Welcome to Year 4 

Teacher: Miss Fallows

Class TA's: Miss Shan & Mrs Nolan

Hello Kingfishers!

We hope you had a wonderful half-term break. We’re looking forward to an exciting term ahead, filled with engaging learning and new experiences.

Times tables

As we begin the countdown to the government Multiplication Tables Check, we’ll be helping the children build their confidence and speed with their times tables. We’ll be doing short, fun practice each day to keep things fresh and help facts stick. It would be great if children could also practise a little at home to support what we’re doing in class. With regular practise and a positive mindset, we’re aiming for everyone to feel ready and confident as the countdown continues! There are around 35 school days left until the test.

English

This term in English, our learning will be inspired by the imaginative animation film The Wishgranter. We will explore the story through exciting writing activities, where the children will develop their skills in using fronted adverbials to add detail about when, where and how events happen. They will also practise creating similes to make their descriptions more vivid and engaging, as well as using expanded noun phrases to add extra detail and bring their ideas to life. Throughout the unit, the children will build their confidence as creative writers while enjoying a magical and imaginative story.

Reading

In Guided Reading this term, we will be reading The Firework-Maker’s Daughter by Philip Pullman. Throughout our comprehension lessons, the children will develop their guided reading skills, including retrieving key information, making inferences, predicting what might happen next, and explaining their understanding of the text. We will also focus on discussing vocabulary and exploring how the author creates atmosphere and character.

History

In History this term, we will be learning about the fascinating period of the Tudors, exploring what life was like during this time and learning about key figures such as Henry VIII and Elizabeth I. The children will investigate how people lived, the changes that took place, and why this period is so important in British history. To bring our learning to life, we will also be visiting Turton Tower, where the children will experience history first-hand and deepen their understanding of Tudor life.

Science

In Science this term, we will be learning about habitats and exploring how different living things are suited to the environments they live in. The children will investigate a variety of habitats, considering how animals and plants depend on each other to survive. As part of our learning, we will be collecting data through observations and simple investigations, before analysing our results to identify patterns and draw conclusions. This will help the children develop their scientific enquiry skills while gaining a deeper understanding of the natural world.

PE

PE will take place on Tuesday mornings and  Wednesday afternoons. Children need a full PE kit for each PE lesson. These can be taken home for washing at the end of term.

Reading & Spellings

Reading books should be taken home every day so children can read to an adult and record their reading in their reading records. Children can now change reading books in class and do not need to wait for an adult. We recommend reading for at least five/ten minutes each evening. 

We aim to send spellings home every Friday to practise for the following week. We aim to do spelling tests on Fridays, although this may occasionally change due to timetable changes.

If you have any questions or need any support, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

We’re excited for a fun term full of learning, creativity and discovery in Kingfishers!

Thanks,
Miss Fallows, Miss Shan & Mrs Nolan

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