Friday 7th July
In English this week we read just a little bit more of The Egg Box Dragon and found out that it was a magpie that had been stealing everything. We collected facts about magpies and wrote magpie fact files. We included a title, headings and a “Did you know?” fact.
In Maths we have been telling the time.
We have remembered to piece the clues together like a time detective.
Is it on the past or the to side of the clock?
How many minutes? (30)
Which number has it gone past or to?
e.g.
In R.E this week we have started our new topic, Treasures. We have thought about things that we treasure and as we listened to the story of creation we thought about all that God created.
“God looked at creation and it was good.” Genesis 1:3,9,20,24-26
Well done to everyone for a really successful sports day in the sunshine today!
Friday 30th June
In English this week we have read just a little bit more of The Adventures of Egg Box Dragon.
The Queen is having a tea party at the Royal Palace so we helped her by designing tea parties and writing invitations to request the pleasure of her distinguished guests. Disaster struck though when one of her precious diamonds was missing from the crown that she was going to wear. We wrote messages from The Queen to the Egg Box Dragon commanding him to come and help search for it, immediately! (We used persuasive verbs and thought about the rich vocabulary The Queen would have used.)
As it was Art Week this week we also looked at pattern in Maths.
We investigated patterns starting with AB patterns and then created our own sequence of patterns using cubes and squared paper. We also looked at the patterns that we can create in sequences of numbers.
2, 4, 6, 8, 10 etc
80, 70, 60, 50, 40etc
We used our knowledge of patterns to fill in missing number sequences.
Have a go at creating a missing number pattern for someone in your family to solve.
We also looked at vertical lines of symmetry and created symmetrical houses inspired by our Art Week artist Camille Walala.
In R.E this week our topic of Rules has come to an end. We celebrated and went forth by creating friendship bracelets for a friend in our class, remembering God’s important rule;
“My commandment is this; love one another, just as I love you.” John 15:12
Friday 23rd June
English
This week in English we have continued to read The Adventures of The Egg Box Dragon.
We thought of lots of questions that we could ask The Egg Box dragon then we wrote scripts pretending we were news reporters interviewing him about his amazing ability to find things.
Maths
In Maths we have been looking at position and rotation.
We have focused on the key vocabulary; in front, behind, to the left, to the right, on top, below, half turn, quarter turn, clockwise, anticlockwise and right angle.
We moved objects along grids and described the moves
and described how shapes have been rotated
We also made our own right angle checkers and investigated right angles around the classroom.
We continued to think about “How we meet God’s love in our community” during our Journey in Love. We thought about when we feel safe and unsafe and who we turn to for help. We reflected on the words Jesus tells us many times; “Do not be afraid.”
Friday 16th June
English
This week in English we have continued to read The Adventures of The Egg Box Dragon (but only a couple more pages!) we have predicted what will happen in the story and written character descriptions based on what we know so far about The Egg Box Dragon. We have pinched noun phrases such as black, bin liner wings and bicycle reflector eyes to add interest to our writing. We can’t wait to find out what he will get up to next.
Maths
In Maths this week we have revisited addition, subtraction and multiplication as we have created and shopped in our own Great Pet Sale shops inspired by the book by Mick Inkpen. We used all sorts of different methods to prove that the total of all the animals added up to £1 including, applying our number facts within 10 and our number line addition.
RE
We have continued our topic of Rules.
We have learnt about The Sacrament of Reconciliation and created our own paths of forgiveness made up of words that reflect how we act to say that we are sorry. We have also been learning The Act of Sorrow prayer.
O my God, I thank you for loving me.
I am sorry for all my sins,
For not loving others,
And not loving you.
Help me to live like Jesus,
And not sin again.
Amen
9th June 2023
English
This week in English we have started our new Power of Reading book The Egg Box Dragon. So far we have only read the first page so we are all really excited to find out what is going to happen next. We created our own egg box dragons (thank you for all the egg box donations) and wrote a set of instructions for anyone else who would like to make one too. We included time words and imperative (bossy verbs).
