Issue 36 2013-14

Dear Parent/Carer,

It was great to see the photographers outside this week as the children posed for their end of year group photos. I was reliably informed that the photos are so much more appealing when taken outside so I hope that everyone will be pleased with the results.

We as a city are now on countdown to the Tour de France passing through. In homage to this brilliant and exciting event, we have had a very active time in school carrying out sponsored events as part of our Tour de Robin Hood activities. Sincere thanks to all parents who offered to help out and those who were in attendance. We really do appreciate your involvement.

Our own Tour de France superstar!

Amelia in Year 5 will be taking part in the Tour de France opening event on Saturday 5th July, performing a dance on Scott Hall playing fields. Amelia's dance team DAZL will perform between 10.45 - 11.45 am on the fields which has an expected crowd of up to 10,000. http://letour.yorkshire.com/spectator-hubs/leeds-scott-hall-playing-fields. Naturally, Amelia’s parents are delighted for her, as are we and wanted to share the news. 

Next Year SATs dates

Important dates for Year 5 parents- The Year 6 SATs will take place during the week beginning May 11^th 2015.
I will be sharing further assessment week dates next week.

Arts Week

Next week is Arts Week, where children in KS1 and Year 3 will have the opportunity to gain credits towards the “Arts award -Discover”; a prestigious award supported by the Arts Council, England. We are very lucky to have Miss Thackeray and Miss McSorley, who have worked very hard to put a fantastic week of creative learning opportunities in place for the children.

Lunchtime supervisors

I am very excited about our plans to improve our lunchtime experience from September. Our lunchtime supervisors have carried out two lengthy training sessions in the past two weeks around the themes of “Positive Lunchtimes” and “Outdoor Games”. I must commend all of them for entering into the spirit of the sessions and contributing so positively. I know that they were keen to trial some of the games immediately and this is testament to the proactivity and commitment of our lunchtime supervisors.

Textile hangings

Next time you are in school, please take a moment to admire our new textile hangings in the “mall”. They are breathtaking and unique and the result of artwork carried out by the children with a very talented and amazing lady; Mrs Chin. Mrs Chin has worked incredibly hard not only to give our pupils the chance to create these amazing hangings but to display them to an amazing standard; they would not look out of place in the most prestigious of galleries. My sincere thanks to Mrs Chin.

Training Day

Please be reminded that next Friday (4^th July) is a training day; school will not be open to children.

PTA News

What a busy week the children have had this week, raising money for their new playground.  I had the opportunity along with other parents to help the children in their Tour de Robin Hood sponsored event and can confirm that they have well and truly earned every penny they have raised.  A huge thank you to the parents/carers who gave up their time to help and a huge thank you to the teachers and children involved, you really did yourselves proud.  Please remember all monies need to be with the school office by Thursday 3^rd July.  We have a total profit figure for our Shorts and Shades Disco which was a wonderful £529.  To celebrate our success over the year we are having a celebration next Thursday 3^rd July, meeting at 8pm at the Gardeners Arms.  Please feel free to come for an hour or three or four......  If you would like to get in touch please contact us at robinhoodprimarypta@gmail.com.

 

Have a great weekend everyone.

 

Mrs Dale

Nursery newsletter

NEWS ROUND UP

We have had a very active week this week and the children had a great time today at our Tour De France day. They really pushed themselves and we were really impressed with the determination and resilient attitudes they displayed. Even when they were exhausted they kept going and supported their team members.

THIS WEEK

In literacy this week we have been learning all about the story Noah’s Ark. The children really enjoyed the story and were very knowledgeable and enjoyed following up their learning in our Noah’s Ark area by independently retelling the story with the puppets. This week the children have been writing and drawing what their favourite activity is at school for their reports. To support the sporting events that are happening, our numeracy lessons have been very active this week -  we have been timing ourselves doing lots of challenges like how many balls can we get into the bucket in a minute and how many star jumps can we do in a minute.

