Our topic launched this week with the introduction of new “rules” in our English lesson… The children were shocked to learn that one table group needed to tidy up after everyone else, whilst another table was the only table with the power to leave their desks and tell others what to do!
…don’t worry, it was just an immersive introduction to our topic, as the children were relieved to learn! This activity prompted a discussion about injustice and was linked to the focus of our topic this half term: discrimination, prejudice, diversity, culture and injustice.
We then went on to look at a range of influential individuals in history: namely Malcolm X and Rosa Parks with regards to racial discrimination, and also gender inequality in Cambodia explained through the eyes of Lim.
We also played a game of capture the flag, to emulate a game of invasion and discussed how the power imbalance felt!
In maths we finished column subtraction this week, but we shall be revisiting the method regularly throughout the year in other lessons. We then brought together our learning of place value, addition and subtraction by solving problems. You can find them below:
Our science this half term is all about the state of matter. We started this week by looking at the different states of matter: solid, liquid and gas. The children were given a range of objects to categories into these three states – and it’s a fun activity you can also do at home!
This week we also began our art lessons with Mrs Smith! It was full of excitement, as the children learned that Dr Biddulph had commissioned a personal sketchbook for every child in school! They spent their first sessions designing their cover page, using pencil or pen to sketch their name using specially designed lettering…
Finally, in our busy week, we also managed to begin our first forest school session of the year! With Mrs Khan, we went into the forest and split into two groups. One group learned different types of knots, the other did a risk assessment of the forest using a stop-motion video app on the iPads. They also drew a map of the forest in their triads. Next week, the groups will swap to complete the activities that they didn’t do this week.
New schedule for Year 4 this term:
- Amazon: Forest Shool on Wednesdays, PE on Tuesdays or Wednesdays.
- Nile: Forest School on Tuesdays, PE on Mondays or Wednesdays.
- Thames: Forest School on Thursdays, PE on Wednesdays or Fridays.
Next week:
- English: Our lessons will be inspired by the book The Proudest Blue and we will be focusing on expanded noun phrases, similes and complex sentences within our grammar focus.
- Maths: Revising place value to 4-digits, column addition, column subtraction and word problems linked to these three areas.
- Guided Reading: We will continue the story of Rama and Sita and find out what happens when they are sent to exile.
- Handwriting & Spelling: Our spelling words for next week are: accident, accidentally, actual, actually, address, answer, arrive, bicycle.
- Science: Looking at the properties of solids, liquids and gases.
- Computing: Introduction to our new coding project… WeeBee!
- French: Recapping greetings and learning new vocabulary for hobbies.
Key information for Year 4:
- Children must bring in a coat to school.
- Children must bring in a PE kit for PE lessons and appropriate clothes for forest school.
- Children in KS2 may bring in a healthy snack that contains no nuts.