Willow Class News

KS2 SATs Information

Spring Term Curriculum Letter

Autumn Term Curriculum Letter.

31.01.25

It has been lovely to be with Willow again this week. We have been busy in Maths revising fraction, decimal and percentage equivalence and they have really impressed us with their understanding. We have begun a new unit in English, where we will be writing explanation texts about animals from the picture book, 'The Greak Kapok Tree''. So far, we have read an explanation text about the life cycle of a butterfly and unpicked some of its advanced vocabulary. Children have undertaken some research about Boa Constrictors ready for some writing on Monday. Willow explored the assemblage artist, Betye Saar in Art this week and have explored biomes in Project. Do please make sure you have received the home learning letter - many thanks.

 

24.01.25

Willow have worked exceptionally hard this week. We have continued to explore the Amazon rainforest and written some poetry using personification and alliteration. In geography, we worked in pairs and used the intrernet and atlases to learn keys facts about different countries in south America. The children then had to present their findings to the rest of the class. In maths, we started by understanding the difference between factors and multiples and then we moved onto square and cube numbers. They enjoyed using the unifix cubes to make the cube numbers. Next week we welcome back Mrs Webber, we know she is looking forward to getting to know the class.       

17.01.25

This week Willow class have learnt about some different types of animals that live in the Amazon rainforest and Amazon river. It was fascinating to learn that 10% of the worlds animal species live there despite only covering 1% of the worlds surface! In English we have looked at a diary entry and written our own pretending that we are in the Amazon rainforest and had to describe some of the animals and birds that we saw. In maths we have continued to solve problems based around length, capacity and weight. We are getting the hang of whether we need to multiply or divide by 10, 100 or 1,000 depending on what we are converting to. In geography we mapped out various human and physical features of South America by using atlases. Most had never used one before - it just goes to show how reliant we are on technology these days. Thank you for the increased number of PE kits we had in this week - we do appreciate your support.

20.12.24

Merry Christmas form Willow Class

                                         

13.12.24

As Christmas approaches, the excitement among the children is truly infectious! Although the festive season is just around the corner, there’s still lots of work to be done. In Maths, we've been exploring 3D shapes, identifying their properties, and even building nets to create them. It's wonderful to see such enthusiasm for learning! In English, we’ve embarked on an engaging informal letter-writing project. The children are crafting letters from the perspective of a soldier receiving the news on 7th May 1945 that the war has ended and he is coming home. To complement our theme, we've also delved into Michael Morpurgo’s touching book “Coming Home,” which many will remember from a Waitrose advert a few years back. We can't wait for the Winter Wonderland this weekend and eagerly anticipate all the Christmas festivities next week! Don't forget that Willow will be running the Christmas Service next Friday, and we would love for you to join us at the Church. As I approach my final week with the wonderful Willow Class, I feel incredibly blessed to have taught such an amazing group of children. You should be very proud of them—they have worked tremendously hard this term and are an absolute joy to teach! Wishing you all a splendid festive season ahead!

 

06.12.24

What a very fast week it has been! It’s been all about donning our journalist hats as we wrote up our report from Mrs Baily's fascinating visit. We learned about her mother, Elizabeth Jeans, and her evacuation from Southampton during the Blitz – truly an incredible experience that brought living history to life! In Maths, we explored the world of shape – naming and classifying the properties of 2D and 3D shapes, tackling symmetry along the way. It proved a bit tricky, so if you’re out and about, why not become shape detectives and help reinforce their learning? In Music, we’re busy practising for the Christmas Service and we’d love for you to join us! We’re also gearing up for our World War 2 museum Exhibition on Friday, featuring some amazing artefacts and even some songs created by the children. If you made it along, we hope you enjoyed everything the children have been learning!

 

29.11.24

Another week whizzes by! Willow class have been absolutely super this week, taking part in assessments to check on their learning, and they’ve shown brilliant resilience throughout. We’ve continued our time topic in Maths and delved into our Newspaper project in English. In Science, we explored how light is reflected, even trying to see our friends around the corner with mirrors! On Tuesday, the school enjoyed a fantastic workshop organised by Clare from EMTAS, featuring live accordion music and a chance to use "jig puppets". It was a lovely way to connect with our heritage. Later in the week, we welcomed Lisa's mum into school, who shared her mother's story as an evacuee during the Blitz. The children became the “press pack”, took notes, and will be writing their own reports. A huge thank you to Mim Mim for sharing her story and Mrs Bailey for telling it so brilliantly! What a busy week it’s been!

   

           

22.11.24

This week seems to have flown by and we are so grateful for our underfloor heating! I've had to remind the children to close the door when they dash out to their lockers, as the cold air does whip into the classroom. We kicked off the week by writing a song for this year’s anti-bullying week slogan, “Choose Respect,” using our poetry skills. Later, we learned about journalistic writing, focusing on Kristallnacht, which tied in with our poignant history lesson on the Holocaust. In maths, we revisited telling the time and began exploring elapsed time and reading timetables. Remember to practise this at home! In science, we observed how shadows behave and change in length. I'm incredibly proud of the children for their hard work. It was lovely to see Mrs Webber on Tuesday, and she'll be back in January. Just a quick reminder for some boys to bring their PE kits on Thursdays, particularly jogging bottoms with temperatures dropping.

 

15.11.24

What a whirlwind of a week we've had! On Monday, it was lovely watching Birch Class at the Church for Armistice Day. We then enjoyed a short stroll to hear Captain Roberts share his RAF stories and why remembering the 11th of November is so important. After that, we joined the Micheldever community for a touching service of remembrance and a two-minute silence. The highlight? Getting to hop on the Chinook helicopter and watching it take off—so fabulous!

In Maths, we’ve been getting stuck into multiplying and dividing fractions, and the children have been amazing! In English, we wrapped up our poetry unit with simile poems and metaphor ballads. A special shoutout to local artist Isabella Lambert for helping us with our sketching and line drawing in art. Just a quick reminder that PE is on Thursday; a few boys forgot their kits again this week. I would like to thank the parents for coming to the parents' evening—it's great to team up in partnership with you to support the children's progress!

 

08.11.24

We have had a great week back and it has flown by after half-term. This week we have started our poetry unit and are looking at different poems every day. This week the children have been so creative and have written Haikus, Limericks, Acrostics, concrete (shape) poems and cinquains. All have different rules about what they need to write and I have been really pleased with the outcome. Here is a limerick we wrote about Mr Johnson:

In our school, Mr Johnson's the head,
Where he leads with a smile, it is said,
He makes learning fun,
For everyone,
Ensuring we get our daily bread. 

In Maths we have continued our Fraction topic, and learned how to add, subtract and multiply fractions. We move onto dividing fractions next week.

In our topic we have found out about rationing, and why Britain turned to "dig for victory" and "make do and mend". Please ensure that children have their PE kit in school on a Thursday, as we started our new invasion game learning this week with an introduction to tag rugby. Many of the children - mostly boys - did not have their kits with them. We have also started our next science topic of Light - looking at the sources of light this week. We are looking forward to the "Micheldever's got Talent" next week and what the children will do.  Just a gentle reminder that the School exhibition is on 6th December, and the children's "jigsaw" homework will need to be in school for this date. Have a wonderful weekend, and if you are attending a fire work display - please be really careful.