NEXT WEEK

Please remember we have a training day next Friday (4^th July) so the children will not be in school that day. Nursery is also closed Wednesday 2^nd for the new Nursery stay and play sessions. Next week we will be thinking about growing and emotions. We will be reading the story of Elmer in literacy and the children will be taking part in team building games to promote and instil good team working skills in preparation for their new classes. In numeracy we will be practising repeating patterns and continuing to spot numbers and count and write numbers independently.

PLEASE NOTE the following diary dates:
Golden Day is Wednesday 9^th July where we will have a visit from Punch and Judy courtesy of the PTA

Meet your new teacher letters have been sent out. Your child will attend our Reception class either morning or afternoon on Monday 14^th July

Wednesday 16^th July will be the Nursery Graduations. If you haven’t received your letter please let me know. Thank you.

HOW YOU CAN HELP US

·        Please keep encouraging your child to write their name, read to you daily and write the numbers to 10 and work on the enclosed letter formation activities

Have a fantastic weekend – Mrs Steel, Mrs Beckwith, Mrs Chin and Miss Fox.

Reception newsletter

NEWS ROUND UP

We have had a very active week this week and the children had a great time today at our Tour De France day. They really pushed themselves and we were really impressed with the determination and resilient attitudes they displayed. Even when they were exhausted they kept going and supported their team members.

THIS WEEK
In literacy this week we have been learning all about the story Noah’s Ark. The children really enjoyed the story and were very knowledgeable about what happens in a church. They followed up their learning in our Noah’s Ark area by retelling the story with the puppets. The children have been writing and drawing what their favourite activity is at school for their reports. In topic the children have built an Ark for Noah and all of his animals. The children discussed what materials would float so fingers crossed all of the animals remain dry. Our numeracy lessons have been very active this week as we have been timing ourselves doing lots of challenges, like how many balls can we get into the bucket in a minute and how many star jumps can we do in a minute. We have also been learning the days of the week and the months of the year so challenge your child to tell you them all. I think they may impress you.  In phonics the children have been learning the long o sounds; o (no, go) and the split digraph oe (Joe, toe).

NEXT WEEK

Please remember we have a training day next Friday (4^th of July) so the children will not be in school that day. Next week we will be thinking about growing and emotions. We will be reading the story of Elmer in literacy and the children will be taking part in team building games to promote and instil good team working skills in preparation for Key Stage 1. In numeracy we will be practising repeating patterns and then we will be measuring ourselves to see how much we have grown since September.  In phonics the children will be learning the long oo sounds; ue (blue and Sue) and ew (grew and blew).

PLEASE NOTE the following diary dates:
Our next big events are our graduation ceremonies:
Miss Lambert’s graduation will be in the hall from 9am-10am on the 15^th July.
Miss Pyatt’s graduation will be held from 2pm-3pm on the 15^th July.

HOW YOU CAN HELP US

Please note we will be doing outdoor PE this half term so please ensure your child has an appropriate outdoor PE kit and trainers.

Have a fantastic weekend - Miss Lambert, Miss Pyatt and the Reception Team.


Key Stage 1

Home learning
This week we have continued our learning around time. The children are doing so well with this extremely difficult concept! Please can you continue helping the children to learn the time by looking at some digital and analogue clocks. The children are going to prepare some presentations to explain all that they have learnt about time. Perhaps they could have a go at teaching you everything they know. Can they explain it clearly? Do they know how many minutes are in an hour? Do they know what each of the hands mean and where they should go? Can they write digital times? Start with o’clock, move onto half past, then quarter past and quarter to and if they are ready for it move onto the five minute intervals.

Arts week – dressing up and showcase!

As you will be aware next week is arts week – an action packed week which will involve taking part in and learning about a range of different art forms. On Monday we are all dressing up as our favourite artist to kick start the event. This could be anything from a ballerina to a singer or a rapper, a film star, an artist or musician. The list of possibilities is endless. There are lots of professionals from various fields coming in to teach the children different skills. On Thursday 3^rd July from 2:30 in the hall we will be showcasing some of the children’s learning in an assembly. We hope you can join us to see all their fabulous outcomes. Finally, please can the children bring in an old T-Shirt to protect their uniform.

