A fabulous day of festive fun and Christmas cheer!

The children enjoyed the morning participating in the games organised by other year groups. From Reindeer Hoopla to Santa Splat, and Bauble Bobbing to Guess the Number of Sweets; the children were full of beans and beaming smiles! Look at the happiness and laughter they continued to share during their Christmas dinner 😍

In our Topic learning we continued to learn about the Great Fire of London, looking more closely at how we know about the Great Fire. The children looked at a range of artefacts, sorting them into reliable or unreliable sources of evidence. The children were most surprised when learning about firefighting during the Great Fire, when no fire service existed! We discussed the history of firefighting and they all realised how lucky we are to have our amazing Fire Service. Then (and this is the most exciting part) we had a lovely virtual visit from Firefighter Mark who works for the Greater Manchester Fire Service. The children were gripped by everything Mark had to share and they asked very well thought of questions, including how did Mark become a firefighter, how heavy is the hose, how do they fight fires during COVID and how many lives has he saved. I was particularly impressed that Sophie knew what to do if a person caught fire... STOP, DROP and ROLL, brilliantly demonstrated below! With the help of Mark, the children wrote superb fact files about firefighting in the 17th century and comparing this to the present day. And, if you’d still like to know, the weight of a hose empty is equivalent to the weight of a child in year 2.

We’ve had another amazing fun-filled week in our learning this week in 2P! In Maths, the children have been learning all about the properties of 2d and 3D shapes, including how to sort them into Carroll and Venn diagrams. In English, the children have been writing their own versions of Katie in London and I am so excited about how much they have come on in their writing! They have worked so hard in writing their stories in the past tense, ensuring they use the ‘ed’ ending where appropriate. They have included rich vocabulary, including; exciting verbs, adventurous adverbs, powerful adjectives and expanded noun phrases...and breathe!! You can read a few of the snippets below. 

Tudor Houses

Today we continued to learn about Tudor houses and how the houses didn't have very many windows and the panes of glass were very small as it was very expensive. In our Design and Technology, we continued to make our Tudor houses and added the windows, a roof and cut out a door. Just a few little finishing touches next week, and you'll be able to see our wonderful display but in the meantime, have a look at all the fun the children are having in their learning!

Children in Need 2020

The children looked even more fabulous today to support Children in Need and we kickstarted the day with supporting Joe Wickes’ 24 hour PE Challenge. We were all puffed out after 20 minutes so hats off to you Joe!! I was very proud of all my little Pudsies and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your generous donations.

More on The Great Fire of London

In our topic learning, we have continued to learn about the Great Fire. We have learned about how and where the fire started, as well as why the fire spread so quickly. We have learned about Tudor houses, the materials they were made from and how this contributed to the fire. The children have been enthused with their learning and below are a couple of video clips we have used in class that have helped their understanding.

Let's get physical!

In PE, the children worked on the skill of moving in different ways, crossing a mini-obstacle course. They snake-weaved through cones, hopped over them, frog-jumped over markers and had the added challenge of turning each one over whilst doing so. They continued to build positive relationships, working as a team, and played in these competitive games very well. They cheered on their team members and enjoyed the fun whilst keeping fit.

Staying Active

This week in PE, the children have been practising their throwing and catching skills and targeting and hitting the ball. They’ve shown great perseverance in this and have furthered their ability to work as a team.

The Great Fire of London

Welcome back!! We have had the most wonderful start to our history topic this term and the children are totally hooked!! We have learned about London in the past and they have been particularly drawn to a cleverly made 3D video of 17th century London before The Great Fire which you can find below. We have also looked at how the Great Fire in 1666 led to London being rebuilt. The children have looked closely at London in the present day and have been totally absorbed in our class book, Katie in London. They have been very keen to find out where the lion from Trafalgar Square will take Katie and Jack during their adventures around the famous landmarks and have written some excellent descriptive pieces about them.