 

25.10.24

What a busy week it has been! The children have worked hard and absolutely deserve next week's half-term break. We kicked off on Monday in English by watching an animated clip called "Beyond the Lines," which vividly depicted the storming of the beaches in Normandy. This set the tone for a week focused on creativity in writing, emphasising the "show me, don’t tell me" technique. For example, instead of saying "The sand was hard to run through," we crafted sentences like, "My feet sank into the gritty grains, each stride a struggle against the stubborn surface. "In Maths, we delved into fractions. I was delighted to see how much they had retained since they last encountered them. This week, we've primarily concentrated on comparing fractions with different denominators. On Wednesday, we ventured to Manor Farm, exploring the experiences of evacuees transitioning from city to country life. Our day was filled with code-breaking activities, learning in a schoolroom as if we were children in the 1940s while discovering the significance of the "Dig for Victory" campaign during the war. Thursday afternoon brought a live link-up with a Year 5 class from Tower Hamlets, London, where we discussed our RE topic of belonging. It was utterly fascinating to explore the similarities and differences in our lives, particularly regarding the role of religion. Thank you all for your continued support, and I wish you a fantastic half-term!

                            

     

18.10.24

This week we have been looking at how the World War started to affect ordinary families by looking at the reasons that Neville Chamberlain started to evacuate children from the cities. We looked at how hard this must have been for families to be split from each other from between a year to the whole of the war.

In English, we have been using our skills as diary writers by writing the "lost pieces of Anne Frank's Diary". Anne's last input into her diary was 1st August 1944, as on the 4th August the hiding place was leaked to the Police who raided the building and captured the families in hiding. We have imagined what it must have been like to be found and then transported to the concentration camp which has resulted in some really wonderful writing. In DT our topic on seasonality comes to an end with Willow Class cooking a wartime seasonal meal of Squash Soup and Eggless Chocolate Cake. We are excited to invite parents in to taste our creations.

Maths has seen us develop our skills in short division and dividing by 2-digit numbers by using their factors. Again, this is a plea for the children to learn their tables as this would help the children calculate multiplication and division problems. Next Wednesday we are looking forward to joining Barton Stacey at Manor Farm looking at aspects of World War 2.

 

11.10.24

Another really busy week in Willow this week. We have thought about our place in our world and belonging in RE. This developed into a class poster of the wonderful Willow children and where they belong. In Maths we introduced square and cubed numbers and moved on to more formal methods for multiplication. If the children find themselves with spare time at home - learning their tables will never be a waste of time! In English and Topic, we have continued to look at World War II, with the miraculous evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk, to how Anne Frank must have felt when her family was forced into hiding to escape the clutches of the German army and the fate of the concentration camp. In DT, we have looked at seasonal food, and this week will be designing a seasonal meal from WWII to cook on the 18th of October. We would love for you to come into school in the afternoon next Friday and sample some of our hearty, wartime seasonal cooking. I will send out more information once the children have planned their meal next week. If your child has any food intolerances that we know of,  I will be in touch separately. I was pleased again to see everyone with their PE kit as they started to play the game of netball and begin to look at tactics of dodge and move. This was followed by the children using their knowledge of series circuits to overcome the issue of when one component is taken out of the circuit then the circuit fails (we can all remember the one bulb failing in a Christmas light string) by trying to put together a parallel circuit (thankfully like modern Christmas light chains) where the circuit remains on even if a bulb is blown. They did it, with very little input and by using their prior knowledge gained in this unit - I was so proud of them.

 

04.10.24

This week has flown by - with the beginning of the week meeting at Barton Stacey to meet Richard the Air Raid Warden. He taught us all about how World War II started and his role in this, especially during the Blitz by helping people who were injured, making sure people got to safety, and ensuring that the blackout was maintained during the night. We also got to touch, try on, and look at many artifacts from the period from Jackets to belts, helmets to medals. Following on from this we started our narrative diary unit as we are looking at the Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. In Maths, we have moved on to our unit looking at multiplication and division, and have learned about factors, multiples, rules of divisibility, and prime numbers. It has been a busy week! Thank you for all your support with the children's homework. Please can you also continue to listen to the children read at home - even if a child can read, they need to practice the skill of decoding, and fluency and develop an understanding of the text. 

Have a lovely weekend

 

27.09.24

I was very proud of Willow Class this week. We have produced a song all about evacuees, and learnt to sing it with the guitar. They sang beautifully to the parents and visitors who attended the coffee morning on Thursday. Well done Willow Class.

In English we have written up our wartime chocolate cake recipe using persuasive instruction writing and although missing eggs - due to rationing - they do sound delicious.

In Maths we have been looking at mental methods for addition and subtraction as well as formal methods, using the inverse to calculate problems.

Topic this week built on the reasons why World War 2 began and looked at the invasion by Germany across Europe over the years from 1939 to 1942. This leads onto the next session when we look at the British being forced to withdraw through Dunkirk.

Science was fun as the children were looking at switches and why they are in circuits. They then put their circuits together making the switches.

I would like to thank all the class as everyone remembered that PE is on Thursday, so we all had our PE kits in school and although the weather was atrocious - we were able to continue developing the skills needed for netball in the hall.

Next Monday Willow Class are out of school all day at Barton Stacey School learning more about World War 2. You have had letters and I will meet you there at the school.

Have a super weekend,

                 

20.09.24

It's been a really busy week in Willow! We’ve introduced into our day a new 10-minute run, and some of the children are absolutely smashing it, completing between 18 and 20 laps around the playground. In English, we’ve been consolidating the skills we've learned over the past fortnight. The children have been working hard on a persuasive instructional piece, creating a wartime recipe for Cheesy Tomato and Potato loaves – quite the culinary adventure! In spelling, we've been focusing on plural rules, and the children have each received their Look, Say, Write, Cover, Check sheets to pop into their homework books – a great way to keep track of their learning. Speaking of homework, this week’s assignments include daily reading, spelling practice, a maths exercise, and an English task. We’re also excited about the jigsaw homework where we’re asking the children to complete five out of the nine pieces for an exhibition of home learning on 6th December. In maths, we’ve been tackling rounding numbers to 10,000,000 and getting to grips with negative numbers. On Monday during Worship, Mr Johnson spoke about kindness, and it’s been lovely to witness the children showing random acts of kindness throughout the week—hopefully, you’ve noticed this at home too! I’m encouraging the children to be more independent in their learning, so we’ve introduced trays for their pencil cases and learning tools like whiteboards to help them settle in quickly.

As always, my door is open – even if it’s just for a friendly chat!