Literacy

To celebrate the fact that Le Tour de France is coming to Leeds, the children have been performing some cycling poetry. They loved finding out all about the event and came up with some wonderful rhymes of their own linked to the thrill of riding a bike. We watched some Michael Rosen poetry to learn what makes a powerful performance: intonation, expression and actions. The children treated us to some wonderfully energetic and engaging performances! As well as learning about rhyme, they also learnt about onomatopoeia. This enabled them to add some brilliant sound effects to liven up their performances!

Music and Philosophy

For the past few months the children have spent their Friday afternoons studying Music and Philosophy. Thank you to those parents who attended our singing assembly last week where the children performed some of the songs they have been learning. So far the children have learnt to recognise individual voices and respond to a simple melody by matching the pitch. It’s amazing to see how much progress they have made in such a short space of time. Many of the children are now becoming confident to sing short solos in class, even children who were nervous of doing so initially. We want to thank the children for engaging so beautifully with our music learning. It’s a pleasure to teach them. In Philosophy we have focussed specifically on the art of listening and building a conversation in a respectful way. The children have blown us away with their maturity and enthusiasm for this. They devise their own philosophical questions and discuss them with a partner or in small groups. In the last few weeks they have mastered the skill of acknowledging what the other person is saying in order to show they have been listening. They are not afraid to disagree in a respectful way and they back up their ideas with sound reasons. Who would believe they are only 5, 6 and 7?!

Topic
What a hard working week the children have had in topic! Now that they have designed their beautiful sea creature toys, they have spent the week cutting, sewing and stuffing. This is no mean feat with shiny, stretchy fabric that likes to slip and slide out of their fingers – but they have persisted and worked so well together to create some truly fantastic outcomes. Very well done!

Have a lovely weekend.

The KS1 Team

 

Lower Key Stage 2 Newsletter
We have had another fabulous, fun and jam packed week in LKS2 and again have been extremely proud of all the children for their sensible and mature approaches towards their learning. On Tuesday the whole of LKS2 took part in the Tour de France themed sports day as part of the national sports week. The children had a great time working together as a team to try and earn the most miles in relaying, high jump and climbing. Thank you to everyone who came along to watch our phase assembly this week. I’m sure you will all agree the children have been very busy with their learning over the last half term and it was fantastic to celebrate all of their magnificent outcomes with you.

We would like to remind you that next week the year 3 children will be taking part in an Arts week, where they will be working to achieve the arts award Discover. Across the week the children will be working alongside different arts practitioners, in order to learn more about our local artists. They will record all of their findings in an arts log and we look forward to sharing this with you at the Arts week showcase at the end of the week, Thursday 3^rd July 2:00. To kick off the week, we would like to invite the children to dress up as an artist of their choice for the day on Monday 30^th June. This might be a ballerina, an artist, an actor, singer / musician or any other artist you can think of.

Home Learning

We would like the children to continue to read daily and ensure they are recording this in their reading records so we can reward their efforts with stickers! In addition to this, the children should be practising and learning their spellings and Times Tables as this was the key skill that has let many children down when trying to calculate multiplications, divisions and fractions.

Numeracy
This week, the children have been learning all about symmetry and how to recognise lines of symmetry in different shapes and patterns. We then have been using our skills to identify lines of Symmetry in world flags and everyday objects. Next week the year 4’s will be solving lots of tricky problems. They will be using all of their knowledge and understanding of the number system and both mental and written strategies.

Literacy

This week in literacy the children having been learning all about different sporting personalities and using this information to write a biography about them. The children included lots of information about their early life, successes and what the sports men and women are doing now. Next week the year 4’s will be writing more biographies about each other. We look forward to sharing these with the children’s new class teachers.

Spellings

These Spellings will be tested on Monday 30th June.

Group 1: than, that, them, then, tree, those, these, tried, their, there

Group 2: famous, various, dangerous, curious, furious, cough, enough, rough, dough, though

 ICT

This week the children have been working in groups to create their very own stop, motion animation showing a different sport taking place. The children had to carefully plan out each scene of their movie and create a back drop to show where their sport is taking place. They then had to carefully move their characters into the different positions to take a series of photographs, and then use the I Can animate software on the iPads to create their own Stop Motion Animation.