Maths
In Maths this week we have revisited division.
We have used our multiplication facts and the skip counting strategy to work out division problems.
6 stickers are shared between 2 children.
How many stickers does each child get?
We know that 3 X 2 = 6
so if we skip count in 2s we will need 3 skips to get to 6
so 6÷2=3
RE
We have continued our topic of Rules.
We have talked about times that we have sinned and broken our friendship with God. We wrote sorry prayers as we examined our conscience.
26th May 2023
In English this week we have continued to write poems. We wrote an acrostic poem all about Summer and a poem about our favourite place, having read A Place by Sarah Fox.
We thought carefully about our word choices and our spelling, particularly when we added the suffixes ful and less.
In Maths, we have continued to look at fractions.
We have used the key vocabulary
numerator and denominator.
1 The numerator is how many groups you need
2 The denominator is how many equal groups there are altogether.
We have started to look at non unit fractions where the numerator is greater than 1
E.G. ¾ , 23, 24
We had great fun making non unit fraction pizzas and then moved onto finding fractions of numbers.
¾ of 12
The denominator tells us that we need 4 equal groups
[***] [***] [***] [***]
The numerator tells us that we need to count 3 of those groups so…
¾ of 12 =9
In RE this week we have started our new topic on Rules. We thought about our favourite sport and the rules we need to follow when playing it.
We read the following scripture and reflected on how it can help us to become more like Jesus.
God’s people ( based on Colossians 3:10-17)
You are created by God, to be like God.
You are God’s people, his saints. God loves you.
You should be kind and gentle, and patient and forgiving, and loving like God.
You are all different.
You come from different places, speak in different ways, I have different customs.
But the important thing is that you are God’s children.
So love one another, help one another, be at peace with one another, and let the love of Jesus fill your hearts and minds.
19th May 2023
This week in English we have thought about all the poems that we have been reading and performing. We have thought about which ones we liked the best and wrote poetry reviews. We gave them marks out of 5, chose our favourite lines and said how they make us feel.
In Maths we have looked at unit fractions
We have learnt the words: a half, a quarter, a third and
Numerator-the number on the top-how many parts you have (this will always be 1 in a unit fraction).
Vinculum –the line that separates the numerator and the
Denominator-the number on the bottom that tells you how many equal parts have been made.
We recorded this using groups
¼ of 12=
* * * * * * * * * * * *
The denominator tells us that we need 4 groups.
We then share 12 equally between the 4 groups.
The numerator tells us we need 1 group so…
¼ of 12 = 3
In R.E. our topic has been Hinduism. We found out about a Hindu shrine and what was on it and created a Puja tray that included a bell, a bowl of water, some fresh fruit, kum kum powder and incense sticks. We learnt that there were many Hindu Gods including Lord Ganesh who is like an elephant because he is strong and wise.
12th May 2023
This week in English we have continued to look at our poetry anthology by Julia Donaldson
We followed the pattern of The Sound Catcher by Roger McGough and created our own poem about all the interesting sounds that you could collect at The King’s Coronation.
In Maths we have looked at dividing by grouping.
E.G. 12÷2=
We now the dividend (the total) is 12
We now the divisor (how many in each group) 2
So we count in 2s until we get to 12.
We record this in groups of 2
2 4 6 8 10 12
12÷2= 6 because there are 6 groups
Our RE topic of Pentecost has come to an end. We thought about how we could spread the Good News and went forth, sharing our favourite hymn, scripture and story and by making a flag decorated with messages we could share.
Friday 28th April
English
Following our trip to Thriftwood the children did some brochure style writing explaining all about the activity park, where it is, details of the activities and why it would make such a great day out. We were delighted by their writing which was enthusiastic and detailed, reflecting the super time they had all had.
Maths
In Maths this week we have looked at the 5 times table and its relationship to the 10 times table.
