The children have continued to work hard this week. They have had lots of fun in art as they had the opportunity to use chalk to create some space pictures. We also had a chance to visit year 6 so that they could share their writing and look at the spy gadgets that they had made. The children were very excited and are looking forward to year 6 when they will get a chance to make their own. The children have continued to learn about fractions in maths and have been learning how to add and subtract mixed number fractions. We were also going over how to round numbers and they had lots of fun playing a game outside which is called 'Jump Rounding'. 

The children had a visit from the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service and they carried out a Fire Safety Session. They learnt a lot about how to stay safe and they enjoyed looking around the fire engine. In art the children created colour swatches and they were blending primary colours in order to make different shades. The children have been leaning about friction in Science and the carried out an experiment to see what happens when an object has less friction. They had to pick up a jelly cube with sticks. The first jelly cube was not coated in oil and then the second one was. The children had lots of fun doing this and they found that the jelly cube coated in oil was difficult to pick as it had less friction. 

The children have had a great week and lots of fun and exciting learning has taken place. In PHSE, the children have been reflecting on the importance of rest and they created a script, in pairs, which outlines what you can do toy help you get a goodnights sleep. They worked very hard on their presentation skills and included lots of humor when they were sharing. In History, the children have been learning about the Vikings, and they have been analysing sources of information in order to get an idea of what the Vikings were like. In Maths, the children have been working on adding and subtracting fractions with the same and different denominators and they have done very well. In Art, we have started a new topic which is called Retro Futurism and the children have carried out some research and have been analysing different artists work. 

Week 7

This week was Geography week and we have been focusing on Lindisfarne as it links to our history topic, the Anglo Saxons. The children have developed a number of skills which including, locating places on maps (physical and digital maps), and learning what the different symbols mean on a map and reflecting on physical and human features of land and why they are important. They also had the opportunity to make Panhaggerty which is made from potatoes, onions and cheese. They children were all involved in preparing the dish and they helped with the peeling, chopping and grating of the ingredients. 

Week 6

October is Black History month and we have been reading a book which is called 'Coming to England' and it was written by Floella Benjamin. She was part of the Windrush generation and it talks about her life in Trinidad and when she came over to England. The children created a fact file about her and brainstormed words to describer her. In History the children have continued to lean about the Anglo Saxons and this week they have been creating their own shields. In maths they have been learning about factions of an amount and they have shown a good understanding of the method.

Week 5

The children have had a great time in art this week. They have been exploring primary, secondary and tertiary colours. It was a good way for them to experiment with mixing and blending colours. They are looking forward to working with oil pastels next week. In Science, we have been learning about day and night and all the children have shown that they can explain what happens. They enjoyed learning that in some parts of the world they spend about four months of the year in darkness! In History, the children have been focusing on why the Anglo- Saxons settled in England and whether they were pushed or pulled. They also located, on a may where they came from. The children have continued to work hard in maths and have been working on column addition and subtraction. We will continue to work on exchanging numbers. They continue to enjoy using Times Tables Rockstars and they fluency continues to improve which is fantastic. 

Week 4 

The children have had lots of fun in Science this week. We have been looking at orbits and they had the opportunity to go outside and explain how the earth orbits the sun. In maths, we have moved on to addition and subtraction and they have been using counters and the written formal method to show their understanding of this. In English, they children are preparing to write a newspaper report and had the opportunity to set up a press conference in the classroom. They really enjoyed being journalists and interviewing each other.

Week 3

The children have enjoyed learning about David Hockney and have had the opportunity to carry out some research. They have found out about his life and what has inspired him. They have also created some beautiful patterns and these will be used in their final pieces of work. In maths, the child have been focusing on rounding numbers to the nearest 100,000 and have also be using their skills in reasoning. The children have continued to use Times Tables Rockstars to improve their knowledge of times tables, their fluency and recall. They have the opportunity to work on them daily and the improvements in their fluency and recall has been pleasing to see. Please encourage them to work on their daily as it will have a positive impact on their maths.  In English the children have completed their diary entries which have been inspired by the character Michael from Kensuke's Kingdom. In PHSE, the children have been reflecting upon themselves and their own individual characters and they created some lovely shields which are displayed in our class PHSE book. In Science, the children have been research how long it takes the Earth and other planets to orbit the sun. They had the opportunity to carry out research to answer this question. 

Week 2

The children have had a fantastic week and lots of great learning has taken place. In maths, the children have been partitioning numbers up to 100,000, comparing the size of numbers and placing numbers on an empty number line. They have also had great fun using Times Tables Rockstars and I am already seeing an improvement in their fluency and recall which is going to have a positive impact on their maths. In English, the children have completed writing their persuasive letters about why we should travels around the world. They were including expanded noun phrases, model verbs and repetition. In History, they have been learning about the Saxons and have been using maps to make hypotheses about their way of life. We have continued to read Kensuke's Kingdom and the children are enjoying it so much. We have focused on using their skills in empathy this week- putting themselves in the character shoes. In computing, they have been assessing the reliability of a website and know what to look out and if it can be used as a good source of information. 

Week 1

The children have had a fantastic first week back! In maths the children have been learning about the place value of numbers up to a million and they have shown that they are able to read and write the numbers. In English, we have started to read Kensuke's Kingdom and the children are really enjoying the story. They have been using their retrieval and empathy skills very well. In Science, our topic is Earth and Space and we have started off the term by learning some interesting facts about the planets in our solar system. The children then went on to create a fact file about what they have learnt.