Y6 Leavers Assembly

Mrs Dale recently mentioned in the newsletter that siblings of Year 6 would be able to join in the Year 6 Leavers Assembly celebrations. Because of it being a week early this year, please be aware that this coincides with the final swimming session which is the fun/play session. We will ensure that Year 4 siblings are able to enter the hall as soon as they are back and an appropriate space is saved for them.

Reminders

·    Please can we remind all Year 3 parents that if your child wishes to go on residential in Year 4, their deposit must be in by the 3^rd July– Thank You!

·    As part of our history curriculum we will be going on a trip to watch the Horrible Histories production of ‘Barmy Britain’ on Thursday 17^th July.  We would like the children to bring a packed lunch and wear their school uniform. If you would like any information regarding the trip please see a member of the 3/4 team at the end of the school day.

·    As the weather is hotting up, please ensure your child brings a refillable water bottle, a sun hat and sun block as we will be spending more time outside.

·    Please ensure all of your child’s belongings (especially PE kits, hats and school jumpers) are clearly labelled with your child’s full name.

·    Remember the children have two PE units a week now, one indoor and one outdoor so please ensure they are bringing the correct kit each week.

Don’t forget to check out our blog where you will find lots more information about this week’s learning as well as important reminders and dates for forthcoming events. http://year34rhps.blogspot.co.uk/

Have a fabulous weekend!

Team 3/4

 

Upper Key Stage 2 Newsletter

Tour de Robin Hood

Huge congratulations to all our pupils for their hard work and effort during our ‘Tour de Robin Hood Day’ on Thursday. We were all massively impressed with the intensity and teamwork showed by our pupils when completing themed athletic events, inspired by the Tour. We would like to thank all parents and carers for any kind donations. I know that our wonderful PTA have been working hard, to ensure that the children receive some fantastic goodies; which will help them all in keeping fit and active.

Violin performance

On Thursday 10^th July, from 2.30- 3.00pm, our year 6 pupils will be showcasing the wonderful progress that they have made in their violin lessons this year. Mr Brown has been really impressed with our pupils and he has kindly offered his time, so parents and carers can pop in and listen to their beautiful playing skills. We look forward to seeing you on Thursday the 10^th from 2.30- 3.00pm. Thank you.

Year 6 Dates for the Diary:

·         Fish & Chip lunch Thursday 10^th July.

·         Year 6 violin performance- Thursday 10^th July (2.30- 3.00pm).

·         Year 6 Prom – Thursday 10^th July (5:00pm – 6:30pm).

·         Sports Day- Monday 7^th July (parents welcome for the afternoon class races).

·         Leaver’s Assembly – Friday 11^th July (2:00pm).

School Captain Election:

The School Captain election for the current Year 5 pupils is looming. The election will be held Thursday, July 10^th. The children will be asked to give a short 2 minute presentation to the rest of the phase and teachers, explaining why they should get the job and what they can bring to the role. There will be six School Captain places, two per term, which will enable more children to experience the position. We cannot wait!

Growing and Changing

On Monday, June 30^th, the children will be learning about growing and changing, in accordance with the National Curriculum and the school’s PHSCE policy. The children will learn about changes that humans experience in their lifetime in a sensitive environment and there will be plenty of opportunity for children to ask questions anonymously throughout.

Numeracy:

In numeracy this week, children have been learning all about sequences in numbers; including the Fibonacci sequence, Pascal’s triangle, square and triangular numbers. For the remainder of the week, pupils have focused on ordering decimals and identifying the rules in decimal number sequences. Next week, pupils will once again show their detective skills to solve some murder mysteries, by applying a variety of numeracy operations and strategies. 

Literacy

This week, pupils have been reflecting on their experiences and challenges in year 5/6 and writing their report front cover. Children have really impressed, using a range of fantastic features and their final pieces are a joy to read. The spellings for next week will be randomly selected from all the spellings across the year. Pupils will be tested on these on Thursday 3^rd July.

