Highlights of the week beginning 22nd May 2016:
- This week has been something of a writing week.
- We have been busy for the vast majority of our time drafting, editing and writing up some short stories based on a scene from the film King Kong.
- The children have worked really hard on these and should be really proud of what they have achieved with them – such an improvement from the stories they wrote at the start of September.
- We will be having some open classroom events after the holiday to give you a chance to come in and read them.
- In science we have been thinking about forces, and in particular floating and sinking. We looked at how a piece of blue tac, which has a constant mass, can be shaped so that it either floats or sinks. We also experimented with tin-foil boats, trying to make one that could carry the heaviest load. This led us on to the science of gravity, displacement and upthrust.
- In computing we looked at flow charts, and then used a program called Flowol to create some flowcharts of our own to control a pedestrian crossing and lighthouse. We will return to this after half term – it was hard!
- In PE the children started playing golf, learning what clubs to use and when.
- On Friday we had an assembly and a workshop from the NSPCC about personal safety.
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Home Learning
- Spellings as normal
- Project Time:
We would like the children to become ‘designers’. They can design anything of their choosing – drawing the plans, explaining how things work and, if they wish, making a final model. They can design anything – a building, a monument or landmark, a fashion item, a mode of transport, a game or piece of technology – use your imagination! The only items we don’t want are weapons. We will be sharing our final projects on Wednesday 29th June.
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Highlights of the week beginning 16th May 2016:
- This week we have got back to some proper work again!
- In literacy, we have resumed our work on King Kong, watching clips from the 1933 movie, planning a story map and writing some very atmospheric and descriptive openers for our short stories.
- In my maths group we have carried out a mathematical treasure hunt, some problem solving and have been drawing pie charts and answering questions to demonstrate our growing understanding of them.
- Mrs Hart has been working with decimals and carrying out some calculator based maths, using inverse operations to find missing numbers.
- We spent an afternoon creating a final piece of artwork inspired by Keith Haring whilst some of the class went swimming.
- Another afternoon was spent working some more on our 3-d relief maps, which are really beginning to take shape thanks to some input from Mr Clark! This has continued to involve looking closely at sections of Ordnance Survey maps to guide the features being created.
- We have started a block of work based around Forces in science, this week focusing on the difference between mass and weight and using Newton meters to measure the weight of various classroom objects.
- Finally, on Friday, we spent the morning with the Crucial Crew running through some potentially dangerous scenarios and working out for ourselves the right course of action for each.
DATE FOR THE DIARY
- As previously advised, the Leavers’ Assembly will be held on the afternoon of July 15th(the final Friday of term!)
- We will also be putting together a Shakespeare inspired production, which will be performed for parents on 14th July at 6pm. The High School have kindly agreed to us using their stage which means more people can attend and it will all be less of a squash. More details to follow on this one.
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Home Learning
Spelling should have come home today, which is the only homework to focus on this week. Enjoy the weekend again – a project will be set next week for the final half term.
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Highlights of the week beginning 9th May 2016:
- They’re over!
- We are now officially SATS survivors. The children have been brilliant this week – they have approached each test calmly and to the best of their ability and each of them should feel very proud of what they have achieved, regardless of the result.
- No doubt you have read in the press about the difficulty of some of the tests this year to reflect the new, more ambitious curriculum. The positive to remember here is that most children up and down the country seem to have found at least one of the elements of the test difficult, and so this should be reflected in the score required to be given age-related.
- Now they are behind us, we can look forward to being able to focus more on the other areas of the curriculum, and hopefully some fun!
- There is, of course, no homework this week – have a well-earned rest before we get back to work on Monday. Hopefully the weather will hold out – have some fun!
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Highlights of the week beginning 2nd May 2016:
- In our maths groups we have been using these last 4 days before SATS to carry out some more revision of lots of topics.
- We have also gone over a lot of grammar and spelling content which they will be tested on next week.
- On Tuesday Mr Clark came into class to carry on with the maps we are turning into 3-d models. We will be carrying on with these next Thursday as well – they are beginning to look like a long-term project but are already looking impressive.
- We had a visit from Mrs Hollidge on Wednesday. She looks after the transition arrangements for the children going on to Thorpe, and the children completed their friendship forms and got to ask some questions as well.
- On Thursday, the girls started their technology project, again in conjunction with the high school. This week they found out that they will be designing a USB powered lamp, and used a new program on the computers to carry out some computer aided designs. They will pay a visit to the high school in June to turn their designs into working lights.