 

13.09.24

I am so pleased with how Willow Class have coped with a lot of change this week. With the departure of Miss Quast on Tuesday (she was really touched by all the kind messages, thank you) and my first day on Wednesday. It shows how resilient the children are as a class. We spent the day together in class on Tuesday so were able to get a good time together for a handover. As I said, the children have coped with the change of teacher really well and continued with their learning. In English we have been looking at the mechanics of writing, ensuring that punctuation such as commas and apostrophes are used correctly. We are looking at World War II this term, especially how it impacted the children and so we started to read about Anne Frank and how the war affected her. In DT on Friday we will start to look at food and how seasonality was important in war-time Britain by looking at what food is available compared to modern farming techniques during each season. In science we looked at how to draw and interpret a series circuit diagram, while in maths we are concentrating on place value of numbers up to ten million.

PE is always on a Thursday and I would like to start a 10-minute run in the morning as this stimulates the brain and gets blood pumping around the body, so it would be beneficial if the children had trainers or something they would like to run in with them daily.

If you would like to speak to me, after school is better as I have more time and I would welcome you into the classroom or make an appointment through the office.

Thank  you, Mr Lambert.

 

06.09.24

It has been a wonderful start to the new academic year for Willow Class. Everyone has come back looking incredibly smart in their uniforms. Not only this, the attitude towards learning this week has been impressive and all the children have settled in beautifully to their new class and routine which has been a pleasure to see. We have made our locker tags, name tag signatures in class which have been displayed for each child to see. We have started our new project topic this term which is World War 2. This week we have focused on the causes of the war. In English we have learnt about rationing during World War 2. This is because we will be writing a persuasive, instructional text on a war time recipe. In maths, we have refreshed out times table knowledge and arithmetic skills.

On a separate note, I would like to say goodbye to everyone as this is my last newsletter I will be writing. It has been an amazing experience to have the opportunity to teach and work at Micheldever C of E Primary School. I have learnt so much. I will miss the Micheldever family and wish all the children, staff and parents all the best. Thank you all for making me feel so welcome and at home!

 

23.7.24

Goodbye Year 6 class of 2024. We are so proud of you.

19.07.24

We have ended the year in Willow Class on an absolute high! Our performance last night was incredible and I think we can all agree that the children we phenomenal! The commitment that the children have shown for the past six weeks has been truly commendable. Rehearsing for an hour and a half twice a week after school, plus rehearsals during the school day, plus learning the lines to all the songs and the script in their own time! I have been bowled over. I have also been inspired and incredibly humbled by the team work that the staff at Micheldever have shown! Literally everyone has been involved and supported this production and it has been a privilege to watch and experience what can be achieved as a team working for the same goal! Thank you everyone! I would also like to thank all the parents for their encouragement, support, enthusiasm and commitment and all the late pickups from school! You have all been amazing! I hope that everyone can enjoy a restful weekend and be ready for the final 2 days before the summer holidays!

                                                  

12.07.24

This week has been literally The Greatest Showman week! The children have worked INCREDIBLY hard on perfecting the dances and the acting and I must say we are on target for an amazing show this coming Thursday! We had a full dress rehearsal run through today which was INCREDIBLY successful and I am very proud of ALL Willow Class! Your commitment has been commendable and I would like to thank ALL parents for their support these couple of months with rehearsals and costumes and often tired children! Year 5 children also completed their swimming sessions very successfully. Year 5’s focused on their diving skill with great success. WELL DONE Willow class on an amazing week!

 

05.07.24

It has been a wonderful week in Willow Class. A week that I think teachers, parents and especially children will remember for a very long time! It began with SRE, completing our report comments, Greatest Showman rehearsals, the Henry Beaufort Sports event. It ended though, on our incredible trip to London! I can honestly say what an amazing trip it was and how much both the children and the staff absolutely loved it! The weather was kind to us and we started our adventure at Micheldever Train station with a very excited Willow Class. The train ride up was full of chatter and fun! There were some very curious members of the public on the train keen to know where we were taking this bunch of high-viz clad children! When we told, them they all seemed very impressed and wanted to join! We arrived at Waterloo Station and made our way into the busy undergrounds! The children were brilliant at following instructions and managing themselves on the busy carriages! Frameless was a unique and mesmerising experience for all and the children loved choosing their souvenirs from the gift shop! Then we were on to Hyde Park for a late lunch with a group of starving children! We sat under trees and ate our lunch and played ball games and football and found a very entertaining water fountain which kept us amused and, for some, slightly wet for a while! Then, it was back onto the underground and off to Covent Garden. We were very lucky to watch a ‘Charlie Chapman’ like street performance which was brilliant. We stopped there for about 20 minutes and sat on the cobbled pavements and then it was on the move again to out ‘All You Can Eat Chinese Buffet Restaurant’. The children were superbly well-mannered and the restaurant staff commented on how well-behaved our children were! We ate and ate and ate. Some children managing 3 to 4 servings of food! Finally, we made our way to the Lyceum Theatre! Honestly, what a stunning performance! Just phenomenal. It’s truly almost impossible to put into words the quality and artistic brilliance of The Lion King! A memory the children will hold forever. At 22:15 we wended or rather sped our way back to Waterloo station over the bridge with the view of Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament and the London night sky! We all breathed a sigh of relief to see that the 23:05 train to Micheldever Station was not only not cancelled BUT also on time! We managed to board the train early and find seats and enjoy the last, by now, exhausted hour left of our adventure! I would like to say an absolute HUGE thank you to Mr Johnston! His leadership and ability to navigate us so safely and perfectly and without stress through London was nothing short of impressive! It was truly such a success because of his skills, calmness, patience and energy! Thank you Mr Johnston!

                         

28.06.24

This week was a little bit of an itsy bitsy one and not a full week either. We have focused on the Greatest Showman Production; Mr Johnston has been very busy continuing to choreograph the dancing routines which has been amazing and I must say we are making progress. We have also continued to work on our acting skills and further develop and perfect the scenes! Thank you again to all parents for their continued support with the show! It is greatly appreciated. Sport Day was a fantastic success too this week. Thank you to all parents who managed to buy or bake something for the fundraising cake sale! We managed to raise over £100. A special thanks to Mrs Snary, Mrs Vallance and Mrs Queck for selling and organising this event. We have started our SRE topic too and will continue this into next week. A reminder that next Thursday is our London trip and next Tuesday the children will be going to Henry Beaufort for a sports events.

 

21.06.24

We have had a fantastic week in Willow. Monday was our Victorian day which was such fun! It was a delight to see the children all dressed in their Victorian outfits and most of the day was run like a typical day in a Victorian school. The children rose admirably to the challenge. The children that misbehaved were sent to the back of the class and had the horror of wearing the dunce cap! We sang hymns, practiced handwriting on our chalk board, read out a bible verse, rehearsed our times tables, made scones and played typical Victorian outdoor games. The rest of the week has been publishing our balanced arguments, rehearsing for the greatest showman, continuing our topic on earthquakes, looking specifically on investigating the 5 deadly features of earthquakes. We have also explored body image and how social media can affect our perceptions of our own bodies and how we view ourselves. On Thursday morning, we completed our challenge of walking 61 miles as a class ( the distance between Micheldever and London) and we have raised approximately £600 from this event! This is amazing! A huge thank you to Mrs Vallance who organised and ran the event! We are so grateful for your time and input! Also a massive thank you to all parents for their continued support of our fundraising! I know Mrs Snary has raised almost £200 from our Willow Bear raffle. Willow Bear has been in Cornflowers and we have been so grateful for the window space and support from her too. Also Mrs Snary and Mrs Hornby have been selling ice-creams on Friday after school which has also brought in about £150 so far in cash and we have a couple more Friday selling to go. On Tuesday, for sports day, will be our last push to raise Money. We will be selling cakes during Sport Day. Again, thank you in advance to any parents who are able to beak something for this event!