ICT

This week the children have continued to edit and refine their pictures- using iPhoto. The children have now fully explored the editing features on the software and exported their pictures. Next week the children will create their own slideshow with their final edits.

 

 

 

 

 

 
  

Issue 35 2013 -14

Dear Parent/Carer,

It’s been another eventful week in school with our Year 6 children carrying out their “Bikeability” assessments and of course the brilliant Shades and Shorts disco. I would like to start my newsletter this week by applauding the PTA and the brilliant work they do for our school; increasingly families are busy trying to juggle work and childcare and it is a struggle to give generously of our time but we repeatedly have parents who help out in any way they can, even if they are not able to physically attend. Obviously the funds are fantastic and can be put to brilliant use in our school but it is great that fantastic childhood memories of Robin Hood Primary School are being created through these events - thank you everyone!

Teaching Assistants

I am delighted to inform you that we have recently made several further appointments. From September, Natalie Chapman and Laura Taggart will be joining our team of teaching assistants. Our much loved Mrs Butterfield will also be joining the classroom to job share with Mrs Beckwith. We warmly welcome you all.

Parent helpers

We would like to encourage any parents who can help with hearing children read to approach us to let us know your availability for September please. The extra support for our children is really valuable even if just for a few hours a week. Thanks.

Tour de Robin Hood

Next week sees our Tour de Robin Hood events which are our way of celebrating both the historic event which will pass through our city in a couple of weeks but also promote our love of physical activity. Learning in class will link in with the theme and of course all children will be involved in the outside sponsored events. Thank you so much to those parents who are able to help out with supporting at these times. I would also like to thank the PTA and Miss Mees, who have liaised so well and worked effectively together to make what I know will be a fabulous celebration (fingers crossed for warm, dry weather!)

Violin concert

We will be showcasing the Year 6 violin outcomes by holding a short concert on Thursday 10^th July at 2:30 p.m. We have been very fortunate to access the fantastic expertise of Stefan Brown from Yorkshire Music Education Service this year, who has helped us to widen the children’s musical experiences and develop their musical skills. This event is open to all parents; please do come along and support if you can.

Classes for next year

We will be announcing your child’s class teacher for next year, next Friday. This information will come home with your child in a letter form.

PTA News

A huge thank you to all the parents, carers and teachers that gave up their time to help out at the Shorts and Shades disco on Wednesday.  I think we can safely say a good evening was had by all.  Next week is the Tour de Robin Hood where hopefully we can raise lots of money to give the children some wonderful things to keep them entertained during play times.  Don't forget all monies need to be in school by 3^rd July and the new gym bags will be handed out at sports day on the 7^th July.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Mrs Dale

 

Nursery Newsletter

NEWS ROUND UP

Welcome back to another busy week in Nursery. We are beginning to prepare our children for their next settings and it is lovely to see how much they have grown in confidence, but sadly the weeks are whizzing by so quickly! If you haven’t yet let me know where your child is going in September (unless of course it is Robin Hood!) please can you come and see me as soon as possible as I need to prepare a transition document. Thank you. Keep up to date with our news at http://foundationstagenewsatrobinhood.blogspot.co.uk/

THIS WEEK

Alongside all of our seaside activities we have been completing the children’s final assessments for this year. The children have really impressed us with their amazing phonics knowledge, writing, number knowledge and shape knowledge. We are so proud of how much the children have progressed this year and it is all down to their fantastic attitudes towards their learning and the super support they have received from home!

NEXT WEEK

Next week is all about sports. On Wednesday the children will be taking part in a Tour De France day organised by the Active team. This will be a full half day of sporty activities so please send your child in in their outdoor sports kit. In literacy we will be learning all about the story of Noah’s Ark. In numeracy we will be looking at one more and one less than a given number. In the outdoor area, we will be setting ourselves time challenges to see how much we can achieve in a minute. We will also be having lots of races and timing each other using stopwatches. It’s certainly going to be active!

