Pine Class - Final Forest School

Pine class had their final forest school session this afternoon. We’ve had some glorious afternoons in the sun the last few weeks but today the weather changed a bit!

We still made the most of session enjoying a chocolate fondue with marshmallows and fruit. The children crushed ice to add to their drinks and we made conker comets to play with. We thought about the impact of the weather on our environment through a story and finished up with a game. It was a packed afternoon.

Pine class have now finished their forest school sessions until after February half term. The next class to experience forest school after half term will be Mulberry class, who will need waterproofs, wellies and a coat for their sessions. 

Apricot Forest School!

  On the Second lesson of Forest school we were thinking all about sticks. Everyone found their own stick and we shared the poem ‘This isn’t a stick, it’s a ….’, making our sticks into telescopes and spoons. We enjoyed decorating our sticks with wool, reading stick stories and using our sticks in various ways such as a spade for digging and as a walking stick. We finished off with our thumbs up, middle and down reflection about different parts of our session. This allows each child to reflect on how they had felt at different parts of the session.

On the third lesson of Forest school we had a great time  thinking about our senses. We used our ears to listen to birdsong. We used our eyes to use the binoculars and magnify glasses. We made bird feeders for the birds to taste from cereal and dried cranberries.

We also used our sense of touch to describe items in feely bags and then identify them. We talked about how we can also use the sense of touch through our feet and the children had a try at the barefoot trail. The children  had the opportunity to walk on sand, grass,

On the fourth lesson of Forest school we were hunting for colours in nature. We looked at the blue sky and white clouds. We noticed the green leaves and also some orange, yellow and red ones as they start to turn for autumn. The ground was brown and grey and the sticks and tree trunks were also brown. Then we made a collective nature colour wheel.

The child re created a nature art gallery which included charcoal drawings and sticky collage. Some children also built some sculptures. We finished up by looking at our art gallery and seeing which pieces of art appealed to us most and discuss why. Great creativity on display from everyone today.

On the last lesson of Forest school Apricot class were excited to have their first fire at forest school today. We talked about the three things we need to start a fire - fuel, heat and oxygen. Then we practised the respect position before we toasted marshmallows and made them into s’mores.

Some of the children made woodland warrior wristbands while others used their time for choosing. We finished off with a game of ‘you’re only safe if …’ it was a lovely final session.

Year 2: What We have Been Learning

Year 2: What We have Been Learning

In Geography, the children have been learning about important places in London. They began by looking at London landmarks before explaining to their partner why this London landmark matters. The children then grouped the landmarks under the headings natural and human made landmarks.

This week in Art, continuing from last week, the children used their favourite materials to create more developed drawings inspired by the natural objects they collected earlier in the term.

They combined media wax resist with watercolour, graphite with water,and pencil with crayon to explore how line, tone, shape and colour interact. The children explored and used art materials, to be inventive with how to use them, taking creative risks and enjoying accidents as well as planned successes.

Children began thinking more deeply about composition, arranging elements on the page in ways that felt balanced, interesting or bold. Their confidence with materials is growing beautifully, and their sketchbooks now show a rich variety of marks and textures.

Every Friday, we step away from the traditional timetable for our DIY Curriculum, which is a dedicated time for hands-on, real-world learning that builds practical life skills.

This week, our young learners were learning how to navigate roads and cross safely. To make the learning stick, our Year 2 pupils took to the practice track to master the fundamental Stop, Look, and Listen routine.

Our DIY Curriculum is all about giving children the knowledge and confidence they need outside the classroom. Seeing Year 2 tackle such an essential life skill with enthusiasm was a fantastic way to end the week!

Year 1: What We Are Learning!

Year 1: What We Are Learning 

This week in Geography, we went on an exciting walk around the school premises to observe the world right outside our classroom doors.

We focused on two main areas: 

• Describing Our Surroundings: The children used descriptive adjectives to detail what they could see, hear, and feel around our school ground.

• Human vs. Physical Features: We explored the difference between natural elements and man-made structures. Each child identified and drew one physical feature (such as trees or grass) and one human feature (such as a house, fence or car). 

You can help reinforce these key geography skills during your everyday routines at home. 

• Spot the Feature: During your walk or drive home, ask your child to identify one human feature (e.g. a bus stop, zebra crossing, building) and one physical feature (e.g. a park, hill, stream) they spot along the way.

