Autumn 2
Week 1
Science
We started our new science topic this week. We are learning about animals and Living things. This week we talked about offspring and how some animals look like their adults and some don't. We did a matching and sorting activity.
In English, we are immersing ourselves in the wonderful book "Leaf" by Sheffield based artist Sandra Diekmann. Here are the children looking carefully at the start of the story and making interesting predictions.
In maths, we are starting to add over ten. The children did a great job exchanging ones for tens and using their bonds to add large numbers. Some of our children were using number blocks and grids to recognise number and count.
In Geography, we are learning about the country of Japan this term. Here are the children trying to find Japan on globes, satellite images and atlas maps. We also identified the different continents of the world. Great job all!
In computing the children have started to look at stop motion animation. In this lesson we looked at some great examples and used the apple stop motion studio app to "move" basic objects on our desk! In the future we will story board and make a short animated film.
The whole school has started a new programme of "Reading Buddies". Our class has been paired with the Y5 Sun Kings who will pay us a visit fortnightly on a Friday to read with us and share stories. Here are the Hodgehegs being very good hosts!
Happy the 4th of November all! In the creative zone some of us enjoyed some colourful fireworks!
This term we are studying Design and Technology (DT). Our brief is to design a toy car for a 7 year old which can move in a straight line if pushed. Today we looked at a variety of toy cars and tried to identify the wheels, axles and chassis. The children also drew an initial prototype design of the car they will build.
Week 2
We are continuing to study and learn from the marvelous book, "Leaf" before we write a first person version of the story. Here are the children pretending to be different animals on the island and having a debate on what to do with the strange white bear that collects leaves.
Great counting again going on upstairs in the creative zone!
Today the children were very lucky to have a Virtual Reality (VR) experience. The children got to look at animals like golden eagles, tuna, tree frogs, chameleons and Bengal tigers from any angle and learn about their food chains and habitat. The children were filled with excitement and shared their brilliant knowledge of mammals and reptiles.
Happy "Children In Need Day" all. We had a blast and raised lots of money for this amazing charity!
Week 3
On day 1 of our forest school, we explored the school site using a compass and found magnetic north from different areas. We also acted out the book we are reading, "Leaf" where a polar bear collects leaves in a wood to build wings.
In creative zone, some of our class enjoyed mixing the paints and creating fireworks!
One of our topics for this term in PE is "Fitness". Today we looked at running for long distances. We watched highlights of the great Mo Farah and Georgia Bell run in the Olympics, talked about the need to pace yourself and practised breathing techniques. After that, we moved to the hall where we ran on the spot for a minute and a half, played a cone game a few times and finally did a race in pairs where we looked at how many laps of a track we could do in 4 minutes. Also some of our children worked on their core strength and balance.
In DT we continued to explore axles and wheels. We built cars using different sized wheels and looked at balance and grip. We also used both fixed axles and free moving axles (where the children had to work out how to attach the axle to the chassis of the car). The class worked really well in partners with lego and stickle bricks. Next time we will use wooden wheels and axles to test how to make a car that can go in a straight line when pushed.
In the creative zone we enjoyed lots of sensory play. The foam was a big hit!
On day 2 of forest school we did a spot of orienteering in strong winds! The children did an admirable job of battling the elements, map reading and running!
Day 3 of forest school was a joy in the crisp winter sun! We made shapes in the forest school such as a hexagon and a triangle and we also did a cross country obstacle course where we practised long distance running (Our term's PE topic)..
The Y5 Sun Kings very kindly read with us once again as part of the school's reading buddies programme. We had a lovely time and enjoyed reading to the big kids!
This term we are so lucky to have Miss Burton teach us dance. The class have been learning a wolf and a fairy dance for our show.
Week 4
The children are doing an excellent job rehearsing for our show "Little Red Riding Hood". Please could you bring in your child's costume in a plastic bag with their name on. If you do not have the clothing asked for, please let us know and we can source them. You have also been seen sent a letter about how to book tickets. If you have any issues please let us know at the classroom door or the school office.
In Citizenship we looked at different families. We talked about fun things we do in our families and what are our responsibilities in a family. We then made posters about how we could help our families.
Here are some super painting, fine motor skills and sensory activities happening in the creative zone!
In English, we are planning to write a letter from the point of view of the crows in the story. Here are the children interviewing each other about how the bear is feeling and if they have any messages for him and his parents.
We managed to get another 100 classwide reward points. We decided on a Japan reward. We brought in "kawaii" (cute) teddy bears, made origami cats, tried nori (seaweed) and then some children did manga art while others did word searches about Japanese culture.
Week 5
Up in the creative zone, some of the Hodgehegs were busy making a banana cake!
In Geography this week, we located different countries, cities and continents on atlases and noted their page numbers to complete a table.
In computing, the children are completing their stop motion animations which they have story boarded. As usual in these sessions, excellent teamwork and communication skills were on display!
Great job Oliver and Finlay!
Excellent stuff Sarah and Maeve!
Good job Lana!
Well done Teddy and Arjun!
In the creative zone, some of us were learning about our teeth and how to brush them!
The Y6s very kindly invited us to their wonderful art gallery. We looked at their impressive remembrance day themed work and the Tygers and Kensuke classes were excellent hosts!
Some children were working on their fine motor skills and handwriting up in the creative zone. Well done!
Week 6
In maths we are now exploring 2D and 3D shapes. Here are the class playing, "What shape is in the bag?" and making pyramids, cubes, cuboids, triangular prisms and even hexagonal prisms using polydrons.
In PE we did a combination of skipping, hurdling and some longer distance running. Well done all for battling the rain and keeping going!
Today we did a dress rehearsal of our show, "Little Red Riding Hood". Thank you to the Y5s and Reception for being a wonderful audience. Please enjoy the photos and see you all on Monday for the two big shows!
Week 7
Today we had a VIP visit the class as we have all been good girls and boys!
We had a super Christmas lunch in all our finery. Thank you very much to all the kitchen staff for a great meal!
