Our blogs

Year 1-Friday Blog-29th April 2022

Date: 28th Apr 2022 @ 10:08am

Welcome to your Friday blog!

English

This week our learning was through the story of 'I Want My Hat Back'. The bear goes through the forest and asks every animal he meets if they have seen his hat. We predicted how the story might develop. We designed our own hats-they were really imaginative.

In phonics we have been looking at how some sounds are pronounced differently, ow as in snow and ow as in cow.

Maths

In Maths we have been sharing amounts in equal groups.

We have also been learning about 3D shapes-spheres,pyramids,cubes and cuboids.

We have also been doing some timed number fact challenges which we are getting better at as we recall our facts more quickly.

Science

This week we had a walk up to our beautiful pond. We looked out for what was growing and talked about what was the same or different compared to the nature area.

R.E.

We learnt about the Easter story. We ordered pictures and talked about them.

P.E.

We practised throwing a bean bag into a target. We ran relay races and we did a standing jump.

Outdoor Learning

This week we played a warm up game on the field. We used the hammers again to put nails into the wood blocks. Then we experimented with elastic bands and wool to make different patterns. We remembered all the things we need to do to stay safe.

History

We started our new topic of 'The Seaside'. We compared holidays now and in the recent past. We tried on some clothes from the past too!

Music

We are getting really good at singing the Jubilee song. We have also got a class song with a dance that we are learning.

French

This week in French, we have learnt some weather phrases through games, a song and a story.

P.S.H.E.

The Nursing Team visited us to show us how to wash our hands properly. They had a special box which showed us where all the germs were on our hands. We listened very attentively.

Home Practice

Read for at least 10 minutes every night. This is so important. We are encouraging the children to organise their own reading books and to make sure they are in their green school bag every day.Please sign the diary so we can change the books. Keep practicing reading the Tricky Words on sight. Please just write a note in the diary if you need the next set.

Sumdog challenges

Phonics - ew and oo

Maths - Recognise 2D and 3D shapes.

Count on and back in 2s, 5s and 10s. Start on different numbers. Talk about whether the numbers are getting bigger or smaller.

See if your child can recall the halves we have been learning, half of 2 is 1, half of 4 is 2 and so on.

YEAR 4 SACRAMENTAL PROGRAMME

Date: 25th Apr 2022 @ 4:31pm

Sacramental Programme – Session 4

Year 4 had an interesting and informative session in church on Monday. The children listened respectfully and asked some very thoughtful questions. 

This week, the children learnt more about the celebration of Mass and the people who help to prepare for each Mass.

There are many people who work together to prepare for our celebration of Mass.  All these people have a variety of skills and talents and they help to make each Mass special.  These people are usually volunteers who take turns so that everyone has a chance to help.

During the session, the children met some of the people who help with Mass and learnt what their job and responsibilities are.  These people included: the Sacristan, Altar Server, Eucharistic Minister, Priest, Reader and Welcomer.

The session finished with the children saying a prayer together whilst stood on the altar.

Your children will have brought home a sheet they completed during their time in church and a discussion in school. Please have a look at the sheets your child has brought home and discuss these with them. 

We appreciate your time and support in helping your children understand the significance of the work they are completing as part of their Faith Journey.

Year 5 - Friday 22nd April

Date: 22nd Apr 2022 @ 3:43pm

Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog

The children have settled back into the summer term and have been working hard this week.

This week in year 5

In Maths, we have been working on equivalent fractions, adding and subtracting fractions with different denominators and converting improper fractions into mixed numbers.  This is a difficult concept for some of the children and will require some practising at home.  We discussed the rules with equivalent fractions – we can only use divide and multiplication and whatever we do to the top we do to the bottom.  When adding and subtracting fractions the denominator needs to be the same and we only add the numerator NOT the denominator. 

In English we are getting towards the end of Adlophus Tips.  Things are now getting a little exciting.  We have been practising different openers this week for our writing.  We have planned an extended piece of writing today that we will develop, edit and complete next week.

In Science, we have started a new topic about living things and their habitat.  We started off looking at plants and how they reproduce.  We looked at botanical illustrations and discussed how these have help botanist understand plants and their reproduction and we were also able to dissect a number of flowers.  We looked inside the flowers and were able to find the male and female parts of the flower.  If you have any old tulips or daffodils that your children can dissect at home, you could ask your children to show you the different parts of the flower and how it reproduces.

In RE, we have started our new topic on transformation, around the feast of Pentecost.  The children first looked at energy and how this can be made and changed.  We then looked at scripture relating to Jesus appearing to the disciples and how this energy affected them.

In French, we started with a quiz. The children had to read some paragraphs in French, trying to get the gist rather than understanding every word, in order to answer some questions. It was tricky, but everything is first time!  Then we recapped some food vocabulary.

In PE, the children ran their orienteering course again, as a warm up and they were able to complete the course in a much better time, due to developing effective techniques.  They then went on to practise skills needed for cricket.  They practised over arm throwing at a target, they practised catching an over arm bowl and then they were able to practise batting, in teams of 4, with 1 being the bowler, 1 the batter, 1 the back stop and 1 the fielder.  They were able to shoe great promise. I hope to see some real skills emerging over the next few weeks.

 In Geography the children developed map reading skills.  They were asked to identify human and physical geographical features within the UK.  They used knowledge of counties and use of the index to find where these landmarks would be and plot a point on a map.  They were very good and worked well in groups to find many locations.

DON’T FORGET

Common exception words have been sent home and the final test for these will happen before the end of the summer term.

Home Practice all relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.

Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed. Some children had a break from reading over the holidays but please ensure this is made a priority now that we are back at school.  Practise is vital to improve in all areas of English.

You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)

Maths – please ask your child what their times tables target is and help them practise this in order for them to progress.

I’d also encourage you to do a daily count with your child.  This week they can count up in 6s and 0.6s. Give the children a number to start from and they must continue to count from that number in 6s or 0.6s, either forwards or backwards.  A strategy we use is bridging e.g. if the number is 45 and we are adding 6 we would use 5 to bridge it to the next 10 first – 50 and then add the remaining 1.  If subtracting we would again subtract to the nearest 10 – this time subtracting 5 to get to 40 and then subtracting the leftover 1.

Spellings words Adding suffixes beginning with vowel letters to words ending in –fer. We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday. 

referring preferred transferring reference referee preference transference difference inference conferring offering conference preferable different transferred

Don’t forget the children have a big list of Common Exception words to learn, these can be practised each week to push your child further.  You should all have received a second sheet with these words on by now, I have highlighted the words that your child wrote correct in a spelling test before Easter. This will give you an indication of how well they are remembering these spellings. We will be assessing the children on these words before summer.

Sumdog challenges

PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.

Please encourage your child to complete the Maths and Spelling Training.  As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school.  As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words they find difficult.  Once the diagnostic challenges have been completed Sumdog will set challenges to aid improvement and development in the appropriate areas for your child.  Once you have completed the class challenges, please use this feature for extra challenge in both maths and spelling.  Many children have still not completed the diagnostic section.

