Year 4 Harvest
Year 4 enjoyed going to Church on Wednesday to give thanks for Harvest. We had practised a poem about 'Gratitude' and giving thanks for not only the harvest at this time of year, but also the food we are lucky to have in our homes and at school. Year 4 really enjoyed watching the contributions from the other classes too!
Year 4 Maths - Addition
Year 4 have been adding 4-digit numbers in place value frames. We have used counters to help us correctly add these large numbers and see how numbers sometimes exchange into another column. It was tricky at first, but Year 4 are getting the hang of it now and are making great progress in this area!
Governor Vacancies
Could you help shape the future of Darwen St James? Darwen St James Church of England Primary Academy is looking for enthusiastic, dedicated individuals to join the team as Parent Governors and Foundation Governors. You do not need to be an education expert or have special qualifications. Your everyday experience, community insight, and care for the children are what matter most. What does a Governor do? Set direction: Help shape priorities and support the academy vision. Support and challenge: Ask constructive questions and act as a critical friend. Keep children at the heart: Oversee safeguarding, education, wellbeing, and resources. Bring a wider perspective: Use your skills, experience, and community insight to help the school thrive. Which role suits you? Parent Governor: Open to current parents and carers, giving families a direct voice in the school. Foundation Governor: Focuses on supporting and championing the school's Christian vision and ethos. Is it for you? If you care about the success and wellbeing of children, can listen and work as part of a team, and can commit a little time to attend meetings, complete training, and visit the school, we would love to hear from you. How to get involved Interested? Start with an informal conversation to learn more without any obligation. Telephone: 01254 703260 Email: [email protected] Address: St James Crescent, Darwen, Lancashire, BB3 0EY You can also scan the QR code on the poster for further governance information. Get in touch today to help make a positive difference.
Year 4 English - Role play to aid understanding
Year 4 have been using their vehicle text, 'The Whale' by Vita and Ethan Murrow in their English lessons and have explored lots of aspects that the book has delved into. What better way to identify with our characters, than to be them and put ourselves in their shoes? It was quite fun acting (as well as watching!) and we should hopefully be able to put our emotions and experiences into our upcoming writing tasks.
Year 4 Computing - Enhancing Animations
Year 4 have been learning about and creating animations in their computing lessons. This week, Year 4's challenge was to enhance and edit their frames with backgrounds and sounds to create a sequence of smooth animation. The enhanced animated creations were amazing! We enjoyed watching what different animations had been created and can't wait for our next computing lesson!
Year 4 Science - Bird hunt and classification
Following on from our leaf hunt last week, Year 4 continued their hunting skills, but this time looking for birds! We enjoyed searching the school grounds for the different types of birds, ticking them off our sheet once found. When we came back to class, we researched the birds we had found and came up with questions that could be used to help classify them.
Year 4 P.S.H.E. - Human Machines
Year 4's P.S.H.E. topic is all about working together. This week's lesson challenged Year 4 to work as a 'Human Machine', in an effort to show collective working to complete a simple task. It was slightly trickier than expected, as some tasks were rather abstract and needed all in the group to take part and have some part in the machine process. The outcomes were pretty impressive! Year 4 demonstrated great ability to work together and become a real-life human machine!
Year 4 Science - Leaf Hunt and Classification Keys
Year 4 have been looking at, 'Living things and their Habitats' in our Science lessons. We have learnt how to group things by using classification keys and selecting relevant questions to help do this. In our Science lesson this week, we put our knowledge to the test by collecting leaves from the school grounds on a leaf hunt, and then worked in table groups to help classify the different leaves we had found.
Year 4 English - Making Predictions
This week, Year 4 have been immersed in a variety of clues to gain insight into our vehicle text, before reading. We have examined pictures and artifacts to make sensible predictions about the story, based on what has been presented. Year 4 have some detectives in the making!
Year 4 Maths - Place Value
Year 4 have been demonstrating their number skills this week. Using resources such as their Chromebooks, Base 10 and place value charts, they have been learning about place value and have been working with numbers up to 5-digits!
Year 4 D.T. - Making and Testing Prototype 2
Continuing with our mechanical car creations, Year 4 moved away from their original prototype design, making a more advanced version for prototype 2. This was a more advanced design and Year 4 worked really well to complete some tricky joins to complete their model. Once complete, we needed to test our prototype and compare with our results of prototype 1. We got some interesting results!
Year 4 History - The Maya and the Cacao Bean
Year 4 have been further investigating the lifestyle of the Maya civilisation, when we came across something we have already looked at this year - the cacao bean! Pupils were able to remember facts from their previous Geography unit, and relate this to the Maya. Year 4 were amazed to find that the Maya had managed to grow and harvest a difficult plant where the Maya lived and for the beans to become such an integral part of Maya lifestyle. They were even more impressed to find out the Maya were the first to make hot chocolate! Year 4 played a Maya board game in groups to find out even more facts. The winner was the person with the most 'cacao beans' at the end!
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