Friday 10th January

This week in English the children have started their new Power of Reading Book ‘The Princess and the White Bear King’. Firstly the children made a prediction of what would happen in the book based on objects that will appear later on in the story. Then the children were shown the first picture in the book, they had to describe what was going on. The following day the children read the first page of the book where there are lots of crowns being made for a princess. The children made their own crowns and then wrote a descriptive letter persuading the princess to choose their crown as he favourite.

In Maths the children been learning to add and subtract multiples of 10. They have then been adding and subtracting multiples of 10 to a two digit number.

The children have been using know number facts to do this - we know that 2 + 5 = 7 so we also know that 20 + 50 = 70. We know that 8 – 2 = 6 so we also know 80 – 20 = 60.

Adding multiples of 10:

34 + 20 =

Partition 30 + 4

Add tens 30 + 20 = 50

Add ones and recombine 50 + 4 = 54

Subtracting multiples of 10:

34 – 20 =

Partition 30 + 4

Subtract tens 30 – 20 = 10

Add ones and recombine 10 + 4 = 14

In RE the children have finished their topic Prophecy and Promise by focussing on the Magnificat. The children discussed how the prayer is telling us how Mary is so happy to have God’s son. They created an image of the world as it is today and how the world be is people listened to what Mary sang in the Magnificat.

Friday 20th December

This week in English the children finished reading their Power of Reading book “Traction Man is here!” The children had to write down what might happen next after the story ended. They were given an image from the last page and they could pick how they responded to it. They could choose a poem, sentences, a narrative, a letter, a diary or another style of writing.

In Maths the children have been doing Elf Maths to revisit all that we have learnt so far. In groups they have had to figure out the answers to lots of different Maths equations each day to work out a clue. At the end of the week when the children have worked out all of the clues they will know which Elf in Santa’s workshop has stolen the reindeer’s sleigh bells!

In RE the children have continued their Prophecy and Promise topic. This week the children have been discussing how Jesus is the light of the world and the different symbols of light. To celebrate this the children created a Christmas card of the Wise Men following the star to find the light of the world in a stable. The children have also explored how other cultures celebrate Advent. In particular in Mexico the celebrate La Posadas and in China they create paper lanterns and hang them up. We held our of Las Posadas festival and went around the school singing hymns and listening to passages about the Christmas story from the Bible.

Friday 13th December 

This week in English the children have continued reading their Power of Reading book “Traction Man is here!” The children came up with their own ideas for what might have happened to Traction Man in the previously mentioned ‘Terrible Parachute Accident’. The children planned and wrote a diary entry explaining what had happened in their version of the parachute accident. The children learnt the spelling rules for adding the suffix -ness onto a word.

E.g.,

care – carelessness

mindful - mindfulness

help - helpless

In Maths the children have been exploring revisiting how to add and subtract ones from two digit number as well as reasoning mathematically. The children have been thinking about the why behind their Maths questions and how to answer them using the correct vocabulary. The children also reasoned mathematically using money. They had different items to buy from ‘shops’ and had to work out how to pay for it with exact change in multiple ways.

In RE the children have continued their Prophecy and Promise topic. The children looked at artwork of Mary at the Annunciation and spoke about how Mary is the mother of God who prays for them and with them. To do this the children studied the Hail Mary, they picked their favourite line and explained why it was significant to them.

Friday 6th December 

This week in English the children have continued reading their Power of Reading book “Traction Man is here!” The children wrote a letter as a Scrubbing Brush to explore the feelings of a different character in comparison to Traction Man. The children also focussed on past tense spelling rules, and practiced putting them into their writing.

For example if a word ends in y, you take away the y add an i, then add the suffix ed.

Cry – Cried

If a word ends in e, you take away the e, then add the suffix ed.

Bake – Baked

If a word ends in a short consonant, you double the consonant, then add the suffix ed.