Times tables have been set to reflect class targets

Maths the children have been set activities relating to fractions and mixed numbers

Spellings words adding suffixes beginning with vowel letters to words ending in –fer

Year 4 Home Practice 22nd April 2022

Date: 22nd Apr 2022 @ 3:32pm

Year 4

Home Practice 22^nd April 2022

What lovely weather for our first week back after the Easter break.  Well done for working so hard Year 4 – you all looked very smart in your summer uniforms too.

This is what we’ve been learning this week …

In English, we finished our class novel ‘Kensuke’s Kingdom’.  We wrote a character description of Kensuke, including information about his appearance, his hobbies, and his emotions and feelings.  In addition, we planned a book review which we will be writing next week. 

In our Maths lessons, we used factors to help with more tricky multiplications. We also learnt how to use the grid method to multiply a 3 digit number by a 1 digit number.  In addition, we started our division topic which involved halving some quite tricky numbers. During these topics, Year 4 have realised how important it is to know their times tables!

In RE, we started our new topic of Pentecost and ‘New Life’.  First, we discussed how good news brings life and responded to our own experiences of how when good things happen, it brings us new life and happiness. Then, we discussed the meaning of Pentecost and described the actions, symbols and colour in a painting depicting Pentecost.

In Science, we carried out an experiment to investigate whether the amount of water affected the time taken for it to evaporate completely.  Following this, we discussed whether our experiment was fair and how we could improve it. Well done Year 4, you are becoming experts on carrying out experiments and recording results.

In French, we looked at some examples of Henri Matisse’s art works, some of which we preferred to others! The children had some great, individual ideas of what the artist might have been trying to portray. We recapped the vocabulary needed to describe them, ready to write about our chosen picture next week.

We practised and developed our throwing and catching skills in PE.  We then used these skills to play mini games of cricket. Well done Year 4 – you worked well to improve these skills.

We enjoyed our outdoor learning making shelters outside.  We made some fantastic and very imaginative shelters and showed some great team working skills.  We are looking forward to making shelters again and improving our designs.

This week’s Home Practice ….

Reading

Please read for 20 minutes each evening to an adult at home.  Make sure you discuss the story and the characters.  Find the meaning of any new words too.  Reading every night will help you read more fluently and with understanding. 

Times tables

You have been given your own individual times table target.  Please make sure you continue to practise your times tables in preparation for your test next week, on Thursday (28^th April 2022). Ask someone at home to test you on your tables – can you recall them quickly and accurately?  

Remember - you can also practise your tables playing ‘Hit the button’ and https://www.timestables.co.uk/

It is crucial that you learn all of your table facts as this will help you with many aspects of maths.

Counting

This week, please practise counting in 2’s and 0.2’s – draw a line and some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers down as you count up.  When you count down, cover the numbers up, say the number, then reveal what you have got written down to check you’ve said the correct number.

Count in 2’s

For example, start at 0 and count up to 24 and back again (this will help with your 2 times table)

0   2   4   6                       24   22   20     etc

Start at 85 and count up to 105 and back again

85   87   89                      105   103   101  etc

Count in 0.2’s

Start at 0.2 and count up to 2.4 and back again

0.2   0.4   0.6                 2.4   2.2   2.0  etc

Start at 23.2 and count up to 25.2 and back again

23.2   23.4   23.6           25.2    25.0    24.8  etc

Spellings

The spellings this week all have the prefix ‘anti’.  A prefix is a group of letters that are added to the beginning of a word, and which change the meaning or make a new word.  ‘Anti’ means against.  You will be tested on them next Thursday (28^th April 2022).

antiwrinkle            antibody                antifreeze             antidote

anticlimax              antisocial               antiseptic              anti-aircraft

anti-aging              antihero                antivirus                anticlockwise

antiperspirant       antibodies             antihistamine

Sumdog challenges

You have been set 3 challenges on Sumdog:

• A spelling challenge based on the spellings above
• A times table challenge based on the 2, 4 and 8 times tables
• A maths challenge based on recognising and using factor pairs

Please make sure you log on and have a go! Many of you are still not accessing Sumdog on a daily basis. Little and often is the key to success!

Online safety update

Please read our guide for TikTok below.

In this guide you will find tips on a number of potential risks such as age inappropriate content, addiction and in app spending.

Number bonds

Number bonds are very important and help with many aspects of maths. The more confident you are with these, the easier you will find addition, subtraction, mental calculations etc.  Therefore, please continue practising your number bonds / addition skills playing Hit the Button

The game you will play will help with your number bonds and quick addition skills. For example:

8 + 6               you could partition this into         8 + 2 + 4 = 14

This is because 8 + 2 is a pair to 10, then add the 4 to 10

Click on the link above, then on Play Game.

Click on Number bonds

On the left-hand side you will see the words ‘Up to 20’

Click on Addition within 20

See how many you can get correct in 1 minute. Then have another go and try and beat your score.

Maths and spelling training

Please continue to use the maths and spellings training sections as these are tailored for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult.

Year 6 Blog Friday 22nd April 2022

Date: 22nd Apr 2022 @ 1:09pm

Welcome to our first Year 6 blog of the Summer Term. It has been great to see the children back in their summer uniforms. They have all come back with a super attitude after having two weeks off and have done brilliantly with all the tricky tasks set this week. Keep up the hard work Year 6!

Also, Year 6’s learning this week:

• In Maths, we have been learning how to solve problems with our place value knowledge by making sure we underline the important parts of the question and to check our answers. We have also learnt about ratio (the relation of one quantity to another) and proportion (which is a number, a share or a part of something in relation to a whole – like portions).
• In English, we have written an explanation text, a story and a poem using a range of conjunctions and noun phrases. We have also been improving our grammar knowledge by revisiting the names of all the word classes.
• In History, we completed our topic of the Mayans by presenting what we had learnt about the discovery of the Chichen Itza and how it shows how life was like back then.
• In Music, we completed our final performance of ‘Sailor, Sailor’ on the recorders, created an action song called, ‘Hands on my head’, and used the ukuleles to learn the C and A minor chords.
• In French, we labelled a map of France with the important cities, rivers, mountains and seas. We talked about why France is called l’hexagone and what each of the places is famous for. We learned how to say the points of the compass so that next week, we can describe where places and features are in France.
• In Science, we began our new topic of Evolution and Inheritance by looking at animals’ adaptations to their habitats and what would happen if, for example, the polar bear did not have white fur or large feet. The children researched an animal of their choice and how it is adapted to its environment.
• In Computing, we used code.org to learn how to use sprites, variables and loops in coding.

Home Practice all relates to this week’s learning. These are the tasks needed to be completed:

• Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. It is important to keep reading, right up until the end for the year.

• NO SPELLING LIST THIS WEEK (We will be recapping our knowledge of the Year 5/6 spellings). Next week’s test will be on a random 15 spellings from this list so please look through those which you need to practise on.

