W/C 17.7.17

After all their hard work, throughout the three terms, the children have had some well-deserved 'down time'. They have consolidated their learning with fun activity sheets and have enjoyed watching DVDs and playing games in the wonderful sunshine!

Willow Class have been an absolute pleasure to teach and we are sure that they will be just as delightful and hard-working in Year 4.

Enjoy the Summer, Willows!

Miss McKenzie

Mrs Nock

W/C 10.7.17

In the penultimate week of the term, Willow Class have been revisiting their knowledge of 'Angles'; they have been consolidating their knowledge of right angles, acute and obtuse angles. Children participated in some practical, outdoor activities (see file) to gain a greater understanding of the idea that 90 degrees is equal to a right angle and that if we turn a full circle, in either direction, we would have turned through four right angles, or 4 quarter turns. The children also understand that the angles in a circle are equal to 360 degrees.

Good Job!

W/C 3rd July 2017

This week, the children have spent a lot of time in Mathematics, reviewing tricky areas and consolidating their knowledge. Topics, such as Mental Maths, and division and multiplication methods were covered, as well as time-telling skills and fractions.  The children also completed skills checks to assess their understanding of these (and other) areas.

W/C 26.6.17

This week, the children were treated to a visit by 'The Life Bus'.  This was a fantastic opportunity for the children to learn more about the human body and to consolidate their existing knowledge of this area.  Willow Class were able to discuss the human brain, in terms of how it works and its link to personality, choices and decisions. The children were shown a fantastic model of the internal organs of the human body and, with the aid of the wonderful Life Bus instructor, were able to name major internal body parts, such as the bones, muscles, heart, blood, lungs, stomach, small and large intestines, liver and brain.

The children used this knowledge to understand that anything that gets into the body could pass into the blood, around the body and into our internal organs.  There was specific emphasis on substances getting into the brain, as the Life Bus instructor wanted to show how such substances could affect the manner in which we think and behave. To this effect, the children discussed the role of alcohol, smoking and medicines in the body and why it is important that medicines are only administered by sensible, responsible adults.

In addition, children learnt about how to get on with friends and peers and how to deal, positively, with issues  that may cause them to feel sad and uneasy.

WC 19.6.17

This has been a very busy week for Willows (and the whole school), with the Summer Production.  However, there was still time for Science!

The children have been studying the human body and have been examining muscles, and in particular, antagonistic muscles, such as the biceps, the triceps, the quadriceps and the hamstrings.

They learnt that muscles work in pairs and that they flex and extend to allow movement. They have also learnt that muscles get stronger the more they are exercised.

W/C 5.6.17

This week, we have been studying Traditional Poems by Eleanor Farjeon and Charles Causley. The emphasis has been on reading such poems aloud and noting the difference between a poem recited with expression and one recited without.  After discussion, the children agreed that, in order to convey meaning and achieve the maximum effect on a listener, poetry must be recited with real emotion and expression; this involves changing one's tone and pitch of voice, as well as sometimes using appropriate body language.  

The children subsequently read, rehearsed and performed (in groups) a rather amusing poem entitled "Quack!" Said the Billy Goat" (by Charles Causley), which they thoroughly enjoyed.

WC 5.6.17:

Willow Class have been learning about how the human skeleton moves - by way of 'joints'. They have learnt that joints fall into 3 categories: slightly- moveable, immovable and freely moveable. The children have also discovered what parts of the body have slightly moveable, immovable and freely moveable joints...

W/C 22.5.17

The children are really enjoying their Science lessons and, this week, have been learning about the human skeleton. They understand the importance of the skeleton to human posture and movement, as well as its protective role.  Some were quite amazed to find that human bone, as part of our body, is living tissue and makes our blood!

The pictures below show the children engaged in some artwork; they loved drawing pictures of human bones and were able to play a little game, in which they tried to assemble a basic diagram of the skeleton.

Fantastic work!

W/C 15.5.17

Following on from the previous week,  Willow Class have been further developing their persuasive techniques...

This week, the children have rehearsed and recorded an advert, in which they persuaded an audience NOT to buy a toy. This was a particularly challenging task for the Willows, but they acquitted themselves very well, indeed.  Some of the adverts were recorded, and can be found in the picture gallery below.

The children were also asked to work in pairs, to create a poster, in which they persuaded people NOT to buy a toy (see pictures).