PLEASE NOTE the following diary dates:

Nursery closed Wednesday 2^nd July

Golden Day is Wednesday 9^th July where we will have a visit from Punch and Judy courtesy of the PTA

Meet your new teacher letters have been sent out this week. Your child will attend our Reception class either morning or afternoon on Monday 14^th July

Wednesday 16^th July will be the Nursery Graduations. If you haven’t received your letter please let me know. Thank you.

HOW YOU CAN HELP US

·        Please note we will be doing outdoor PE this half term so please ensure    your child has an appropriate outdoor PE kit and trainers.

·        Please keep encouraging your child to write their name, read to you daily and write the numbers to 10

Have a fantastic weekend – Mrs Steel, Mrs Beckwith, Mrs Chin and Miss Fox.

 

Reception newsletter

NEWS ROUND UP

This week we have all climbed aboard the train and travelled to the seaside. Thank you so much for coming along to our seaside day today. The children had a fantastic time eating their picnics and playing all of the seaside activities with you. Please keep looking on our blog for the latest information and to see what has been happening in Reception at http://foundationstagenewsatrobinhood.blogspot.co.uk/

THIS WEEK

Alongside all of our seaside activities we have been completing the children’s final assessments for this year. The children have really impressed us with their amazing phonics knowledge, writing, number knowledge and shape knowledge. We are so proud of how much the children have progressed this year and it is all down to their fantastic attitudes towards their learning and the fantastic support they have received from home. In numeracy this week the children have planned and built some brilliant seaside scenes using the bricks. The children worked very well in teams and described the shapes they were using brilliantly. In phonics the children have been learning the long o sounds; ow (snow and grow) and the split digraph o_e (home, cone).

NEXT WEEK

Next week is all about sports. On Wednesday the children will be taking part in a Tour De France day organised by the Active team. This will be a full day of sporty activities so please send your child in in their outdoor sports kit. In literacy we will be learning all about the story of Noah’s Ark. In numeracy we will be focusing on the concept of time and thinking about how long 1 minute is and how long an hour is. We will be setting ourselves time challenges to see how much we can achieve in a minute. We will also be having lots of races and timing each other using stopwatches. It’s certainly going to be active! In phonics the children will be learning the long o sounds; o (so, no, hello) and the digraph oe (Joe, toe).

PLEASE NOTE the following diary dates:

Our next big events are our graduation ceremonies:

Miss Lambert’s graduation will be in the hall from 9am-10am on the 15^th July.

Miss Pyatt’s graduation will be held from 2pm-3pm on the 15^th July.

HOW YOU CAN HELP US

Please note we will be doing outdoor PE this half term so please ensure your child has an appropriate outdoor PE kit and trainers.

Have a fantastic weekend - Miss Lambert, Miss Pyatt and the Reception Team.

 

 

Key Stage 1 Newsletter

Home learning

On top of the usual learning spellings and practising mental maths problems please support your child in telling the time. This learning will continue into next week so your support would be very much appreciated! Take a look at the Numeracy section for more detail about our journey so far but also try asking questions like, what time is one hour after 6 o’clock or half an hour before 3 o’clock. If you want to really challenge your child why not give them a multi-step problem like, I got up at 7:30 and it took 10 minutes to brush my teeth, 15 minutes to get dressed and 5 minutes to make breakfast, what time did I eat my breakfast? Make sure they’ve got an analogue clock to hand though to count on the 5 minute intervals!

Newspapers

Please can we put out a plea for newspapers again! Key Stage 1 will be taking part in an Arts Award week commencing on the 30^th of June and newspaper is on the resource list! Thank you!

Singing loud and proud!

Thank you for coming and joining in with our showcase assembly around our singing learning. It is safe to say that everyone loves and looks forward to these music sessions and the progress each class has made in pitch and rhythm since Christmas has been outstanding! It has been a real eye opener for us as adults to teach the skill of singing; we’re so quick to judge ourselves as able or unable to sing and the lessons we have delivered reject this opinion. It’s refreshing!

