Autumn Week 5: lots of living things.

Hello Class 2 Parents,

A couple of notes to start with:

Clothing.
Please can you check at home because a couple of children have lost school jumpers and they aren't at school!  As usual, please make sure everything is named. 

Forest school clothing.
Today's session was the first really rainy one! A couple of notes - 
* children need to come to school in their school shoes please, and carry their wellies. 
* children must have waterproof trousers!
* If your child comes in a mud suit, please can they have a separate coat to wear later in the day. 

Thank you - it's all going well so far, just a few teething problems!

No-bookbag Fridays. 
Your child no longer needs to bring in a bookbag on a Friday, which will help with the logistics of Forest School kit and wellies! Please ensure your child's homework folder, group reading book and free choice (badger/squirrel) books are in their bookbags on a Thursday so we can do the changeovers. 

Mantle of the Expert. 
This week the children did some more learning about the features of living things. They used the acronym Mrs Gren to check the bog baby that they had found in the woods. 

Movement
Respiration
Senses

Growth
Reproduction
Excretion
Nutrition

These are, of course, some long words to learn but we are going to keep revisiting them. Luckily the bog baby was moving and breathing, it ate the flies offered to it and responded when the children touched it. Next, the children learnt that, to survive, living things need food, water, oxygen and shelter. They used this knowledge to rescue the bog baby. 

They discovered, though, that the bog baby couldn't survive for long out of the water because it was an amphibian. The children learnt about what an ampibian is, and will continue to work on this next week (as well as reptiles, mammals, birds and fish). 

Maths. 

Year 1 children have been counting backwards and finding '1 less' than a number. Their homework is here and will be in their folders. 

Year 2 children have continued their work on number lines, identifying what each interval is worth (1 or 10) and finding missing numbers.  Their homework is here and will be in their folders - the first sheet only, unless your child would like an extra challenge (the second sheet, which will be printed on the reverse). 

In phonics the children have revisited ee, igh, oa and oo. They have also been spelling was and want - two words with the same spelling pattern in. 

In spellings the children have been looking at rhyming patterns with different 'ee' graphemes - eam, ield and eep. The words they've been learning can be found here. 

Forest School:

The Forest Rangers embraced the rain this week! They were busy planting teasels and wildflower seeds and creating conker hedgehogs. 

Have a good week end!

Mrs Simpson

Autumn Week 4: fences, maps and a lone bog baby.

Greetings Class 2 Parents!

I hope your week has been as good as ours. 

Firstly, just a friendly reminder - please don't snip or use any photos from this blog. They are for this blog and our class community only. Thank you!

Keyrings and bookbags. 
Please could children have just one keyring on their bookbags - saves space and stops the bookbags all getting tangled together! Thank you. 

The B.B.P.
Having taken on the mantle of Bog Baby Protectors last week, the children had a couple of important jobs to carry out this week. First, they visited the bog baby pond to survey the wildlife. After a couple of people walked into the pond, they decided a fence was needed. A D.T. project followed whereby the children built some fences using card, glue, staplers and tape. A couple of enterprising children also added gates using a split pin. 

Next, we worked as a team to create a map of the woods. The map had a key showing the symbols needed and the children added the symbols to the map. However, they learnt that in one located (X marks the spot), there was a problem. They discovered a bog baby, all alone and far from the bog baby pond. It wasn't moving. The children did some learning about features of things which are alive, have once been alive, or have never been alive and decided that, luckily, the bog baby was alive. Next, they need to decide what the bog baby needs and therefore what to do with it. 

Phonics/Spellings. 
In phonics the children continued to revisit last year's learning, looking at the digraphs th, ng, nk and ai. A large focus of this revisiting is helping the children to use these digraphs when they are spelling words. It doesn't matter whether a word is correct at this stage, as long as the children are using their phonics correctly - for example they might spell 'snake' as 'snaik' and that is fine for now - as long as they are making phoneetically plausible attempts at words. 

In spellings the Year 2 children looked as some ai and a_e spelling patterns, learning that rhyming words can help them to spell - e.g. if they learn to spell make, they can easily spell cake, take, snake and shake. The words we have looked at are here. 