 

14.06.24

Time seems to be suddenly racing by in Willow and so many exciting things are either happening or are on the horizon! The Year 6’s and myself have recovered from our amazing residential trip and we are now fully focused on the next five and a bit weeks! Rehearsals for The Greatest Showman are in full swing and I must say I am beginning to feel very excited (as are the children) about the production. Willow Class have all shown great commitment and determination to learn their lines and the words of the songs and Mr Johnston has become our dance choreographer which is amazing! I would like to thank the parents for their continued support and ensuring that their children, as far as possible are at rehearsals after school. I am very grateful. In English we have completed our independent writes on our balanced argument ‘are modern day children better off than children in the Victorian era’. We will be publishing these writes next week. In history, we have been focusing on Queen Victoria and looking at her long reign and life as well as putting the Victorian era into the context of the overall timeline of British history. In RE, we have focused on mosques as a sacred place and looked at how Muslims worship in these places. In art, we are looking at the famous Victorian artist Marianne North. We have so far studied her life but we will be producing art pieces taking inspiration from her work. The Year 6’s have also used Anthony Gormley as inspiration for clay modelling and will bring their pieces to the cathedral day next Friday

07.06.24

A lovely week in Willow, quiet without our wonderful year 6 but enjoyable, together with Mrs Owens the children have been creative they have designed and made a D Day scene to mark their respect. It looks fantastic! Willow have also been busy making Victorian projects ready to show year 6 next week and have designed and created a Victorian style tea dress.

                                                                    

24.05.24

With SATs over and out the way, we have been able to focus on some far more exciting topics this week. Writing is still a focus, so this week, we have researched extensively for our next writing unit which is a balanced argument discussing the statement ‘children are better off nowadays than in the Victorian Era’. From looking at articles and factual YouTube clips, the children have discovered a huge amount both about the Victorian children as well as the challenges children face these days. We are now going to put this wealth of information into a detailed plan to then support our writing of this discussion point. We have also been looking at earthquakes this week discussing tectonic plates, the 4 layers to the earth, where earthquakes occur, why they occur and what is in place to measure them as well as lessen the devastation they may cause to areas around the world. In RE we have been looking at sacred places and have had some in-depth discussions about what constitutes a sacred place. The Year 6’s have all successfully completed their Bikeability this week! Well done to all Year 6’s. Mrs Owens and Danny (the instructor) were very impressed with you all! The Greatest Showman continues in earnest too. I think we all deserve a good break, ready for another very busy half-term to come! I would like to thank all parents for their continued support whether it has been for SATs, our upcoming London Trip or Greatest Showman! It has been greatly appreciated!

 

17.05.24

What a wonderfully successful and happy week it has been. Year 6’s have completed their SATs and have done so with confidence, calmness and great maturity and determination and as a school we could not be prouder of them. It has been such fun too enjoying our breakfasts together every morning! A big thank you to Mr Johnston for cooking us delicious bacon and sausages. It was enjoyed and appreciated by all. I would also like to say a big thank you and well done to the Year 5’s! Mr Richards, Mr Jarman, Mrs Griffiths and Mrs Jackson have all reported on how helpful you have been in their classes and how well-behaved! Again, I could not be prouder of you all! Thank you! We have certainly missed the Year 5’s and are happy we are all back together as the Willow gang! SATs week has ended with some lovely art activities! Precious has demonstrated her painting skills for the rest of the class to take inspiration from and Zoe has taught us some origami skills which we will continue to perfect! We have also rightly enjoyed, as a class, a wonderful party and rounders and film! On a final note, The Greatest Showman has been cast! This is very exciting! The casting list will officially be out next week! Well done Willow.

 

10.05.24

Our final week of SATs preparation is over! Mrs Owens, Mr Johnston and myself have been so impressed by the children’s focus, commitment and determination in their learning and this is clearly demonstrated in the AMAZING progress they have all made! We are so proud of them and they can all go into their SATs week with confidence! Well done Willow Class. Our learning this week has, of course, been focused on SATs preparation again! We have had one final push in reasoning, arithmetic, grammar and spelling. We have also continued our auditions for The Greatest Showman. Some of the roles have already been cast, however, Mrs Tellet and myself will decide on the final cast list by next Friday. Auditions will therefore continue next Wednesday during school and next Thursday after school. Well done Willow on an amazing learning week! We have this! Could I ask that all parents try to ensure that their children get a decent night’s sleep on Sunday and throughout the following week. Just a reminder too, that SATs breakfast will be happening in the hall from 08:15am from Monday through to Thursday next week.

 

03.05.24

It has been another very focused week of learning for Willow Class. In maths, we have covered how to calculate the area of parallelograms and have applied this knowledge to reasoning problems. We have also looked at mean and range this week. Our knowledge of this has been applied to some very tricky Year 6 SATs questions. Alongside this, we have revisited percentage, ratio and algebra. In reading we have continued to practice our comprehension skills focusing on mainly inference style questions. We have continued to push spelling this week and review grammar on a daily basis. In English, we have completed a shared write based around the statement ‘dogs are better than cats’. Unfortunately, we were unable to run the auditions this week for The Greatest Showman’. However, we did have a go at practicing some of the scenes and I was incredibly impressed at how confident the children were and their ability to act! I am VERY much looking forward to getting really stuck into the play once SATs are over! Well done again Willow Class on another hard-working week! We are nearly there!

26.04.24

We have had a very productive week in Willow. The children have again been incredibly focused and have worked very hard. Our focus, of course, has been our continued preparation for SATs. We have less than two weeks now and then we can all breathe a sigh of relief. In maths this week, we have continued to practice our fluency skills. Alongside this, we have also covered area of quadrilaterals, area of compound shapes and area of triangles. In our reasoning review, we have covered number patterns, rounding, decimals and fractions. In English we have focused on using quotes accurately in writing and have completed a piece of writing discussing ‘why football is so popular worldwide’ ensuring that we are using quotes to support our points. In grammar, we have continued general revision and we have also had a big spelling push this week. I have been very impressed on the children’s understanding of their grammar now! Gratefully, there has been some relief from our SATs focus and we have discussed Calshot and Year 6 hoodies which the children are incredibly excited about. We also had our second after school production session where the children completed watching The Greatest Showman. Next week, we will be starting auditions! Well done Willow on again a VERY focused learning week!

