Year 2 - Guided Reading - New Vocabulary
This week, we began exploring a new text all about climate. To prepare for our reading, we went on a vocabulary hunt around the classroom! We spotted new, tricky words and used Widgit images as clues to help us work out what they might mean. The children did a brilliant job acting as "vocabulary detectives," using the picture clues to write predictions on their whiteboards. We focused on understanding specific climate types, including Mediterranean, arid, tropical, and polar. It was fantastic to see the children using their inference skills to tackle these big words before we started our reading. We are now ready to dive deeper into the text!
Year 6: English - Storyboards
Year 6 have been planning for their upcoming independent writing, which will revolve around a shipwreck. We used storyboards to plot out ideas for the structure of the writing and grammatical features to include.
Year 5 English - Finding Dialogue from the Text on a Spectrum
Bringing Characters to Life: A Spectrum of Dialogue in Year 5 This term, Year 5 have been immersed in the moving world of Goodnight Mister Tom. To deepen our understanding of the protagonists, we stepped away from our desks for a unique, kinaesthetic lesson exploring the power of voice and personality. We created a visual "Character Spectrum" to map out the distinct personalities of Mister Tom, Willie, and Zach: Blue: Representing Mister Tom at his most blunt and gruff. Grey: Capturing Willie’s quiet, hesitant timidity. Red: Reflecting Zach’s vibrant, cheerful exuberance. Mrs Thompson put our listening skills to the test by reading anonymous lines of dialogue from the novel. Without knowing the speaker, the children had to physically move and place themselves on the spectrum based on the "flavour" of the speech and the emotions conveyed. It was a brilliant way to see how Michelle Magorian uses language to build such distinct identities. The children were incredibly perceptive at picking up on the subtle cues in the text! By stepping into the shoes (and voices) of these iconic characters, Year 5 have gained a much richer insight into how authors portray growth and change through dialogue.
Reception- Literacy- Evil Pea Tricky Word Hunt
Equipped with their trusty clipboards and a sense of urgent mission, the Reception children transformed into miniature detectives on a high-stakes scavenger hunt. The "Evil Pea" had been up to his usual mischief, scattering the Phase 3 tricky words across the nooks of the classroom and the hidden corners of the garden. While the group initially set themselves the modest challenge of uncovering five elusive words, their competitive spirit and growing confidence quickly took over. As they ticked off words like was, my, and they, the thrill of the chase proved infectious; rather than stopping at their goal, the children eagerly pressed on, scouring the flowerbeds and bookshelves to ensure no word was left behind in the Pea's villainous wake.
Year 2 - English - Opinions and Explanations
We took our English lesson outside into the sunshine for a fun debate about Aladdin. Mrs Cookson read out different statements, like "Aladdin is brave," and the children had to stand in a line to show if they agreed or disagreed. Once they picked their spot, they explained their reasons to the rest of the class. It was a fantastic way to practice speaking and listening while thinking carefully about the characters in our story.
Year 2 - Guided Reading - New Vocabulary
To help us understand the story of the Pied Piper, the children moved around the room with six different vocabulary cards. Their mission was to match each new word to the correct definition hidden in different spots. At our school, we love active learning because it gets everyone moving while we learn tricky new words. It was a brilliant way to build our reading skills and get ready to dive deeper into the story!
Nursery/Pre-school-Literacy-Handwriting-Pencil Control
In Literacy we have focused on Handwriting and pencil control this week, This is a great way to get all our preschoolers ready for their next step moving forward to their school journey even with the little ones starting their journey into preschool this was a lovely way to see their pencil control and grip. Developing handwriting in the Early Years is all about building the physical strength and coordination required to use a pencil through fine and gross motor activities.
Year 4 English - Role Play
Year 4 enjoyed a bit of role play in our English this week, when learning about the nautical language related to our narrative. What better way than to step into the shoes of Captain Tom Bawcock and turn our classroom into a Cornish Tugboat, whilst the Great Storm-Cat sent turbulent gales and unpredictable waves our way and gave us the perfect opportunity to put our nautical language knowledge to the test!
Year 3 - English - Using The Correct Determiners
Determiner Detectives in Year 3! We’ve been mastering the rules for using a and an today. To put our new skills into practice, we turned our attention to the iconic Moon-Face from The Enchanted Wood. The children had to think carefully—is it a shiny face or an unusual face. It was a fantastic way to sharpen our grammar while exploring the magic of Enid Blyton’s world!
Year 6: English - Subordination
This week year 6 are expanding on their knowledge of grammar, by focusing on the subordinating conjunction 'since'. They have been writing examples that relate to their class text 'Kensuke's Kingdom'.
Year 3 - English - The Enchanted Wood
Magic is in the Air in Year 3! Hold onto your hats, because we’ve just stepped into the magical world of The Enchanted Wood! We are officially beginning our brand-new English unit inspired by Enid Blyton’s classic. This week, we’ve been busy imagining what it would be like to climb the Faraway Tree, meet Moon-Face and Silky, and discover which strange lands are swirling around at the very top!
Year 5 English - Blending Action, Dialogue and Description in a Sentence
Word Detectives: Unlocking the Opening Chapters Our budding linguists took on the role of Word Detectives this week, diving deep into the atmospheric opening of our new class novel, Goodnight Mister Tom. In a fast-paced, 12-minute challenge, students were tasked with more than just memorising definitions; they had to uncover the hidden "personality" of the author’s language. Working in teams, each table was assigned a specific keyword from the text—ranging from the stoic robust to the startled bewildered. Using dictionaries as their primary tools, the groups worked to define their word before "detecting" its specific mood. Is the word adamant a grumpy one? Does clad feel neutral or formal? The final challenge required high-level creativity and precision. Students had to craft a "Three-Way Blend" sentence, seamlessly weaving their assigned word into a single line that combined Action, Dialogue, and Description.
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