Maths. 

Year 1 children have continued to look at numbers within 10, counting on or back from any given number and finding '1 more'. They also started to look at and use a number line. 

Year 1 homework is to play Whack-A-Mole (this game will come up several times for homework - it's good for counting!). Choose the start number (start below 10 to begin with, then if your child is confident, pick all sorts of numbers) and your child has to whack the moles in numerical order. When they've whacked a few moles correctly, start again from a different start number. 

Year 2 children have continued to work on partitioning (flexibly partitioning a 2-digit number) and have also been looking at number lines. They have been looking at what the start number is, what the end number is, and what each interval is worth. 

Year 2 homework is to start familiarising yourself with Times Table Rock Stars - I don't monitor this in Class 2 (that starts in Class 3) but use it as a way to practise times tables (for Year 2 the focus is on the 2, 10 and 5x tables and related division facts). 
A letter with your child's login will be in their folder. 

At Forest School...

This week's activities included creating  digging area (so that we don't dig up the whole Forest School area!), picking apples and scarifying an area ready to plant some wildflower seeds. 

Have a good weekend,

Mrs Simpson

Autumn Week 3: The B.B.P and our first Forest School session

 Hello Class 2 Parents,

What a fabulous week we've had in Class 2!

Reading books
We started group reading sessions this week so your child will have a group reading book as well as a free choice reading book to read this week. Don't worry if they've seen the book before - we share books with Class 1 so there are sometimes some overlaps. 

Forest School
We had our first Forest School on a lovely sunny morning! The children learnt about how to be safe at Forest School and were introduced to our base camp (made up of a lot of logs kindly donated by some people in the village). Then they started exploring. Lots of the children enjoyed using the magnifying glasses and bug pots to look at minibeasts while others planted some daffodil and tulip bulbs (we're hoping it will look lovely in the spring!).  It was a great start to Forest School - thank you for all of your help again with the donations and with getting your children the necessary kit.  A few photos are below, though we were so busy I didn't get round to taking many!

Welly boots - I am going to acquire some welly boot storage. You can then decide whether you want your child to take their wellies home each Friday or whether it's easier to keep them here. I don't mind, as long as they have wellies for Forest School! Until we have the storage, the wellies will need to come home each week. 

Rainbow jobs. 
The children also had their first Rainbow jobs of the year. Year 2 children are used to these and Year 1 are starting to get the hang of them. From Monday to Thursday, children have a choice of seven activities to complete in whatever order they like. The activites cover a wide range of curriculum areas, either introducing a skill or (more often) practising something the children have already learnt. This week, for example, the jobs were:

* creating a pond habitat by drawing, cutting out and sticking features onto a blue pond background. Year 2 children also labelled theirs. 

* painting a bog baby outline by creating different tints of blue (by adding white).

* taking a photo of a friend and adding it to our class Seesaw account (a bit like Tapestry from Class 1, but only used within our class). 

* practising rugby ball throwing and catching skills

* playing a maths game

* reading 'The Bog Baby' with a friend. (Year 2 children did a great job of reading to the Year 1 children this week!)

Our story. 
In our story, the children learnt that our bog baby pond is located in the middle of a woodland. They created this woodland together using lots of different materials and learning about the features of a woodland habitat. They named the woodland 'The Magic Blue Wood' (because of all the ponds and bluebells). They 'met' a ranger from the woodland who had taken some photos of the bog babies, but had never seen them before and so didn't know what they were. The children explained that they were bog babies and they were very rare. The woodland ranger asked the children if they would help to protect the bog babies in the woods - they agreed, and became The B.B.P. (Bog Baby Protectors). To make sure everyone knows who they are, the children created some logos to go onto our classroom door. 

Maths.
In maths this week the Year 1 children have been representing numbers efficiently (for example, showing 6 as two rows or three or five as a 3 and a 2) and have been counting on from any given number. 

The Year 2 children have been partitioning two-digit numbers. They started by simply partitioning them into tens and ones (e.g. 56 can be partitioned into 50 and 6) then found different ways to partition them (e.g. 56 can be partitioned into 40 and 16, 30 and 26 and 20 and 36). 

