Spring Week 4: Stepping into London, 1666

 

Hello Class 2 Parents,

The main theme of this week has been writing! The children finished their wonderful mouse diaries (in role as mice while the Great Fire of London happens), and then wrote another diary independently in their purple books. The children complete a piece of completely independent writing around once per half term in their purple books, to show what they have been learning in writing. 

Aside from that, our new Mantle of the Expert story is taking shape. We read that lots of people had to leave London due to the fire, and that they set up camp on a hill overlooking London. The children stepped into the story at this point, setting up huts and tents and imagining what it would be like to have lost their homes. They then started to think about returning to London, and were asked: if you had a trade in 1600s London, what would it be?  This led to learning about some of the common trades in London. The children designed and made some Tudor shop signs to help them to take on their new role. The story will continue.

In maths:

Year 1 have been learning about place value in numbers to 50. They have been learning to represent numbers using 10s and 1s, to say how many 10s and 1s a number has, and to count in 10s and on in 1s. You can practise this using this game - lots of practice of counting in 10s and on in 1s is required. Select numbers up to 99. 

Year 2 have been looking at doubling and halving, or multiplying by two and dividing by two. They will have this sheet in their home learning books. 

In phonics and spellings:

The phonics group have continued with split digraphs: this week, i-e and o-e. Their spellings are here and will be in their purple books. 

The spellings group have learnt the double trouble rule when adding suffixes: to add a suffix to a short word, with a short vowel and a single consonant, the last letter must be doubled. They've also been looking at the Year 2 common exception words for spelling. Their spellings are here and will be in their purple books. 

Have a good week end!

From Mrs Simpson.

Spring Week 3: A mouse in London, 1666

 Hello Class 2 Parents, 

I hope you have had a good week. We've had an excellent one in Class 2. 

Firstly, here are the geographical features of London the children created last week. Can you work out which is which? They made: Hyde Park, The Shard (it was taller, but got knocked over and rebuilt just before photos!), Buckingham Palace, The Tower of London, Nelson's Column and the Houses of Parliament. There is a Tower Bridge in the classroom, but it's as yet unfinished. 

We started the week by creating Pudding Lane. The children learnt how to use charcoal to draw lines of different shades. Then they looked at some Tudor style houses and drew some houses using charcoal. The houses were put together along a cobbled street to create Pudding Lane - the lane that will be central to our Mantle of the Expert topic this term. 

Using a beautifully illustrated book, the children heard the story of The Great Fire of London. A few of them asked the question - 'Did this really happen?' so we had a discussion about what 'history' is. Then for our literacy lessons the children created some ears and tails and became little mice in the bakery, starting the night before the fire. They have been writing diaries this week, in role as the mouse. 

The school's value this half term is creativity. We have discussed what this means and looked at the dictionary definition: 

The children then had a go at being creative in lots of different ways!

Maths:

Year 1 children have begun to look at place value beyond 20. They were introduced to base 10 equipment (10 rods and 1s) and how to represent 2-digit numbers using them. They have also been counting in 2s. For homework, please use this game to practice counting in 2s. On the top left, you can select 'steps of 2' and you can add extra challenge by starting from different numbers.

Year 2 children have been dividing by grouping - so for 20 ÷ 4, they have been making groups of 4 from a larger group of 20. You can practice this in all sorts of ways at home using objects found around the house! Year 2 have also been reciting the 2x table. Their homework is this speed challenge - it will be glued in their books. 

 

Phonics and Spellings:

The Phonics group have looked at two split digraphs this week: a_e and e_e (as in cake and these). Their spellings are here. 

The Spellings group have been adding suffixes to words ending in 'consonant-e' such as nice, spike, hike. They have been learning to drop the e. Their spellings are here. 

Thank you for all your support of your children's learning. Have a good week end!

From Mrs Simpson

Spring Week 2: London and creativity

Hello Class 2 Parents,

Tomorrow I am hoping to add some photographs of the children's work this week - I need to get them from the Ipad!

This week, our first full week of term, has been excellent. It has been good to get back into a routine with the children.

The start of our new story involved looking at London. The children looked at a map of the U.K. and named its countries. Then we zoomed in on London and some of its key features. In groups, the children build a feature using a range of building materials - from lego, to wooden blocks, to large plastic bricks. Our school value this half term is creativity, so this was  a great way to start. 

