Happy New Year! We hope you had a lovely Christmas break. Please find the details of our intended learning experience for the first half of the spring term. Our new Learning Experience is entitled ‘Code Breakers’.

Learning Experience Rationale

The children will be using their knowledge of Maths to crack codes set to them as part of our Hook Day. They will then create their own codes to be broken, code their own computer game using a program called Scratch and produce two pieces of high-quality writing.

School value focus: Responsibility, Respect and Creativity.

Learning Experience Outcome

We would like to invite you into school to see the children’s work and have a go at cracking the codes they have created. This will take place in your child’s classroom on Wednesday 13^th February at 2:45pm. Pick up will be unaffected by this and the children will be released at 3:15pm from the main gate.

Maths: During this half term, the children will develop their knowledge and understanding of multiplication and division. They will be using resources and pictures to help their conceptual understanding. We are continuing to develop a mastery approach to our teaching, where the children are required to justify the reasoning for their answers. We will be continuing to develop the children’s ability to write about their understanding of what they notice, we call this journalling. We ask that all children practice their times tables at home as often as possible.

Home Learning: All children will have weekly spellings to learn at home. Children will also need to use the online programs My Maths, Times Tables Rockstars and Read Theory to support their learning in school. Please see your child’s teacher if you require the log ins.

• Children are asked to create a poster or leaflet about the history of the internet and computers. Some things to research could include: How long have we been using computers? Who invented the internet? Why do we need computers?
• Children can also research internet safety and create an information poster detailing how to keep safe online.

Please could we have these back before the week commencing Monday 11^th February.

Literacy

Throughout the six-week learning experience, the children will be expected to write an instructional text to explain how to use their game. There will be an emphasis on the skills of editing and proof-reading their work. Alongside this, the children will be writing a short adventure narrative.

Reading at home – Please encourage children to read at home as much as possible. The children will return home with new library books once they have taken a quiz about the book they have read.  Over time, this will help improve their reading age and fluency.

Science

This term will see the children learning about ‘light’. The learning will focus on:

• Recognising that they need light in order to see things and that dark is the absence of light
• Noticing that light is reflected from surfaces
• Recognising that light from the sun can be dangerous and that there are ways to protect their eyes.

Computing / Spanish / PE / RE

Our focus for computing will be based around coding using an online program called ‘Scratch’. Gymnastics will be the PE activity for this half term. Spanish lessons will be based on family, and RE will be based on the following bible stories: Jonah and the Whale, David and Goliath, and Noah’s Ark.

We have a child with a peanut allergy in school. We kindly request that children do not bring peanut products into school. Thank you.

Thank you,

Miss Pettitt, Miss Prior and Mr Kingdon.