Spring 1 - Week 5 

This week in Penguin class, we have continued to learn about multiplication. We have been using arrays to write multiplication sentences and used a range of methods to answer multiplication questions. We have learnt that the first number in a multiplication sentence is the number of groups, 'x' means groups of/lots of and the second number in a multiplication sentence is how many are in each group. We have started to learn about division too, we have practised answering division by grouping and sharing. 

Grouping happens when we know the number being divided and the size of each group but we don’t know how many groups. Sharing happens where we know the number being divided and the number of groups but we don’t know the size of each group.

In History, we learnt about what William the Conqueror did after he became King of England. We learnt that he changed the way we built castles and he built lots of them around the country, he changed the English language and even introduced the game of conkers! In Geography, we also looked at some of the physical features Australia has to offer such as Uluru and Bondi beach as well as human features such as Sydney Opera House and Melbourne Cricket Ground. We finished off the week by looking at our maps in art. We chose interesting sections of them to print! We will be finishing them off next week once they have dried!

Have a great weekend!

Spring 1 - Week 4 

This week in Penguin Class, the children have finished writing their fantastic poems in English titled “if I were in charge”. They worked really hard on these and they are filled with noun phrases, adjectives, inverted commas, repetition and contractions! We have moved on to our new unit which focusses on the story Stardust by Jeanne Willis. So far we have learnt about using apostrophes for possession. 

I’m Maths we have been learning about multiplication. We have started by recognising equal groups, making equal groups and adding equal groups. In History we have finished learning about the Battle of Hastings in 1066. We found out that William the Norman defeated Harold Godwinson and became the new King of England. He was then known as William the Conqueror! 

On Thursday we celebrated Australia Day! The children have learnt about Australia’s location in the world and how it is divided up into states and territories. We also looked at the weather in Australia. At first the children though it was always hot and sunny but they have learnt that Darwin, in the Northern Territory, has a very tropical climate with wet and dry seasons. In contrast, Hobart which is located in the state of Tasmania, has a summer season which is warm and dry and winter season which is windy and even a little bit snowy! The children then used their best Australian accents and became Australian weather reporters and reported on the weather across Australia at different times of the year. 

Have a lovely weekend :-)

Spring 1 - Week 3 

This week, Penguin Class went on a local walk around Sunbury. We were looking out for the human and physical geographical features within our local area. We visited The Meadow, Walled Garden and walked along The Avenue. The children had a fantastic discussion about whether the Walled Garden was a human or physical feature. After our walk, we created a fact-file guide to Sunbury. 

The children learnt about the celebration of Chinese New Year. We found out why and how families celebrate the new year. We created our own red envelopes with messages inside about what we had learnt about the celebration. In RE, we have been learning about Islam and the Prophet Muhammad. We listened to the story of The Prophet and the Ant, and The Crying Camel. The children discussed what Muslims learn from the story and the message. We have come to the end of our learning on money. The children learnt to find the total of two items, using their addition skills and learnt to find change, by using subtraction. 

In History, the children have started to learn about the Battle of Hastings. We learnt that after the Battle of Stamford Bridge, Harold Godwinson marched all the way back to London and heard on the way that William the Norman had sailed to England with his army. Harold Godwinson and his army then marched to Hastings where they met William and his army on Senlac Hill. We will be finding out what happened next, next week!

Have a lovely weekend :)  

Spring 1 - Week 2 

This week in Penguin Class, we have continued to learn about money in Maths. We have enjoyed using coins to help us find different ways to make the same amount. We also used the coins to see what £1 is made up of, we used each of the pence coins to make 100p. 

In English, we have started to write our own 'If I were in charge of the world' poems, the children have come up with some fantastic ideas including: robot teachers, chocolate tables and having horse riding lessons all day everyday!

In Art, we looked at a range of maps to use as a stimulus for drawing. The children sorted different maps into old and new, useful and art, real and imaginary. The children used a range of mediums to create their own maps of their journey to school. The children were able to decide whether they wanted their maps to be real or imaginary, or a mix of both. They produced some fantastic pieces!

In Music, we have started playing the recorder! The children loved this and we can all play a B note, we will be moving on to looking at pitch and tempo next week.

Have a lovely weekend! 

Spring 1- Week 1

What an amazing week we have had back at school! The children have settled back into school quickly, remembering old routines and picking up some new changes too! 

This week we started learning about our new topic 'Where in the world would I take Beegu?'. We were shown some very exciting photographs of a spaceship that crash landed in out nature garden over the holidays. So far the children have learnt about Edward the Confessor who's death started The Battel of Hastings in 1066 as he had no direct heir to the throne! The children also learnt about some of the contenders to the throne such as Harold Godwinson, William the Duke of Normandy and Harald Hardrada and they decided who they thought should have become the King of England in 1066.

On Wednesday we also had a very special visitor who taught us all about fire safety. Alan the firefighter taught us to 'get out, stay out and call 999' if we ever find ourselves in a building that is on fire. 

In Guided reading the children have been looking at the book Beegu. It is a story of a small, yellow creature who lands on planet earth but some of the adults are not very welcoming towards her. The children have shown some fantastic VIPERS skills such as predicting and sequencing. The We have also started our new English unit which is called 'If I were in charge'. We will be working towards writing out own poems so have began looking at the features of a poem. 

We look forward to welcoming you back next week! Have a lovely weekend!