• Maths challenges:
  • Counting:
    • This week we have been counting in 60s and 600s
    • Start with 225 or 850 or 575
    • Then count up in 60s ten times and back again
      • 225, 285, 345, 405, 465, 525, 585, etc
    • Then count up and back in 600s
      • 850, 1450, 2005, 2650, 3250, 3850, etc
    • Number facts:
      • To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 17 – 9 = 6, 15 – 8 = 7.
      • The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (13 – 5, 18 – 9, 16 – 8, 15 - 9, etc)
      • Then get them to change the place value of these digits (1.3 – 0.5, 1.8 – 0.9, 1.6 – 0.8, 1.5 – 0.9, etc)

• Sumdog (Multiples and Factors)
  • This challenge will be great to apply your multiplication knowledge to practice revising multiples and factors.
• Sumdog (Antonyms and Synonyms)
  • This challenge will help you become more familiar with words that are the same (synonyms) and words that are opposites (antonyms).

Maths and Spelling Training.

Spend some time training so the program can learn the skills your child needs to work on and practise. 

This feature is great for anyone wanting to challenge themselves further.

Year 3 Blog Friday 22nd April 2022

Date: 22nd Apr 2022 @ 12:57pm

Happy Earth Day. Please think about ways to look after our planet, today and every day.

What a great start to Summer Term we have had. It has been lovely to see everybody come back happy in their summer uniforms. 

We have really enjoyed our English this week, we have used pictures to write our own story. Each day we have added to our story, they are amazing. We are looking forward to Monday when we are going to record ourselves on the iPad reading out our work. 

In maths we have been practising halving numbers and dividing. We have found this tricky, but much easier if we know our times tables. Everybody has tried really hard. 

We loved our PE lesson in the sunshine on Tuesday afternoon. We did some orienteering where we practised reading a map with symbols. We also practised some cricket skills including throwing and batting. 

We have started our new PSHE and science topics this week. They are both about being healthy. We are looking forward to learning about the human body and how to make sure we look after ourselves. 

Home Practice 

Reading:

Read at home every night for 20 minutes. 

Times Tables:

Practise your times tables. Everybody has their own target based on how accurate they have been on Sumdog practice. 

Spellings:

Your spellings this week have the suffixes -ing, -ed, -en. When these suffixes are added, the last letter of the root word needs to be doubled. 

forget -  forgetting

forgot - forgotten

begin - beginning

prefer - preferred

permit - permitted

regret - regretting

commit - committed

forbid - forbidden

propel - propelled

equip - equipped

There is a challenge on Sumdog to practise these spellings. 

Tests:

You will be tested on your spellings and times tables on Tuesday 26th April 2022. 

Have an amazing weekend everybody :) 

Reception 22nd April 2022

Date: 22nd Apr 2022 @ 11:36am

What a week we have had! 

We found some giant eggs in our outdoor area, with a message asking us to look after them. We then had phone call from a dinosaur to help them crack the code by writing a sentence for them and we checked our cameras and we had some dinosaurs visit school early in the morning to see how the eggs were doing. 

In French, We started to learn the words for the days of the week and revised some fruit words, ready for reading La Chenille qui fait des trous (The Hungry Caterpillar)  soon. We also had time to read a book about France and learn a new song!

In Science: we observed some fossils and talked about what the animal or plant might have been like millions of years ago. We talked about how fossils are made and made a model to illustrate this process using different layers of bread and foam shrimps all squashed down with big rocks! We’ll see how our ‘fossils’ are doing next week.

In art, we made our own volcanos out of clay and we made them explode. It was really good fun. 

 We also learnt all about St Georges Day and Earth day too! 

Year 2 Blog Friday 22nd April 2022

Date: 22nd Apr 2022 @ 9:55am

We hope you all had a lovey Easter Break and are ready for the next 6 weeks of term. We cannot believe it is the Summer term already! The children have had a great first week back and it’s lovely to see them again.

In English the children have started a new novel called 'Journey' by Aaron Becker. The children have explored the beginning of the story and looked at what the pictures are showing us, using inference to detect what is happening. In Maths we have finished our unit on Money and started looking at Multiplication and using arrays. In Art this week we have explored the Blossom trees and drawn them in our sketch books whilst looking at all the details from the tree. In PE the children have started practising for sports day - they are all very excited for this. In Science the children have started a new topic all about Plants. They have planted a bean and are waiting to see what happens to it. In French the children are learning letters through phonics with actions.

Reading

In Year 2, children should read for at least 15 minutes every night and discuss the book with an adult or older sibling. This will help with understanding the text and learning new words.

You could write down these new words in a word book and find out what they mean. It is amazing to see the list grow, something to be very proud of, especially when children realise how many more words they understand and can use!

Please sign and leave a small comment when you have read with your child and make it clear that you have finished a book, then we know we can change it.

Reading books are changed every Monday and sent home on Tuesday. Please remind your child to put their book bag in the box on Monday morning. However, if you need to change a book another time, we will change it as needed.

Reading resources:

Oxford Owl – This resource has an exciting range of carefully levelled books to help children learn to read and really enjoy it.

If parents and children decide to use this resource, we ask they access phase 5 books. Go to https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/ and select ‘my class login’. Scroll down to the ‘eBook Library for Letters & Sounds’. You could also explore the rest of the site and read books from the Oxford Owl eBook library or listen to audio books.

Username: sto2

Password: 1234

Resources for questioning your child while they are reading - https://www.literacyshedblog.com/uploads/1/2/5/7/12572836/ks1_reading_vipers.pdf

In addition to this, reading a good bed time story to your child is so worthwhile and really helps towards a lifelong love of reading.

Spelling

There will be a spelling quiz on Friday 29^th April.  

copier

copied

happier

happiest

cried

replied

tried

dried

driest

funnier

You will have a Sumdog challenge with this week’s spellings to complete by next Friday.

Maths

At home, count forwards and backwards in 4s to 48. Start at different numbers each time. For example, start counting forwards from a number other than 4. What patterns do you see? What numbers do you say each time?

Practise 2-, 5-, 10- and 3-times tables on a game called Hit the Button. Follow this link: https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/hit-the-button

You will have a money and times table challenge on Sumdog to complete by next Friday.

Sumdog

Log in at www.sumdog.com

Online Safety Update – Please read our guide for TikTok below. In this guide you will find tips on a number of potential risks such as age appropriate content, addiction and in app sending.  

Have a lovely weekend.

Year 2 Team.

Year 1 Blog-Friday 22nd April

Date: 21st Apr 2022 @ 3:59pm

Welcome to the first blog of the Summer Term. Everyone looked so smart in their uniform. We hope you had a lovely Easter, all the children shared what they've been up to!

English

This week we have been talking about what good writing looks like and how we can improve our writing. We looked through our English books to remind ourselves what our writing looked like in September compared to now. We found our favourite piece of writing and said why we liked it. We also found a piece of writing and improved it. We even looked at each others writing. We love talking about how we can get even better at our writing- we know what we need to do!

Have a look at Karate Cats.Click here.

