Full, half-full and empty!
Over the past two weeks our maths focus has been exploring capacity.
We’ve spoken about understanding what full and empty means, exploring capacity using different materials such as water, sand and rice and comparing capacities directly by pouring from one container to another to find which holds more or less.
Charlie- ‘ It doesn’t all fit in this one (water), the jug is too small’
Wyatt- ‘ It’s gone over the top, it’s too full now’
T- ‘ This is a really small one (jug), it won’t be big enough for all the water’
Next week we will be getting out our eye patches and going on a treasure hunt, the pirates are arriving in their underpants!
We would just like to say a BIG thank you to all our lovely parents and carers for attending our sports day this week. It was a brilliant morning and I think we can all agree that the children had a wonderful time!
Have a happy and healthy weekend!
Miss Ward, Miss Harvey and Miss Feldman
Design and Technology
We had a fantastic opportunity this morning to listen to and speak to Joel Wilson. Joel is a footwear designer for DR Martens, he has previously worked at brands like Lacoste and Ellesse.
Speaking to Joel fits in perfectly with our current Design and Technology work. We are currently in the process of creating a pouch. We follow a design brief and specific design criteria to produce an end product. We found that Joel follows a similar process in his area of work.
He told us all about his childhood and how he loved to draw and then about his journey into designing clothes. Can you believe that he didn’t even know that being a designer was a job?
We learnt about the process of creating a pair of Dr Martens – it takes about 18 months from the first design stage to a completed pair of shoes!
The children were extremely engaged and had lots of questions. We have been inspired by what Joel had to say.
It’s inspired me to design clothes.
Shae
I have always wanted to design clothes but now I’m thinking about shoes because when he answered his questions I gave me ideas about what I would like to do.
Emily M
It’s inspired me becasue now I am keen to draw and design clothes and footwear.
Emily G
I never knew that people drew the shoes that we wear!
Beau
Help at home – Ask your child about what they remember from Joel. What design criteria do we need to incorporate into our pouches? What is the purpose of your pouch? Who is it for?
Pie Corbett (Wings) inspired writing
In our reading sessions, years 5 and 6 have been practising our reading fluency, using the poem ‘wings’ by Pie Corbett. In this poem (below), Pie Corbett uses his senses to influence his ideas on what he would do if he were to have wings.
The children were really inspired by his work, so we decided to create our own versions of the poem. We still focussed on our senses to guide our writing. Have a look at some of our fantastic pieces below!
Sharing a Shell
This week our focus book has been Sharing a Shell.
We have enjoyed reading about the three friends in the rockpool. We looked at some non-fiction books to find more information about rockpools. We also compared seaside holidays in the past to the present.
Our word of the week this week was thoughtful the children have really enjoyed using this during their learning.
“We need to be thoughtful when we use the pens and remember to put the lids back on them.”
“My mummy is thoughtful to me all the time.”
Poetry Picnic
This week our poem was The Big Ship Sails
The big ship sails on the ally-ally-o,
The ally-ally-o, the ally-ally-o.
Oh, the big ship sails on the ally-ally-o,
On the last day of September.
The captain said it will never, never do,
Never, never do, never, never do.
The captain said it will never, never do,
On the last day of September.
The big ship sank to the bottom of the sea,
The bottom of the sea, the bottom of the sea.
The big ship sank to the bottom of the sea,
On the last day of September.
We all dip our heads in the deep, blue sea,
The deep, blue sea, the deep, blue sea.
We all dip our heads in the deep, blue sea,
On the last day of September.
The classroom Challenges this week have been
- to paint a shell to add to our class rockpool.
- to write a message to the friends from our story.
- to make a rockpool.
- to count the pattern on the paper, how many did you count? Can you record the number?
- to explore the rockpool we have made in class, what do you notice?
Getting ready for year one
As the weather becomes brighter and we near the end of the academic year you may be thinking about your child’s next steps as they journey into Year 1. Moving to Year 1 is perhaps a less significant change for children, and that’s because we’re a happy and healthy place to learn where we all know each other.
A zoom meeting for parent’s starts our transition process, here you will meet the Key Stage 1 staff and find out about the Year 1 curriculum.
The zoom meeting is on Monday 1st July at 6pm please follow the link that will be emailed to you.
The next step is for your child to spend some time in the Year 1 classrooms. They’ll meet the teachers and join in with the learning, they’ll get a taste of what it’s like to be in Year 1. The whole-school transition, later in July, completes the process, by spending a morning with their new class teacher.
This is a really exciting time of year, moving on and taking those next steps whilst continuing to strengthen the effective learning behaviours they have established in Reception.
This week we have been to visit the year 1 classroom, the children enjoyed sitting on the carpet and having a look around the classroom. We will pop in again next week to have another look.
Next week our Focus book is Clean Up
Reminders and Notices
Nursery and Reception Sports Day– Wednesday 26th June from 9am (children will be out on the field by 9:30am) we should be finished for 10:30am.
Forest School– Is on Thursday please send your child to school in their PE kit with their forest school water proofs and wellies in a labelled plastic bag.
Please can you send your child to school with a sun hat and sun cream already applied it looks like it is going to be a warm week.
Waste Innovation– Please don’t forget to send in any donations for us to be creative.
Have a happy and healthy weekend and please don’t forget to email any pictures from home to stjames@spherefederation.org thank you as always for your support.