We have continued to use the words factor and product applying
a factor X a factor = a product
and investigated and created rules for;
if one of the factors is 1 or
if one of the factors is 0.
RE
We have continued our topic of Spread the Word
We read Jesus’ promise to the disciples that he would be sending a special friend…The Holy Spirit and re told the events of The Ascension in the form of a diary.
The children also thought carefully about how The Holy Spirit could help us at school, at home and in our community.
Friday 21st April
What a great start to the new term!
During English we have been on a magical egg hunt, where a glowing egg hatched and an adventure ensued. We have also started our new Power of Reading book 'Poems to Perform', a classic collection chosen by Juila Donaldson. We listened to and performed 'Hand on the bridge' by Michael Rosen. We enjoyed changing the style and pace of our voices, as well as adding actions to our performance. This inspired us to write our own poems in the same style.
In Maths this week we have been learning,
factor x factor = product
We have been exploring times tables and using these to solve missing number and word problems.
The new RE topic is Spread the Word. We have learnt how important messages can be and why it can be important to share messages. Next week we will learn how the Holy Spirit is our friend and hear about the Ascension of our Lord.
For Science we have begun learning about animals , including humans . We drew and labelled scientific diagrams using data and information gathered from the egg hatching at school last term.
Friday 24th March
Science has been eventful this week with some eggciting news !
The chicks have begun to hatch! We are surprised that the hatching is taking so long and also that the first chick has black feathers!
What an exciting way to end our Science topic on living things and their habitats.
As Lent continues, we have begun learning about the Easter story in R.E. We made a group collage of Palm Sunday and thought how happy everyone was that day. Then we followed Jesus by role playing the washing of feet ( John 13) on Maundy Thursday , thinking about why Jesus would have done this and how the disciples must have felt. We also had a visit from CAFOD to talk to us about Catholic Social Teaching.
We have linked our English and DT learning this week by making a delicious vegetable soup. We spent an afternoon peeling, chopping, cooking , stirring, pouring and eating. We then wrote a recipe with instructions on how to make the tasty soup. Perhaps you could try making it at home.
During Maths we have been recapping strategies for subtraction and addition. We ended the week with a presentation to the class demonstrating everything we have learnt about Time.
Next week , our last in the Spring Term, has lots of exciting learning opportunities including holding our chicks and retelling the Easter Story through drama and writing.
The children loved making and tasting their vegetable soup this week so the children in Class 9 picked the best ideas from their writing and compiled a recipe that you can try at home!
How to Make Vegetable Soup
What you need
2 sticks of celery
2 carrots
2 medium sized potatoes
2 leeks
25g of butter
500ml of vegetable stock
A pan, a sieve, a chopping board, a knife, a blender, a spoon and a peeler
What you need to do
Top Tip
Let it cool down before you taste it!
Friday 17th March
In English this week we have been working hard on our reading comprehension skills. We have worked together with our partners as well as independently. Our focus has been on reading a text carefully and taking the time to read the questions carefully before answering them. We have impressed our teachers by how much we have enjoyed it!
In Maths, we have started our learning on multiplication. We began by looking at the differences between equal and unequal groups and then moved onto how the equal groups can be represented pictorially.
We then learnt that multiplication can be represented as repeated addition.
Finally, we are beginning to understand how equal groups can be represented with a multiplication equation.
In RE this week we have been reading and learning about the story of Palm Sunday. We know that Palm Sunday is the beginning of Holy Week and how important it is to Christians. We imagined being a member of the crowd as Jesus rode through Jerusalem on the donkey and acted out this scene in our groups. We then created a beautiful collage of Palm Sunday together as a group.
Friday 10th March
In English we have read to the end of the ‘Snail and the Whale’. We have mapped out the whole story and written a diary entry from one of the key characters involved in saving the whale.