In Phonics we have been looking at Phase 5 sounds, ea is in leaf, ph as in dolphin, aw as in saw.

Maths

This week we have been finding halves of shapes and amounts. We used the word equal when we shared the amounts. We used part whole models and equipment to check our answers. We also had some good discussions about odd and even numbers.

Play Coconut Odd or Even. Click here. 

Science

We explored our school grounds to look at the changes. We noticed that the daffodils and snowdrops have died away. We found bluebells, daisies and forget-me-nots. We also noticed it was warmer than the last time we looked at what was growing.

R.E.

We acted out the Last Supper with bread and juice.

Music

We started learning a song for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee.

P.E.

This week we practised some of the skills we will be using on Sports Day. We did some running races. Our Sports Day is on Tuesday May 24th.

History

We learnt about Nick Park. He is the creator of Wallace and Gromit as well as many other characters. He came to St. Oswald's when he was a boy.

P.S.H.E

We started a new theme about how to keep ouselves safe. We talked about all the people in our community who keep us safe. We also had a discussion about people who we can trust.

Outdoor Learning

This week we went outside in small groups. First we played a warm up game in the Nature Area. Then we gathered in our log circle to learn how to use hammers safely. We made patterns in a wood block by hammering different screws and nails in. We also hammered nails into the wood blocks. Everyone listened so attentively and really developed their woodworking skills as well as their perseverance.

Art

We started our textiles topic. We looked at different materials and sketched them.

Earth Day

We celebrated Earth Day by singing 'I am the Earth'.Click here.

Online Safety Update

Year 2 Easter Blog Friday 1st April 2022

Date: 1st Apr 2022 @ 4:32pm

Spring Term has been really good in Year 2, the children have been working so hard and making a lot of progress. They looked amazing in their World Book Day costumes today and shared their love of books and reading. In Maths, we have been working on adding and subtracting money, finding change and problem solving. The investigation in Science was great, the children looked at what materials were waterproof or not, and decided which would be the best material to make a raincoat for teddy. They enjoyed ball skills and tennis outside during PE and in RE, we read all about what happened to Jesus during Holy Week.

Reading

Over the holidays please try to read for at least 15 minutes every night and discuss the book with an adult or older sibling. This should be enjoyable, and help with understanding the text and learning new words.

Please sign and leave a small comment when you have read with your child and make it clear that you have finished a book, then we know we can change it.

Reading books are changed every Monday and sent home on Tuesday. However, if you need to change a book another time, we will change it as needed.

Reading resources:

Oxford Owl – This resource has an exciting range of carefully levelled books to help children learn to read and really enjoy it.

If parents and children decide to use this resource, we ask they access phase 5 books. Go to https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/ and select ‘my class login’. Scroll down to the ‘eBook Library for Letters & Sounds’. You could also explore the rest of the site and read books from the Oxford Owl eBook library or listen to audio books.

Username: sto2

Password: 1234

Resources for questioning your child while they are reading - https://www.literacyshedblog.com/uploads/1/2/5/7/12572836/ks1_reading_vipers.pdf

In addition to this, reading a good bed time story to your child is so worthwhile and really helps towards a lifelong love of reading.

Maths

Practise 2-, 5-, 10- and 3-times tables on a game called Hit the Button. Follow this link: https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/hit-the-button

Sumdog

There are no challenges set, however if you would like to play some games, you can continue to access the Maths and Spelling Training sections.

Log in at www.sumdog.com

Have a lovely Easter Holiday.

Year 2 Team.

Year 6 Easter Blog 1st April 2022

Date: 1st Apr 2022 @ 3:33pm

Welcome to the last Year 6 blog this spring term. We are so pleased with everyone’s effort throughout the term! This week the juniors attended Mass together, along with the parishioners. We also had a visit from Eileen McNamara who is a volunteer for CAFOD to deliver a workshop on Catholic social teaching. We learnt that we all see good and bad things daily and with Catholic social teaching we think about it and choose how to act, using the terms: human dignity, common good, solidarity, stewardship and participation.

Also, Year 6’s learning this week:

• In Maths, we learnt that algebra means ‘the reunion of broken parts’, what algebra symbols mean and how to solve them. We also improved our learning on how to add, subtract, multiply and divide fractions.
• In English, we wrote a letter to Tower Wood to thank them for our amazing time there. We also learnt the difference between informal and formal writing.
• In PE, we completed our orienteering unit with an intra competition of pairs trying to find the points hidden around the school grounds. The children did an amazing job with most completing the course in under 10 minutes.
• In History, we completed our Mayans topic through researching Chichen Itza, a historic site that was discovered in 1841. We used the information that we gathered, and our knowledge of the past 6 weeks to explain what life was like during the Mayan civilisation.
• In French we practised conjugating regular ER verbs – we are get much more confident with now. We then wrote Easter sentences using the pronoun ‘on’ which is used a lot in France as an informal way of saying we.
• In Science, we completed the last lessons in the topic of Healthy Lifestyles. We discussed the dangers of smoking and the ill effects it has on the body. We recapped the messages from the last few weeks – eating a balanced diet, exercising regularly, taking medicines properly and avoiding those things which are bad for us, are all ways for us to live long, healthy lives.

For the Easter holidays, I have included a few revision documents that are printed and also attached to this blog. They include:

• Easter letter from Mr Mears
• Easter Home Practice Log
• Easter Revision Guide 2022
• Easter Reading Diet

The Easter holidays are to rest, relax and enjoy time with your family. The documents I have included above (as explained in the letter attached) are for those who wish to do some extra practice during the two weeks, for just a small amount of time each day. It is not a requirement to complete everything but little and often of reading, maths revision and spellings will go a huge way when you return on Tuesday 19^th April. Please bring in your timetables and logs on this Tuesday.

Enjoy your Easter break!

Year 3 Half Term Blog - 1st April

Date: 1st Apr 2022 @ 1:09pm

HAPPY HALF TERM EVERYBODY! We hope you have a happy half term and a wondeful Easter. 

This half term everybody has really grown up and worked hard every single day.

As a class, we have been focussing on being kind - making sure everybody feels loved and accepted. 

We loved dressing up as our favourite book characters for our very own World Book Day. We even wrote stories as our character. 

We finished reading our novel Journey to Jo'burg. We really enjoyed learning lots of new words and also learning about the history of apartheid in South Africa. 

In maths we finished our learning about fractions. At first we thought fractions were really tricky, but after lots of practice we are now experts. We realised that our times tables and division facts can really help - it is so important to know our number facts. 

We really enjoyed our geography learning this half term. We have been learning about the continent of Africa. We learned that it is a very diverse continent. Next time we have a chocolate bar, we will wonder if it came from Ghana - they are the second largest producer of cocoa beans in the world! 

In art we have been learning about the artist Antoni Gaudi. We love that he uses lots of different colours and shapes. 

Have a fantastic half term everybody! You deserve to have a rest, have lots of fun and be very very happy every day! 

Year 5 - 1st April 2022

Date: 1st Apr 2022 @ 12:23pm

Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog

The end of another great term, how time flies!