We've all enjoyed a wonderful first term. I have been blown away by how well the children have adjusted to returning to school and I am extremely proud of each and every one of them!! Enjoy a well-deserved peaceful and restful break. Much love 🥰

The Arctic

We had to wrap up very warm to make our way up to the North Pole - The Arctic. We have been learning about the polar bear and how they adapt to their surroundings. Did you know that the polar bear's fur is mostly clear and their skin is actually black? When the sun’s rays reflects off the Polar bear’s transparent hair, some of this light energy gets trapped and bounces around to give off a whitish light.

🦒 The African Savannah 🦁

This week we've packed our suitcase and hopped on a plane to Africa! We have learnt about where the Savannah is but looked more closely at the African Savannah, including the climate and the animals that live there. We have started to explore the work of artist Edward Tingatinga, an African artist who used recycled, low-cost materials for his animal and Savannah inspired pieces. You may recognise the name from Tinga Tinga Tales, a BBC animated children's series which tells African folktales inspired by the uniqueness of Tinga Tinga Art. 

You can learn more about the artist here: https://www.tingatingaart.com/pages/about-tingatinga-african-art 

There's something rather strange going on...

Look what we found when we walked into the classroom!!😱 The children couldn't believe that a beanstalk had grown in our classroom but this is no ordinary beanstalk. There are baked bean tins growing from it - it's all a bit strange!

The children are excited to be introduced to the story of Jack & the Baked Beanstalk, a twist to the traditional tale, Jack and The Beanstalk.

They've really impressed me with their reading skills and have made some really good predictions of what the story might be about. 

"I think this story is about a boy called

Jackand he drops the beans and it grows into a

baked beanstalk. I think the giant is mean and

he triesto steal the burger van."

                         Ivy

"I think there will still be a giant 

in it but he will be mean but kind of nice"

                          Diljit

"I think Jack gets some magic baked beans. 

I predict the giant has a milkshake cow" 

                           Henry

They've also stepped into the shoes of different characters and made some thoughtful (and humourous!) inferences as to what characters are thinking in a scene.

"These plates are a bit wobbly!"

                             Amber

"This smells yummy. I hope I don't

drop the plates.

                           Henley

"This burger is better than my wife's

burger but she's still a good cook."

                          Amelia. A

Noun, Adjective or Verb?

In English, we're also learning about different word types - the name of a person, a place or a thing; describing word or action/doing word. Can you remember what a noun, adjective or verb is? Here's a song the children love to help you...

Growing Our Minds and Our Bodies

In line with our topic for this term, we have had some wonderful discussions on how we can keep our minds and our bodies healthy through eating the right foods, exercise and mindfulness techniques. The children enjoy the brain breaks we have during the day and we use GoNoodle for some great ways to relax and breathe! If you would like to have a look at these videos, you can access them via this link https://www.gonoodle.com In the meantime, please enjoy the photographs of the children learning to use the skills of collage techniques to make some thoughtful self-portraits.

My Marvellous Mathematicians

This week, the children have been looking at how to represent a two-digit number in different ways. We have been learning how to use concrete and pictorial methods, in an organised and systematic manner, to consolidate our mathematical understanding.

Wonderful Writers

Last week, the children were learning all about the features of Instructional Writing through the use of Talk4Writing. The children were fully engaged in learning the actions for 'How to Look After A Pet Dragon', ready to plan and write their own versions of 'How to look after a Unique Pet' this week - and they did not disappoint!! The children have planned how to care for a pet unicorn, t-rex or dragon using story maps and then articulated these into written instructions in line with the features of instructional writing using sub-headings, bullet points and commands - WOW!!

What colour are you feeling today?

This week the children have enjoyed listening to the story of 'The Colour Monster' and using this to look at a range of emotions, discussing what they mean and the kind of things that make us feel in those ways. See if your child can spot their colour monster below...

Reunited 🥰

What a wonderful first week back!

The classroom has come to life with all the wonderful little people, who make it so special, back where they belong.

We have thoroughly enjoyed meeting the children and have been so excited to see their smiles, hearing their laughter and watching them share so much love and kindness as they catch up with old friends. 

We are thrilled to have them return, back amongst their friends and where they love to learn. We simply cannot wait to be a huge part of their learning journey and watch them grow.