The Shire

This week in Reception, we have been learning all about Autumn! We went on an exciting autumn hunt around the school grounds, pretending to be falling leaves dancing in the wind as we moved around the playground. The children had great fun collecting as many colourful leaves as they could, which we then used to make beautiful leaf-rubbing drawings. In Maths, we have been exploring repeated patterns and creating our own, using colours, shapes, and objects. The children have also made an excellent start to our phonics programme — we are so proud of how enthusiastic and eager they are to learn new sounds.  It’s been a wonderful week of learning and creativity.

In Years 1 and 2 we have been talking and learning about the seasons and the weather here in Great Britain and the North and South Poles. We matched pictures of activities and items to the seasons we would find them in.

Jaden said his favourite season was "Spring because he gets to find Easter eggs." Clio said her favourite season was 'Winter because it was cosy, and you get Christmas presents.' William said his favourite season was "Summer, because we go to the beach."

We have been writing a story about a Penguin with no name, based on Teddy's toy emperor penguin chick and also illustrating the story.

We have been making Christmas cards across the school and proofs of these will be sent home soon so that you can order.

Dragons Class

In the Dragons class, we have been looking at Marco Polo's travels across Europe to China and the Gobi Desert. In geography, we have studied desert biomes and the conditions Marco Polo would have had to go through. In English, we have been writing diaries as if we were crew on Magellan's journey around the world.

We have been working hard to get our pen licences, as you can see. We are learning about the different parts of a plant and how they are pollinated.

Mrs Wallace would like to congratulate the class on how well they have been practising their spellings each week. 

A reminder not to forget your packed lunch for the trip to the Botanical Gardens in Bristol on Wednesday this week.

The Wizards Class

This week the Wizards class continued learning about explorers and took an amazing trip to the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford. They learnt about the Inuit people, discerning how they lived in harmony in and with the environment. The Inuit people made clothing and houses out of whale bones and hides. There was an excellent workshop where they explored how Inuits used seal intestines to make waterproof clothes and kayaks. Experienced Inuit people could make an igloo in two hours! In the workshop, the students investigated all kinds of artefacts such as clothing, sledges, and boots. The pupils learnt that reindeer were called Caribou.

The Wizards have continued studying the lives of significant explorers. They have been learning biographical writing skills. They have used their growing knowledge of how explorers contributed to scientific developments to answer the question 'How can exploration change the way we act today?'

This week the Wizards learnt to edit audio tracks using a programme called Soundtrap to produce interviews for an upcoming radio show.