This week in year 5

In Maths, we have been working on fractions.  The children have been building up their skills on changing improper fractions into mixed numbers and vice versa.  This can prove very tricky at times but they have worked well.  They have also calculated equivalent fractions and finding the lowest possible term. 

In English we have continued with The Amazing Adventures of Adolphus Tips by Michael Murpurgo.  The children have written a persuasive letter using modal verbs and they have written another diary entry but this time from a different characters opinion.  They worked really hard on using various types of sentences and different types of starters.

In RE, we continued with the story of Easter.  The children read scripture about Jesus being condemned to death and the story of the Stations of the Cross.  They reflected on the sacrifice that Jesus made for them and how that made them feel and how this may help Christians live in the way Jesus taught us.

In French, we learnt Easter vocabulary and used this to make a card.  Joyeuses Paques!

In PE, the children took part in a timed orienteering challenge.  They had to follow a map and find 25 different locations around our school grounds.  They worked in pairs and all completed the course.  We will revisit this on their return and see if they can beat their score on a different 25 stations. 

In DT, the children learnt all about different types of cams and how they affect the followers in a mechanism.  They then made a prototype cam and follower mechanism and evaluated the resources they used and how effective they were.  This will then inform their design for their final product that will be made in the new term.

On Tuesday we had a visit from CAFOD where the children learned all about Catholic Social Teaching.  They were very good during the sessions.  They gave very carefully thought out answers and participated really well.  Eileen, who led the workshop, was very impressed with all the work the children put into the session.

The children attended church on Thursday and made little packages for the church community.  They decorated an envelope and then filled it with items for a cup of tea and a biscuit.  This will be passed onto the catechists who will distribute them to members of our Parish.  The children really enjoyed this and saw the good deed that they were doing and how this linked to teachings in RE.

The children have been working hard during the daily mile. We had our sponsored run for Barnardo’s and this has spurred us on to run further.  We have challenged ourselves to run to Madrid before the summer; this is over 900 miles.  So far this term we have run just over 550 miles, this takes just past Nantes in France.  We still have a way to go but I think with the same hard work and dedication they have shown we will make it to Madrid by the summer!

We had a great day on World Book day.  Please see the photo below of all our costumes.  Thank you for your support. 

Have a super Easter Holiday!

World Book Day 2022

Date: 1st Apr 2022 @ 11:15am

We have had an amazing Spring term, all the children have made great progress and really grown up this term. 

Our last week at school has been a busy one, writing all about how our caterpillars have changed. Learning about the life cycle of a frog and making some lovely Easter cards for our families. 

Year 1 Blog-Friday 1st April 2022

Date: 31st Mar 2022 @ 10:03am

Welcome to the final blog of the Spring Term. We can't believe it's April already.

English

Everyone looked amazing in their costumes. We celebrated by reading our Scaredy Squirrel books to the children in Reception. We all worked really hard on our books and are really pleased with them. Ask your child to read their book to you.

In Phonics we have been looking at au as in haunt and or as in torn.

Maths

This week we have been learning about multiplication. We drew pictures to work out the answers e.g. There are four bags each with two apples in...how many apples are there altogether? We counted in 2s for this challenge. We also counted in 5s and 10s.

Science

We looked at our beans and did some scientific enquiries. We looked at how the beans have changed over time. We also looked at the difference between the beans which were growing outside and the ones which were growing inside.

P.E.

We developed our sending and receiving skills. We played a football match.

French

  We learnt about the French tradition on April Fool's Day of sticking a poisson d'avril on unsuspecting people's backs. We enjoyed trying to stick our fish on without the person noticing! Sur le dos, c'est rigolo! We also looked at some new vocabulary related to Easter. Joyeuses Paques!

P.S.H.E

We have been learning about money again. We listened to a story called "I Want It". We discussed how people make decisions about what to do with their money. We also talked about needs and wants.

Art

We made Easter cards.

Computing

We learnt how to use Book Creator and we have started to make our own books.

Outdoor Learning

We had a great time outside making our shelters for Scaredy Squirrel. He was very well looked after with amazingly imaginative shelters. All the children showed great team working skills. We took great care to put everything back as we found it.

We had an Easter hunt in our Nature Area. We had to find clues to make a message.

Thank you for all your brilliant support. We wish you a happy and holy Easter. See you in Summer uniform on Tuesday 19th April.

P.S. Keep reading as much as possible!

Year 4 Home Practice Friday 25th March 2022

Date: 25th Mar 2022 @ 3:54pm

Year 4

Home Practice 25^th March 2022

Welcome to this week’s blog. This is what we’ve been learning this week …

We have continued reading our class novel and are nearly at the end of it now – we are eager to know whether Michael is rescued or remains with Kensuke on the island.  We have written a ‘message in a bottle’ from Michael to his parents as well as our own ending to a chapter, which included a conversation between Michael and Kensuke.

In Maths, we learnt about sequences. Some of these were quite straightforward and others more tricky to solve.  Knowing our times tables and using this knowledge really helped when there were quite a few missing numbers in the sequence.  In addition, we have been practising our tables and counting in 12’s.

In French, we learned about French Easter traditions and learnt some prepositions. We used them to say where the Easter eggs were in relation to the Easter basket: in, on under, to the left or to the right. We wrote lots of great sentences - well done Y4!

In Music, we prepared 2 songs for our Reconciliation service next Monday.  Then, we revised ‘Pat, click, clap, groove’ and ‘Boom, snap, clap’.  We then layered both grooves together, swapping groups.

In PE, we practised some handball skills – bouncing the ball, passing to a team member and then scoring a goal.  Following this, we took part in a Year 4 Handball Tournament.  It was a beautiful sunny day and everyone played well as a team – well done Year 4, it was a superb PE lesson!

In Art, we finished sketching different gerberas in a variety of pencil grades.  We chose different parts of the flower to sketch, as well as making sure one of the pictures was a whole gerbera. Following this, we experimented with shades and tints – choosing one colour and investigating how to make it lighter.  Eventually, we had lots of shades of the same colour.  Next, we completed a wash in water colour and painted a gerbera.  Finally, we put all our ideas together and will show you our finished project this weekend!

This week’s Home Practice ….

Reading

Please read for 20 minutes each evening to an adult at home.  Make sure you discuss the story and the characters.  Find the meaning of any new words too.  Reading every night will help you read more fluently and with understanding. 

Times tables

You have been given your own individual times table target.  Please make sure you continue to practise your times tables in preparation for your test next week, on Thursday (24^th March 2022). Ask someone at home to test you on your tables – can you recall them quickly and accurately?  

Remember - you can also practise your tables playing ‘Hit the button’ and https://www.timestables.co.uk/

It is crucial that you learn all of your table facts as this will help you with many aspects of maths.

Counting

This week, please practise counting in 11’s and hundredths – draw a line and some marks on it like I do in class. You could write the numbers down as you count up.  When you count down, cover the numbers up, say the number, then reveal what you have got written down to check you’ve said the correct number.

