Summer 1
Over the summer term we have been learning about World War 2 and the changes that happened to Britain as a result of it. We have begun this and will continue to explore it during Summer 2 as well. So far, we have learned about what WW2 was and why it happened. We have also explored the beginning of the war and preparations that were made by Britian. We have also learned about The Blitz – what this was, why it happened and how it affected towns and cities across Britain. In response to this, we researched the features of information texts in English in order to write our own based on our new knowledge of The Blitz. We created posters to show these text features such as; sub-headings, third person, past tense verbs and questions, before planning and writing our own.
In Design and Technology, we have also begun to use our historical knowledge to design our own Anderson Shelters. So far, we have used the internet to research key questions about their purpose, materials and design and we have tested how to make a material stronger. To do this, we were given a sheet of A4 paper and we asked to make a bridge across a 15cm gap. After some trials and testing, we discovered the more folds the paper has the stronger it is. This developed further in corrugating the paper by folding it backwards and forwards. Some children quickly realised that during their research on Anderson Shelters, the metal sheets that were used were corrugated too! We will move onto designing and building our own shelters after half term.
In Science, we have finished our unit on ‘Light’ by exploring shadows. We have learned what a shadow is, how one is caused and how they changed depending on the position of the light source. We carried out a shadow stick investigation throughout a sunny day, observing how the length of the shadow changed at the beginning, middle and end of the day. We made predictions, recorded our findings in a graph and commented on our findings. Shadows are longer when the light source is further away! We also explored reflective materials and the difference between an object being reflective of light and an object being a source of light. We are now learning about electricity.
In other areas of the curriculum, we have explored big questions in RE surrounding the Holy Week – did Jesus know about His destiny? Did He know what was going to happen to Him? Why? The children sequenced the events of the Holy Week before gathering around pieces of evidence to discuss our big questions. This has led well onto our new unit in RE, Pentecost – what happened after Jesus rose to heaven? We were also visited by Kate Kniveton MP to discuss the impact of our hedgehog letters! She was very impressed with our knowledge on conservation and our passion for the welfare of the environment. She explained to us what things had happened as a result of our letters and what more we can do to help. Please look out for the letter Kate sent us after this visit – we are very grateful to her and very proud of ourselves for being such ambassadors and courageous advocates!
An amazing half term and a very busy one too! We can’t believe there is only one more half term to go!
Summer 2
Class 3 have had a brilliant final half term, continuing to work hard and have fun in the process! Our main focus for the half term has continued to be ‘Changes’, where we have explored WW2 and the impact it had on Britain. Now we have a solid foundation to base our learning on (understanding how and why the war started), we were able to look in detail at some events/changes that happened because of the war. Rationing, the Blitz and evacuation were looked in detail and the children were able to think about what these were and also how they changed the lives of the adults and children involved. The children used video interviews, photographs and atefacts to understand such changes and were able to answer the question ‘How did WW2 change Britian?’ as part of the final history assessments.
In Science, the children finalised their learning on ‘Light and Dark’ and then moved onto ‘Electricity’. The children were eager to showcase their learning on the dangers of electricity by creating safety/warning posters to display in the classroom. The were also given the opportunity to build their own circuits and predict whether they thought a given circuit would work (the build light up) using their knowledge of what constitutes a ‘complete circuit’. The children also explored the role of a switch in a circuit and how conducting and insulating materials can be used to our advantage (using rubber to coat metal wires for safety).
We continued to explore Pentecost in RE, thinking about ‘What happened after Jesus died?’. We used Bible stories, video clips, role play and group discussion tasks to explore this fascinating part of the Big Story in Christianity. The children were able to talk about how this is what Christians believe to be the beginning of the church and discuss what being part of the kingdom of God is – we now know it is not a place, but a feeling, an experience, a people, a way of life!
We have focussed on preparing for our school production, ‘Dick Whittington and his cat’. It was a fantastic way for the children to experience drama and the performing arts first hand, each one of them contributing in some way to the final performance. The children developed their confidence performing in front of a large audience, built their speaking and listening skills, continued to refine their musicality when singing songs and their ability to portray a story through their acting and voice. It was a huge success!
A huge well done to Class 3! They have worked incredibly hard all year and we wish the Year 4 children all the very best at their next school.