Literacy

This week in literacy we have taken a walk down memory lane and remembered everything that we have learnt this year in all our different subjects.  It has been so nice to reminisce and I think it is safe to say that everyone was astonished at just how much we have accomplished and how much we have all grown (quite literally!) since Autumn term. The children remembered their favourite units and tasks, electricity was a recurrent love by all, and also thought back to old targets and difficulties they faced and overcame (division has been our nemesis apparently!). The reason for doing this was so that the children could add a personalised front cover to the reports that will be winging their way towards you later this term. We hope you enjoy reading them!

Numeracy

This week we started learning all about telling them time. The children all used plastic clocks to make o’clock times that matched digital and written times (5 o’clock/05:00) and explored all the different key words associated with time like minutes, hours, days, am/pm and so on. We have looked at the long hand and the short hand and talked about what they each show when they are positioned around the clock. We then halved the clock to show where half past 5/05:30 would sit, looking at the hour hand moving half way between the hours of 6 and 7, and challenged our friends to make or write different times to match our clocks or written times. As if that wasn’t enough, we then drew times on clock faces taking care to show the long and short hands. Some of us even looked at the 5 minute intervals! Next week we will continue this learning looking more at months and days alongside worded time problems.

Topic

Well we have started a real toughie of a unit as part of our Seaside topic…sewing! We started by choosing which sea creature we wanted to make, from puffer fish to star fish to dolphin, before drawing a template of the shape on a piece of card. The children transferred this outline onto their chosen piece of fabric and cut it out...twice. We then thought about the extras that we wanted to add on to make sure they looked like our design. Getting the right size and shape is a bigger challenge than it might sound! Our week ended with using a running stitch to either add extras in Year 2 or to sew our template together ready to stuff and decorate next week. The children love learning this skill so next time a button falls off, you know who to get!

 

Lower Key Stage 2 Newsletter

Wow! The children have shown fantastic attitudes to their final assessments this year before they embark on their exciting and challenging move into the next year group. We had lots of fun practising and showcasing our songs to you all from our new singing curriculum. Thank you to all those that attended our successful performance, I’m sure you will agree the children are absolutely loving learning all of the new songs as part of our new singing curriculum. We would also like to thank everyone that came to the Year 3 residential meeting on Tuesday evening. If you could not attend, all the information is accessible on our phase blog and the children have now all received a letter with all the details on.

With such beautiful weather this week, we have enjoyed spending time up on the school field and using the sunshine to learn more about states of matter in science. Next week we are taking part in our sponsored event in recognition of the Tour de France, so please keep the sponsorship coming in as every little helps! 

Numeracy

This week, the children have applied all of their super learning in their assessments. Alongside this, the children have been using their knowledge of co-ordinates and direction to create a treasure map. Next week we will be looking at symmetry and symmetrical patterns.

Literacy

Wow! What a week of literacy! The children have demonstrated their understanding of texts in our reading assessments this week and have written an autobiography telling us all about themselves and their achievements this last year in Year 3/4.

Spellings

These Spellings will be tested on Monday 23^rd June.

Group 1: which, with, where, white, when, was, whenever, whereas, will, would

Group 2: healthy, squash, minute, imagine, opposite, damage, purpose, police, promise, whereas

Topic

During our topic sessions this week we have been learning lots of facts about where the FIFA World Cup is being held this year, as well as looking into the past at previous World Cups. We did lots of fun activities; a quick quiz, alphabetizing the 32 countries competing, matching countries to their flags, a nice word search to find some of the qualifying teams, created our own football kit, as well as making up our own mascot to motivate the team! We are keeping up-to-date with all of the match scores and wait with baited breath to find out which country will be crowned the 2014 winner! COME ON ENGLAND!

Science

This week we continued to look at states of matter and their properties. We observed the changes that some materials make when they are heated and/or cooled. The children loved getting their hands on a colourful ice balloon which we placed in two locations of differing temperatures, one in the classroom and one outside. Thankfully the weather pulled through for us so that we could use the outdoors! Before we did this, we made our predictions about what we thought might happen and lots of children hit the nail on the head! Next week we will be looking at how evaporation and condensation form part of the water cycle.

Reminders

·    Our next Showcase Assembly is on Friday 27^th June at 2.30pm

·    Next week, the children are taking part in their sponsored event on Tuesday 24^th June. Please ensure your child comes to school in their P.E kit for the full day.