Count in 12’s

For example, start at 0 and count up to 144 and back again (this will help with your 12 times table)

0   12    24    36                     144   132   120     etc

Spellings

This week’s spellings are from the Year 3 / 4 spellings list.  Please practise your spellings each evening at home as many of you are still not doing this.  You will be tested on them next Thursday (31^st March 2022).

group           height          particular    potatoes      separate

surprise       through       various         though         woman

possession   different     continue       naughty        favourite

Sumdog challenges

You have been set 3 challenges on Sumdog:

• A spelling challenge based on the spellings above
• A times table challenge based on the 6 and 12 times tables
• A grammar challenge based on speech marks

Please make sure you log on and have a go! Many of you are still not accessing Sumdog on a daily basis. Little and often is the key to success!

Number bonds

Number bonds are very important and help with many aspects of maths. The more confident you are with these, the easier you will find addition, subtraction, mental calculations etc.  Therefore, please continue practising your number bonds / addition skills playing Hit the Button

The game you will play will help with your number bonds and quick addition skills. For example:

8 + 6               you could partition this into         8 + 2 + 4 = 14

This is because 8 + 2 is a pair to 10, then add the 4 to 10

Click on the link above, then on Play Game.

Click on Number bonds

On the left-hand side you will see the words ‘Up to 20’

Click on Addition within 20

See how many you can get correct in 1 minute. Then have another go and try and beat your score.

Maths and spelling training

Please continue to use the maths and spellings training sections as these are tailored for your child to practise skills, facts and words that they find difficult.

Year 2 Home Practice Friday 25th March 2022

Date: 25th Mar 2022 @ 3:49pm

Year 2 have thoroughly enjoyed the sunny, warm weather and it has been wonderful to be outside more. In English, the children have started the novel Mr Skip by Michael Morpurgo and looked at sentence structure and punctuation. We have continued our work on addition and subtraction in Maths. In RE, we read the story of Palm Sunday and the children retold it so well, with lovely illustrations. They have done a lot of Art this week in preparation for Mother’s Day. Forest School has started up again, much to the children’s delight, they made shelters and worked really well together. We are visiting the Library next Thursday, it will include a tour and book related activities. Year 2 are very excited about it because they love books so much. It will be St Oswald’s World Book Day next Friday and the children may dress up as their favourite book character.

Reading

In Year 2, children should read for at least 15 minutes every night and discuss the book with an adult or older sibling. This will help with understanding the text and learning new words.

You could write down these new words in a word book and find out what they mean. It is amazing to see the list grow, something to be very proud of, especially when children realise how many more words they understand and can use!

Please sign and leave a small comment when you have read with your child and make it clear that you have finished a book, then we know we can change it.

Reading books are changed every Monday and sent home on Tuesday. However, if you need to change a book another time, we will change it as needed.

Reading resources:

Oxford Owl – This resource has an exciting range of carefully levelled books to help children learn to read and really enjoy it.

If parents and children decide to use this resource, we ask they access phase 5 books. Go to https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/ and select ‘my class login’. Scroll down to the ‘eBook Library for Letters & Sounds’. You could also explore the rest of the site and read books from the Oxford Owl eBook library or listen to audio books.

Username: sto2

Password: 1234

Resources for questioning your child while they are reading - https://www.literacyshedblog.com/uploads/1/2/5/7/12572836/ks1_reading_vipers.pdf

In addition to this, reading a good bed time story to your child is so worthwhile and really helps towards a lifelong love of reading.

Spelling

There will be no spelling quiz on Friday 1^st April.  

You will have a Sumdog challenge on tricky words to complete by next Friday.

Maths

At home, count forwards and backwards in 3s to 60. Start at different numbers each time. For example, start counting forwards from 12 or backwards from 30. What patterns do you see? What numbers do you say each time?

The children looked at number facts to 20 in class. Write down a number, for example, 8 put a circle around it and ask your child to write all the addition and subtraction number sentences they know that equal 8. They may even be able to have a go at some multiplication or division number sentences that equal 8. This can be repeated for other numbers.                                       

Practise 2-, 5-, 10- and 3-times tables on a game called Hit the Button. Follow this link: https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/hit-the-button

You will have a subtraction challenge on Sumdog to complete by next Friday.

Sumdog

Log in at www.sumdog.com

Happy Mother’s Day!

Have a lovely weekend.

Year 2 Team.

Year 6 Friday 25th March 2022

Date: 25th Mar 2022 @ 2:31pm

• Kayaking
• Canoeing 
• Tree climbing
• Ghyll scrambling
• Long walks
• Jumping in a freezing cold lake
• Persevering when things became tricky
• Showing great trust in one another
• Being supportive to everyone
• Organising themselves
• Becoming independent

They should all be very proud of what they have achieved in their time there.

• In Maths, we learnt how to better use the formula of volume to solve problems. We then investigated how to present and interpret various bar charts.
• In English, our novel Skellig delved into the main character, Mina, in more detail so we wrote our impression of her using the text as evidence. We then wrote in role about the time when she first met the mysterious Skellig.
• In PE, we continued our unit of orienteering to read our unique map of the grounds to find different markers. We then played hide and seek with cones and mapping skills. 
• In Art, we completed our Mother’s Day project by using the skill of pointillism to show the colours of an iris. The end result was brilliant. Please visit the Year 6 gallery to see a few.

Reading – Continue to read every night for 30 minutes. It is important to keep reading, right up until the end for the year.

NO SPELLING LIST THIS WEEK DUE TO TOWER WOOD (We will be recapping our knowledge of the spellings taught so far in lessons). 

Maths challenges:

Counting:

• This week we have been counting in 250s and 750s
• Start with 2250 or 8500 or 5750
• Then count up in 25s ten times and back again
• 2250, 2500, 2750, 3000, 3250, 3500, 3750, 4000, etc
• Then count up and back in 750s
• 8500, 9250, 10000, 10750, 11500, 12250, 13000, etc

Number facts:

• To help your maths even more, please continue to learn your numbers facts, 17 – 9 = 6, 15 – 8 = 7.
• The best way to do this is to simply have someone in your home quiz you with questions like (13 – 5, 18 – 9, 16 – 8, 15 - 9, etc)
• Then get them to change the place value of these digits (1.3 – 0.5, 1.8 – 0.9, 1.6 – 0.8, 1.5 – 0.9, etc)

Sumdog has not been set due to Tower Wood. Have a good rest (and a nice book to read). There will be overnight home practice every day next week.

Year 3 Blog Friday 25th March

Date: 25th Mar 2022 @ 1:06pm

What a beautiful sunny week it has been :)

We loved our PE in the sunshine this week. In our PE lesson we practised some running skills in relays and we also practised different skills in games of hand ball including throwing and catching, defending, getting into space, and marking an oponent.

We have been getting creative this week in our art lesson. We have been observing, sketching, mixing colours and painting to make some sunflower pictures. We used these to make our Mother's Day cards.