- While the girls were busy, the boys designed some PE games, which they then had to teach to the Year 2 children. They really impressed us with both the games they devised for the Year 2s and the way that they interacted with the younger children. Great job!
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Home Learning
- We are sending home the spelling lists again – just try and find a little time over the weekend to have a look at them before Tuesday, especially the pronunciation of each of the words.
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SATS next week!
The children have worked really hard this year, and deserve to do really well in next week’s tests.
Over the weekend, try and get some rest as it will be a long and tiring few days, and you need to be alert to perform at your very best. Make sure you have a good breakfast each morning next week (blueberries are supposed to be great!) and arrive at school in good time.
If you are ill, then please contact the school as soon as possible in the morning. It is always possible to come in just for the test and then go home afterwards.
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Highlights of the week beginning 25th April 2016:
- This week in literacy we have been practicing proving our reading skills and revising some key elements of the upcoming punctuation and grammar test.
- We also put some of this grammar into use, by using expanded noun phrases and prepositional phrases to describe what might be found within the Queen’s handbag.
- Maths has also inevitably involved a lot of revision in both groups, practicing key skills and using and applying them in a variety of different contexts.
- Continuing our work on maps, the children this week were given a small section of an Ordnance Survey map, and have begun to create a 3-d model of what the area shown may look like in real life. They have had to use their increasing knowledge of map symbols to do this, and we shall continue with these next week.
- We have also used the electrical circuit components we have in school to carry out some colour mixing and pattern making
- In RE we have carried on researching India to lead into a finding out about Hinduism.
- Pastor Veneer (Paddy) paid us a visit this week to talk the children about tests and the importance of aiming high and being the very best that each of them can be.
- Only one week to go now until SATS. Try and get some rest over the next few days so that you are refreshed and ready for the challenges of the next couple of weeks.
- We hope you enjoy the long weekend – see you all on Tuesday!
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Home Learning
- Only maths and spellings to complete this week. The children deserve a break – they have worked hard this year and the end is finally in sight!
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Highlights of the week beginning 18th April 2016:
- This week has seen us carry out a number of activities to help with the upcoming SAT tests, spending time looking at grammatical terms and carrying out some reading activities from past papers.
- On Monday we found out about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, which is a huge area of the Pacific Ocean covered with disposed plastic materials which take hundreds of years to decompose. We found out how the plastics end up there and the effect it has on the sea life there.
- In computing we spent time looking through the pictures from Eaton Vale and selecting some to create a photo montage. Some are slowly starting to appear on the website – things are rarely as easy as they sound!
- We have also been looking at maps. We have found out that there are different projections of the globe once it is 2-d and that they can centre on different parts of the world. We also discovered that the map we are used to seeing in school does not show accurately the relative sizes of countries and continents south of the equator, and that Europe is larger to give the impression of it being more important.
- We have spent time looking at Ordnance Survey maps, identifying natural and man-made features and finding out about the symbols used to represent important or interesting features.
- In RE we have continued to research India, as a route into a block of work about Hinduism
- Friday was St Georges Day, so we spent some time finding out who he was and some of the stories associated with him.
- Just 2 weeks to go until SATS now
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Home Learning
- Maths, spellings, and a reading activity are all enclosed.
- There is also a grammar activity following up some work we have done in class this week all about the active and passive voice.
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Highlights of the week beginning 11th April 2016:
- Welcome back for the final term.
- This week in literacy we have completed some writing about our recent residential visit to Eaton Vale, choosing the activity that scared us the most and trying hard to ‘show not tell’ our emotions. Next week in our computing session we will create some photo montages to go alongside them.
- We have also completed a couple of reading tasks and a few grammar and spelling activities, revising key terms – something we will be doing a lot over the next few weeks in the run-up to SATS.
- We have looked at the work of designer Clarice Cliff, looking closely at her style of work and finding out a little about her life. After looking at some examples, we completed our own designs following her style and use of colour.
- We used Microsoft Paint to complete some images of the New York skyline, looking closely at perspective and angles.
- Maths groups have been revising some key skills that the children will need to display in the forthcoming tests. One of the areas has been rounding numbers. Mrs Hart has been using the following website at http://www.wldps.com/gordons/Function_wheel.swf in class, and some of the children may want some further practice at home.
- OTHER BITS!
- The date of the Leavers’ Assembly is going to be the afternoon of Friday 15th July – more details will follow in due course.
