Wow this term has really flown by! Here are a few of the wonderful and exciting things Chestnut Class have been up to:
In Maths, we have been tackling multiplication and division, which involved learning the 2, 5 and 10 times-tables. We have also been learning about measurement; focusing on metres and centimetres and when to use each unit of measurement. The children are looking forward to exploring mass and capacity and fractions next term.
Chestnut Class have continued to show great enthusiasm for literacy; they have enjoyed visiting the local library, writing their own ‘Magic Box’ poem and reading ‘The Magic Finger’ by Roald Dahl. Book Week was certainly a highlight! The children enjoyed writing a book review, drawing illustrations, designing and painting their own wooden spoon character and of course, dressing up as their favourite book character!
In Science this term, we started our new unit on ‘Growing up’. Lessons involved learning about the life cycles of humans and other types of animals, including mammals, amphibians and insects. Working scientifically, the children have compared and grouped together different offspring and discussed the patterns between the life cycles.
Geography has been the class’ favourite this term. We have been learning about Australia and in particular, its cities, climate and wildlife. The children enjoyed learning and researching about Australia’s unusual animals – why not ask us for an interesting fact?
Music has also been a highlight of the term. The children thoroughly enjoyed singing the Reggae song ‘Zootime’ and had fun learning to play its melody on the glockenspiel!
This term in RE, we have continued learning about Christianity in RE. The children enjoyed learning about the story of Holy Week and understanding why it is important to Christians that Jesus came back to life after his crucifixion. In PSHE, we have been discussing how to take care of ourselves and stay healthy.
Finally, I must not forget to mention the Year 2 performance of ‘Imagine’ at Dance Umbrella. What a fantastic show they put on! The children have shown great maturity and commitment this term and I have been so proud to be their teacher.
Thank you for your continued support and wishing everyone a happy and restful Easter.
Miss Friend
What a wonderful term it has been! Here are just a few of the amazing things that have happened in Chestnut Class:
In English this term, we read the story ‘Meerkat Mail’ and the children thoroughly enjoyed writing about the adventures of their own chosen character. The children worked incredibly hard to include all of our learning from SPaG lessons, such as expanded noun phrases and commas in a list. Chestnut Class have also enjoyed visiting the local library, analysing poems and reading ‘The Hodgeheg’ in Guided Reading.
In Maths, we have completed a unit on shape and the children are able to name various 2D and 3D shapes and recognise the number of faces, edges and vertices on each one!
In Science this term, we started our new unit on Humans. Working scientifically, we investigated which exercises increase our heart rate the most, whether oldest children have the most teeth and which foods we should eat every day or only sometimes.
History has been a firm favourite this term. The children have been fascinated to learn all about the Victorian era. We have identified similarities and differences between Victorian and modern Radstock. We described what it might be like to work as a coal miner at Ludlow’s Colliery and the children learnt about significant individuals of the Victoria era, including Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Florence Nightingale.
In PSHE, we have been exploring the unit ‘Dreams and Goals’. The children have enjoyed identifying their own dreams and ambitions that are important to them. They have also thoroughly enjoyed Computing this term, which involved learning how to take photographs using a range of devices.
This term in PE, the children have been very busy rehearsing for the Dance Umbrella Festival which will be taking place next term. We have made up and rehearsed our dance which is slowly taking shape.
Well done Chestnut Class for another fantastic term, I am so proud! See you all in the new term.
I cannot believe it is nearly Christmas already, the term has flown by and we have squeezed in so much learning! Chestnut class have really enjoyed writing their own diary entries based on the Great Fire of London and applying what they have been learning in SPaG, such as powerful adjectives and commas in a list.
After making gingerbread cookies and then writing their own instructions in Writing, the children enjoyed analysing the text ‘The Gingerbread Man’ in Guided Reading.
Our Maths lessons have continued to explore addition and subtraction and the children have been using pictorial representations to help them add and subtract 1s, 10s and 2-digit numbers.
Science, this term, focused on animals’ needs for survival. This has brought many opportunities for working scientifically, for example, the children enjoyed building bird feeders and observing the different birds in our local area. To link with our Science learning, we went on an exciting trip to Chew Valley Animal Park where we went on an interactive tour of the park, including feeding and handling of some of the animals. The children were all so brave holding the different animals, such as guinea pigs, rats, mice and rabbits.
The class have also loved learning about our Geography topic this term; Amazing Earth. We have located and named the seven continents and five oceans, the hemispheres and the equator. We look forward to continuing our learning of this next term.
Forest school is still a highlight of the week for Chestnut Class, allowing them to show how kind and helpful they can be to one another. The children have also been developing their confidence and football skills in PE whilst being taught by a professional coach.
Finally, I must not forget to mention the fabulous performance of ‘The Nativity’. What a fantastic show they put on! The children have shown great maturity and commitment this term and I have been so proud to be their teacher.
I wish you and your families a wonderful Christmas and New Year and I look forward to all the fun learning we have lined up in Term 3.
This has been a fantastic term for Chestnut Class. We have demonstrated our FOREST Values in different ways and have enjoyed being on our learning journey.
In English lessons this term, we have had great fun reading Little Red Reading Hood and planned and published our own innovated stories. Why not ask us about our story?
During Maths, we have consolidated our understanding of place value. We have been working on recognising tens and ones and using a place value chart. We have also compared numbers and objects and have identified where numbers are placed on a number line. Lastly, we counted in 2s, 5s and 10s!
Science this term has been fascinating! We have learnt all about animals and their habitats. We’ve learnt about a variety of plants and animals in polar, desert, ocean and woodland habitats. We also explored and observed microhabitats in our local area.
History has been a firm favourite in Chestnut Class. We have been learning about The Great Fire of London. We explored when the fire began and how it started, what caused it to spread like it did and how the fire was eventually put out. We also read extracts from Samual Pepys’ diary.
In RE, we have been studying Christianity and the children have been learning to understand why Christians might follow Jesus’ example of being kind to people. Our lessons involved learning about three stories from the Bible: The Story of the Samaritan, Zacchaeus the Tax Collector and Peter’s Betrayal of Jesus.
Chestnut Class have also thoroughly enjoyed Art this term. Pupils have explored and created maps through various art forms, including drawing, printmaking and designing stained glass.
PE has been another highlight - the class have enjoyed developing their confidence and fundamental ball skills such as throwing, catching, rolling, kicking and dribbling a ball. The children also looked forward to their Forest sessions with Mrs Courtier-Hird each week.
Well done Chestnut Class for all your hard work this term, I am very proud of you all. Have a restful half term and I will see you in Term 2.
Chestnut Class have had a super start to the year! The children have become familiar with the class routines, amazed me with their hard work and met the new class mascot, Ottie the Octopus! Chestnut Class have been enjoying many of our subjects - including learning about place value in Maths, creating colourful maps in Art and identifying different types of information technology in Computing. Why not ask us a little bit more about what we have been learning?
I am looking forward to the exciting year ahead and working in partnership with you. As always, if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Keep checking our class page for updates!
Reminders
PE: will be on Monday afternoons, starting from 9th September. Please ensure children come to school wearing their PE kits.
Forest School: will be on Wednesday afternoons, starting from 11th September. Children will need to come to school wearing a long top and full-length trousers.
Homework:
Children are asked to read at least 3 times a week at home - it is important this is recorded in their reading records.
20 minutes of Doodle Maths or Doodle Tables weekly.
Weekly Spellings (to be tested every Friday). These will be put into your child’s reading record every Friday.