• Adjective Challenge: Challenge your child to use three ambitious adjectives to describe a local park or your garden (e.g., towering trees, bumpy pavement, breezy air)

This week in PE, the children continued developing their yoga skills. They practised a variety of yoga poses and movements, focusing on balance, flexibility, coordination and body control. The children also worked on listening carefully, controlling their breathing and moving calmly and safely using hula  hoops. It was lovely to see everyone joining in, trying their best and developing their confidence as they explored yoga!

This week in Science, our Year 1 investigated the physical properties of everyday materials to find out which ones are waterproof and which are absorbent. Before testing, the children used their prior knowledge to make a prediction (a sensible guess). They looked at different materials—such as plastic, foil, fabric, paper and tissue —and predicted whether water would pass through them or slide off. 

Using pipettes and water droplets, the children carefully tested each material. They observed whether:

• The water stayed on top in droplets or rolled off (waterproof).

• The water soaked into the material or made it wet (absorbent or not waterproof).

The children practiced recording their results in a simple scientific table using ticks, crosses, and key vocabulary to show whether their predictions were correct.

How You Can Support at Home

To help reinforce this learning, you can try these quick 2-minute chat prompts at home:

1. Rainy Day Detective: On the walk home or during rainy weather, ask your child: "Why are your wellies made of rubber instead of fabric?" or "What material is your raincoat made from?"

2. Kitchen Science: When wiping up a spill, ask: "Which material should we use to clean this up—a plastic spoon or a paper towel? Which one is absorbent?"

Well done Year 1 for an amazing week - keep up all your brilliant work! 

Forest School

Pine class spent the afternoon exploring woodland music. 

We began by working out how different instruments make sounds. There was instruments you tap, some you shake and some you scrape. We made a percussion orchestra and learnt how a conductor instructs the orchestra to play or stop. The chiller to en created their own woodland sounds from sticks, rocks, leaves and acorn cups. We moved on to make mini woodland orchestra and took turns to be the conductor or part of that orchestra.

Towards the end of our time together we learnt about reading music and how musicians read the notation. The children wrote their own woodland notation and then practised their pieces of music finishing off with performing them to the group. It was brilliant to see the creativity of the class.

Year 3 - Learning Journey

It has been another busy and exciting week of learning in Year 3! Here is a little look at what we have been learning across the curriculum.

Maths

In Maths, we have been learning about inequality symbols, including greater than (>), less than (<) and equal to (=). We used our understanding of place value to compare 3-digit numbers, carefully looking at the hundreds, tens and ones. We also practised ordering numbers from ascending (smallest to largest) and descending (largest to smallest).

Literacy

In Literacy, we have been exploring the features of a leaflet and learning how writers use persuasive language to engage and influence their readers. We have been identifying different features and discussing what makes a leaflet effective. We will soon be using what we have learned to create our own persuasive leaflets.

French

In French, we have been learning how to greet others and introduce ourselves. We practised our new vocabulary and then put it together to create short conversations with our classmates. It has been lovely to see the children becoming more confident when speaking French.

Please bring in an old, spare, long-sleeved shirt for our next Art lesson on Thursday 8th October.

Year 2: What We Have Been Learning

 

Year 2: What We have Been Learning

In Science this week, we have been learning about materials and their properties. We revisited some common materials and explored how their properties make them suitable or unsuitable for different uses. The children learned the words rigid and flexible and used their observations to explain their ideas. For example, we discussed why a rigid material would be suitable for making a chair, while a flexible material may not be. We also investigated different materials and thought carefully about their uses. The children then sorted materials into those that would be suitable or unsuitable for making a chair...but this was no ordinary chair, the children were challenged to make a grand throne for the Egg Box Dragon.

We are developing our scientific enquiry skills by making observations, suggesting answers and explaining our thinking using evidence.

This week in Maths, we have been learning how to use number lines. The children have been using number lines to count forwards and backwards, find missing numbers and solve addition and subtraction problems.

We have been practising how to start at the correct number and make efficient jumps along the number line. The children have also been learning to use their understanding of tens and ones to make larger jumps, helping them to solve calculations more confidently.

We are developing our mathematical thinking by explaining how we know an answer is correct and choosing an efficient method to solve a problem. 

This week in Art, we have been learning to look at our familiar environment with fresh eyes and curiosity. We explored our school grounds and collected natural and everyday objects that caught our attention.

We experimented with arranging, grouping and composing our collections to create interesting shapes and patterns. We thought carefully about colour, size, texture and materials and discussed why we chose particular objects and how we arranged them.