What we are learning about during the Autumn Term in Mow Cop Class.

English

Children will begin with a poetry focus where they will develop the use of varied and rich vocabulary, explore similes and personification and will understand the purpose of a poetic layout. Pupils will have the opportunity to study a range of poems by well-known authors to inspire their own writing.

Every Wednesday, we will have an Extended Writing lesson where a creative approach will be used to encourage pupils to use their imagination. Pupils will be given the opportunity to write at length, whilst using a range of different sentence structures to maintain pace, and keep their audience engaged.

Spellings will be practised each week. We will be looking at a range of different spelling rules and discuss these in detail in class. These should be practised at home as well as in school, in preparation for the weekly spelling test every Friday. Some of the spellings may be shared over two weeks, allowing plenty of time for pupils to practise these.

Mathematics

We will be following the Maths-No Problem! scheme and Maths will begin with a focus on numbers to 10,000 and recapping mental strategies for the four operations of calculations. They will continue to use their knowledge of written methods for addition and subtraction where needed and will begin to use the written methods for multiplication and division. Children will then move onto Graphs where they will interpret picture graphs and bar graphs.

We will also continue working towards the statutory Multiplication Tests, practicing our multiplication tables on a daily basis.

Science

In Science, the children will begin by looking at Living things and their habitats. Children will understand what is classed as a ‘living thing’ and will use classification keys to group living things appropriately according to their features/habitats. Throughout these lessons, children will develop their knowledge of scientific enquiry and will complete a series of investigations in small groups.

We will then be learning about ‘Sound’. Children will understand how sounds are made, how sounds travel and how people are able to hear sounds. There will be a cross-curricular link with Music lessons where children will use instruments to create sounds.

Wider Curriculum – History & Geography

Our history focus for the half term will be exploring ‘How did the Ancient Greeks influence the Western World?’ Children will learn who the Greeks were and what they achieved. They will also know who Alexander the Great was and why he was such an important person.

Geography lessons will focus on ‘How did that get there? Is the World human or physical?’. Throughout this topic, children will understand how physical features are formed and why some natural disasters may occur. Comparisons will be made between the countryside and cities, how the land is used and will learn why trade is important for some countries.

Wider Curriculum – Physical Education

Children will begin their PE lessons this term with a focus on ‘invasion games’. Despite taking part in Dodgeball, Handball, Netball and Basketball, children will be expected to develop the skills required in each sport. This includes accurate passing and catching, using space successfully and communicating effectively. Children will also begin Swimming lessons this term.

Wider Curriculum – Art & Design Technology

Children will be drawing and painting in Art lessons after looking at inspirational pieces of artwork by Sarah Goddard. They will explore different mediums for effect and will understand the importance of control when using a paintbrush.

In DT, children will explore electrical systems including those with simple circuits and switches. Children will understand how to create a working circuit with a switch and will then create their own ‘steady-hand’ game for an audience.

Wider Curriculum – Music

Mrs Shakspeare will teach music on a Friday. Pupils will enjoy learning new music as well as playing many musical instruments. They will be looking at different classical and contemporary composers and comparing music from different countries and eras.

Wider Curriculum – PSHE

PSHE lessons will continue to be taught through assemblies and class discussions. The children will be focusing on setting their classroom rules and learning about the values for out school, which can be found on our school website. For the first term, they will be looking at relationships with themselves and others before moving on to valuing differences.

Wider Curriculum – RE

Children will be studying Christianity and God. They will be learning about the Bible, including the different genres of writing within. They will explore some stories of the Bible and will begin to link some beliefs to their own lives.

Wider Curriculum – Computing

During Computing lessons, children will learn about keeping themselves safe online and the importance of this in the day and age they live in. Children will also learn about ‘Coding’ and will know how giving a computer a set of algorithms, can result in an output.

Wider Curriculum – Spanish

During Spanish lessons, children will continue to broaden their knowledge of Spanish vocabulary including the phonetic sounds of the alphabet and how to communicate with basic greetings.

General Class Reminders

• Full school P.E. kit is required on Wednesdays for PE lessons. Children can bring their P.E. kit in once and it can remain here until half term, for convenience.
• READING BOOKS need to be brought into school every day. Children will have the option of changing their books every Tuesday. Reading with your child is extremely important and we will provide reading records for you and your child to note their reading at home.
• HOMEWORK will be set every Friday and will be due back in school the following Wednesday. Children will also be given spellings to learn and mental maths to practise. Both of these will be tested on a Friday.
• MULTIPLICATION TABLES will be a large focus of our learning throughout the year, in preparation for the end of year assessments. Children will be expected to support their in-school learning by practicing these at home.

Throughout the term work completed by the children will be put on to our blog.

Please look at our work by visiting our class page - www.castleviewprimaryschool.co.uk

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Your child’s attendance in school is extremely important.  Time missed is learning that can’t always be made up.

Please ensure your child attends school for 8:40am each day unless there is a very good reason for them to be absent. School will end at 3:10pm.

If you have any concerns or issues, please do not hesitate to speak to me. Thank you.

Mrs Vick