Watch out parents! That  firm resistance that you have shown, to buying a particular toy, may crumble under the weight of your child's newly-acquired persuasive arguments!

W/C 8.5.17

This week, In Literacy, Willow Class have been looking at the art of 'persuasion' and the persuasive language used by various companies to sell products.  The children looked a variety of adverts, promoting toys and other products and were asked to select features of these adverts, such as persuasive phrases, bright colours and alliterative language.

In addition, 'The Willows' have been learning about a balanced diet, as part of our Science topic. They created a beautiful 'Eatwell Plate' to illustrate the proportions of fats, carbohydrates, vegetables, fruits and proteins that we should eat in our meals.

Wonderful Work, Willows!

W/C 24.4.17

This week, Willow Class have been studying dialogue and how to write it correctly. As part of this process, the children have been reading the class text, 'The Hodgeheg' (Dick King-Smith) and exploring the way in which conversations have been recorded. Emphasis has been placed on the rule: 'New speaker, new line', as well as using the correct punctuation involved in speech.

The children enjoyed reading  the extract from 'The Hodgeheg' and physically acting-out the scene in question, inventing actions to show, for example, when there is a new speaker or a full stop.The children were then asked to add-on further dialogue, using the same actions for punctuation. Finally, this dialogue was recorded in their books.

It is hoped that this activity will reinforce the children's knowledge of dialogue when they are writing their own stories.

W/C 24.4.17

This week, Willow class have begun, in earnest, their new Science topic of Animals and Staying Healthy.

The children began their scientific journey by discussing and recording what humans require to stay healthy (e.g a balanced diet, regular exercise, good mental health etc).  After that, the focus was shifted to one aspect of healthy living - diet.  

Children learnt that animals, including humans, are either carnivores, herbivores or omnivores. We discussed what the aforementioned terms mean and then the children proceeded to classify a number of animals, on the basis of their diet (see pictures below).

W/C 17.04.17

This week, Willow completed their Curriculum Day on their Roman Topic.

After watching the wonderful reconstruction of the events of Pompeii (see pictures),the children enjoyed a variety of activities, including writing a diary about a Roman citizen, who lived in Pompeii, and writing a poem on the life of a Roman soldier/gladiator. Willow class were also able to create a cartoon strip based on the events of Pompeii. Children explored some historical artefacts, including Roman clothing and Roman implements. I think Willow Class  now appreciate how the area, in which they live, is steeped in so much Roman history! 

Willow Class participated in their own version of 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire' called ' Who Wants to Be a Roman Citizen'. They were asked a number of questions on their Roman topic and were given four answers to choose from. Unfortunately, they were unable to "Phone a friend", however, they could use the Ipads/laptops to research the answers...

W/C 27.3.17

As we are about to go on our Easter holidays, the children have been reading the Easter Story and why we celebrate Easter with Easter eggs. The children greatly enjoyed reading this story and answering the questions that were set.  They also loved illustrating their work.

Happy Easter!

w/c: 20.3.17 

This week, we have looked at the story 'How to catch a star' by Oliver Jeffers. We invented our own star catching contraptions and wrote persuasive letters to encourage somebody to buy these. We then thought of our own 'How to catch a star' stories and animated these using the Stop motion app. We hope you enjoy watching them. 

W/C 13.3.17

This week, Willow class have been continuing with their Poetry module; they studied a poem called 'M' by Graham Denton and were asked to identify areas of direct speech in the poem. The children were then asked to read the poem, in small groups, taking the role of both the speakers in the poem, as well as the narrator. Subsequently, the children were asked to 'extemporize', whereby they created their own speech, making up parts of the poem, which they could incorporate into their own final version - giving their own names as the authors, of course!

The children in Willow enjoyed this activity; it enabled them to 'get to grips' with the speech marks within Poetry, in a fun and very practical way. The pictures below show the children working on this:

W/C 13.3.17

In addition to the Poetry (described above), the children have been continuing with their exploration of the world of painting.

As we have been studying the Romans, I thought it would be a good idea to delve into the world of Roman mosaics.  Instead of using the traditional methods of creating a mosaic, the children used colourful paints to create their own unique style.

As can be seen, the results are beautiful...

