What we are learning this week in Lilac Class for the week beginning 11.11.24

In Maths this week in Lilac Class, we are multiplying and dividing whole numbers by 10, 100 and 1,000, looking carefully at a place value and Gattegno chart to support learning and find out what happens to the movement of the digits in the calculation.  We will  be identifying multiples of 10, 100 and 1,000.  We are then moving onto our new unit of learning entitled ‘Fractions’.  Lilac Class will initially be finding fractions equivalent to a unit fraction and exploring such questions as the following: What does equivalent mean?  What is a unit fraction?  When are two fractions equivalent?

In English this week in Lilac Class we are starting to draft a non-chronological report about the different layers of a tropical rainforest using the features of report writing.  For example, using subheadings to organise information and fronted adverbials to introduce information.  Our reports will inform the reader about how rainforests are structured and what groups of animals live in the different layers. For our Whole Class Guided Reading our text is The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis and we are reading Chapter 10 this week.  We are still continuing with developing our summarising skills and looking beyond the text by answering such questions as ‘What impression do you get of the cave where they sleep?’ and ‘How do they know the Witch’s magic is weakening?’ 

In RE, we are exploring the qualities that a Messiah should have and what a Messiah is expected to be.  Lilac Class are designing a ‘Wanted!’ poster for the Messiah. The Jewish people are waiting for the ‘anointed one’: a Saviour. What should this person be like?   

For Time and Place, we are finding out about the beliefs and religious practices of the Ancient Mayan Civilisation. We will be learning about the different gods and how they affected the lives of the Mayan people.  We will also be learning about the Mayan Creation Story.

For Science in Lilac Class, we are writing up our pattern seeking experiment that explores the relationship between mass and weight as a force. In Art, Lilac Class are making Mayan pottery using clay.  We will be working from our sketches based on original Mayan artefacts.