 

19.04.24

Welcome back Willow to another very busy half-term! We are in full swing now with final preparations towards our SATs! We have three weeks to go! However, I have been very impressed as to how focused and well-behaved Willow Class has been this week! A very positive start to a very busy half-term! In maths, we have continued honing our arithmetic skills. We have also had an in-depth focus on angles of shapes and have tackled some very tricky reasoning problems and this has encouraged some fantastic mathematical discussions. We have also focused our reasoning on factors and multiples, BIDMAS, Roman Numerals and intervals on a number line. In English, we have started looking at balanced arguments and have looked in-depth at the features that make-up a good balanced argument. We have focused particularly on adverbials that further support arguments, counteract an argument and ones that are used in the conclusion. In guided reading, we have been looking at Greater Depth type questions and practicing those with different reading texts to continue to hone our SATs reading skills. In grammar we have revised types of verbs again and continued to practice SATs style questions. On a less academic note, we are very excited to be starting our school production! We have already watched half of The Greatest Showman and this has really started to inspire the children! Once SATs is over, we will be in full-swing with rehearsals!

 

22.03.24

What a wonderful week we have had in Willow! It has been full of art, presentations, publishing of English Writes, making tye dye bags and our exhibition day! As a class, we would like to give the parents a HUGE thank you for supporting our endeavour to raise money for the Embabazi project! We would also like to thank all parents that made cakes and cookies that were sold (they ALL looked so delicious – a BIG THANK YOU)! Thank you too to all parents that came and bought items to support the charity! Again, we are so grateful. In total we raised an outstanding £500.

The lucky winner of the raffle goes to Eilidh in Birch class.

Finally, Mrs Owens and I would like to congratulate Willow Class on the way they managed themselves during the selling and the exhibition! We were so impressed at how the children engaged with all the parents and actively helped to sell items and raise money for such a good cause! Well done Willow Class – you should all be really proud of yourselves!

   

  

15.03.24

We have had a very busy and productive week in Willow Class. In maths this week, we have focused on converting between fractions, decimals and percentages and applied these skills to tricky reasoning problems which have further broadened our understanding of this topic. We have also continued to improve our arithmetic skills through daily fluency practice. In grammar, we have focused primarily on plugging learning gaps: types of sentences, modal verbs, progressive tense and perfect tense. In English, we have finally published our Temptation Stories and I must say I am very impressed with the progress I have seen across the board in their writing! Well done Willow. Parents will be able to read these stories at the exhibition day on Thursday. In art, we have completed our batik silhouettes which are looking fantastic and these will be auctioned off as well on the exhibition day. Just a reminder that Willow Class will be selling the Embabazi Charity products. We would so appreciate any support you can give to this charity! We look forward to seeing you all on Thursday at 2pm!

 

08.03.24

We have had a very exciting week in Willow Class and a lot has been achieved. On Tuesday, we had a visit from a lady called Lauren, who is Head of Geography at Peter Symonds College, and also runs a charity called the Embabazi charity. She kindly came to talk to us not only about the charity but also about Uganda and what life in rural Uganda is like! We all learnt a huge amount and we are very grateful for her time! In maths this week, we have competed our unit of algebra! I have been very impressed as to how quickly Willow Class has taken on board this new maths concept and the children have loved using algebraic formulae to solve problems! In English, we have finished planning for our Temptation story and we start our independent writing next week! I am very excited to read their stories! World Book Day was a huge success! The costumes were fantastic and Willow Class created their own stories based on the Harris Burdick images! They were incredibly creative and I noticed some lovely use of higher-level punctuation too. In RE, we had a really interesting debate on the question, ‘Is God important to human kind’. I really enjoyed hearing both sides of the argument. Well done Willow!

                        

01.03.24

Wow, what a week Willow! The Year 6’s have survived SATs Mock Week with flying colours and the Year 5’s have survived their NFER assessments with flying colours! I am very proud of all of Willow Class. Each child has made impressive progress across the board! They have demonstrated the ability to push themselves under pressure, remain focused and calm, persevere when things may have been a little tricky and all have felt a sense of pride and achievement in what they have done this week. Mrs Owens, Mr Johnston and myself could not be more proud of you all! Not only this, we also went to Henry Beaufort for a visit and a sports session on Thursday. Each child represented Micheldever with pride. They were incredibly respectful and well-behaved and all children joined in with the badminton session with gusto and enthusiasm! Well done Willow! You certainly all deserve a rest this weekend!

       

23.02.24

Welcome back Willow to another very busy half-term! This week we have been straight back into lots of learning! In maths, we have been looking at calculating percentage of a number, division by two-digit number and we have introduced algebra this week too! I have been very impressed at the questions the children have asked and how quickly they have picked up this concept too! In English, we have continued our Temptation story. We have done a shared plan and shared write as a class and the children again have demonstrated some impressive skills in regard to the type of language chosen and the general cohesion they have created in the write. Again, I have been very impressed! In Project, we have been exploring further the Benin civilisation and we had a very long discussion about colonialism and how this has changed countries world-wide and how it was one of the causes of the collapse of the Benin civilisation. This inspired some amazing questions and debate in class surrounding this topic.

Just a reminder that next week is mock SATs week. Please could adults ensure that children get early nights next week. Also, we are going to be making some Batik inspired art and I would be most grateful if any parents have old, white sheets that they are not using that they could donate to Willow class for this art project!

 

08.02.24

Although this is a shorter week, Willow have achieved a lot! In maths, we have been focusing our fluency skills on multiplication and division of fractions and mixed numbers. In our math topics this week, we have looked at factors, multiples and prime numbers and have applied this knowledge to reasoning problems. We have also looked at factor trees to find the prime factors of a given number. In English, we have looked at speech and speech punctuation which will form part of our innovative write for our temptation story. We have focused specifically on showing what a character may be doing or feeling through the speech tags. We have also looked at name – adjective and adjective – pair sentences and the children have written some beautiful descriptive paragraphs using the model text as a guide and incorporating expanded noun phrases, well chosen verbs and adverbs and tell: show; 3 example sentences. I have been very impressed by their writing and they are definitely pushing themselves. In worship, we have been speaking about the importance of trust. We have continued with our adaptation unit in science. In RE, we have looked at the similarities and differences between Muslims and Christians. I hope all of Willow have a wonderfully relaxing half-term! I look forward to seeing everyone back for a busy next half-term!

 

19.01.24

Willow have enjoyed another week of learning: In Maths, children have completed their geometry unit and demonstrated all that they have learned by creating a knowledge organiser. We are going to use some of these to support us with SATs revision later in the term. In English, children have produced some outstanding 'practice' writing based on a mythical creature and have designed their very own ready to complete their final write next week. In RE, children read prayers, song lyrics and Bible verses to list the names and adjectives Christians use for God. We then used the ones we found to create a Word Cloud. In Science, we learned all about the adaptations and life cycle of a giraffe and have acquired some technical vocabulary to use in our English writing! 

