Summer Term 1

Welcome Back Year 4!  

We hope you’ve all had a brilliant holiday and are ready for the Summer term. We have lots of exciting activities planned over the next few weeks, here is what we’ll be up to.

English
We will be writing a narrative based on ‘The Tunnel’ by Anthony Browne.  The plot looks at the relationship between a brother and sister as they venture into an unknown tunnel. We will be analysing the text and using video clips to help inspire our own writing and learn how to apply different techniques to create lots of suspense and tension.

We will develop our SPAG knowledge through continuing to learn about the various word classes and different spelling patterns, including the Y3/4 word list. We will be focussing on how to apply all our SPAG work into our own writing.

Maths
We will continue to develop our skills in the four operations and our understanding of Place Value, Decimals, Money and Time. We will be using a range of reasoning challenges to develop our problem-solving skills and apply the use of number lines as a strategy to help us with calculations.

Please remember to carry on practising your times tables up to 12×12.

During the week commencing Monday 8th June, Year 4 will take part in the statutory National Multiplication Times Tables Check. Please practice each day on TT Rockstars.

Science
Our topic this half term is Dangers to Living Things. We will be learning about the basic needs of animals, their habitats and the different changes that can affect this. Our learning will be regularly based outdoors in our Forest School as we explore our local area. We will have Forest School every Monday afternoon. Please remember to bring your Forest School clothes on these days.

Topic
Our topic for this half term is Rivers Of The World. We will be learning about the water cycle and how rivers are formed, famous rivers in different countries, and take a walk along the River Tame to look at key features.

RSE
We will be continuing to follow our RSE scheme ‘Jigsaw’ and discuss issues which are important to us and help us work together as a team. This half term’s focus is ‘Relationships.’

Computing – Creating Media: Photo Editing
We will develop our understanding of how digital images can be changed and edited. We will consider the impact that editing images can have and evaluate the effectiveness of our choices.

Art
We will be looking at art inspired by rivers and learning about famous artists who have painted rivers.

Music
We will continue to use our music scheme Charanga with a focus on the song ‘Blackbird’ by the Beatles.

RE
Our theme in RE is ‘ What can we learn form other religions about what is right and wrong?’

PE
PE will be on Fridays. Our focus this half term is Striking and Fielding. PLEASE REMEMBER TO BRING YOUR PE KIT.

HOMEWORK
We will continue to have a creative approach to our homework this term. You will be given Maths and Spelling homework each week as well as being able to choose from a range of creative activities in Topic.

Homework is given out on Friday and is due in the following Wednesday.

KEEP IN TOUCH!
Parents and carers are always very welcome to call in to discuss any aspect of their child’s learning, any other area of their school life or just to say ‘hello’. We are available anytime before or after school, except on Wednesdays because that’s when we have our Staff Meeting.

We are really looking forward to a great half term with you all!

Thank you for your continued support.

Miss Bruce

Categories 4B

Summer Term – Year 1

Welcome back to the Summer Term Year 1!

Year 1 will be doing Forest School in the final Summer Term. Please make sure that children have their wellies and shower proof coat/trousers in school for the final term. Thank you

What will we be learning this term?

English

We will begin the term by writing a set of instructions to follow and make Pirate Hats for our Pirate Camp adventure set in Forest School. We will innovate and compose our own Pirate Poetry inspired by ‘Ten Thing’s Found in Shipwrecked Sailor’s Pocket’, by Ian McMillan. In the final term, we will read ‘The Night Pirates’ by Peter Harris and innovate our writing using ‘Talk For Write’ strategies.

In all their writing, children will be actively encouraged to use their phonics skills to spell out words using a phonics mat if needed and begin to say words and sentences out loud in preparation for writing sentences. We will also be learning to read and spell Common Exception Words. These are words we will read and write LOTS but that don’t follow the phonic sounds we have learned so far.

Follow the links below for resources to support this learning at home:

28 ways to practice Spelling at home 

Year 1 Common Exception Words

Year 1 Spelling Rules

There will also be a focus on developing pencil control and a good writing position to support handwriting as the children practise the essential pencil strokes they will need for correct letter formation of lower and upper case letters.

Find more information about Guided and Home Reading towards the bottom of the page.

Maths

This term we will be following the school’s maths scheme Power Maths to focus on the following objectives:

Multiplication and Division

Numbers to 100

Fractions

Position and Direction

Money

Time

Follow the links below for games and activities to support this learning at home:

https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/5-7-years/counting

https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/for-home/kids-activities/fun-maths-games-and-activities/

Science

Further work about the season of Spring and our new unit about Plants.

This unit will introduce children to the idea of plants as living things which grow and change over time. Children will work towards answering the question, ‘How can we make a plant identification kit?’ The unit will encourage children to recognise the common features, similarities and differences between plants. Children will learn about the basic structure of a variety of common flowering plants, including trees. They will identify, name and describe the main parts of plants, including trees. They will learn that trees are plants and will learn the meaning of ‘evergreen’ and ‘deciduous’ when describing and comparing trees. Children will describe and compare common plants and trees in their local environment and will learn specific vocabulary relating to trees, e.g. trunk, bark etc. They will have the opportunity to plant, grow and observe their own plants throughout the unit.

