Term 4

Maths:

In Maths this term we have been exploring money. We have learnt to recognise different coins and notes and compare different amounts. We have practiced finding different ways to make the same amount as well as working out the amount of change needed if we were in a shop buying something.  We have begun our next topic of multiplication and division and are looking forward to learning our 2’s, 5’s and 10 times tables.

English:

This term in English, we have been writing a first-person adventure narrative based on a sea rescue. We first learnt our model text, using our talk for writing approach, about Grace Darling and her father rescuing survivors from a shipwreck and bringing them back to the safety of their lighthouse. We then adapted this story to make our own adventure narrative. The children were very creative in their ideas and there seem to be many great storytellers amongst us!

Topic:

We have continued our topic of ‘coastlines’ this term focusing on tourism and learning about what coastal towns have to offer the people that visit. After our trip to Whitstable last term we have been comparing it to another coastal town called Whitby. Thinking about the different accommodation, catering and entertainment amenities there to aid tourism. We considered the question ‘Would Whitstable be a good place to go for a summer holiday?’ many of us agreed yes, as we noticed there are many places to stay, eat and lots of things to do in Whitstable. We also looked at how Whitstable had changed over time. We noticed many differences, looking at a range of photos from the past compared to the present day thinking about the different human features we could see.

Whitstable, Harbour Street:

Spanish:

In Spanish this term our topic has been ‘En la Selva’ which means ‘In the Jungle’, we have learnt the names of different jungle animals including ‘el elefante’ (elephant), el mono (monkey) and others. We have been enjoying learning the song which details what the animals do as well. For example; ‘El leon ruge’ (The lion roars).

Term 3

Maths:

In Maths this term, we have been focusing on shape. We have learnt to recognise a range of 2D and 3D shapes and name them. We identified properties of shape such as how many faces, edges and vertices a 3D shape has. The children have also explored the concept of symmetry, using mirrors to reflect a picture as well as being able to make symmetrical patterns using shapes.

English:

This term in English, our work has been linked to our overarching topic for the term ‘Coastlines’. We have written a coastal description where the children have been able to use their knowledge from our trip to Whitstable as inspiration. Our main focus has been to include a range of adjectives to describe the experience of being by the coast. They have produced some excellent pieces of writing which captured their own experiences

Science:

In Science, we have been studying the uses of materials. We have begun to familiarise ourselves with the different properties that some materials have. We hunted around our classroom to find objects that were made of different materials and discussed which materials were most common in the classroom and why particular objects were made out of a certain material.

Topic:

In our ‘Coastlines’ topic this term we have learnt how to use an atlas to locate different places. We particularly focused on a map of the United Kingdom, recapping our knowledge from Year 1 about countries and capital cities. We learnt about different coastal features so that we could spot them on our trip to Whitstable.  We extended our previous knowledge on maps by learning about the use of keys as well as the 4 compass direction.

Term 2

Maths:

In Maths, we have been working hard on solidifying our understanding of addition and subtraction. We have learnt that there are different methods to being able to solve a calculation, such as crossing 10s where you reach the nearest 10 first then add or subtract the rest of the number. We have used a variety of representations to help us such as number lines, dienes and counters and have built upon our understanding of place value to help us solve number problems.

English:

In English, we have been expanding our learning on significant people. In particular, Neil Armstrong. We first learnt a text through our talk for writing approach associating actions with pictures. We have written a newspaper article detailing the events of the launch to the moon. Learning about who went, parts of the rocket and the checks that needed to be carried out before launching into space. We learnt more about the use of the past tense and that we use this when writing about events that have already happened.

Science:

Our Science topic this term has been ‘Human Survival’. We have studied the human life cycle and have discussed how we all start as babies and as we grow older, we develop from a child, to a teenager to an adult to elderly. We learnt about key process that happen between these stages; birth, growth and reproduction. We have also discussed what humans might need in order to survive such as food, water, air, shelter, space, sleep and love, and which of these we think are the most important to human survival.

Art:

In Art this term, we have been exploring the concept of ‘Still life’ and learning about different significant still life artists including; Paul Cezanne and Vincent Van Gogh. We learnt that still life is a piece of art showing an arrangement of everyday objects. We hosted our own art gallery for the children to explore, learn about different pictures and consider the subject matter of different paintings and what it could mean. We then had a go at creating our own example of a still life piece, copying a famous artist’s picture thinking about the colours we need to use and the composition of the images within the picture.

Term 1

English:

In English, we have been reading various texts and learning about the lives of different significant people. In particular, Mahatma Gandhi and Rosa Parks.  We have been learning how to write a biography for these significant people. The children have learnt that a biography is a written recount of somebody’s life. We looked at the features we need in a biography, such as subheadings, to separate different sections of information. The children had a go at writing their own biography for Rosa Parks and all produced really excellent biographies! Recently, we have moved on to learning about Neil Armstrong and will shortly be writing a newspaper report about his trip to the moon

Maths:

In Maths, we have been focusing on the concept of place value. We have done this by representing numbers to 100 in a variety of ways, using different manipulatives to support our understanding, for example, the use of a place value grid, base 10 equipment as well as a number square. We have concentrated on knowing how many tens and how many ones are in a number indicating their place value. 

Science:

Our Science topic this term has been ‘Habitats’ focusing on the key enquiry question ‘How do different habitats support plant and animal survival?’. We have discussed what makes a habitat and that most living things live in habitats that suit their needs. We then compared the differences between things that are living, dead and things that have never been alive, and explored our own outdoor area to see if we could find these. We discussed why animals live in particular habitats and researched a range of animals finding out where the animal shelters, what food they eat and which animal group they belong to. We extended our learning by making food chains and discussed the flow of energy from a producer to a carnivore.

Spanish:

In our Spanish lessons we began by recapping different greetings, such as ‘Hola’, ‘Buenos Dias’ and ‘Buenos Tardes’, which we often incorporate into using during our registers. The main focus in our Spanish lessons is ‘Bajo el mar’ which means ‘under the sea’, we have started to learn some names of sea creatures such as ‘el pez’ which is a fish and ‘el cangrejo’ which is a crab. We will be continuing this topic and hoping to learn more about ‘Bajo el mar’.