WC 6.3.17

This week, Willow Class have started their Poetry module and have been exploring some interesting poems, such as 'Arundel Swimming Pool', by Robert Hull.

The children have really been enjoying poetry and learning all about how poets express themselves, using colourful, emotive language and other literary devices.

On Tuesday, the children enthusiastically read this poem together, and then acted out parts of the poem in groups, as the pictures below show.

I think that there are some budding actors and actresses in Willow Class - and, I hope, some poets, too!

WC 27.2.17

What a busy week it has been for the Willows.  They have been rehearsing for their class assembly, which was held on Thursday. Also, they have been deeply engrossed in Science Week, not only taking part in class experiments, such as the effect of exercise on heart rate and breathing, but also listening to some very skilled and interesting Scientists, who visited Manea School to give us all a brief insight into the wonderful world of Science.

The children were most taken by the hatching of the ducks in Pine Class. As can be seen in the pictures below they thoroughly enjoyed this experience and all of the experiences of Science Week.

I think that the children deserve a treat for all their hard work.

Well Done, Willow!

WC 20.2.17

Willow Class have been designing illuminated letters; this is in-keeping with our current Literacy text, 'The Ink Garden of Brother Theophane'.

It is hard to believe that the children have never done this type of design before, as they took to it like ducks to water! They created the most beautiful pieces of illuminated artwork, drawing inspiration, not only from our class text, but from the video footage of illuminated letters, as well as pictures which have been on display in the classroom.

By the end of the week, the children would have created a class book, filled with their illuminated letters and accompanying sentences.

Well done, Willow Class!

W/C 6.2.17

It's been a very colourful week for 'The Willows'!

On Monday, the children used 'Bleeding Art' paper to create a piece of abstract art, in the style of Paul Klee...

W/C 6.2.17

Throughout the week, Willow Class have also been learning about dyes; this is the topic of our Literacy text, 'The Ink Garden of brother Theophane'.

I can say, with absolute confidence, that the children thoroughly enjoyed, not only listening to the story, but also learning about how dyes were made in the distant past, as practised by Medieval monks.

On Thursday, Willow Class actually made a number of dyes, using a variety of products, such as vegetables, flowers, beetroot, strawberries, blueberries and coffee granules!  As can be seen in the pictures below, I think a great time was had by all.

Well done, Wonderful, Willows!

WC 30.1.17.

This week, Willow Class have been busy measuring!

In the first two lessons of the week, the children learnt about millimetres, centimetres and metres, and how to measure with rulers, tape measures and metre sticks. The young mathematicians had a great time measuring each other's height and feet sizes.  They also learnt that our feet are not always identical in size!

After that, there was a short exercise in conversions, in which children were asked to convert one unit of measurement into another, for example metres to centimetres, and vice versa.

W/C 23.1.17

The 'Willows' have been in the woods this week!

Accompanied by Ash Class, Willow Class visited Manea Woods, along with their teachers, teaching assistants and a number of kind parent helpers (thank you, very much!).  This trip formed part of their Science Topic of 'Living Things' and enabled the children to gain some hands-on practical experience of living organisms and their habitats.

Willow Class were enthusiastic and engaged fully in all activities set by Miss Bridges.  This included the finding and identification of living organisms that inhabit the woodland area, as well as building a home for a specified animal.

Even though it was quite a cold day (no rain, thankfully), all of the children, staff and parents had a wonderful time and a lot was learnt and experienced by all of the children.

A wonderful morning's work! 

W/C 16.1.17

This week, the children have been busy creating beautiful paintings!

In our Art session, Willow Class have been studying the features of conventional and abstract art and were fascinated by the variety of paintings shown on the Smartboard. This generated lots of discussion in the group, before our practical, and the children were able to use their imaginations, especially with the abstract art, to describe what they saw.

In the practical session that followed, Willow Class were asked to paint a conventional picture of a flower or plant and an abstract picture, also using the flower and/or plant theme.

As you can see, the children thoroughly enjoyed the experience - but I'm not sure whether they enjoyed the clearing up!

W/C 9.1.17

This week, the children have been getting fit and shaking off the last of the Christmas pudding!

In our Gymnastics session, Willow Class have been using their bodies to form interesting shapes. They have subsequently linked a number of these shape movements to form a short, (paired) sequence.

