Stanway Fiveways Primary School

In our final week of year 4, the children have been continuing to work hard in all subjects. In maths they have been recapping division, multiplication, dividing by 10 and 100 and rounding. In English they have been independently writing their own action/ portal story using the grammar tools that they have been learning about in the last three weeks. In PE, they have had the chance to use the gymnastics equipment, developing their strength and agility on equipment such as the wall bars, ropes and wooden planks. In science, the children have completed an experiment to find out which shape beak is the most effective at picking up grains of rice. They worked with a partner and used 5 different shape tweezers, timing themselves for 1 minute to pick up as many grains of rice as possible. In thier science books, they wrote up their investigation and created a bar chart from the results.  

This week, Chestnut class have been busy making their Egyptian inspired flatbreads and enjoyed tasting them too! On Wednesday Chestnut and Damson class worked on their gymnastics skills using the wall bars, wooden bench, mats, tables and ropes to test their agility and strength. They loved having the opportunity to use the gymanstics equipment. In maths, all classes have been learning how to read and plot coordinates this week, playing cooridinate games on the Ipads and playing games of battleships with their partner. In English, they have been writing their own innovated action/ portal story using the tools of showing not telling how the character is feeling, personification and verb openers ending in -ing.

On Friday this week, Damson class learnt cricket related skills in their PE lesson with EPC and Acacia class learnt basketball related skills. The children have been learning to read and create different types of graphs and charts in maths this week (pictograms, bar charts, bar line graphs and line graphs. In English, they have been learnting to create atmosphere through personification, inject action into the story using -ing openers and show not tell how a character is feeling. On Wednesday, the children had a successful transition day meeting their new teacher and children who will be in their class.

Last week, Acacia class made their own Ancient Egyptian flatbreads, as part of their topic on this subject for this half-term. They worked as part of a group to make the dough, rolled it out then cooked it in a frying pan with the help of an adult. They then added their own toppings that traditionally would have been eaten during Ancient Egyptian times. These included dates, apricots, raisins, coconut flakes, corriander, cumin and cinnamon. This week Damson class enjoyed making their flatbreads and next week Chestnut class will have the opportunity to practise their cooking skills doing this. On Friday, the children enjoyed a basketball lesson led by EPC.

The children have had an active first four days back after the half-term holiday. They had swimming on Wednesday, the PTA sponsored walk on Thursday and a cricket lesson from EPC on Friday. During English lessons, the children have been writing their own instructions about how to defeat a Minotaur or a Sphinx, using all of the grammar tools that they have been taught prior to the holiday. In maths, they have been learning to solve time-related problems using timetables and blank number lines to find the difference between 2 times.

We have been fully embracing our creative side in Art Week this week. The children have collected natural objects from the school grounds to create their own mandala patterns and illustrated the story that they have been writing this week in English lessons. They also painted pebbles that were laid on the path between the coop and the school, to earn an Agents of Change badge, for other children and people to pick up and enjoy. As a school we were lucky enough to have a Zoom call with the illustrator Emma Block who has had many books and illustrations published. She showed us some of her work, talked about how she creates her illustrations and answered our questions. We then created some art work using pencil and watercolours in the style of her work.

Over the last few weeks, year 4 have been developing their drawing skills. They have learnt to use shade, line, shape and tone to create different patterns and textures. This week they have learnt to copy a picture from a grid, carefully observing the lines and patterns in each square. Towards the end of this half-term they will be creating a portrait of King Charles, applying all the drawing techniques that they have learnt over the last few weeks. 

This week in maths, the children have begun their new topic on money and learnt to convert between pence and pounds. In English, they have been planning their own suspense story based on the original one which they have learnt. They then wrote up their story using the grammar tools of rhetorical questions, dramatic adverbials to inject pace in the story as well as showing how a character is feeling through their actions and reactions, rather than stating exactly how they are feeling. 

The children have had a busy week being active - swimming at First strokes on Wednesday and athletics in outdoor PE lessons. They practised throwing shotput, javelins, tennis balls into hoops and discus. On Friday afternoon we paired up with Hazel class to complete our mini-marathon inspired by the London Marathon last Sunday. The children were very supportive and encouraging of the younger children and loved taking part in running laps of the field!

Year 4 have had a very busy week to begin the summer term - a science day on Monday, their first swimming lesson at Firststrokes on Wednesday and an Egyptian Day on Friday. During the science day, the children completed an experiment to find out whether the mass of an ice cube would be the same when it was ice and when it had melted. The children made prediction, discussed the ideas of a fair test, created a bar chart from the results and used digital scales to measure the mass in grams. On Wednesday, the children loved their first swimming lesson as First strokes. This was an assessment lesson to put the children into groups and they are already looking forward to their next lesson on Wednesday. On Friday we had a history day with a visitor or led the events. The children learnt about the pharoahs of Ancient Egypt, mummification, an Egyptian board game and read information to find out about life in Egypt and its history. They also loved the opportunity to dress up! It was a very interactive day enjoyed by all!

Another busy week this week with more exciting things going on. Year 4 continued their discoveries in Science, when testing how much bicarbonate of soda mixed with vinegar creates the most gas to blow up a balloon. The children have been thoroughly enjoying the practicality of the Science, which allows them to ask thought-provoking questions. The school spend Wednesday supporting the Young Carers' Action Day by wearing their funky socks. We also spent time discussing how lives of Young Carers can be different to that of a normal child and the skills and qualities that they possess. Forest school this week has been very muddy (as I am sure some of you are aware)! Mudslides, bug hunts, pond-dipping and much more has kept the children engaged with our lovely Forest School area. Friday was also spent raising money for Comic Relief  by dressing down for the day for a donation. 

This week was a busy week with lots of exciting things going on. Year 4 explored different materials in Science and were deciding whether they were solids, liquids or gases. The children has a fabulous time making making those decisions - as you'll see from the photos! We also celebrated World Book Day on Thursday. There was a wonderful array of different costumes from children and adults! We also continued on our Forest school journey this week despite the weather being a bit damp! 

This half term in Year 4 has been kicked off with our first week of Forest School. The children thoroughly enjoyed building dens, digging holes, bug hunting, building hammocks and swings and much more. The weather held out for most groups too, which was a great start! Also this week, some classes have finished off their mosaic designs, by using foam tiles to lay out their designs. Year 4 have also continued thier ukulele lessons with our music teacher. It has been a busy four day week for the children, but they seemed to have settled back into the routine again. Well done everyone!  

Since returning back from our Christmas break, the children have been introduced to some new skills and lessons. The children are lucky to have both the wonderful Squash coaches and EPC for their indoor and outdoor PE. In Squash, the children were challenged with their balance and ball control, whilst in Tag Rugby they were playing invasion games linked to passing and scoring tries. Also, the children began their ukulele lessons and were exploring two chords (C and A minor). All three classes over the next few weeks will be building their Roman catapults. This week Damson, began and they measured, sawed and glued their Roman catapult together. Overall, the chidlren have returned back to school positively!