Skip – Skipped

In Maths the children have been exploring how to ass and subtract 10 to/from a two digit number. They have been focussing on the rule that if you add/subtract 10 the tens change but the ones stay the same.

For example:

7+10=17 94-10=84

17+10=27 84-10=74

27+10=37 74-10=64

37+10=37 64-10=54

In RE the children have continued their Prophecy and Promise topic. Following on from last week the children used what they knew about Zechariah and how he only got his voice back when called his son John. The children learnt that when Zechariah got his voice back he shared with everyone that John would grow up to become a Prophet who would assist Jesus in sharing God’s message. The children wrote a diary entry as Zechariah to explain his thoughts and feelings.

The children also celebrated the Advent season by singing beautifully in their Carol Concert where they sung some Christmas pop songs along with some traditional carols to tell the story of Jesus’ birth.

Friday 29th November 

This week in English the children have continued reading their Power of Reading book “Traction Man is here!” The children reflected upon how Traction Man’s feelings may change throughout the book due to different adventures that he goes on. As a result of this the children wrote a letter in character as Traction Man, writing about his feelings. The children then picked their favourite adventure in the story so far and in groups acted in role to portray this scene.

In Maths the children have been learning how to add a single digit number to a 2 digit number, and then moved onto how to subtract a single digit number from a 2 digit number. They did this by using the previously learnt make 10 strategy.

In RE the children have continued their topic Prophecy and Promise. The children explored the annunciation of John the Baptist and Jesus. They created a story map describing and comparing the two events. The children learnt that when Zechariah was told that his wife Elizabeth was going to have a baby by the Angel he did not believe it, his faith in God was not great enough and so he lost the ability to speak until the baby was born and called John. Comparatively when Mary was told that she was going to have Jesus she was frightened but agreed to this as she had such great faith in God.

Friday 22nd November 

This week in English the children have continued reading their Power of Reading book “Traction Man is here!” The children have explored how Traction Man might feel during different parts of the story. In response to this the children planned and wrote a diary entry as Traction Man. They had to ensure that they included Dear Diary, wrote in the past tense and used ‘I’. The children then edited their work to correct anything that they had missed out to or wanted to add.

In Maths the children have been exploring how they can use their known facts and number bond knowledge to add and subtract single digits and two digit numbers. They looked out for the patterns they could spot and used number lines and part-part-whole models.

For example:

I know that 7+2=9

So I also know that 17+2=19

And 27+2=29

I know that 7-2=5

So I also know that 17-2=15

And 27-2=15

In RE the children have continued doing part of their Dialogue and Encounter topic where they have been exploring Judaism. The children have learned about Hanukkah and created a menorah as a class covered with symbols of light. Following on from this the children learnt about what Pope Francis sadi in his letter “Fratelli Tutti” and how he hopes for peace and unity in our diverse world. In response to this the children created a ‘lift the flap’ church and wrote how they could put love into action as a global citizen of Earth.

Friday 15th November

This week in English the children have continued reading their Power of Reading book “Traction Man is here!” The children have explored how to describe a character using noun phrases. They have also explored how to write speech using speech marks. The children have also explored using different adjectives to correctly articulate the way that a character looks by taking on the role of describer and illustrator in pairs.

In Maths we have been exploring how to add and subtract 1 when you bridge ten. We have done this using dienes and part-part-whole models and have practiced regrouping and then exchanging. The children have then been working on understanding that number facts within 10 can be used to add and subtract a single digit number to/from a 2 digit number;

5+3=8 so 15+3=18

35-3=32 so 25-3=22

In RE as a part on Inter-Faith Week the children have been doing part of their Dialogue and Encounter topic where they have been exploring Judaism. The children have learned all about the Torah and how it has the same 5 books as the New Testament in the Bible; Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The children have also looked at Shabbat and how that is celebrated as well as looking at examples of Hebrew calligraphy. The children wrote an ‘I wonder’ statement about something that they would like to find out.

