Welcome back. I do hope you have all had a restful break and are raring to go once again and engage with our new learning for this new half term. 

Literacy in Maple Class 

We are using a new text this half term called, 'The Boy Who Biked the World - Part One - On the Road to Africa', by Alastair Humphreys. This will be the perfect link between our grammar objectives and our Geography learning. We will be learning how to use expanded noun phrases with modifying adjectives and prepositional phrases to describe and specify. Our composition objectives will be to use similes, alliteration, metaphors and personification for purpose and effect. We will be writing an explanation text for how to survive in the desert, as our destination piece of writing. I have popped a message on the class dojo to encourage as many children as possible to bring their own copies of the text to school, if they are able to. This really helps with the children's understanding and enthusiasm for the text. It also saves a lot of money on photocopying the text 30 times! 

Year 3 Maths

We will be starting our new multiplication and division unit shortly after half term. The children will be using various strategies to learn and master the 3s, 4s and 8s times tables. Please encourage your children to practise their times tables as much as possible at home. You can support them by allowing time on TT Rockstars, as well as challenging them to write out the multiplication and division facts a few times a week. 

Year 4 Maths 

After a week learning about area, we will be moving onto our new multiplication and division unit. The children will be revising their 3s and 6s, before moving onto 9s, 7s, 11s and 12s times tables. Please encourage as much practise of all times tables at home now, using TT Rockstars and the Speed Test site. We will also be introduced to multiplying with 3 numbers. 

Geography

We will be alternating each half term, history and geography. This half term sees the start of our geography learning. This will be in place of our history lessons on a Tuesday morning, in our year groups. 

Y3: We start by learning about the UK. How many countries make up the UK? Which seas surround us? Can you name any major cities across the UK? Do you know of any rivers or mountain ranges? Using maps, atlases and a globe, will be exploring the UK together. 

Y4: 'All Around the World' unit for Year 4 takes a closer look at where countries of the world are located, and some of the way geographers describe locations. Children will learn how to locate places using longitude and latitude, and find out some of the important lines that delineate specific areas of the Earth - the Equator, the Hemispheres, the Poles and the Tropics. Finally, by using lines of longitude, children will develop their understanding of time zones. 

Y5: In this unit all about 'Magnificent Mountains', children will be finding out about the major mountains of the world and the UK. They will find out the different ways in which mountains have been formed, and how different features of mountain ranges have been shaped over time. Children will have the opportunity to consider what the weather is like in a  mountainous environment and to evaluate the impact that tourism has on a mountainous region. 

Science

Y3: We will be learning about diet, food and nutrition. Which food groups do we know? How can we ensure we are eating a balanced diet? 

Y4: We will be continuing our learning on States of Matter, exploring solids, liquids and gases. 

Computing Y3

We will be using coding this half term to design and code a program that follows a simple sequence. Children will be able to explain the choice of commands they have included in their program and what they achieve. They will be able to apply their knowledge of how a code is structured when debugging. Children will be also be able to integrate multimedia components such as sounds, animations and images into their coding. 

Computing Y4

This unit is exploring how to 'Write for different audiences'. In this unit, children learn that technology can be used to organise, reorganise, develop and explore ideas, and that working with information in this way can aid understanding. Children will be able to apply what they have learnt in this unit when identifying key points in a story or account, writing accounts in which details of character and action are used to interest the reader and using evidence and examples to support key points. We will be using Purple Mash predominantly, so please ensure your child knows their Purple mash login, or they know where to locate it. Usually stuck in reading diaries, with a second copy found in their trays at school.

RE in Maple Class 

Our big question for this half term is, 'Why is the gospel such good news for Christians?' By exploring the meaning of the word 'gospel', discussing what 'good news' means to us, we will be finding out what the good news is for Christians. We will be asking, how does this link to our last unit of learning? and why are we learning this unit now? Using Bible stories to help us, and our own previous knowledge, we will hopefully be able to answer our big question by the end of our unit of learning. 

DT Day in Maple Class

With Christmas play rehearsals in full swing this half term, we have decided to not have a weekly DT lesson, but save it for the end of the term and have a DT day instead! This will mean we can fully focus our attention on the DT learning, make a mess without the pressure of cleaning away for the next lesson, and spend more time on the making process. Our unit is focussing on Levers and Linkages. We will be exploring how levers and linkages are used in books, cards and other resources around us. We will be designing our very own greetings card which incorporates a link or lever of some sort. Children will be given the opportunity to make examples of several levers and linkages using a range of recycled card and paper. I may be calling upon any parent volunteers nearer the time to assist in the afternoon of making. More details to follow on the Class dojo.