our class narrative. It has been fantastic to see the depth of understanding and creativity in their writing.
In History, we explored the impact of the Dissolution of the Monasteries, considering what it meant for England as a whole and more locally for Bury St Edmunds. The children engaged thoughtfully with how these changes affected people at the time.
In PSHE, we discussed loyalty and trust, exploring different scenarios and thinking carefully about when it might be necessary to break trust out of loyalty—particularly when concerned for a friend’s safety. This led to some very mature and reflective conversations.
In RE, we learned about the purpose of a synagogue and compared Orthodox and Reform synagogues. We also spent time looking at some of the world’s most famous religious buildings, marvelling at how opulent and ornate they are.
Home Learning:
This weekend’s homework is in two parts:
- A SPaG task on spag.com (we have checked that all pupils can access this)
- Creating a mind map of key facts about their hobby
We hope you like the hoodies and T-shirts—there was certainly a real buzz of excitement when they arrived! A huge thank you to the office team for organising and managing all the payments so smoothly.
SATs Week Arrangements and Key Information
As has become part of our Year 6 tradition, we are asking that children arrive in school by 8:10am each day during SATs week. This gives us valuable time to support the children—going over any last-minute questions, settling nerves and ensuring everyone feels calm and confident before the tests begin.
We will provide a light snack, and it is always a really positive and supportive time to spend together. (Unfortunately, we are unable to accommodate younger siblings during this time.)
The tests will take place from Monday to Thursday week commencing 11th May 2026.
Monday - English grammar, spelling and punctuation
Tuesday - English reading
Wednesday - Arithmetic and reasoning 2
Thursday - Reasoning 3
On the Friday, we are planning a themed celebration (details to be announced), which is always a real highlight and a lovely way to mark the children’s hard work.
After SATs have finished, we will be continuing with our learning as normal. There is still a significant amount of writing to complete as part of the end of Key Stage assessment, so it is certainly not a case of ‘downing tools’. This remains an important and purposeful part of the term.
Looking ahead, we will soon be announcing the audition date for our production, which will take place just before half-term. Children who audition and are given larger parts will receive their scripts on the Thursday we break up.
Finally, I have now been contacted by a number of secondary schools requesting information about your child, including their learning profile, strengths, areas for development, engagement, attitude and behaviour. If you have made—or are planning to make—any changes to your child’s allocated secondary school, please email me as soon as possible, as I do not wish to share information with a school your child will no longer be attending.
Thank you, as always, for your continued support.
Mrs Gilmore