Friday 8th November 

This week in English the children have started their new Power of Reading book “Traction Man is here!” The children have explored how to make a prediction for the story and how to narrate what is going on using an expressive voice. The children have also independently created their own characters following the style of the book and giving them a name. To finish off the week the children all created a role on the wall to show what a character looked like and what they felt.

In Maths we have been exploring the meaning of the word difference when subtracting numbers. We have been looking at how consecutive numbers always have a difference of 1 and how consecutive even/odd numbers always have the difference of 2. To explore this we created a class bar chart to show who our favourite superheroes are. With this information the children answered word problems to do with the difference between results on the bar chart.

In RE we started a new topic, Prophecy and Promise. We have explored Isaiah’s use of light imagery in Isaiah 9:1-7. How people felt as if they were living in the dark and with the birth of Jesus their lives were brightened up as he is the light of the world. The children chose a source of light and collaged the image to celebrate Jesus being the bringer of light. We also discussed when Advent will start and how we can make an Advent promise. We made these in preparation for the start of Advent.

Thursday 24th October

This week in English the children have been focussing understanding different types of sentences; statements, commands, exclamation sentences as well as questions. They have been challenged to write their own, focussing on what makes each sentence distinct:

• Statements give the reader information.
• Commands have imperative verbs that tell you what to do.
• Exclamation sentence have an exclamation mark at the end as well as usually starting with how or what.
• Questions end with a question mark and start with words like how, what, why, when, where.

The children have also been using their editing skills to check spellings, punctuation, capital letters and suffix rules.

In Maths continued our learning of addition and subtraction. We have been using the make ten strategy to add two single digit numbers together. We have been swapping between addition and subtraction, to make sure that our understanding is secure and that the children know that subtraction is the inverse of addition.

In RE we have reflected and concluded our topic Creation and Covenant and have celebrated together as a class. We have created knowledge organisers to take home with us so that we can spread the messages we have learnt with others.

Friday 18th October

This week in English the children have learnt what an exclamation sentence is and that they usually start with what or how. We also edited a set of instructions so that we knew what a good set should look like. The following day we wrote our own instructions on how to cross the road safely.

In Maths we focussed on subtraction. We have been looking at how we can subtract a single digit number from a two digit number. The focus has been making 10 first. This week we have been using a number line to help us. First we draw our number line, then make 10, then partition the subtrahend and lastly subtract the 2^nd part. We also solved some subtraction word problems.

In RE we have reflected some of our Catholic Social Teaching animals – Poppy the Popokotea and Sofia the Sloth. We thought about how we can be stewards of God’s creation and put others first.

Friday 11th October

This week in English the children have been focusing on poetry as well as grammar. They have edited their poems from last week, learnt all of the rules for adding the suffix ‘ing’ to a verb and have also learnt the rules of how to make a word plural. The children have also explored different ways to write poetry, exploring the layout of the words on a page, e.g.,

The leaves were

F

        A

                L

                        L

                                I

                                        N

                                                G

Based upon this the children wrote a poem about how they could describe Autumn.

In Maths continued our learning of our new topic which is Addition. We have been looking at how we can add two single digit numbers together. Last week we used part-part-whole models and tens frames with counters. The focus has been making 10 first. This week we have been using a number line to help us. First we draw our number line, then make 10, then partition the addend and lastly add the 2^nd part.

In RE we have reflected on how we can be stewards of the Earth. We have discussed how we as individuals can help be stewards of God’s creation in our school community and in the wider community. The children explored this through writing a letter to Canon John explaining how they can be stewards. The children also took part in a liturgical dance to explore the importance of water during Baptism and in the story of Noah’s Ark.

Friday 4th October

This week in English the children have been focussing on poetry. They have performed a poem, creating their own actions, as well as creating a poem as a class. The children have also looked at how adjectives can make their writing more interesting and how when writing a poem, adding adjectives can be the pattern that they use to make their own poem. The children have concluded the week by writing their own short poem, using the skills that we have worked on at the start of the week.

