Term 3 Week 4

We began the week by celebrating National Storytelling Week, placing reading firmly at the heart of our learning. During our reading comprehension lessons, pupils explored carefully chosen extracts from the following texts:

The 13-Storey Treehouse by Andy Griffiths

Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made by Stephan Pastis

The Story of Tracy Beaker by Jacqueline Wilson

These engaging and contrasting texts gave pupils plenty to talk about while developing key comprehension skills such as inference, prediction and understanding character. Through discussion, paired talk and whole-class reading, pupils were encouraged to justify their ideas using evidence from the text and to enjoy the power of storytelling.

At the beginning of the week, our English lessons focused on exploring the key features of a diary entry in preparation for the children writing their own diary from Tom Smith’s perspective. Through shared texts and discussion, pupils identified how diary entries are written in the first person, reflect thoughts and feelings, and follow a clear chronological structure.

Alongside this, our grammar lessons focused on two key areas the children will be using in their writing. We explored fronted adverbials to help pupils vary sentence openers and add detail about time, place and manner. We also revisited how to punctuate direct speech correctly, ensuring pupils understand how to use inverted commas and reporting clauses accurately. This work is supporting children to write diary entries that are engaging, well structured and grammatically accurate.

Every Friday, we take part in an NRICH Maths investigation, giving pupils the chance to explore maths in a more open-ended and investigative way. This week’s NRICH investigation linked closely to our focus on multiplication and division. Children worked systematically with numbers, starting with four values and adding them in pairs to reach a final total. The challenge was to find different combinations that would result in 15 at the top.

Pupils used whiteboards to test ideas, spot patterns and explain their thinking, showing great perseverance and teamwork. These investigations encourage deep thinking, reasoning and confidence, while reminding children that maths is about exploring ideas, not just getting an answer.

In Science, we continued our learning on States of Matter by focusing on temperature and how it is measured. Pupils learned what temperature means and how to read a thermometer accurately using degrees Celsius. Working in pairs, they predicted and then measured the temperature of different places and materials around school, carefully recording their results.

The children worked scientifically by making observations, taking accurate measurements and discussing why results might differ. They showed great focus and curiosity, especially when comparing predictions with actual readings.

In Art, pupils focused on exploring sketching techniques, experimenting with varied lines, tones and textures using pencil. They practised applying different pressures and marks to create contrast, carefully building up shading and texture across their work. The children showed good concentration and control, taking time to refine their sketches and think about how different techniques can change the overall effect.

Enrichment – special days, trips and visitors

We are also looking forward to a couple of upcoming enrichment opportunities. Pupils will be taking part in the Candlemas Church Service on Tuesday 4th February, followed by NSPCC Number Day on Thursday 6th February. These events form an important part of our wider curriculum and give children the chance to learn, reflect and take part in meaningful experiences beyond the classroom.