We have remembered to
· Write in the first person
· Use past tense verbs
· Include information and thoughts and feelings
This week in Maths we have continued to practise both adding two 2 digit numbers and subtracting a 2 digit number from a 2 digit number. We have remembered to partition and apply our number bonds within 10. We have used number lines and written equations to show our working out.
We have also recapped on telling the time to o’clock, half past and quarter past and have learnt quarter to as well.
Ask the following questions to become a time detective;
Is the long minute hand on the 'past' or 'to' side of the clock?
If it is on the 12 =o clock
3 = quarter past
6 = half past
9 = quarter to
Which number has the short hour hand gone past or which number is it going to?
Put the clues together and you should have the correct time.
This week in RE we have continued our topic of Opportunities. We have thought about Lent as a time that gives Christians an opportunity to pray and make good choices for themselves, their community and the wider world and we have reflected on the story of The Good Samaritan.
Friday 3rd March
We have celebrated World Book Day! We had the best day in our costumes with our friends. We completed lots of exciting activities all about our book ‘What We’ll Build’ by Oliver Jeffers, including tiny ‘treasures’ out of clay!
In English this week we have continued with our book ‘The Snail and the Whale’ from the perspective of the snail. We have been practising how to write a brilliant diary, working hard with our partners and sharing our ideas. We then wrote our own diary. Our teachers were very impressed!
During Maths we have continued to look at subtraction of 2 digit numbers from 2 digit numbers, however this week we have taken it one step further by bridging ten. We have been using the success criteria to help us to remember the steps carefully.
We have started a new topic in our R.E learning this week; Opportunities! We have been thinking about the opportunities Lent gives us to be able to make better choices. We learnt that Christians repent during Lent and try to use this time to live as Jesus did. We will continue to remember the promises we made last week to help us to be more like Jesus too.
We loved exploring the microhabitats around our school using magnifying glasses and the camera’s zoom option on the iPads. We then came back and created microhabitats using collage with our partners!
Friday 24th February
This week we were joined by Father Martin and recognised the start of Lent with an Ash Wednesday service. We listened to the Word of the Lord and received ashes as a symbol that we are following and preparing our hearts for Jesus. We made Lent promises which we will try and keep for the next 40 days.
During English this week we have started a new Power of Reading book by Julia Donaldson, The Snail and the Whale.
So far we have joined the snail and thought about where she would like to visit on her adventures. We finished the week writing our own snail song! Perhaps your child can sing it to you.
During Maths we have been learnings strategies for subtraction using a number line, taking away the tens first and then the ones. We have also been looking for patterns when subtracting multiples of 10 and completing some tricky missing number challenges.
In Science we are continuing our learning on Living Things and their habitats, this week we found facts about the desert habitat and next week we are going to be observing a microhabitat in the school grounds.
Our new units of work in P.E are Dance and Invasion, we are looking forward to developing our skills across these areas over the next few weeks.
Friday 10th February
This week in English we have chosen our favourite part of the story, The Princess and The White Bear King. We drew a story map for this section of the book and then re wrote it using the rich vocabulary that we have picked up over the last few weeks.
We have also been learning about the soft c sound.
We now know that if a c is followed by an i, a y or an e it will be a soft rather than a hard c.
E.G. spice, fancy, city
In maths this week we have been adding a 2 digit number with a 2 digit number.
We have followed these steps
34+27=
· Partition the 27
20+7
· Draw a number line.
· Add on the 10s
34+20=54
· Make the next multiple of 10
54+6=60
· Partition the ones
7 is made of 6 and 1
· Add on the ones.
These are all skills the children have learnt and this week we have brought them all together to solve problems.
We have continued our RE topic about Thanksgiving. We have talked about the 4 parts of The Mass; we gather, we listen, we give thanks, we go out.
We have thought carefully about The Holy Holy which we say when we are giving thanks and have read the scripture Isaiah 6:3 which it is based on.
3rd February 2023
This week we have found out if our predictions were right as we have come to the end of our power of reading book, The Princess and the White Bear King. We have used the story to inspire us to write about a precious thing that we own, making our work into a special book.