- Photos of Eaton Vale are still a work in progress with the website not quite being up to ‘full speed’. Hopefully this will be sorted next week and they will finally appear!
- Thank you to all those who completed and returned their Easter homework – I hope that it was not too arduous for you all, and it will have greatly helped further prepare the children for SATS.
Home Learning
- There is a grammar and spelling activity enclosed – how many of the mistakes can you spot?
- Maths group activities are also enclosed as normal, as well as weekly spellings.
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Highlights of the week beginning 21st March 2016:
- We survived!
- We had a wonderful time at Eaton Vale this week – it was lovely for us as adults to see them the children in a different setting. They did not let themselves down in the slightest, and pushed themselves on through tiredness and illness to make the most of every activity on offer.
- As I am sure you have heard, they abseiled, rock climbed, canoed, mountain biked, cooked, archery-d (!) and climbed, and all of them should feel proud of what they achieved. There were a few wobbly legs on some of the activities as expected, but no giving up!
- Over the Easter break I will be putting some of the many photos we took onto the class page of the school website – keep an eye out for them.
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Highlights of the week beginning 7th March 2016:
- In literacy this week we have had fun looking at some reports about teachers and parents which use extreme stereotypes. We then worked in small groups to brainstorm ideas for different groups of people (footballers, actors, siblings), thinking about their most extreme characteristics.
- Following this, the children have been writing their own reports independently about their favourite group. Their ideas have proven to be very creative, and many chose to write about you, parents. After Easter we will arrange a time to hold an open-classroom where you can come in and see the children’s work and talk about it with them.
- We have looked at some different areas of grammar this week, including revising different classes of nouns. I wonder if your child can remember what they were and give some examples?
- In maths, Mrs Harts group have been working with perimeter, area and volume and with me we have been working with fractions.
- In computing, we used Google images to find some maths-related pictures for use later next term, as well as finding some of the tallest buildings from around the world to compare them to New York landmarks. We used what we found out to create picture-bar charts to see their relative heights easily.
- Thank you to all of the parents who turned up to parent consultations this week – I hope you found them useful.
- Well done to all of the children who performed brilliantly once again at the County Music Festival at St Andrews Hall. You did us, and yourselves, proud!
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Highlights of the week beginning 29th February 2016:
- In science this week we carried out another experiment using candles and jars. This time, we placed the candle and jar into a tray of water and watched as a vacuum was created that ‘sucked’ water into the upturned jar. I wonder if your child can explain the science behind it?
- Thursday was World Book Day, and there were some wonderful costumes on display! We carried out a number of book-related activities throughout the week as a result.
- We decorated our classroom door – the children chose and designed a Dr Seuss inspired design, which they then put together brilliantly.
- In maths we have focused in on some of the areas that last week’s tests highlighted as things that needed more work. If you find any opportunities at home to look at and discuss timetables (trains, buses, TV guides) then it would really benefit the children. With the advent of mobile phones and technology, paper based timetables seem to be becoming things of the past (except in SATS of course!)
- Lots of sport this week, with both an indoor athletics and football tournament going on. Well done to all involved!
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Highlights of the week beginning 22nd February 2016:
- This week we have had a mock SATS week to give the children a better understanding of how long and tiring the real thing will be! The test papers they have completed will be useful in helping us identify gaps in the children’s understanding, and allow us to plan activities in order to tackle them.
- On the couple of days we have managed to squeeze in additional maths, my group have been problem solving (and surprising themselves at just how much old level 6 material they know – that used to be the expectation for Year 9!). Mrs Harts group have been revising some key facts and operations.
- In literacy, we used one of the diaries that we wrote last year and have been busy improving and editing it – an important skill. We have written up these (greatly) improved diaries into this year’s book. Hopefully last years have finally made their way home to you!
- It was good to see so many of you at the curriculum evening this week, which looked at the changes to the way your child will be assessed at the end of the year. If you were unable to make it, then a Powerpoint with the basic headlines and links to find out more is on the school website. I have put a copy on the front page of our class pages. If you have any questions about any of it we can discuss them at the forthcoming parent consultations.
- We received an e-mail this week about the Norwich Gaming Festival 2016, which is an opportunity for gaming mad children to have some fun over the Easter holidays – if you want to find out more then this link will take you to their web page: http://bit.ly/1oK6Muv
- Eaton Vale – please can you make sure any remaining balance is received as soon as possible – more details next week!
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