W/C 2.1.17

This week, Willow have been introduced to the topic of 'The Romans'. They have been full of enthusiasm and learnt about the story of Romulus and Remus. The children were able to perform their own version of this story - and enjoyed doing so!

W/C 5/12/16

This week in mathematics we have been continuing with measuring. We have been using our rulers to measure different objects around the classroom as well as measuring lines to a certain length. 

In literacy we have been writing a book review on Fatbag and have enjoyed hearing each others different views on the book.

W/C 28/11/16

This week in Willow class we have finished reading the book Fatbag. The class thought it was a very funny story, especially the ending. We had lots of laughing and giggling as we came to the end. We are hoping there will be more books to follow.

In mathematics this week we have finished our work on fractions and have begun using scales to weigh different objects.

25/11/16

On Friday of last week we had our Children In Need day. The staff and pupils were in non-uniform mainly something in spots. Something very strange had happened when we got to school- the classroom was a mess!

We had to start our morning doing police incident report forms to decide who we thought the culprit was. After this we joined forces with the year two class and went around the school looking for clues.

We ended up in the art cupboard and found that Pudsey was the main culprit! 

The whole class had a really enjoyable day.

W/C 14/11/16

We started this week with our Greek day. The children and teachers all dressed up in different clothing- everyone looked great! 

During the day we did paper mache on masks and took part in our own Greek Olympics with year 4. 

W/C 7/11/16

This week in mathematics we have been studying fractions of amounts as well as counting in fractions. During literacy we have been doing some diary writing to do with a character named Rose in the book we are studying- The Tunnel. 

On Friday we had our buddy reading session with pre-school. 

W/C 31/10/16

Seen as the start of this week was Halloween we did some work on writing a spell. We added animals, blood and eyeballs to our potion and had lots of fun writing about how to make our spells. 

We then continued the week by doing fraction work, this was a great hit with the whole class and we have all learnt lots about fractions for different shapes. As well as learning about some 2D shapes. 

In literacy we have started a new book called The Tunnel, the pupils have really enjoyed this story and have come up with some excellent ideas about the characters and the way they feel.

W/C 17/10/16

This week Willow class have been preparing for our Harvester assembly. We have had lots of fun drawing and colouring in our pictures, as well as practicing our poem. 

W/C 10/10/16

This week we had our outdoor learning week. We started the week by going outside and looking at the Autumn scene. We made a list of all the things we can see, hear and feel whilst we collected up leaves, twigs and conkers. Then we described our own Autumn piece of work.

As well as this we measured outside objects with either rulers or meter sticks depending on what measuring apparatus worked best. After this we collected up as many leaves as we possibly could and sorted them into groups depending on either size, colour or shape. 

w/c 3/10/16

This week we have been constructing and testing circuits in science. We had great fun and enjoyed watching the bulbs light up as well as learning the names of all the basic parts. This is all part of our topic electricity. 

In literacy we started to write a play script based on our book for this term,Gregory Cool. We have trying to understand our characters better by listing any questions that we would like to ask them. This week it has been done through the grandparents. 

In mathematics we have continued with our multiplication and division work on number lines. 

W/C 26/9/16

During this week we have been doing ICT and art in the afternoons.

In mathematics we have been using our times tables grids for our 2,5,10,3,4 and 6 times tables. 

w/c 19/09/16

This week we have been continuing with our five senses in guided reading, but this time we have been looking at a castle.

In mathematics we have been using number lines to add and subtract.

Literacy has been based on the food, weather and geography of Tobago.

WELCOME TO WILLOW CLASS' PAGE

W/C:12.09.16

This week in Willow class we have been learning all about the stars and planets. We used our learning in our P.E lesson to create different star shapes with our bodies.

W/C 5/09/16

This week as part of our guided reading sessions we have been focusing on our five senses around the seaside. we have had great discussions about our experiences of the beach. As well as this in literacy we have started to read Gregory Cool. 

2.9.16

We have arrived in Key Stage 2!  

We have been working hard on our new routines and also finding out all about our new room and adults.  A wonderful two days has taken place where we have been learning about the Olympics and enjoying our Grecian reading area.  

We can't wait to learn more about the Ancient Greeks and to share with you!

Quotes on our first days in Key Stage 2

'It is really good fun'

'I like dividing and multiplying in maths'

'It is great, we have a different playtime so we will see Reception children at lunch'