We also performed parts of the story taking on various roles, thinking carefully how the characters would be feeling and acting.
Next week we are looking forward to becoming story tellers and writing our own retelling of the story like Tanya Robyn Batt.
During math's we continued the addition unit, adding together 2-digit numbers by adding 10's , adding 1's and recombining.
A new topic for RE has begun, Thanksgiving. We will learn about the Eucharist and how this is a way of giving thanks to God. Next week we will learn the Holy Holy prayer, perhaps you could share this prayer with your child at home too.
Also, we are hopeful for rain this weekend (not something we'd usually say !) so, we can measure rainfall, after making weather rain gauges. Look out for them at home time .
Friday 27th January
This week in English has been very exciting as we have been reading more and more of our book 'The Princess and the White Bear King'. It really has us gripped! We have now read what the Bear's castle looks like and have been using our imagination every lesson. We drew what we think his castle looks like from just hearing the descriptions from the story and also made a prediction as to what will happen next!
We have continued our addition and subtraction of multiples of 10 this week in Maths. We have continued to apply bonds/facts within 10 to help solve the equations.
For example:
45+30=
Partition 45 into tens and ones
40 + 5 = 45
then if we know that 4 + 3 = 7, we can simply...
Add all the tens
40 + 30 = 70
then
Recombine the tens and ones.
70 + 5 = 75
We have had a very special visitor this week to help us with our R.E. topic 'Books' - Fr Gary! We were very lucky because he showed us the special books they use in church to help celebrate Mass: The Missal (the book of prayers for the Priest), The Lectionary (the book of scripture) and the Book of Gospels (this one was our favourite!). He also shared with us his favourite Bible story and why it was his favourite. Fr Gary brought his own special Bible along to show us, which was given to him when he first began his training to be a priest!
We have now sadly come to the end of our 'Books' topic and look forward to finding out what our new topic will be!
Friday 20th January
This week in English we have started to look at all the rich vocabulary in The Princess and the White Bear Prince. We used it to help us to describe the princess.
The dreamy princess has long, flowing hair and crystal blue eyes. She rode through the thickly, needled pine forest on the back of the shaggy bear.
In Maths this week we have been adding and subtracting multiples of 10 to and from 2 digit numbers.
We have noticed that when you add or subtract multiples of 10 the ones stay the same but the tens change. We have used our number facts within 10 to help
E.G.
If I know that 4+3=7
Then I know that 40+30=70
If I know that 7-2=5
Then I know that 70-20 =50
We had fun on Friday creating shops and reducing the prices by 10p!
We have continued our RE topic about Books. We have named the main books used in The Mass:
The Lectionary (the book of scripture), The Book of Gospels and The Altar Missal (the book of prayers for The Priest)
We also read the story of John The Baptist And wrote an account of the story from the point of view of someone who was there at Jesus’ baptism.
God said “This is my own dear Son, with whom I am pleased.” Matthew 3:13-17
Friday 13th January
What a busy first full week we've had!
During English we have started a new Power of Reading book. We don't know the title yet, but we have found that it is about a princess, a crown and a bear. We have been predicting what the story will be about, making crowns for the princess and writing to the King to tell him why he should choose our crown. Maybe next week we will find out what the story is called, and we will see if our predictions were right.
In Maths we have a block of learning about addition and subtraction, using what we already know about partitioning and bridging 10 to apply our learning.
Within our R.E lessons we have started the new topic , Books. We began by thinking about our favourite books and then looked at the most special book of all, the Bible. We have read our own Bibles in class and talked about our favourite Bible stories. We are lucky to have Father Gary coming in a few weeks to show us some of the special books used during Mass.
During Science we have begun the topic of Living Things and their Habitats & thought about what we'd like to find out, asking questions that we will investigate throughout the topic.
Our new skills for P.E. will be learnt during gymnastics and sending and receiving.
