Class 4

May 2014

Dear Parents/Carers,

Class 4 Newsletter –Summer Term

It’s hard to believe that we are already at the start of the summer term! The year is going by so fast and the children are all growing up and maturing in readiness for the juniors a few short months away!

Our topic this term is  ‘Marvellous Minibeasts’ which will involve us spending time outdoors searching for minibeasts and exploring habitats. We are planning lots of exciting experiences for the children, including an Ugly Bug Ball, making 3d minibeasts in DT lessons, studying the work of Matisse in art lessons and writing our own minibeast poetry! We will be finding out all about living things in our local environment. In our RE and worship we will be finding out about lots of different Christian values. We have already started to think about Trust. In PE we are developing our skills in Games – including striking and fielding.  Athletics is also a big part of our PE work this term as we head towards Sports Day.

Next week in school, we have some coaches coming to support the children in a rounders tournament.

In addition to all of these things, we will also be preparing the children to become even more independent in their learning to prepare them for life ahead in Year 3!

We are very lucky to have some new staff working in Class 4 this term. Mrs Walker works with the children and supports reading and creative experiences each Friday. Mr Simpson is a Teaching Student who is on his final placement at our school. He has also planned some wonderful work to do with the children. We are very lucky to have so much support in Class 4!

As you know the children will be assessed for their KS1 Sats later on this term. This is undertaken in small groups and informally with either Mrs McBride or Mr Holmes. The results of these teacher assessments will be sent to all parents along with the end of school report in July.

In addition to these assessments, those children in Year 2 who did not meet the standard for the Phonics Screening Check at the end of Year 1 will be tested again in June. You will be informed of these results with the end of year report. If you want to know if your child is due to be tested again, please come and ask.

PE. A full named PE kit needs to be in school all the time and will only need a wash each half term! Earrings should be removed on PE days. If this is not possible then tape should be sent in with your child who will need to cover the earrings prior to the lesson beginning. Staff will not apply the tape or remove any earrings. Our PE lesson times this year are Monday afternoons and Thursday mornings. There are still quite a few children who don’t have a PE kit in school and as you can imagine lots of time is wasted for these children sorting out spare kits and pumps at the beginning of each lesson. Please could you make sure that your child has their kit in school.

     Kit requirements-A white t-shirt, black shorts, black pumps.

        These items are available at a very reasonable cost at all of the major supermarkets.

        The white t shirt does not have to have the school logo on.

        Summer Weather – as the weather continues to improve and warm up (we hope!!) it

        would be great if children could bring a hat to school to protect them from the heat, a   

        named bottle of water each day and suncream (also named). Children will be applying

        their own sunscreen, or you may prefer to put the sunscreen on at home before they

        come to school.

     Homework.

       Your child now has two books to complete homework in. A pink one for literacy/phonics

       and a yellow one for spellings. Both books need to come into school each Wednesday        

       and will be sent home every Friday.

Messages. If you have any messages for us in the morning, there is always a member of staff on duty at the cloakroom door to record any important information e.g. changes to pick up arrangements, appointments or illness of siblings etc.

Contact details

If you have recently changed mobile phone numbers or moved house please could you let the office know so that we have the most up-to-date contact details should an emergency situation arise. Many thanks for your support in this.

Book bags need to go back and forth daily. Please check them for letters and empty them regularly!

Money. Please can all monies be in envelopes with the amount written on the outside, your child’s name, our class number (Class 4) and what the money is for.

Please don’t hesitate to contact either of us if you wish to discuss matters relating to your child. We can always find a time suitable to listen to you.

                                              Mr Holmes, Mrs McBride

Welcome to Class 4!
 

Dear Parents,

Happy New Year!  We hope you had a fantastic Christmas, it certainly sounds like it talking to the children!

As ever we have a busy and exciting term ahead with lots of fun activities planned to make your child’s time in school as productive and enjoyable as possible.

This term our topic is ‘Where in the World?’ which was launched perfectly with the visit from the planetarium last week, which was fantastic!  The children adored learning about space and the planets in our solar system in a highly visual and eye opening way.

As the topic progresses, we shall be exploring where exactly we live from a study on Chorley, to Lancashire, England and beyond.  We shall be getting the maps out and also using new technologies to get a clear understanding of where we are.  Any studies the children can complete linked to this at home would be great!

