Shetland class:

 

English

Our class novel this term continues with the Tom McLaughlin book, ‘The Accidental Secret Agent.’ The learners have loved this series and we are now on our fourth book. We will link our topic, The Rainforest, to extended writing opportunities and focus on persuasive writing.   Learners will continue to engage with our daily literacy and reading activities. 

 

Maths

In maths we will be focusing on multiplication and division before moving onto fractions in the second half of the spring term. Shetland class also continues to work on daily number fluency activities. 

 

Science

Our science topic in spring 1 is ‘Scientists and Inventors.’ We will look at many different scientists and how they have changed the world including Marie Curie and Louis Pasteur. In the second half of the spring term, we will move onto looking at states of matter, looking at the differences between solid, liquid and gas. 

 

Topic

This first half term will have a geography focus and will explore the Rainforest. In this unit, we take a closer look at the mysteries of tropical rainforests, exploring the rainforest layers and its animal inhabitants. In the second half of the term, we will change to a history focus and explore the stone age and the iron age. 

 

RE

During this term we will explore Judaism and learn more about the Easter story. During our Judaism topic we will find out where Judaism originated, find out about special places linked to Judaism and about key festivals.

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PSHE/ ICT

In our PSHE and ICT lessons we will be focusing on Internet safety. This is a topic that I am sure Shetland will find interesting and helpful. 

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Pilgrim class:

 

English

In English this term, Pilgrim class are learning about newspaper reports and studying the layout, format and examples before creating our own newspaper. We are also continuing with our spellings and phonics work on a weekly basis and reading daily. In the second half of the spring term, we will be focusing on non-chronological report writing based on our topic about Mount Everest.

 

Maths

This term will see us learning about shapes and measurement. We will revise common 2D and 3D shapes, angles and look at vertical and horizontal lines. We will also learn about time and using 24 hour clocks. Later in the term, we will move onto area, measuring in different units and working out perimeter problems based on real life. As always, tables remain important and we encourage children to learn as many as they can.

 

Science

This half term we are focusing on forces - learning about gravity, push and pull, friction and planning and reviewing investigations using scientific vocabulary. In the second half of the spring term, we will move on to Earth and Space and discover more about the planets and the sun and their relationship to each other.

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Topic 

Our topic in spring 1 is all about crime and punishment throughout history. We will be focusing on how crimes were punished in some gruesome and unfair ways and discuss how this is different from modern times. In the second half of the term we will be learning about mountains and focusing on our geography and map reading skills. We will locate famous mountains around the world and link to our English topic about Everest. 

 

RE 

In spring 1 we are focusing on Hinduism, learning the basic facts about the religion and some of the festivals celebrated by Hindu people. In spring 2 we will focus on Christianity and the Easter Story. 

 

PSHE

Pilgrim class really enjoy their PSHE lessons and have a wide variety of topics to learn about this term. We are starting with manners and courtesy and careers and jobs and moving on to success and achievements and fake news. In the second half of the spring term, learners will study grief and loss and the environment.

 

Computing 

This term we are coding! We will begin using Purple Mash to learn the basics of coding and we have some exciting Micro Bits to apply our real life coding skills to courtesy of our secondary computing teacher, Mr Arnold. 

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Upland class:

 

English 

This term Upland class are learning about the features and examples of advertising posters, before creating their own poster about their favourite film, within our topic on ‘Leisure and Entertainment’. We are also learning how to construct paragraphs as our writing skill focus. 

 

In our grammar work, we are looking at subordinate clauses, using either ‘a’ or ‘an’ with nouns, understanding, creating and using words with the prefixes ‘super ‘’anti’ ‘auto’ as well as learning about using verbs and apostrophes. We complete a reading comprehension each week, have reading times three times a week and complete spellings and phonics on a weekly basis.

 

In the second half of the spring term, we are learning about the features and examples of biographies and then writing a short biography about a favourite person learners know and an inventor within our topic ‘Early Islamic Civilisations’. In our grammar work, we will be looking at compound nouns, prefixes, understanding, creating and using words with prefixes ‘dis’ ‘mis’ and  ‘un’, using subordinating conjunctions and inverted commas.

 

Maths

This term, we are learning about fractions. We will be revising wholes and parts with equal and unequal parts, naming parts using thirds, quarters and halves, estimating the position of fractions on a number line, finding a unit fraction of an amount, recognising and representing tenths, linking tenths as equivalent fractions and decimals and finding a unit fraction of an amount. In the second half of the spring term, we will be moving onto position and direction by describing coordinate positions in a full coordinate grid with all four quadrants and translating shapes on coordinate axes using coordinate translations. Then we will move on to geometry by translating shapes on a 2D grid using the vocabulary left, right, up and down, reflecting and drawing shapes over mirror lines and using a ruler to draw a 2D shape to a given measurement.

 

Science

This half term we are focusing on light; learning how we need light to see things, investigating which surfaces reflect light and making and changing shadows. In the second half of the spring term, we will move onto evolution, looking at the scientific concept of inheritance, understanding how human beings have evolved and animals adapt to their environments, examining the theories of evolution constructed by Darwin and Wallace. 

 

Topic 

Our topic in Spring 1 is all about ‘Leisure and Entertainment’ throughout history. We will be focusing on the cinema, understanding how and why football has changed in the 20th Century, how young people’s lives were different in the 1960s compared with today, the changes in how people spend their holidays, how important television has been to British people and how changes in 20th century technology affect our lives today. In the second half of the spring term, we will be learning about Early Islamic Civilisations, to know Muhammed was the founder of Islam, some key facts about Baghdad and how it became a world power, how early Islamic doctors impact on modern medicine and describing the features and style of Islamic Art. 