We are looking forward to a full and happy term.
Friday 9th December
In English we have started to write the Nativity story. We wrote about The Annunciation when The Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and The visitation when Mary travelled to see Elizabeth who was also expecting a baby.
We have remembered to include past tense verbs, correct punctuation and re read our writing to check that it is accurate.
In Maths this week we have continued to apply known facts to solve addition and subtraction equations.
If I know that 3 + 4 = 7
Then I know that 13 + 4 = 17
I can work out 23 + [ ] = 27
or 27 = [ ] +23
and 44 + [ ] = 47 and so on
In R.E. We have focused on The Visitation. We thought about how Mary would be feeling and responded to Mary’s Song with our own liturgical dances. We then went on to read about the journey to Bethlehem and the birth of Jesus.
Friday 2nd December
This week was a very exciting week for us in Year 2. We went to the pantomime! We had the most wonderful time and loved every minute of it. Our teachers were so impressed with us that we were all Star of the Week!
We were storytellers in English this week, planning for and writing our own sequels to Traction Man. We did a fantastic job.
In Maths, we have spent the week problem solving. We have had a huge selection of word problems that we have read carefully, picked out the important information and then answered using the processes we have learnt.
For example:
Omar bought a chocolate bar and a seven-pence lollipop.
He spent thirty nine pence in total.
How much did the chocolate bar cost?
We have also used our number facts to 10 to help solve problems too!
In R.E this week, we have been learning about the story of The Annunciation, when Angel Gabriel came to Mary. We looked at different artists interpretations and then created our own by printing. They look beautiful!
Friday 25th November
Much to our excitement we were able to read to the end of the Power of Reading book - 'Traction Man is here' by Mini Grey . We have been left on a cliffhanger with a sinister looking pair of scissors. Next week we will write our own sequels to the story and have already had some fantastic ideas for writing.
Maths Week has seen us learning all about odd numbers . We also learnt a special mathematical skill which means you can give us any number - no matter how large - and we will be able to tell you if it's odd or even. We have investigated numbers 1,3,5,7 and 9.
Within our R.E lessons we have begun our new topic - Preparations. It is such an exciting time as we learn about Advent, the very special time in the liturgical calendar when we prepare for Jesus.
During PE we have continued our Yoga skills . You child should be able to show you many different postures and join them into a yoga flow, as well as being able to breath slowly and deeply, taking time to relax.
As well as writing the sequels to Traction Man is here , next week the Panto awaits us!
Oh no it doesn't!
Oh yes it does!
In Maths we will be focusing on addition and subtraction and we will continue our RE topic by learning about Scripture Isaiah 9: 2, 6 and the story of the Annunciation.
Friday 18th November
In English we have started to look at diaries and read exerts from diaries of famous people like Samuel Pepys and famous characters such as Little Red Riding Hood. We made a list of all the features a diary entry should have;
· A date
· Dear Diary
· Past Tense Verbs
· Information
· Thoughts and Feelings
In Maths this week we have been applying known facts to solve addition and subtraction subtraction equations.
If I know that 3+4=7
Then I know that 13+4=17
I also know that 23+4=27 and so on
If I know that 7-4=3
Then I know that 17-4=13
I also know that 27-4=23 and so on
It was Interfaith Week this week. We thought about different Faiths and different places that people pray. We talked about the similarities and differences when looking at our religion and those of others and how we are tolerant of all faiths.
Friday 11th November
In English this week we have been illustrators and creating a character description for Traction Man. We worked on our speaking and listening skills by taking it in turns to describe a picture of Traction Man whilst the other listened carefully and drew what we described. It was very fun!
In Maths, we learnt about finding the difference. We found out:
We then finished the week of with some consecutive number problem solving!
On Remembrance Day we listened to the story 'Stubby' by Michael Foreman , listened to the 'The Last Post' during the two minutes silence and then wrote some beautiful poppy poetry. We also created poppy artwork by using polystyrene tiles to print!