Tomorrow (Friday) we will be comparing modern London to London in the 1600s. 

In our writing lessons the focus has been on poetry. The children wrote some winter poems using the -ing suffix, and thinking about the five senses. We are having a bit of a focus on correct pencil holds this half term and we have some new pencils in class to help with this (they are triangular and so encourage the correct hold). It would be good if you could encourage this at home. One of these two pencil holds are fine - the tripod grasp involves two fingers and the thumb, the quadropod involves four fingers and a thumb. 

In maths:

Year 1 have been looking at numbers to 20 and learning to talk about tens and ones. This is the basis of place value work. They have also been learning bonds to 8 - homework this week is to play this game - select '8 'when given the choice. If your child is fluent in their number bonds, then create some fact families together. Draw a house, and in it write all of the number facts that belong in one family for 8. For example,  7 + 1 = 8    1 + 7 = 8    8 - 1 = 7    8 = 7 = 1. You can do this in any way you like. 

Year 2 have also been revisiting number bonds to 8 (and so could play the above game to practise). They have also been continuing work on multiplication, looking at the X symbol and what it means. They have begun to look at arrays, and their homework is here (it will be in their books as usual). 

In phonics and spellings:

The phonics group looked at 'ey' (as in donkey, monkey, honey) and 'au' (as in autumn). Their spellings are here and will be in their books. 

The spellings group learn the rule drop the y and add an i to add the suffixes
-ed -er -est to words ending in y. Their spellings are here and will be in their books.

We've had a really good week - I have a feeling spring term will be a good one!

From Mrs Simpson

Spring Week 1: Welcome back!

 

Happy New Year!

Welcome to 2023 in Class 2. 

Firstly, thank you for the kind Christmas cards and gifts I was given. I hope you all had a good Christmas!

It was incredibly lovely to see the children's smiling faces on Wednesday - they have come back full of enthusiasm and energy. I hope the roadworks have not caused you too much trouble getting in this week!

This week has been all about settling back into school. We have started some new maths and writing units of work, as well as doing some PSHE, RE, music and science. 

In RE we have started to learn about Judaism. The children learnt about the festival of Chanukah and compared its features to the Christmas celebrations that the children have been experiencing. 

In music we are going to be learning about some famous composers. The children heard part of Vivaldi's 'Winter' and talked about how it made them feel. Once they learnt that it was called 'Winter' they created some art work in cold colours as they listened to the music again. If you like, play this piece of music a few times over the weekend and talk to your children about it. 

In Science the children started an investigation. They heard an alternative 'Three Little Pigs' story whereby the materials the pigs had access to were blocks, straws and card. The children have made some houses using these materials and next week we will carry out an investigation to establish which material is the most effective for building a house. 

After a few weeks of Christmassy activities, the children got back to their passport jobs this week which they thoroughly enjoyed. They are becoming increasingly independent with these jobs and have been learning how to upload photos onto Seesaw themselves. 

There is not much homework this week, but we have been focusing on counting in tens and the ten times table, so this game is in the children's home learning books. 

You will be receiving more information about this term's learning via email early next week!

I am very much looking forward to the term ahead,

from Mrs Simpson

Autumn Week 13: it's been frosty!

 Hello Hedgehog Parents,

Just a short update this week!

The highlight of this week has been the frost! It's been so lovely to see the sun and the sparkly ground. The children have loved being outside in it - lots of observations about ice, frost, melting ice, ice on different surfaces and other such things. 

We had our Nativity dress rehearsal on Friday afternoon and it was fantastic! The children have been working so very, very hard on the Nativity and I am incredibly proud of them. We can't wait for you to see it! Thank you for all of your support with learning lines and providing costumes. 

Our Lost and Found story has finally come to a close after a term of rehoming various animals. We managed to find Rudolph, using a map and some excellent navigational skills. He was in a precarious situation involving a crocodile, but luckily we managed to rescue him. He and the other reindeer have all returned to Greenland, much to everyone's relief. During this episode of the story the children looked a map which had a key - we talked about why maps use symbols and how they can be used. 