Children will consider how to treat plants as living things with care. At the end of the unit, children will create a model plant, a record of local plants and an identification kit for plants in their local area.

Working Scientifically, children will focus on observing closely using simple equipment, naming and grouping and recognising similarities and differences between plants. Children will make and record their observations and will also have the opportunity to gather and record data in a simple way to help in answering questions.

This unit builds on any work children have done in the Foundation Stage. This is the introductory unit on plants and lays the foundations for future work in this area.

Follow the links below for games and activities to support this learning at home:

 https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/zpxnyrd

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/plants/

 

Topic (Geography)

The topic this term is Pirates.

 

Lots to learn including:

What or who was a pirate?

Where did they live and sail to?

What was life like on a pirate ship?

Which oceans did they cross?

Which Continents did they land on?

How do you speak like a pirate?

What is a compass and how do we use one

How can we use maps like pirates?

And more exciting things…….

Follow the links below for websites to support this learning at home:

 https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/what-do-pirates-do

https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/topics/pirates

The Arts

We will be doing drama work in class and art inspired by pirates. Later in the term we will be designing a Pirate Packed Lunch.

 

RE

During this term we will be learning about what it means to belong to a faith.

 

Computing

Moving a robot and programming animations.

 

PE

The children will be following the Primary PE Passport Curriculum which our Kick-start team will help us deliver this term. This term we will be learning Tchoukball and athletics skills.

Our days for PE this term are Monday and Friday.

Please make sure that PE kits are always in school on these days. We monitor having the correct PE kit available when needed as part of our Assertive Mentoring Scheme and it will be reported on in your child’s termly report.

 

PSHE

Relationships – families, friends and oneself

Changing Me – our bodies and the future

 

Music

Pirate shanties and the song ‘Your Imagination.’

 

Home / School Learning

Homework

In Year 1, homework will be given out every Friday and expected back every Wednesday. Children will receive either a maths task based on what we’ve been learning in class and they will choose a piece from the Pirate Homework Menu (one piece per week in any order they wish).

Children are encouraged to be as creative as they wish and can choose how to present their homework so if they have published something using an iPad, tablet or computer please email it to us! year1@corrie.tameside.sch.uk

Please make sure that completed Homework is brought into school on these days. We monitor Homework as part of our Assertive Mentoring Scheme and it will be reported on in your child’s termly report.

 

GREEN – On time by Wednesday

YELLOW – Late by Friday

RED – No homework completed that week

Guided Reading and Home Reading

 

Please encourage a love of reading at home and share stories together as often as you can. It is the most important and long lasting contribution parents can make to their child’s early learning and fundamental to successful lifelong learning and wellbeing.

Follow the link below to find lots of advice, support, free online stories and activities suitable for Year 1 children learning to read.

Oxford Owl reading for 4-5s

Oxford Owl reading for 5-6s

 

Each Year 1 child will be given one reading book every week (Big Cat) to practise reading with their adult at home. In addition, they will choose a book to bring home for the week from our class library reading for enjoyment collection. They will also be given a log in to access their own online account for the online reading program Reading Eggs.

 

The reading book will be linked to the phonics phase and sounds that your child will be learning in school. It is important that you listen as your child reads this book to you as often as possible during the week so that they become secure and confident using the focus phonemes to decode words when reading.

 

The second reading book is a ‘reading for enjoyment book’. These are ‘real’ books rather than School Reading Scheme books. They are books matched to children’s interest level rather that their reading level. They include picture books and often text which engage children well despite being beyond the level at which they can decode for themselves. They are therefore intended to be read aloud by or shared with an adult (as a bedtime story for example).

 

We will also provide you with access to a fun online reading program called Reading Eggs. There are lots of stories, games and activities to have a go at. As they move through the levels, they are awarded with reading certificates which we check weekly, print off in school and celebrate in class. This has proven to be a great motivator for children as they become proud and confident readers.

Reading Eggs login details are stuck inside your child’s Reading Log.

 

We ask that you read with your child as often as possible (a minimum of twice weekly in line with school policy). Do this in frequent short sessions (5 to 10 minutes depending on how long your child can maintain focus and motivation).

 

Please always sign and date in their Reading Log on each separate occasion you read with your child. We will check reading records and change reading books every Wednesday but will not know they have completed their reading if they are not signed and dated. New reading books will be sent out on Thursday. We monitor Home Reading as part of our Assertive Mentoring Scheme and it will be reported on in your child’s termly report.

 

GREEN – Reading book completed at least twice by Wednesday (evidenced by parent and signed and dated each time in Reading Log)

YELLOW – Reading completed but books returned late by Friday or read only once

RED – No reading done that week