·    Please can we remind all Year 3 parents that if your child wishes to go on residential in Year 4, their deposit must be in by the 3^rd July– Thank You!

·    As part of our history curriculum we will be going on a trip to watch the Horrible Histories production of ‘Barmy Britain’ at Sheffield Lyceum Theatre on Thursday 17^th July. The cost of the trip is £18 and we would like the children to bring a packed lunch and wear their school uniform. If you would like any information regarding the trip please see a member of the 3/4 team at the end of the school day.

·    As the weather is hotting up, please ensure your child brings a refillable water bottle, a sun hat and sun block as we will be spending more time outside.

·    Please ensure all of your child’s belongings (especially PE kits, hats and school jumpers) are clearly labelled with your child’s full name.

·    Remember the children have two PE units a week now, one indoor and one outdoor so please ensure they are bringing the correct kit each week.

Don’t forget to check out our blog where you will find lots more information about this week’s learning as well as important reminders and dates for forthcoming events. http://year34rhps.blogspot.co.uk/

Have a fabulous weekend!

Team 3/4

Upper Key Stage 2 Newsletter

Year 6 Leavers

There are some children who still haven’t handed in their favourite photograph of themselves when they were younger. We would love to show a photograph of each child in year 6 in the assembly on our show reel. Please hand in your favourite picture to Mr Malley with your name written on the back. Thank you. 

School Captain Election:

The School Captain election for the current Year 5 pupils is looming. The election will be held Thursday July 10^th. The children will be asked to give a short 2 minute presentation to the rest of the phase and phase teachers, which should explain why they should get the job and what they can bring to the role. There will be six School Captain places, two per term, which will enable more children to experience the position. We cannot wait!

Growing and Changing

On Monday, June 30^th, the children will be learning about growing and changing, in accordance with the National Curriculum and the school’s PHSCE policy. The children will learn about changes that humans experience in their lifetime in a sensitive environment and there will be plenty of opportunity for children to ask questions anonymously throughout. A separate letter with regards to this was sent out last week, however, we would like to remind you, at this stage that parents/carers are very welcome to attend a meeting on Wednesday, June 25^th at 4:00pm in the blue year 5/6 classroom, to discuss the session and preview any clips that will be shown.

Numeracy:

In numeracy this week, the children have been working really hard with their end of term assessments; we would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the children on their super effort with their assessments! In addition to this, the children have entered the Leeds Junior Maths Challenge. The four highest scoring children will be invited to attend Leeds Grammar School in July, for a fun morning of maths competition in the Leeds Junior Maths Challenge semi-final. Names to be announced soon! Next week, the children will be learning all about sequences in numbers; including the Fibonacci sequence, Pascal’s triangle, square and triangular numbers.

Literacy

In literacy this week, pupils have been recapping on important spelling, grammar and punctuation rules. These have included; irregular plurals, commas and spelling patterns such as; words ending in ‘ant’ and ‘ent.’ Next week pupils will be reflecting on their experiences and challenges in year 5/6 in their report front cover. This is a wonderful chance for children to display their creative writing skills, as well as impress with their beautiful handwriting. The spellings for next week are; who’s, whose, peace, piece, ascent, assent, morning, mourning, steel, steal. Your child has received a copy of these spellings and will be tested on the 27^th June.

Topic

The children have continued their learning on the Tour de France this week, creating posters in relation to the statement ‘The Tour de France: The most demanding and dangerous sporting event.’ Working in teams of 3, each child took responsibility for a different aspect. These included the physical demands of the tour, the different stages and finally, the dangers involved for the riders. The children have begun to create some truly sensational pieces!

Science

We have continued our Living Things unit this week by looking at the different life cycles of living things. By exploring the similarities and differences of these, the children have been able to present their research to the class.

ICT

The children have been editing and refining their pictures this week- using iPhoto. The children have explored the editing features on the software and exported their pictures. Some of the editing skills have been amazing. We would not be surprised if some of the images appear on our own school walls very soon! Next week the children will continue to develop these editing skills and create their own slideshow with their final edits.