Once again, I have not set homework this week. Having tested all of the children on their spellings, I have updated their 'high frequency word' lists at the back of their purple home learning books. As you will see, the children are gradually learning their words and because we are constantly revisiting them, they should retain them and begin to use them in their writing.  If your child did not have their purple book in on Thursday/Friday please send it in on Monday so that I can update their spelling list. 

Next week I will send out a few Christmas holiday homework ideas - all optional. As usual, the main homework for your children will be reading! I will make sure they have a few books to keep them going. 

I think that's all for now. Have a lovely weekend and I will see you next week for much Christmas fun!

From Mrs Simpson

Autumn Week 12: A pantomime, Christmas decorations and other joys of the season

 

Hello Class 2 Parents,

This week has mainly been about Christmas!

Father Christmas contacted the Lost and Found officers to request their help with moving his reindeer from their summer grazing back to his grotto. The children wrote some instructions for how to relocate some reindeer, then hopped on a plane to find them. They searched carefully and rounded up the reindeer. However, when the reindeer were counted there were only....8! Rudolph was missing! The only sign of him was some tracks in the dust, leading to the river. 

The Lost and Found officers have been making plans to find Rudolph. It's an urgent mission because the river appears to be occupied by crocodiles. 

The children had a fantastic morning on Thursday watching the pantomime - there was a lot of excitement and audience participation! They went on to spend Thursday afternoon decorating the classroom using a variety of traditional crafts - paper snowflakes, paper chains and bunting included. 

In maths:

Year 1 have been learning to subtract using a number line. The important skill is not to begin counting until you have completed the first jump (so if it is 10 - 9, start on 10, and say '1' as you jump to 9, not when you are on 10). 


Year 2 have been adding two-digit numbers, firstly not crossing a 10 (e.g. 45 + 23) but then crossing a 10 (eg 45 + 26). We will continue this next week. 

The spellings group have been learning that when you add 's' to a word ending with a -y, 'the y becomes and ie' - for example, cries, flies, bunnies, babies.

The phonics group have been taking part in phonics assessments this week, so have no new graphemes to learn. 

There are no spellings and no homework this week.

Over the next two weeks the class will be taking part in lots of Christmas-related activities, including getting ready to perform our Nativity. Myself and Mrs Neal will be carrying out assessments of spelling, reading and maths. There will therefore be no more spelling or maths homework until after Christmas, but please keep helping your child to learn the high frequency words in the back of their purple books.  These will be updated next week showing your child's progress - will will test them again, and highlight any new words they are able to spell. 

Please remember to send your child in with their Nativity costume next week, ready for our dress rehearsal on Friday morning.

Have a good weekend!

From Mrs Simpson

Autumn Week 11: Relocating a polar bear.

Hello Class 2 Parents,

We have been so busy in Class 2 it's hard to know where to start. 

There is the ongoing problem of the polar bear; we really need to get it back to the Arctic Circle. You will have seen that the children made some fishy treats to keep the bear fed and busy on the way to the Arctic. They evaluated their treats against some important criteria, such as: texture, smell and colour. We have also been writing a set of clear instructions titled: How to Relocate a Polar Bear. The children have been learning about how instructions are set out, how to write a list of equipment, and how to write clear instructions using 'bossy' language. 

We are practising the Nativity every afternoon now. The children are at the stage of learning when they need to get up and down and when they need to say their lines. Christmas is seeping in to Class 2!

Phonics and Spellings:

The phonics group have looked at -ew and -oe, both graphemes which are usually found at the end of words. Their spelling list is here. As usual, focus on the first five unless your child is confident and keen!

The spellings group have been looking at the -y ending for the 'igh' sound. This is a very common way to spell the 'igh' sound at the end of a word. Their spellings are here - some easier ones, but they will help the children to learn the rule.

Maths:

All children have been counting in 10s and reciting the 10x table. Hit the button can be used to practise this!

Year 1 children have been looking at the sequence of counting in 10s and have been practising writing them. They can practise this by playing Whack-A-Mole - you will need to set it to 'steps of ten' in the top left hand corner.  

Year 2 children have been looking at 10 more and 10 less, with the pattern that the 10s column changes but the 1s do not. This sheet will be in their books, but you can print off/create a version of this one for an extra challenge!

Have a good weekend!

From Mrs Simpson