 

RE 

This term, we are learning about Hinduism. We will be exploring who founded Hinduism,  the main beliefs within the faith, special places and festivals and the meanings of Hindu symbols.

 

PSHE

This half term we are exploring the idea of relationships through questions such as ‘Who are the people we love (Very Important People)?’ How do people show their VIPs that they love them? What are the consequences of behaving unkindly to the people around us? Do people who care about each other always have to agree? When might we feel under pressure to do something that we feel unsure about or don’t want to do? When is it OK to keep a secret? When is this not OK? 

Next half term we will be looking at attraction to others; romantic relationships; civil partner-ship and marriage. We will also learn about recognising and managing pressure and consent in different situations.

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Computing 

This term we are looking at e-safety. We will be exploring the importance of appropriate messaging in games, online behaviour, screen time, junk mail and spams. In the second half of the spring term, we will be identifying the purpose of writing a blog, planning the theme and content for a blog, then writing a blog post as well as understanding the importance of commenting on blogs. 

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Canada class:

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English

This term we are focusing on creating an advert for movies released in the early 1900s using the sort of information that was available at the time and comparing advertisements from then and now. 

 

We continue to develop our understanding of spelling, punctuation and grammar through daily exercises focusing particularly on formation of adjectives using suffixes such as -ful, -less and how the prefix un- changes the meaning of verbs and adjectives e.g. unkind, undoing.

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Maths

This term, Canada class will learn how to use ratio and proportion in problem solving activities. They will learn the skills required to determine ratio and proportion, including percentages, pie charts, unequal quantities, fractions, scale, scale factor and enlargement. These skills will be put into practice with a wide range of problem solving activities. 

 

 

Science

For Science this term we will be looking at ‘Living Things and Their Habitats’, describing how living things are classified into broad groups according to common characteristics and based on similarities and differences, including microorganisms, plants and animals by finding out about the Linnaean System of classification. 

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Topic
Our topic this half term is ‘Leisure’ and ‘Entertainment’ throughout history.’ We will be focusing on the cinema, understanding how and why football has changed in the 20th Century, how young people’s lives were different in the 1960s compared with today, the changes in how people spend their holidays, how important television has been to British people and how changes in 20th century technology affect our lives today.

RE 

This term, we will be focusing on Buddhism. Our learners will be able to identify where India is on a map and know that Siddhartha Gautama was the Buddha. We will also learn about Buddhist temples and recognise key Buddhist symbols. 

 

PSHE

For PSHE we are looking at attraction to others; romantic relationships; civil partner-ship and marriage. We will also learn about recognising and managing pressure and consent in different situations.

 

Computing 

This term we are looking at e-safety. We will be exploring the importance of appropriate messaging in games, online behaviour, screen time, junk mail and spams. In the second half of the spring term, we will be identifying the purpose of writing a blog, planning the theme and content for a blog, then writing a blog post as well as understanding the importance of commenting on blogs. 

 

All primary classes: 

 

Forest School:

During the spring term, our learners will experience our beautiful Forest School site during the colder months, exploring ice formations and having the opportunity to make ice decorations. We will also be making bird feeders and taking part in the RSPB’s Big Bird Watch. Learners will also have the opportunity to take part in campfire cooking. Later in the spring term, we will watch as the birds make their nests and explore how they do this.

 

PE: 

This term, our primary learners will be learning about fitness testing and how to consider living a healthy active lifestyle. Learners will be completing fitness tests around the various components of fitness (cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, balance, muscular endurance, power and strength). Learners will be given the opportunity to work individually or in a group working together and motivating each other to get the best possible outcomes. Learners will be able to assess their fitness at the start and end of the term, this will support some skills such as peer assessing and receiving feedback. 

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Food Technology:

During the first half of the spring term, primary learners will be covering a variety of sweet and savoury pastry dishes. We will encourage learners to engage with life skills such as washing up, food hygiene and working safely within the kitchen environment. This will lead us into the second half of the spring term, in which learners will be learning how cultures and religions from around the world impact on the food industry and how foods are prepared and consumed by people across the world. We will make dishes which will be decided upon by the learners in their first lesson through independent research.

 

Mandarin: 

 

In the Spring term, we are going to learn the following things linked to numbers, a topic which has a wide appeal to our primary learners:

 

• 0-10 to talk about year 2024 (with each single number reading out individually), students’ and parents’ birth years, 

• Days of the week (which are numbered in Mandarin) and class schedules.

• 11-20 to talk about months of the year(which are named based on their ordinal sequence), and important occasions throughout the year.

• 20-99 to talk about family birthdays.

 

We will also talk about the ‘Year of Dragon,’ and possible celebrations such as practising Chinese calligraphy and making traditional Chinese food such as bao buns and dumplings.

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Music:

In the first half of the spring term, we will be looking at ‘Instruments of The Orchestra.’ We will be learning about how they make noise, what they look and sound like and actually playing many of them! This is a great chance to have a go at instruments you might never have seen before. 

 

During the second half of the spring term, we will be moving on to understand about ostinatos (repeating patterns) and how we can use these in our pieces of music. We will perform and compose using ostinatos on both the keyboards and using percussion instruments.