In Science this week we looked at non-contact forces and magnetism. The children investigated materials that were magnetic and non-magnetic. We had some amazing questions. 

"Why aren't cornflakes magnetic when they have iron in them?"

'How does it stick?'

'Why are some metals magnetic and some not?'

On Friday we explored kindness in some circle time and talked about what we can do to make people feel included and appreciated. We came up with some great ideas. These include:

Smile at somebody.

Ask somebody to play with you.

Ask somebody if they have had a nice day.

Say nice things about somebody. 

We agreed that it is cool to be kind. 

Home Practice

Reading

Read out loud every night for 20 minutes. Talk about what you have read - this is very important!

Counting

Count out loud in:

20s from 0 to 240 and back again.

30s from 0 to 360 and back again.

40s from 0 to 480 and back again. 

Times Tables

Practise the division facts for the 2x tables. 

For example, 

1 x 2 = 2 so 2 ÷ 1 = 2

2 x 2 = 4 so 4 ÷ 2 = 2

3 x 2 = 6 so 6 ÷ 2 = 3

Spellings

Here are your spellings for this week:

sadness          illness          tiredness          emptiness          happiness          careful                   dreadful          colourful          hopeful          powerful                  beautiful 

Sumdog

Go on Sumdog to complete the challenges.

You will be tested on your spellings and divison facts on Tuesday 29th March.

Have a happy sunny weekend :)

Year 5 - Friday 25th March 2022

Date: 24th Mar 2022 @ 5:19pm

Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog

The children have worked hard this week shown great enthusiasm. 

This week in year 5

In Maths, we have focused on angles. The children started the week measuring angles using a protractor and drawing their own angles on the desk, they loved this act of rebellion! We then moved onto drawing angles in our books, concentrating on being precise. We then looked at angles on a staright line and learnt how to work out the measurement of an angle without using a protractor.  We finished the week with some reasoning questions relating to angles. A great week.

In English we started a new novel, The Amazing Adventures of Adolphus Tips by Michael Murpurgo.  We started by comparing the different Michael Murpurgo books that we have read and examining the similarities between them, the children were able to recognise quite a number. We then used this knowledge to predict where this book may take us.  Throughout the week we looked at main and subordinate clauses and relative clauses and used these to complete a diary entry in the character of Lily, describing the bombing at the village.

In Science, we investigated irreversible changes. We created our own volcano mixing vinegar and bicarbonate of soda and observed the irreversible change that occurred. Then using our knowledge from the past few weeks, the children had to classify changes into reversible and irreversible changes.

In RE, we read scripture relating to Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane.  The children looked at religious artwork depicting the scripture and made links between the two. They then discussed the sacrifice that Jesus knew he was making and how that must have felt.

In French, we recapped how to conjugate an ER verb. This is quite tricky but once we got the hang of how to choose the right ending, we managed really well. Well done Y5.

In PE, we carried out the train run for a warm up and then we moved over to the forest area of the school. The children were given tarpaulins, ropes, pegs, mallets and given access to any wood and natural resources they could find, and asked to firstly build a den that their team could fit inside and then built a teepee for a toy figure.  They worked together so well and made some great structures (see Den Building gallery).

The children have also worked very hard on a certain secret piece that you will see this weekend! They studied light and shade and experimented with a range of media to create a their special piece of art for a very special person in their lives.

The children also completed their common exception word spelling test this week. They have been marked and you will have received a copy of their results in your children’s bags. The words highlighted are the ones they spelled correctly and they should continue to practise the other words including the ones they spelled correctly for the final test at the end of the summer term.

Home Practice relates to this week's learning - These are the tasks to be completed.

Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed. Some children had a break from reading over the holidays but please ensure this is made a priority now that we are back at school.  Practise is vital to improve in all areas of English.

You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left on Mrs Mulgrew's desk)

Maths – please ask your child what their times tables target is and help them practise this in order for them to progress.

I’d also encourage you to do a daily count with your child.  This week they can count up in 6s and 0.6s. Give the children a number to start from and they must continue to count from that number in 6s or 0.6s, either forwards or backwards. A strategy we use is bridging e.g. if the number is 45 and we are adding 6 we would use 5 to bridge it to the next 10 first – 50 and then add the remaining 1. If subtracting we would again subtract to the nearest 10 – this time subtracting 5 to get to 40 and then subtracting the leftover 1.

Spellings words with an ‘ant’ sound. We will look at these in more detail in school next week, they should be practised at home, ready for the test on Friday. 

abundant, brilliant, constant, distant, dominant, elegant, fragrant, ignorant, tolerant, vacant, important, relevant, extravagant, restaurant, defiant.

Don’t forget the children have a big list of Common Exception words to learn, these can be practised each week to push your child further.  You should all have received a sheet with these words on by now, I have highlighted the words that your child spelled correctly in the spelling test before Christmas. This will give you an indication of how well they are remembering these spellings. We will be assessing the children on these words before Easter.

Sumdog challenges

PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.

Please encourage your child to complete the Maths and Spelling Training.  As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school.  As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words they find difficult.  Once the diagnostic challenges have been completed Sumdog will set challenges to aid improvement and development in the appropriate areas for your child.  Once you have completed the class challenges, please use this feature for extra challenge in both maths and spelling.  Many children have still not completed the diagnostic section.

Times tables have been set to reflect class targets

Maths the children have been set activities relating to angles.

Spellings words ending -ant.

Bring Yer Wellies

Date: 24th Mar 2022 @ 4:57pm

We had a fabulous time on our first school trip this week! 

We went to 'Bring Yer Wellies' 

When we first arrived we loved buliding sandcastles and playing on the beach. Then it was time to listen and learn all about plants and what they need to keep them alive. We then all planted our own herbs. Chives and Oregano. 

After planting it was dinner time, we enjoyed our first picnic of the year in the sunshine. 

In the afternoon we looked at a wormery and learnt all about what worms like to eat and how they make compost. We then walked down to river and raced our boats in teams of 4. (We had to shout really loud to make our boats win) 

Finally we finished our day with some team games, we had to make dens big enough for our whole team to fit inside and we had a race to ring the bell and get inside the den. 

All the children we amazing all day ad really enjoyed themselves!

Year 1 Blog-Friday 25th March 2022

Date: 24th Mar 2022 @ 9:58am

Welcome to your Friday blog! We are loving the sunny weather.

English

This week we met Scaredy Squirrel. He is scared of everything! We really enjoyed looking at the style of the books- they are really funny. We wrote about Scaredy Squirrel and we are making our own book about the birthday party. We are trying really hard to write in sentences and spell some more words correctly.

In Phonics we have been looking at ow as in snow and ow as in cow.

Play Alien Escape. Click here.

Maths

In Maths we have been learning about doubling. We have been using practical equipment to find doubles . We have also used our knowledge of the pattern of 2s to check our answers.

Play Archery Doubles. Click Here.

Science

Our French beans are starting to germinate. We looked at what is happening to them and described the changes. We gave them a bit of water too.

R.E.