Friday 4th November
This week in English we have started our new Power of Reading Book Traction Man. We have been predicting what we think is going to happen in the book, thought about a voiceover and learned about Proper Nouns. We have had great fun adding voice overs to things that are happening around the school.
In Maths we have continued to subtract a single digit from a 2 digit number.
We have been successful by following these 3 steps;
12-4
12-2 =10
10-2 =8
In RE this week we had a visit from Margaret from Cafod.
We learnt all about how to be the best possible people that we can be and enjoyed listening to stories from an Antarctic penguin, a giraffe from Africa and a sun bear from Asia.
Our Signs and Symbols topic came to an end. We celebrated and went forth to spread the word with our candles decorated with the signs and symbols of baptism.
Friday 21st October
This week in English we have been looking at Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a dream’ speech. We thought about how he dreamed of making a better world for everyone. We then went on to write our own ‘I have a dream’ speeches, all of which included thoughtful ideas including protecting the planet, living in peace and being tolerant of those we share our world with.
In Maths we have continued to focus on the ‘makes 10’ strategy.
We have started to use it to take a single digit away from a 2 digit number when 10 is bridge.
12-6=
12-2= 10 6 is made of 2 and 4 so
10-4=6
Keep practicing the bonds within 10 and also to 10 (White Rose Minute Maths App) as the quicker the children can recall these the more efficient their calculating will be.
In RE we have continued to look at the signs and symbols of Baptism. We learnt this week that the Oil of Chrism is a symbol that The Holy Spirit is with the baby at its Baptism and that the white garment is a symbol that the baby is pure and wrapped in God’s love.
There will be no homework for the half term holiday.
Friday 14th October
In English this week we have continued with our poetry topic. We have been using our current season to help us plan for and write our own ‘Autumn Leaves’ poems. We made sure to include adjectives, verbs and commas into our poem.
Throughout Black History Month, we have been learning about the life of Martin Luther King Jr and that the use of voice can be so powerful. This week we made our own zigzag books all about his life. We did such a great job!
In Maths, we have continued to add 2 single digit numbers using the ‘makes ten’ strategy. We have been using part part whole models and number lines to help up both ‘bridge to 10’ and partition numbers. We have been remembering our learning on number bonds to 10, which we learnt in year one.
In R.E this week we have had a focus on scripture:
Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.
Romans 15:17
For this scripture we focused on the baby being welcomed into the church through Baptism. We learnt that the priest begins the Baptism by asking the parents what name they have given the baby followed by making the sign of the cross on baby’s head. The priest then invites the parents and godparents to do the same. We talked about how this made us feel and if it made us wonder about anything?
For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.
Isaiah 44:3
We focused on the symbol of water used in Baptism. We collaged a water drop and underlined our favourite part of this scripture. We talked about the importance of water and what it symbolises.
Friday 7th October
In English we have been writing our own poetry.
We have created a class poem called On our way to school…
It included funny things that the children might see on the way to school.
The children then created their own poems that included interesting adjectives.
This week in maths we have been adding 2 single digit numbers using the ‘makes ten’ strategy.
7+5=
We know that 7 needs 3 more to make 10.
5 is made of 3 and 2
So 7+3=10
10+2 =12
We are teaching the children to use calculation strategies rather than just counting on.
Although this seems a rather long process it is a skill that will really help them when working with bigger numbers and harder maths problems.
Key vocabulary;
makes ten, addition, add, plus, together
In RE we have continued to look at the rites of Baptism and the importance of the symbols reflecting Baptism. We went on a walk looking for signs and symbols that are important to our school.
Friday 30th September
Our Power of Reading book - 'The HodgeHeg' by Dick King Smith has come to completion this week. We have learnt more about hedgehogs as animals and written our own version with an alternative ending. We have left Max and his family resting , hunting, playing and generally having a fabulous time at the park.