 

 12.01.24

We have had another brilliant week of learning in Willow Class and have managed to squeeze such a lot of learning in! In Maths, we have been drawing 2D shapes and then applying this to translating on a co-ordinate plane. Children have such superb knowledge of this and have really impressed us. In English, children have planned their 'practice write' based on a mythical creature - Willow are so imaginative and have generated some really fantastic ideas. We are really looking forward to seeing how this will inform their writing. In addition to this, we have started our new Science unit classifying animals, have described the meaning of God in RE and have continued our Project learning with Miss Quast! ‘

 

05.01.24

Happy New Year and welcome to Miss Quast. Willow have had a brilliant start to the term and have enjoyed getting to know their new teacher. Willow have spent time recording their perceptions of Africa and have used teachers’ experiences of African countries to challenge these and have developed their locational knowledge of the continent with some atlas work. In Maths, children have completed some amazing work on 3D shape and are now confidently using vocabulary to describe them. In English, children have been unpicking the features of a non-chronological report ready for a ‘Safari Adventure’! Stay tuned! 

 

15.12.23

Willow have had a lovely end to the term. Children have identified several poetic features in a variety of Christmas poems, which has inspired them to write their own in English. Children have been exploring what 'interpretation' means in RE and have learned that the Christmas story we know so well is a combination of two interpretations in the gospels of Matthew and Luke. In Science, children have learned a little bit about the shape of the Earth and the phases of the moon. Of course, the highlight for us all was our 'Christmas Day' with shopping, hat making, Christmas lunch, hot chocolate and stories with Santa! Nowhere does Christmas quite like Micheldever! Wishing you all a happy, healthy and restful Christmas. I look forward to seeing you again in the new year.

 

08.12.23

Willow have had another enjoyable week in the classroom. This week, we have learned about Leonardo Da Vinci and have looked more closely at some of his most famous paintings; 'The Last Supper' and 'The Mona Lisa'. Children were given the very challenging job of re-creating a small segment of 'The Mona Lisa' to create a class version! I am impressed with how the children persevered. In Science, children investigated levers, pulleys and gears with Mrs Griffiths and enjoyed seeing them in action in a Rube Goldberg machine! In English, we have published our letters to King Charles and have begun a Christmas poetry unit - these are going to be beautiful! In Maths, children have applied their learning about time to interpreting timetables. 

                                 

01.12.23

Willow have had a slightly different week to usual as they have undertaken their Mock SATs! I have been so impressed with the mature attitude children have taken towards them and the hard work they have demonstrated. In addition to these, children have written to King Charles in English; have continued their learning about time in Maths; have learned about Leonardo da Vinci in art; the diamond formation in rugby AND friction in Science! What a busy week! A highlight however has got to be our Starazing evening. We timed it perfectly with a break in the clouds where we were able to see the plough! A lovely way to end the week. 

                    

          

24.11.23

Willow have had another exciting week; children have started writing letters of persuasion to King Charles and have made tremendous progress in their Maths learning on finding percentages of amounts. They have learned a little more about the meaning of 'Interpretation' in RE to kick start a new unit and have explored the difference between mass and weight in Science. A highlight however, was our DT learning. Children have begun designing and making a parachute to safely transport an egg to the ground without cracking! Children enjoyed the auction where they had to think carefully about budgeting for their resources. We look forward to testing these next week. 

 

17.11.23

Willow have had another exciting week in school. They received a mission from some extra-terrestrial beings, who wanted to find out more about our Solar System. The children collaborated excellently well together to create some beautiful models of the Solar System using their existing knowledge. We really look forward to building on this in the coming term. In English and Guided Reading, we have been reading the picture book, 'Hidden Figures, which we have really enjoyed. We have been using the skill of inference to get to know the characters and have used persuasive techniques to practice writing letters to advocate for the characters we have grown to love. Children have also enjoyed some tag rugby in PE.

         

     

10.11.23

Willow have had another exciting time following their travels last week! We had some post arrive for us from NASA on Wednesday, persuading us to take part in their induction programme! Accompanying the letter were some images, which we have tried to make sense of and hope our class novel, 'Hidden Figures', will help us with this. In Maths, we have revised fractions of amounts and have made excellent progress in this area. I have been so impressed by the confidence displayed by lots of Willow children at our talent show this week and look forward to seeing how children's confidence continues to develop throughout the term. Thank you to all Willow parents for your time at Parent Consultations this week.

                      

20.1023

Willow have had a fantastic half term of learning - I don't know where the time has gone! This week, children have started writing their own persuasive flyers for American cities they have researched in Geography and are excited to complete these in the new half term and hear feedback from a local travel agency! I have been super impressed with children's attitudes in Maths, where they have worked tremendously hard to secure methods of division this week and all made fantastic progress. We have investigated the impact of air resistance in an experiment involving cupcake cases (!) and children have enjoyed preparing for their 'roadtrip' around the USA. It has also been lovely to see children's confidence grow in netball this term and see them apply their new skills to several matches this week. Have a wonderful break. 

13.10.23

What another great week of learning! This week, Willow enjoyed a walk around Micheldever in English, which we used to gather ideas to include in our persuasive writing, advertising the village as a holiday destination! In Maths, all children have made tremendous progress in written methods of multiplication, with most managing to multiply a four-digit number by a two-digit number! Well done, everyone! In Geography, we have enjoyed gathering information in preparation for our 'road trip' around the USA and have applied our knowledge of air resistance to planning an investigation in Science. 

                         

06.10.23

We have really enjoyed our learning in Willow this week. We have been exploring multiples and factors in Maths and thinking about how we could use a methodical strategy to help us find all the factors of a given number. In English, we have had great fun text-mapping, learning and putting actions to a new text as well as defining some of its more advanced vocabulary in readiness for our new unit. In RE, we debated some controversial statements about the relevance of the wisdom contained by the Bible and Qur'an today and in Science, we loved learning about air resistance. Children started by 'feeling' the force for themselves by running with large card across the playground! 

       

   

29.09.23

Willow have squeezed in such a lot of learning this week! In Maths, we began a unit exploring multiplication. We did this by revising 'area' and applying to finding the area of composite shapes, which we have found very satisfying! In English, we have finished our beautiful stories and have taken the time to edit them to make them the best they can possibly be. We have done LOTS of SPaG and have revised prepositions using cuddly toys! We are also busy preparing for a 'road trip' around the USA - we have planned our route and have started researching what we hope to see on our travels! 

                  

22.09.23

Willow have had another brilliant week of learning. We have worked hard to master methods of addition and subtraction in Maths and have applied these to solving word problems and to calculating the perimeter of 2D shapes. In English, children have started their own stories based on the picture book, The Arrival. The progress children have made in their writing is amazing and I look forward to sharing the stories with you later in the term. We have established some good routines with ‘SPaG Fast Four’ and with our guided reading, where we have focused on the skill of retrieval. In RE, we have explored words of wisdom in the Qur’an and children enjoyed their first enrichment session on Tuesday afternoon

15.09.23

Willow have had another fantastic week- we have squeezed in such a lot of learning! In Maths, we have used our knowledge of rounding to calculate answers to addition and subtraction problems mentally and have also revised written methods. In English, we have produced some beautiful writing retelling Shaun Tann’s, The Arrival. Year 5’s have learned what ‘relative clauses’ are and we have revised how to punctuate dialogue correctly. Not only that but we have explored water resistance in Science, types of pass in netball and E-safety in computing.