Year 1 homework is here just to practise their counting from any number. One way you could do this is to roll a dice, and count on from the given number (i.e roll a 7, and count on 8,9,10)  (there are inteactive dice here). Another way is to use a pack of cards - put them face down in the middle of you and your child, and take it in turns to turn one over and count on from that number. You could make it a game whereby a player gets to keep the card if they count on successfully. 

Year 2 homework is here and will be in their folders. They will need something to represent 10s and 1s (eg pencils for 10s and counters for 1s) to help them!

Phonics and spellings. 
The Year 1 phonics group revisited the digraphs sh, ch and qu this week. See if you can spot them when reading. 

The Year 2 spellings group looked at the endings -ay and -oy, learning that these graphemes are often used at the end of words. They also looked at the Year 2 high frequency words door/floor/poor. If you want to practise the spellings, they are here.

I hope you all have a good weekend!

From

Mrs Simpson

Autumn Week 2: Bog babies

Hello Class 2 Parents,

Class 2 have done a great job this week. Their first full week of the academic year means they are probably quite tired, but they have also hopefully been coming home and telling you all the things they have been up to. 

Spelling cards:
Your child has a home spelling book in their homework folders with attached information. Please note - the I highlight the words when I have tested your child on them (once per half term) - please don't tick/highlight them yourself, just have fun practising!

Reading books:
I've finished assessing where the children are with phonics and reading which means group reading can start up next week. The children will read

with an adult a couple of times per week, and then they will bring the book home on a Thursday (alongside their free choice reading book) to read with you at home. More information will follow when I send out their first books next week. 

Maths:
We started maths lessons this week with some revisiting of previous work. The year 1 children played some counting games, remembering how to count accurately (moving objects into a line, rather than trying to count one group and forgetting which ones have been counted!). The Year 2 children revisited some place value, representing teen numbers and then larger two-digit numbers using base 10 equipment.

Year 1 children can practise counting this week. If you like, ask them how to play '10 lovely things' and play it with them - encouraging them to count carefully and to line up objects when counting. 

(two or more players - 10 objects each. Take it in turns to roll a dice and ask another player for that number of objects from their collection, eg 'please may I have 5 of your lovely things?'. When someone has run out of objects, the other person has won, or play a set number of rounds and then see who has the most left). 

Year 2 children - play Shark Numbers. 

Click on the link, then click on this symbol and choose 'numbers up to 99'. 

Children have to select the correct number that is represented to avoid a shark attack. Help your child by asking them to count in 10s, and then on in ones, eg the number in the picture. '10-20-21-22-23-24-25-26-27-28-29. Alternatively, encourage them to say 'there are 2 tens and 9 ones, so there is 29 altogether'. 

Writing:
We have started Drawing Club, where children draw a picture and then we write sentences about it. For the Year 1 children at the moment the focus is on a simple sentence with a capital letter, finger spaces and a full stop, using phonics to spell words and with the correct letter formation. The Year 2 children will start to write a series of sentences, correctly punctuated. 

Bog Babies:
The children finished making their clay bog babies, which will come home soon to be safe. We created a pond habitat, learning that habitats are homes for plants and animals. We added water lillies and bulrushes to the pond, as well as some pond creatures. 

Forest school:
A letter was emailed home about Forest School - I look forward to the first session next week!

I think that's all for now. Have a good week end!

Mrs Simpson

Welcome (or welcome back) to Class 2!

 Hello Class 2 Parents,

We're back! 

I hope you all had a good summer and were able to make the most of the sunshine.

We've had a good start to the academic year. Here's a photo of your smiling children:

This week has very much been about settling back in to school. The children have done a lot of playing, re-aquainting themselves with their friends and navigating their way around the classroom. We've talked about classroom rules, created some portraits for the corridor and read a lot of stories. 

One of the stories we read was The Bog Baby. This will be a bit of  a focus for us this term. The children loved it, and made their own clay bog baby (photos to follow once we finish them next week). 

It will take a while to assess your children, particularly with their reading, so for now they have come home with a free choice reading book and a letter reminding you all how the free choice books work. I will aim to read with all of your children individually next week, and then group reading will commence the week after!