In Literacy, over the next few weeks we shall be reading and learning through the books written and illustrated by the author Anthony Browne.  He has written some brilliant stories from ‘The Tunnel’ and ‘My Mum’, which the children are already thoroughly enjoying.

Later in the term the whole school will also be having another ‘events week’ where the whole school will be learning about China, which will fit in perfectly within our topic and provide the children with lots of fascinating experiences and allow them to see how it compare to their own lives.

As ever, the main question we get asked by parents is how they can help their children at home.  The best ways are the simplest; please keep reading with them every day, discussing the books and making predictions about what might happen, play the maths games sent home on Fridays and support them with their pink book homework.  If you ever need to see us about any of this, please come and talk to us. 

PE will continue to be on Monday’s and Thursday’s this term.  We request that PE kits stay in school throughout the term and they will be sent home before any holidays to be washed.  If all kits and jumpers can be named, it is as ever a great help, as things inevitably do manage to wander in a busy classroom!

We had a fantastic first term in Class 4 and know that this one will be just as enjoyable! 

Thank you for all your support. Together, we are making a difference in your children’s futures.

Best wishes,

Mrs C. McBride , Mr B. Holmes & Mrs T. Bolton  

 Class 4 Organisation

         Reading Books 

All children are expected to read every night in order for them to make the best progress that they can. Team points and other prizes will be awarded for reading. This year your child can change their reading book whenever they finish it, rather than on set days, as long as an adult has signed it to say that the book is finished.  Your child will be able to choose their next book and may even begin recommending their favourite ones to friends!

It may be that some nights your child wishes to read something different than their home reader – this is absolutely fine! Just write down what it is they chose to read and how many pages they read. All reading experience is good and we want to develop a real passion for reading. We will ask the children each day to put their hand up if they have read the night before – be prepared for us to remind them to read as they leave school at home time! 

PE.

A full named PE kit needs to be in school all the time and will only need a wash each half term! Earrings should be removed on PE days. If this is not possible then tape should be sent in with your child who will need to cover the earrings prior to the lesson beginning. Staff will not apply the tape or remove any earrings. Our PE lesson times this year are Monday afternoons and Thursday mornings.

Homework.

As the children settle down into the new term we will be sending homework in the next couple of weeks. Maths and English homework will be sent out on alternate weeks and Science or Topic related homework when necessary. Homework will be given out on Wednesdays and collected in on Mondays giving children almost a week to complete tasks.

Maths games will also be sent home on a Friday.  These are fantastic activities for your child to play with an adult (not young children please!)  They need to be looked after and returned on a Friday inside their clear plastic reading bag, when they will be changed for the following week (not the red bags please, we won’t spot the games!)  Any questions, come and see us!  We really hope you enjoy the games.

Messages.

If you have any messages for us, there is always a member of staff on duty at the cloakroom door to record any important information e.g. changes to pick up arrangements.

Book bags

These need to go back and forth daily. Please check them and empty them regularly!

Money.

Please can all monies be in envelopes with the amount written on the outside, your child’s name, our class number (Class 4) and what the money is for.

School Library Books.

Children will change their school library books during the week and keep these books in the classroom ready to read when they have finished their work and during reading times.

How to help.

We are looking forward to working with you to move your child forward in their learning. Please would you make sure:

• Your child reads to an adult at least four times a week.
• Your child is encouraged in their mathematical knowledge by playing simple games with an adult e.g. card games, dominoes, snakes and ladders, games that go around a board (good ideas for Christmas presents there!)
• Your child has an opportunity to talk about what they have done with their day (we always encourage them to ask YOU about YOUR day too!)
• Your child attends school regularly and on time. Children who come in via the school office have missed the start of the lesson and it is not the best start to the day for them.

We job share in Class 4, so Mr Holmes (Deputy Head Teacher) is in Class 4 on Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday until first break and Mrs McBride is in class on Wednesday/Thursday/Friday.  Although we teach at opposite ends of the week we regularly liaise with each other and share information relating to the children and their progress.

We share our class responsibilities with Mrs Bolton who is our wonderful and very experienced Teaching Assistant. Other adults who work in class on a regular basis are Mrs Parkinson and Mrs Malik.

Please don’t hesitate to contact either of us if you would like any further information.

We are looking forward to the term ahead!

Yours sincerely

Mr Ben Holmes             Mrs Claire McBride

Class Teachers