                           

08.09.23

Hello and welcome back! What a fantastic start to the term Willow have had - they have been a delight to teach and I am really looking forward to the term ahead. We began our project launch by using the contents of old suitcases to make inferences about characters. This has inspired some story writing in English and we have been exploring the place value of 5, 6 and 7 digit numbers in Maths. I have been particularly impressed by the Year 5's who have really risen to that challenge! We have considered 'Words of Wisdom' in RE and grappled with lines of longitude and latitude in geography!

                    

                

21.07.23

Please see our leavers video below. Well done Year 6 and good luck!

 

14.07.23

This week we have had a packed week with lots of maths revision, narrative writing and publishing our reflections ready to be read by parents in the end of year reports.  In Music, we continued to make our original pieces of music inspired by Debbie Wiseman.  For Greek day we researched Greek salads and in groups made our own.  We had a great time on sports day and Willow class celebrated Bastille Day (14th July) in class.

                             

                               

07.07.23

This week we have been working on mental maths and doing sums of up to 5 digits in our heads! We’ve continued to work on our reflective piece of writing which will go into the school reports.  Our art work in year 5 has been phenomenal- we created large pictures of Athena, Zeus and Poseidan using watercolours, chalk and tissue paper.  We have also consolidated our learning of the circulatory system and the heart by making a large interactive display for children to try out.  

 

30.06.23

We had an amazing day out on Tuesday at Henry Beaufort where we took part in a sports festival with five other schools.  We came very close to winning on multiple occasions and it has really inspired us to be more active and continue working in teams!  This was further built on the following day when we had a big year 5 and 6 PE skills and team building session on Wednesday. Furthermore, this week we have continued our work in geometry and started reviewing long multiplication.  In English we have been reflecting on the past year and after lots of discussions and planning, we have started writing up our reflections.  In Music we are beginning to make soundscapes to express our feelings and we are looking at what makes a good life as part of our RE learning and using the time to reflect on our Christian values.

                   

      

23.06.23

Hawthorn and Willow have enjoyed working together to rehearse the first two scenes of their end of term production this week. We have been impressed by children's enthusiasm! Please do try to support your child with learning lines at home as well as finding an appropriate costume. In English, Y6 have worked hard to write a reflective piece on their last year of primary and Y5's have been refining their grammar to support their editing skills. In Maths, both classes have moved on to geometry units of learning and this has included some beautiful Mandala patterns outside Willow! In RE, children have moved on to exploring the question, "What makes a good life?" and have considered some of the contributions the Greeks have made to our lives today in Project.

                            

                    

                     

16.06.23

Hawthorn and Willow have had a very hot week of learning this week! Year 6 have enjoyed being back in school and retelling stories of their residential experience at Calshot. This has led to some diary writing, which we hope to share with the Year 5's in preparation for next year's visit! In Maths, both classes have been revising fractions: Year 6's have looked at fractions as division and Year 5's have been multiplying fractions by whole numbers - we have been very impressed by children's learning. Children have enjoyed playing tennis in PE, thinking about the concept of submission in RE and beginning our new music unit. We are excited to begin our production practice and Year 6 have been drumming in preparation for their 'Cathedral Day' today.

                            

      

09.06.23

This week in Willow class we are revisiting fractions and are becoming increasingly confident in comparing and ordering fractions. We have been studying The Odyssey by Homer and we have read about lots of different mythical creatures like the Sirens, Scylla and Circe the enchantress amongst many others.  We have continued with our clay sculptures which Mr Ali has been very impressed by and in our class worship assemblies we have discussed trust and forgiveness.

08.06.23

 Calshot, day four:
What did it have in store?
Well, we started the day on fun boats -
You'll be pleased to hear we all stayed afloat! 
 
From orange buoy to white buoy,
we sailed and enjoyed.
Time to seek land and get ourselves changed,
as a trip to the gift shop had been arranged!
Next up, orienteering in the hangar,
For our top three, room points were gathered!
Then, the long-awaited ringo-
very few went solo! 
Zooming down the slopes,
just as we had hoped.
Finally, epic engineering
A feat of creative thinking.
A film night and popcorn-
Staff trying not to yawn(!)
A sunset walk to end the day
Tomorrow, we'll be on our way!

07.06.23

Calshot, day three:

Yippee!

Started off with an initiative course;

dark tunnels, seesaws and more.

We encouraged our peers, 

conquered fears.

 

Next up, team swing!

You ask, what did that bring?

Higher and higher into the sky-

released; flying high.

Harnesses on and helmets clipped,

our stomachs did the occasional flip!

 

After lunch, a trip to the velodrome-

a bit of a challenge, but no children moaned!

Riding around in a circular loop

We all did so well - the whole group!

Then, we changed into cleats,

Before a final footwear swap into skis!

 

Activity number three:

we learnt how to ski!

Building upon skills from lesson one,

Using a ski lift? Job done! 

Hot and sweaty on the slopes,

A shower was our only hope! 

 

Day almost done,

Lots of room points won,

it was time for the Tudor castle.

From the top, watching the boats travel

and building bridges with paper.

Such a busy day! Early night? No brainer!

 

 

 

06.06.23

What a day, with lots of water! This morning we had a gentle start with outdoor orienteering and some great teamwork. After a snack, we headed onto the beach for some wildlife discovery, finding several crabs, cuttlefish, razor clams, some beautiful driftwood and... A sock! Among many other species.

After lunch was when things got wet! After kitting out in wetsuits and buoyancy aids, we headed out on kayaks exploring the luscious seawater in the cove of the Calshot spit. More crabs and cuttlefish were spotted! After changing and drying, we got dinner, but things didn't stay dry for long.. as we headed to one of the hangars for Rushing Rockets. Teams designed different water filled rockets to launch up into and along the hangar. Dozens of launches, a few hit roofs and plenty of shots on target later, a fair bit of the water splashed back on the teams.

We then had our nighttime routine, some stunning rubix cube action and bedtime!
                                  
                           

5.06.23

Climbing and skiing:

Calshot, day one.

Testing our limits,

We had heaps of fun!

 

The glorious sun,

shone over our time

A picnic lunch to fill our tums,

Feeling just fine!

 

An egg drop to end the day,

How far will they fly?

Now it’s time to hit the hay,

Tomorrow, we’ll give more things a try!

25.05.23

Willow and Hawthorn have had a great end to what has been a very busy half term! Year 6's have revised translation and reflection in Maths this week and Year 5 have been learning how to read and interpret line graphs. In English, both classes have begun a new unit of narrative writing inspired by the two picture books, 'Journey' and 'Illiad and the Odyssey'. Children have learned about the parts and function of the heart as well as the positive impact of exercise on our bodies in Science and Year 6's have learned about the Battle of Troy, the Trojan Horse and the evidence (or sometimes lack of!) to prove it. Some of the UKS2 children have worked hard in the Travellers' Garden, where we now have tomatoes, carrots and broccoli growing! Yum! 

 

19.05.23

We have had another super week in Upper Key Stage 2! In English, Year 6's have started some really amazing writing on the Greek deity they created and have accompanied this writing with clay busts and digital art work inspired by the illustrations in the book, 'Mythologica'. Year 5 have worked hard publishing these and have started a new unit of story writing. In Maths, Year 6's have been revising how to solve calculations involving fractions and Year 5 have worked hard to master written methods of division. Children have learned about the components of blood in Science and have used a painting to decipher what the ancient Greeks believed about the afterlife in Project and the significance of the Quran in RE.