Mrs. Kendrew, Mrs. Rippon and Miss. Feldman.
What’s the commotion?
For the next two weeks the children will be reading ‘ Commotion in the Ocean’ by Giles Andreae
In Nursery we have been talking about different parts of our books. We know that the author is someone who writes the words in our stories and the illustrator is someone who draws the pictures. Next week, we are going to talk about what a blurb is!
After all our hard work in looking after our vegetables, our pototoes we’re finally ready! We dug down deep into the soil to pull them out. We washed them and popped them into the fridge ready to make some potato salad next week for us to try. I think they will be yummy!
Help at home: What vegetables have you grown before? What did they taste like? Which was your favourite?
If you have any photos of your vegetables growing please send them in so we can have a look at them during ‘snack and chat’.
stjamesnursery@spherefederation.org
Notice:
WC. 24/06 the children have been asked to wear their PE kit all week. This is so we can practice our sports day races ready for you all on Wednesday!
Nursery and Reception Sports Day- Wednesday 26 June from 9am (children will be out on the field by 9:30)
If your child doesn’t usually attend a Wednesday, we are more than happy for you to come along and join in, just drop off at Nursery as normal.
Please can your child be wearing suncream before coming to Nursery and be provided with a hat, it’s set to be a hot one this week!
Have a lovely weekend!
Miss Ward, Miss Harvey and Miss Feldman
Living and Learning: I know the importance of permission (consent).
This week, the children have learnt the PANTS Rule.
As a class, we discussed the difference between appropriate/‘good’ touch, and inappropriate/‘bad’ touch.
Our conversation led to positive and negative feelings linked to good/bad touch.
A good touch can be a hug or a kiss from a family member and this can make you feel happy.
Why might people touch you?
To show affection/love.
To keep you safe when crossing a road.
If you are poorly and the doctor needs to check your body.
Next, we looked at the PANTS rule.
This is written as an acrostic poem to explain the main messages.
All of the children could name and label different parts of the body and curriculum guidance states that pupils aged 5-7 should know the terms
penis and vagina. We introduced this vocabulary in discreet terms when explaining that the pants region shouldn’t be touched.
We read each sentence and discussed what each letter of PANTS stands for.
After this, the class designed their own pants
Help at home by watching this video, featuring a friendly mascot – Pantosauraus) with your child. His catchy song covers the main points of PANTS and is a good way to introduce the topic.
What can your child remember about the PANTS Rule?
Summer, Science and Forest School
On Friday, Year 1 attended their final forest school session for the year. The children celebrated by toasting marshmallows on an open fire and making smores – a toasted marshmallow sandwiched between two chocolate biscuits. Yum!
The children have also been learning about the seasons in science. They have been exploring our woodland and thinking about how it has changed over winter, through to summer. They have explained why the plants have grown tall and why this is different to winter.
Armley Mills
As part of our Design and Technology topic we have visited Armley Mills Industrial Museum in Leeds and learnt about the process of weaving. We followed the process of wool being brushed (carded) and then spun. We then worked as a class to weave and then produced some of our own. The children had a lovely time and behaved impeccably – they were a credit to the school.
Here are some pictures from the day:
Help at home – Ask your child about the day. What was the best thing they learnt? Can they remember what ‘warp’ and ‘weft’ means? Can they produce some weaving at home?
Biology – reproduction of plants
Years 5 and 6 are engaging really well in our biology unit (reproduction). This unit links really well to our RSE lessons – the children have made accurate and appropriate links during both of these sessions.
This week, we have been looking at the different ways that plants can reproduce:
Sexual reproduction:
This method requires two plants. We have learnt about the male and female parts of plants and how they interact to create a seed or fruit (offspring). The stamen (male) produces pollen, which is transferred, by insects or wind, to the stigma of another plant (female). Here, the pollen fertilises and egg within the ovary and offspring is produced.
Asexual reproduction
Asexual reproduction is where a plant can reproduce on its own – it doesn’t need another plant to be fertilised. There are various types of plants that are able to reproduce this way (below). The children found this extremely interesting – we even discussed being able to make clones of ourselves!
The children then went out into our gardening area to find some examples of plants that could reproduce in both ways.
Help at home:
Go outside with your child and explore some of the plants in your garden/in your local area. Which method of reproduction would match each plant? Why? Typically, flowering plants reproduce sexually, but not always!
Oracy and Prosody
Our oracy target for this half term is Liveliness and Flair.
The children are being encouraged to speak with enthusiasm and imagination where appropriate.
Every morning, the children are greeted at the door and wished ‘Good Morning’ in a cheery and enthusiastic manner. 
This is modeled by the adults and is a great opportunity for the class to return the gesture in a similar way. To add to this, some of Year 1 showcased this skill when auditioning for the talent show last week. Well done!
Prosody
Prosody helps children build an accurate picture of what’s being conveyed on a page. It shows children how books can speak through readers and how words in a text can come to life.
Over the year, the children have become very accustomed to reading with prosody. It is a skill that is continually being rehearsed in class especially when we read our daily poem.
Once children have listened to Mrs Freeman’s example, they then practice reading parts of the poem aloud as a group and to each other.
Here is a recording of this week’s poem.
Why not share it with you child and challenge each other to read with prosody. The children are experts!