In Maths we have started our new topic which is Addition. We have been looking at how we can add two single digit numbers together. We have done this using part-part-whole models and tens frames with counters. The focus has been making 10 first. For example, 7+5=, we make ten first, 7+3=10, we then still have part of the 5 and we know that 3+2=5 so then we need to add the 2, 10+2=12.

In RE we have reflected on how we can be stewards of the Earth. We have heard Sofia the Sloth’s story and have discussed how we as individuals can help be stewards of God’s creation in our school community and in the wider community. The children have all made a poster to help them explore how they will be stewards of creation in their everyday lives.

The start of October mean that it is also the start of Black History Month. We have learnt about Martin Luther King and the key parts of his life. As a celebration of the start of Black History Month all of the children have taken part in an African Drumming Workshop.

Friday 27th September 

This week in English the children have edited their retells of the hedgehog’s first crossing over the road to the park, focussing on capital letters, punctuation, spellings and the addition of adjectives and conjunctions. We have then started to explore what we think might have happened to the hedgehogs after they crossed the road to get to the park, and the children have written a short narrative describing what they think happened. We have also researched hedgehogs, including interesting facts about them and concluded the week by creating a fact file about hedgehogs.

In Maths we have been comparing numbers, moving towards comparing two-digit numbers. The children have started to use inequality symbols; = < >, and have created number sentences including these symbols. The children have also continued exploring commutativity, 35 > 21 so we know that 21 < 35. We have been practicing using the phrases greater than and less than when using the inequality symbols.

In RE we been learning about Baptism and why it is such an important part of Christian life. We have discussed how Baptism is a sacrament and what that means as well as reflecting on the symbols of Baptism. In response to this the children created a collage water droplet and noted down key words to do with Baptism and it’s symbols, for example, water, chrism oil, candle, godparents, sign of the cross. The children then role played as different people present at a Baptism and practised saying the words said at a Baptism.

Friday 20th September

This week in English we have continued reading our Power of Reading book, ‘The Hodgeheg’. We have explored what makes a character; how they look and how they feel inside. We had continued to explore a range of adjectives to include in our work as we have also written a character description for Max the Hedgehog. We have also created a story map for Max and his family’s crossing across the busy road. Using this story map all the children have written their own retell of the events of the first crossing for Max!

In Maths we have continued exploring place value. We have been practiced partitioning into tens and ones using both part-part-whole models and bar models, and based upon this have been writing number sentences to go with these different models. We have also explored the concept of commutativity which is changing the order of the operands but the result does not change. For example: 10+6=16 becomes 6+10=10.

In RE we have reflected upon the story of Noah’s Ark, focussing upon the Covenant that God made with Noah, promising not to flood the world again. The symbol of this Covenant appeared in the form of the first rainbow. The children all created a watercolour image of this part of Noah’s story. As well as this the children also reflected on why God sent the flood, why he was angry at the humans on the Earth. As a result of this we all wrote a sorry prayer to God about a time that we have not made the right choice.   

Friday 13th September

This week in English we have started our new Power of Reading book, ‘The Hodgeheg’. We have explored sentence structure as our character has a bump to the head and starts speaking with his words in the incorrect order. We have also acted out scenes from the book and described how we felt when pretending to be a hedgehog crossing the road.

In Maths we have started our new topic, Place Value. We have been exploring teen numbers and how we can partition them into tens and ones. We have practiced substituting ten ones for one ten. We have also recorded our work both numerically and pictorially in our books.

In RE we have started our topic – Creation and Covenant. We have retold the story of Noah, highlighting the importance of the rainbow as a symbol of God’s promise to Noah. We created our own comic strip to tell this important story as well as learning that it is from the Old Testament. We have also reflected on our start in Year 2 and what we have learnt so far in RE. Based on this we have created a class prayer to be displayed on our school prayer tree.