LKS2 News

Read on to find out what we have been up to in Years 3 & 4 this week.

Year 3

The children have really enjoyed Michael Morpurgo’s The Pied Piper of Hamelin which has inspired them to write their own version of this traditional tale. There are so many different kinds of animals that would not be pleasant to be invaded by but overwhelming is the understanding of the injustice, unkindness and greediness of the humans in charge. This has made for powerful writing: ‘Preposterous Presidents’ and ‘Miserable Mayors’ and ‘Emperors as cruel as the winter wind’. Luckily we have ‘dashing drummers’ and ‘terrific trumpeters’ to save the day!

We have been gaining further understanding of metres, centimetres and millimetres and comparing measurements between the three. Would you believe that 5cm is greater than 49mm? It has been the first opportunity to explore what a perimeter is and how we can find and calculate the perimeter of different shapes. How would you find the perimeter of a circle? Do you need to know the length of every side? Are there any shapes that you can’t find the perimeter of?

There was a debate to decide which climate of North America was the best to live in geography and the children did an excellent job of justifying why deserts, polar regions, temperate areas or tropical places should win. We agreed they all had positives and negatives.

Finally, another investigation of the permeability of different types of soils provided surprising and varied results. We previously believed that clay was impermeable, however for some this was not the case. This has made this topic such an interesting subject for curious children.

Well done Year 3 for yet another positive and interesting term. We look forward to seeing what you will all contribute to everyone’s learning after the holidays. Enjoy your break.

Key dates:

28th February - re-scheduled Yes day

28th February - Maths’ workshop for families at 2.30pm

4th March - Gareth P Jones author visit (book week)

7th March - World Book Day dress up

11 & 13th May - Family teacher meetings

4th April - End of term. School closes at 1.30pm

Year 4

Last week, each class made the short, chilly walk to Terrace Gardens in order to photograph the view - and then to sketch what they saw. There was some fabulous talent on display! Many thanks to the parents who braved the cold and accompanied us - and to Miss Hampson for supporting all three classes. Children will be drawing their final piece, based on their photo, in Friday’s lesson.

The True Story of The Three Little Pigs has been a focus for children’s instruction writing. Their current piece is geared towards a step-by-step guide to building a home sturdy enough to withstand the most powerful huffs and puffs. Please point out any examples of instructions writing at home over half term, such as furniture assembly, recipes, manuals etc.

We have moved on to our new fractions topic this week in maths, starting off by identifying and colouring fractions and re-capping vocabulary.

The practical aspect of building circuits in our science learning has continued to engage children, who have built circuits with buzzers and lights.

Our rivers topic ended with not only a comparison of the River Thames and River Nile, but with children putting into practice their newly-acquired skills of reading and giving six-digit references on Ordnance Survey maps. Those used to Google Maps enjoyed engaging with the vast areas of paper and picking out familiar landmarks, as well as their home or previous school. Please involve your children with anything map-related as it is a great opportunity for them to apply their learning to everyday life.

The Year 4 team wish families a happy February half term break and look forward to catching up with children on Monday 24th February. We wish Nuria the best of luck for her term of school in Bahrain!