You should receive some information about this term's learning. One thing to note is that P.E. days are on Tuesday and (unlike in Class 1) your children come to school in their P.E. kits and stay in their kits all day - no need to bring a change of clothes. 

Now for the incredible news....

Following the children's sponsored walk last term, you have raised (drum roll please)...

£1,1012  for Forest School!

Thank you so much for your fundraising efforts - it means that I can get Forest School set up to start sessions in the next couple of weeks. I'm aiming to start on Friday 19th September, and will send out more information nearer the time regarding clothing etc. 

I think that's all for now. It's been good to catch up with your children this week - they seem happy and settled (if a bit tired, naturally!) and I'm looking forward to the year ahead!

Please do catch me in the mornings (I try to pop out before the bell goes, but I'm not always successful!) or after school (better for longer conversations) if you have anything you want to talk to me about. 

Have a good weekend,

Mrs Simpson

Happy Holidays!

Hello Class 2 Parents,

I say it every year, but I'm sure that year passed by even faster than usual! 

Firstly, thank you so much for the cards and gifts I have received. They are very thoughtful  I really appreciate your kindness. 

We've had a fabulous year in Class 2. The children have been very busy and have worked incredibly hard. Some of this year's highlights include:

* The Nativity performance
* Learning about Ernest Shackleton 
* Designing and baking bread
* Visiting Northampton Museum
* Our trip to Salcey Forest
* The Rhino Olympics
* Creating a 5 metre long Nile crocodile
* The whole school Forensic Science day
* Creating a Maasai boma
* Having SO much time learning outdoors in the shade this summer
* World Book Day and the Alice in Wonderland dance workshop

(I'm sure there are more that I simply can't remember!)

We've spend this final week finishing off a few things. In our Mantle of the Expert story the children finally found the Enormous Crocodile. They went on to make some clay crocodiles complete with carriers, in the style of Kenyan soapstone souveniers. We also had a couple of days learning about money! Over the summer, please help your child to use small amounts of money to pay for things in shops - this is the absolutely best way to learn about money!

Your children have been fantastic this year - it's been a pleasure to teach them. 

Year 2 parents, I will miss your children hugely - they are such a happy, confident and chatty bunch, full of good ideas. They've been great company these past two years. 

Year 1 parents, it's been great working with you and getting to know your brilliant children. I look forward to teaching them (and working with you) again next year!

Whatever you get up to, I hope you have a good six weeks. 

See you in September!

Mrs Simpson  :0)

(photos are of the team finding The Enormous Crocodile, represented by Annabel).

Summer Week 11: The Olympics!

 Hello Class 2 Parents,

The news of the week revolves around...

THE OLYMPICS!
Class 2 attended the KS1 Rhino Olympics at the Towcestrian Rugby Club on Thursday. They were representing Germany and so on Wednesday the children created flags, a banner and some headdresses. The day started with a parade of countries, during which Class 2 were without a doubt the best cheerleaders for all of the other countries! Then the children completed nine different activities, each of which came with points:

* howler throw
* javelin throw
* relay
* long jump
* beanbag and hoop throw
* water run
* treasure chest run
* hoppity hop (hoping sideways and back over a block)
* hurdle race

For each activity the children collected as many points as they could in six minutes. At the end, every team gathered around to hear the results, and (out of 10 countries), we came FIRST!

The children were rightly very proud of themselves. I was proud of them for winning, of course, but even more proud of their good sporting attitude throughout the day and for how hard they worked. 

In other news...

* the children have continued to learn to tell the time.

* they have started to write some instructions for how to save the children from the 
    crocodile (in our story).

* they have also been creating their own piece of art in the style of Tingatinga. 

* On Friday the Year 1 children will be completing their sponsored walk to raise money for our new Forest School. 

Reading books have been taken in for the holidays. Please continue to return any that you find at home (a list of missing books was emailed home too!).

There is no more homework! BUT please do keep practising telling the time with your child - Year 1 need to focus on o'clock and half past, while Year 2 have started looking at five minute intervals ( on analogue clocks). 

Enjoy the week end - see you next week!

Mrs Simpson