Welcome back to Term 4! We’ve had a fantastic first week full of learning, creativity, and fun.

Phonics

This week, we learnt the tricky word be and explored the digraphs sh, th (voiced), and th (unvoiced). The children practised writing these sounds and used them to sound out and write words. It has been great to see their confidence grow in blending and segmenting words independently!

Maths

In maths, we focused on counting beyond 20 and recognising the pattern in numbers (e.g., 21 is "twenty-one," 22 is "twenty-two"). We also worked on the concept of one more and one less, answering questions like "What is one more than 2?" and "What is one less than 5?". Additionally, we explored balance, using scales to find out what happens when objects are balanced or unbalanced.

Drawing Club

Our new topic, People Who Help Us, has begun! This week, we read Busy People: Vet and learnt all about how vets help care for animals. The children explored key vocabulary: vet, clinic, patient, and check-up. As part of our activities, they:

•  Drew a vet clinic scene
• Designed their own pet patient and explained why it needed help
• Created and decorated a vet’s uniform
• Had a go at writing words related to their drawings

PE – Dance & Gymnastics

In PE, we started our new units in dance and gymnastics. During dance, the children explored how different body parts move to music, using the song Heads, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes. In gymnastics, they learnt to copy and create different body shapes, practising holding and naming each one.

RE – Salvation & Easter

In RE, we started learning about Salvation and why Christians put a cross in an Easter garden. We listened to the story of Easter and talked about Palm Sunday, learning the meaning of the word Hosanna. The children then joined in with a Hosanna song and decorated their own palm leaves, which they carefully cut out to bring the story to life.

It has been a fantastic start to the term, and we can’t wait for more exciting learning next week! Thank you for your continued support.

Welcome Wednesday is every week from 8:30–9:00am—come into the classroom to read with your child or see what they have been learning!

Star of the week: Congratulations to Lena-Mae, who is our star of the week, for brilliant ideas in drawing club. Lena-Mae will be taking home her certificate and Wilfred the Elephant to write in the book all about her time spent with Wilfred over the next week and will bring him back next Thursday.

Please remember to read with your child, even for just 5 minutes! Please also remember to record it in the reading record. We will only change your child's book if you have read with them 2 or more times in that week! Please remember to have the library book in your children's book bag on Thursday to be changed. 

Any issues or concerns we need to know about, please speak to the Acorn team before and after school or email at: acorn@st-barnabas.kent.sch.uk