The children certainly impressed the guides with their knowledge of castles on our visit to Newcastle Keep.They were able to answer all of the questions, some of them before they had even been asked. We were also very proud of them for their good behaviour and stamina! (There were a lot of steep steps to climb.)
On a rather warm day we set off to Bill Quay farm in search of some mini beasts! After a quick introduction to some less common creatures including Dexter the hissing cockroach we explored a variety of habitats including the meadow where we found leaf hoppers hiding in the bubbles, the undergrowth where we woke the sleeping centipedes, a few lumbricus terrestris (worms) and caught sight of a few fast moving beetles. Then it was off to the pond to see which creatures lived there. Have a look at the photographs to see what we found.
Our first topic this half term is ‘Life Cycles’. We will be reviewing our knowledge of plants and how seeds grow and hopefully the outdoor area will not only be bursting with learning opportunities but also with flowers! Of course wherever there are flowers there are always mini beasts to investigate and we will be finding out how some of these creatures help the flowers and how others don’t!
We are hoping to extend our knowledge and experience of mini beasts with a visit to Bill Quay farm for a rambling mini beasts hunt and a spot of pond dipping.
Having completed our botany studies, as well as demonstrating our skills as budding entomologists, we will be becoming historians, finding out about what life was like in the Middle Ages, with a visit to Newcastle Keep to find out just how great it would have been to live in a castle. Not!
We are also hoping to organise a ‘Family Activity Day’ at the park before the end of term for the whole family. Watch out for more details coming soon.
Reading, writing and number work will continue to build on the skills the children have developed, focussing on their needs and ability using a variety of active, practical and fun approaches with some more formal work where appropriate.
Thank you for your on going support.
J.Evans
We had a fantastic day ‘Down on the Farm’ yesterday. There were lambs to feed, pigs to wash, donkeys to brush and rabbits to cuddle with a bit of time for some fun in the park. Thank you to Year 6 for taking good care of their Reception buddies, though it was a little strange for me as I can remember taking them to the farm when they were in Reception! Also, thanks to the parents who accompanied us, I hope you enjoyed the day as much as we did. Finally, a special thank you to the children in my class for making the day so special.
We got a little carried away with the photographs so it may take a while for the gallery to load but it is well worth the wait!
After reading the story about Stanley and his stick we set off in search of our own multi-purpose stick. Can you guess what each one is?
Our topic this term is ‘Life Cycles’. We have already started thinking about Spring and new life and will be taking this further by setting up our own potting shed so, hopefully, the outdoor area will not only be bursting with learning opportunities but also with flowers! We will then be moving on to think about animals, starting with pets but then exploring life on the farm, the jungle and the ocean!
The focus in literacy is stories and rhymes to not only develop reading and writing skills but also to encourage children’s love of books by sharing some of our favourites. We will also be using information books to help us to find out more about plants and animals, giving real purpose to our reading.
In number work we will continue to explore patterns in numbers and build confidence in recognising and sequencing bigger numbers. Calculations will be linked to problem solving tasks to develop confidence in using and applying mathematics and also develop mathematical vocabulary. Through children’s play there will be lots of practical activities involving money: counting, making totals and giving change and also timed challenges to develop children’s concept of time.
Opportunities for investigative play and child initiated learning will continue to be a central part of daily activities.
Thank you so much for all your help and support so far this year.
Jill Evans
We took full advantage of the sunshine to get active for Sports Relief.
Thank you for your kind donations.
On Monday we went into the garden for an Easter Egg hunt but it turned into a rescue mission! We discovered some strange pieces of metal, including a rocket booster, not dissimilar from the one QPootle5 had on his spaceship.
We undertook a thorough examination of the area and discovered a very small alien caught in the tree. On closer inspection (and a bit of research) we realised it was in fact an alien teddy!
This was very concerning, who did he belong to and how would we get him home? The children busied themselves designing and making space pods to try to get him home.
This morning however we discovered strange footsteps across the classroom floor, at first we thought it might have been the Easter Bunny leaving chocolate (ever hopeful!) but then we noticed teddy was gone! We are hoping he is safely back home with his owner, but now, somebody has to clean up this mess!
We had an absolutely fabulous day at ‘The Centre For Life’. The Planetarium was amazing and so were your children, teaching Toni, our guide, all about the moon and the planets in our Solar System. In the laboratory we analysed the planets, got down to some careful research to find out which rockets travelled the furthest, then finished off by creating our own star constellations. We barely had time for a rest! The children were a credit to you and Bede Burn School.
This half term we are beginning our Astronomy training, to find out the facts and the fiction about Space. The topic lends itself to lots of creative and imaginative play opportunities developed through stories, poems and of course children’s own ideas and imagination. At the end of the unit we are hoping to organise a visit to the Centre for Life to include a planetarium show and the opportunity to explore what life is like in Space.
The topic will give us plenty of reading and writing opportunities, using both fiction and non-fiction texts. The emphasis on developing reading skills will continue through shared reading sessions. As well as reinforcing keywords and developing word building skills these sessions will give us more opportunities to discuss story events, reinforce elements of story structure and for children to share their views in small groups. Thank you for your continuing support at home with individual reading books; children will continue to read these books in class on a weekly rota and new books will be issued at this time.
In phonics we will continue to reinforce letter sounds through word building and blending. The next phase in Letters and Sounds focuses on introducing vowel digraphs and phonics homework will reinforce these. (I know you are really looking forward to it!)
In number time we are hoping to extend children’s confidence in recognising numbers up to and beyond 20 through counting games, matching activities and sequencing tasks. Through practical sessions, we will be exploring numbers. Problem solving activities will be linked to measures including size, weight and capacity. Any opportunities at home to reinforce these activities will be very valuable to the children.
Opportunities for investigative play and child initiated learning will continue to be a central part of daily activities.
Thank you for your support.
J. Evans