This week we have learnt about how Holy Communion and the Last Supper relate to each other. We learnt that the bread is called a host and the wine is in a chalice.

P.E.

The class have been asking every week if we could play football in P.E. so this week, we did! We practiced dribbling with a ball and then passing to a partner. We are going to carry on with football for one more week to end the term.

D.T.

We carefully wrote our instructions for our smoothie and then on Friday, we made them! It was great to see how independent the class have become. Everyone chopped their own fruit and put them in the blender. Some of us liked our smoothies, some of us didn't!

Art

We loved being able to do art again this week. We sketched real roses and learnt to take our time, focus on the flower and sketch carefully. We then transferred these skills onto our Mother's Day card. We hope all of the mums love the finished product.

French

 In French we learnt about the French Easter tradition of the bells flying to Rome to be blessed by the Pope before returning,  bringing chocolate eggs to the French children. Then we made an Easter card with a message - Joyeuses Paques - Happy Easter! 

Outdoor Learning

Scaredy Squirrel lives in his nut tree. He feels very safe there. Next week we are going to go outside to build him a shelter just in case he ever ventures down to ground level! Your child may bring in a toy squirrel next week if they have one.

Don't forget to get a costume ready for World Book Day next Friday.

Thank you to everyone who supported the pop-up shop. Enjoy your day!

Home Practice

Read for at least 10 minutes every night. This is so important. Please sign the diary so we can change the books. Keep practicing reading the Tricky Words on sight. Please just write a note in the diary if you need the next set.

We have been looking at our friends of 10. Ask your child for the ways to make 10 by adding 2 numbers, 0+10,1+9 and so on. Quick recall of these will really help your child. Keep practising counting in 1s,2s,5s and 10s. Say a sequence of numbers to your child and miss out a number. Can they tell you which number in the pattern you have missed out? How do they know?

Sumdog challenges

Phonics - oa and ow words

Maths - one step problems

Year 4 Sacramental Programme Session 3

Date: 21st Mar 2022 @ 4:50pm

Sacramental Programme – Session 3

Year 4 had another interesting and successful session in church on Monday. 

This week, the children discussed their relationship with God through different types of prayer.  The children considered how we can pray anywhere and at anytime, and that prayer is:

• talking to God and listening to Him
• words, silence and songs of praise
• actions, movement and stillness.

The children read through the words of The Lord’s Prayer and then examined more closely some of the words and phrases, and their meaning. Following this, the children discussed how Mass is the most perfect form of prayer and talked about the different parts of the service and the order in which they come. 

Finally, the children were shown how to use each finger of their hand to pray for different people.  They drew their hand on a sheet of paper and were given a prayer suggestion for each finger. The session finished with the children standing on the altar and saying prayers together. 

Please have a look at the sheets your child has brought home and discuss The Lord’s Prayer with them.  The children have also been asked to write their own prayer on the back page of the worksheet. 

We appreciate your time and support in helping your children understand the significance of the work they are completing as part of their Faith Journey.

Please remember Y4 Reconciliation Day is on Monday 28th March. Y4 Parents are invited to come along to church at 2.15pm to join in with the Service.

Year 5 - Friday 18th March 2022

Date: 19th Mar 2022 @ 8:46am

Welcome to this week’s Year 5 class blog

This week in year 5

In Maths, we have continued working really hard on coordinates, translations and position of shape.  The children have worked really hard to remember to along the corridor and then up the stairs when using coordinates. They have all shown a great improvement in mathematical ability.

In English we have finished our book. The children have enjoyed this novel and have each produced a fantastic descriptive piece of work.

In Science, this week the children investigated reversible changes.  We carried out an experiment using chocolate using the processes of melting, freezing, evaporation and condensing.  They worked really hard and showed some great scientific skills.

In French, we learnt how to conjugate a regular ER verb in French this week. It's quite tricky but we will practise lots of times in y5 and y6. Bon effort, year 5!

 In Geography, we began our topic on the UK. We looked at the different countries that make up the UK, the counties and cities within the countries, and located a variety of human and physical features. The children have shown good mapping skills, locating different counties within the UK.

Obviously the highlight of the week has been our trip to Borwick Hall. The children had the most amazing day, they really pushed themselves and tried things they never dreamed they could!  The children did a range of activities during the day. These included indoor caving, an assault course, low ropes and zip lines, team building challenges, raft building and the leap of faith. They had their evening meal and then we all made our way down to the water and the children climbed on board the kayak rafts they had built and we paddled down the canal in the evening light. We then stopped to sit in silence for a while and listened to the nature and other sounds around us and observed the change in the light.  We could see the sun was setting and the surroundings were changing in the dusky light, we even saw a couple of bats flying overhead!  We then paddled back to the jetty, in the darkness and alighted the kayaks. It was just the most amazing end to a fantastic day!  Once I have collected all the images taken on the day, I will add a gallery so you can see your children undertaking some of the great activities during the day.

Home Practice

Reading - You all have a Home Reading book for year 5 so reading every night for 15-20 mins is essential.  Remember the aim is for 20 pages a night. You also have a Reading Journal/Diary that must be completed and signed.

You can change your reading book on any school day (book bags to be left in the basket or on the desk in Mrs Mulgrew's room)

Maths – please ask your child what their times tables target is and help them practise this in order for them to progress.

I’d also encourage you to do a daily count with your child.  This week we are counting up in 0.4. Give the children a number to start from and they must continue to count from that number in 0.4s, either forwards or backwards.  It often helps the children if they note down the numbers as they say them, it helps them work out the next number more easily when they can see it. Help them use bridging where appropriate to count on e.g. 4.8 + 0.2 = 5, then add the other 0.2 to get to 5.2.

This week I would like the children to concentrate on their common exception words.  They were sent home around Christmas time.  They will be assessed on these on Monday.

Sumdog challenges

PLEASE ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILDREN TO COMPLETE THE SUMDOG CHALLENGES, MANY CHILDREN ARE STILL NOT ACCESSING SUMDOG.

Please encourage your child to complete the Maths and Spelling Training.  As you know, we set weekly challenges that are linked to the learning that takes place in school.  As an extra feature, the maths and spelling training sections will provide a tailored challenge for your child to practise skills, facts and words they find difficult.  Once the diagnostic challenges have been completed Sumdog will set challenges to aid improvement and development in the appropriate areas for your child.  Once you have completed the class challenges, please use this feature for extra challenge in both maths and spelling.  Many children have still not completed the diagnostic section.

Times tables have been set to reflect class targets

Reception Friday 18th March 2022

Date: 18th Mar 2022 @ 3:51pm

This week we have continued with the story Jack and the Beanstalk. We have retold the story this week by using picture clues. We did some fantastic writing. 

In maths we have been practising halving of items and numbers.

In French this week we have looked at the story La Petite Rouge (The Little Red Hen), we learnt the French words for some animals through a song.

In Art, we have been painting and drawing daffodils.

We also had another visit with the chicks from Year 3 and we got to hold them. They had changed a lot in a few days.

We have also had a visit from Freddie Fit and we have been doing den building.