We have also come to the end of a block of Place Value learning in Maths. We have met Blockzilla and compared numbers using the inequality sign .We have also used everything we have learnt to investigate where numbers should go on a linear number line.
Within our R.E lessons we have celebrated what we have learnt in the Beginnings topic and written a letter to our talk / listen partner in the style of St Paul, telling them how much God loves them. We took our learning forth by thinking of a new beginning we could start at home.
During Science we have decided on our own simple comparative tests to find out which materials are waterproof and which are not. We also found that raincoats and umbrellas are very useful ! You may want to ask your child about teddy having a shower!
Next week we will be performing and writing poetry, moving onto addition and beginning a new R.E topic - Sign and Symbols. Perhaps you could spot some signs and symbols over the weekend.
Friday 23rd September
Maths
This week in maths we have continued our learning on place value and partitioning into tens and ones. We have also been creating an addition number sentence to go with our part part whole model.
10+5=15
5+10=15
15=10+5
15=5+10
We have also learnt about the place value of each digit in a 2 digit number, using the dienes to help us.
English
We finally read the ending of our Power of Reading book ‘The Hodgeheg’ by Dick King Smith.
We wrote a character description about the main character Max, using adjectives. We also learnt to ask and answer questions in role. For this we were in groups of three: a reporter, an interviewee and a cameraman. We had lots of fun taking it in turns to interview the ‘lollypop lady’ and the ‘driver’ on what they saw crossing the road. We did an excellent job asking the right sort of questions.
We are beginning to think about retelling part of the story next week so we have story-boarded our ideas (drawing a picture for each section) ready to write them down.
We are learning the spelling rule of adding ing to words and what to do if a word ends in e.
Friday 16th September
RE
We have continued to think about new beginnings, thought about how we start each new day and remembered that we need to greet God at the beginning of each new day by writing our very own morning prayers.
Maths
This week in maths we have been partitioning 2 digit numbers into tens and ones.
We have been repeating the stem sentences for each number that we are looking at.
E.G.
My whole is 15.
One part is 10.
One part is 5.
Together I have 15.
The children have learnt to draw their own part part whole models and have used jottings or numbers to fill them in.
English
We have continued to read our Power of Reading book The Hodgeheg by Dick King Smith.
We have written expanded noun phrases to describe the setting (the inclusion of a noun described by an adjective), we have described how Max the hedgehog would feel trying to cross the road to get the park and had great fun writing muddled sentences reflecting how Max was speaking once he’d had a bang on the head!
We have continued to learn the rules of how to spell plurals including changing f to a v and adding es.
Friday 9th September
What a good first week we have had! We were all really happy to see the children back and ready for all the new learning and challenges that come from being in Year 2!
This week in English we have begun our first Power of Reading book for Year 2! So far we have discovered it is about a hedgehog. We have thought what we know about hedgehogs already and have spent time thinking what we would like to find out. Some of the questions we have are; can hedgehogs swim? What do they eat? Do they run? What noises do they make?
During Maths we have been learning about teen numbers and how to recognise them. We have used part-part whole models and dienes to find the ten and ones for example 18 has 1 ten and 8 ones. We have also begun the Mastering Number programme using the Rekenreks and have been counting in lots of fun ways!
Our first topic for R.E. in year 2 is Beginnings. We have thought about our new starts and how sometimes they can make us feel anxious, brave or excited. We also looked at the Creation Story from the Book of Genesis and ‘Saw that is was good’. Finally in response to the Creation Story and music by John Burland – God created you and me – we performed a Liturgical dance.
P.E. was especially exciting with our new routine of P.E. kit for the day. This has been an excellent change enabling us to gain extra learning time and less lost socks! We began our gymnastics unit of work by travelling in different ways using apparatus and Mr Peace returned for our specialist games session.
The week ended with a very special service for the whole school at the cathedral, marking the beginning of a new school year and reflecting on the death of Queen Elizabeth II.