                                         

12.05.23

A HUGE 'Well Done' to our lovely Year 6's, who have worked tremendously hard on their KS2 SATs this week. When children have not been sitting papers, they have enjoyed plenty of PE and designing and making clay busts of their own Greek gods and goddesses. We look forward to sharing these with you at our exhibition of learning! Thank you to our Year 5 children, who have been so considerate of the timetable changes this week. They too, have been looking at the work of Greek sculptor and architect, Phidias, and have designed their own bust ready for making with clay in art. In Maths, children have been revising methods of multiplication and division and have worked hard to write their non-chronological reports on a Greek god or goddess that they have designed in English.

     

05.05.23

It's been another busy week in Willow and Hawthorn classes this week. The children have continued to write at the 'innovate' stage of their non-chronological report unit based on an invented Greek God. The children have really focused on using the key features of these reports. In maths, Hawthorn have been getting their heads around the tricky concept of squared and cubed numbers. Willow have been having fun with drawing 2d shapes and then finding the co-ordinates of the vertices - very tricky! Nest week, Hawthorn class will be working through their SATs papers each morning. We know that are so well-prepared and that they will do brilliantly. We wish them the very best of luck.

28.04.23

Willow and Hawthorn have had a great week of learning and have enjoyed getting to know Mr Robinson, our new Year 5 teacher. Children have worked hard in English, where they have begun producing non-chronological reports about ancient Greek gods. In Maths, Year 6's have revised factors, multiples and prime numbers and children have done a great job identifying patterns to support with this. Year 5's have begun a unit on geometry looking at points and shapes on a co-ordinate grid. We've begun a unit looking at the concept of 'submission' in RE, where children have considered its definition in preparation for future learning. Finally, in Project, children have explored the features of Greek temples and have begun to think about how we could replicate one in our classrooms!

                  

21.04.23

We have had a brilliant first week of summer term. Year 6 started the week by undertaking their bike ability. Children were exhausted by Tuesday afternoon but the certificates and badges they received made it all worthwhile. Children have begun their new Project based on the enquiry question, 'How are ancient Greek ideas evident in our lives today?'. They have enjoyed researching each of the Greek gods and goddesses and have thought creatively about how they can present their learning in the form of a shrine. We hope to show you photographs in next week's newsletter. Our project has filtered into our English too, as children have been exploring some of the texts in 'Mythologica'; an encyclopedia  of Greek gods, monsters and mortals! Both Hawthorn and Willow are sad to see Mrs Wright go this afternoon, but wish her all the best in her new role.

          

31.03.23

Children have had a fantastic end to what has been a busy term. Year 5's have been learning about factors and multiples and applying this knowledge to prime and square numbers while Year 6's have been revising how to multiply fractions by whole numbers in Maths. Both classes have written some fantastic persuasive letters to Mr Johnston in English and have applied their knowledge to separating mixtures in Science. A highlight for both classes was testing the 'Flood Proof' homes children produced in DT earlier in the term. This has helped children reflect on what worked well and what could be improved about their designs in future.

      

  

24.03.23

This week Willow and Hawthorn have been working hard to make their narratives the best they can possibly be by editing carefully and typing them up on the new laptops. We're sure they will look amazing when they are printed out. Hawthorn have been exploring algebra in maths while Willow class have learnt all about long multiplication; these are really tricky topics and Mrs Wright and Mrs Webber have been super impressed with how well everyone has done. In RE, we have continued examining the story of the resurrection and what that means to Christians, and we have created our assemblage pieces based on the work of Betye Saar

17.03.23

Willow and Hawthorn have continued to work hard this week, especially the Year 6's, who have completed their second round of Mock SATs. A particular well done to Hawthorn class for trying their best! Children have continued their writing in English - we are looking forward to finishing and publishing our stories next week to show you at our Class Exhibitions. In Maths, children have been using algebra to solve problems (!) and have worked effectively with partners in art to design a piece inspired by Betye Saar. We would appreciate your support in gathering materials your child requires. Hawthorn class have also set up a Science investigation to remind us of the processes of evaporation and condensation and have enjoyed their football in PE.

         

10.03.23

Hawthorn and Willow have had another busy week of learning. Children have worked hard to make changes to their stories based on the picture book 'Flood' in English, thinking particularly about how to convey character using dialogue and how to increase pace and tension for the reader. In Maths, Year 5's have revised adding and subtracting fractions and Year 6's have been converting between different units of metric and imperial measure. Children were introduced to the idea of reversible and irreversible changes in Science and used PE equipment to create their own assemblage pieces in the style of Betye Saar in art. In Project, children have learned how deforestation all the way over in the Amazon rainforest can impact us here in Micheldever!

       

       

03.03.23

This week Willow and Hawthorn have had a great time writing narratives to the story Flood, a book with no words! We have also explored 3D shapes in maths, and looking at the relationship to volume and capacity with some intriguing investigations. In art, we have learnt about the artist Betye Saar and created beautiful profiles about her and her work. 

10.02.23

This week Willow and Hawthorn have researched animals from the Amazon rainforest in order to create explanation texts about their life cycles. We've seen some beautiful work so far! This has been supported by our geography work in Project as we continue to explore South America. In maths, we have been dipping back into some statistics topics, including line graphs and information tables, as well as looking at negative numbers. We have also really enjoyed looking at Islamic rites of passage such as the Aqiqah naming ceremony in RE. 

             

03.02.23

Willow and Hawthorn have had a great week at school. Children have continued to work hard on using addition and subtraction to solve problems and have used their knowledge of rounding to make estimations. Year 6's moved on to applying to describing number sequences and even used algebra! Some brilliant writing about Boa Constrictors has also taken place, where children have independently applied many of the features of an explanation text. Both classes have enjoyed using the apparatus in PE, where Mr Wallace challenged them with a 'Ninja Warrior' course around the hall. We also had fun applying our knowledge of the rainforest layers by adding to the displays in our classrooms; and testing the hardness of different wood types in Science. 

                       

            

27.01.23

This week, Willow and Hawthorn have brought all the exciting things they've learnt about South American countries in project to diary writing in English, creating some really creative entries imagining their own road trip. We have also stretched ourselves with challenging mental maths focusing on addition and subtraction. In R.E, we have continued our work on rites of passage by learning about the Hajj, and in P.E we have had a thrilling time doing gymnastics on the apparatus. Well done as well to those in our classes who took part in the cross-country event this week; despite the cold and the mud, they all did fantastically! 

          

20.01.23

Willow and Hawthorn have had another great week. In Maths, children have started a new unit on geometry and have revised how to measure and draw angles using a protractor. Year 6 children have applied this to constructing their own pie charts! Children have reached the end of their unit on Ode writing and have produced some beautiful poems on Rainforest fruits in English. We are looking forward to seeing what they remember of diary writing next week. Children have also enjoyed researching South American countries in preparation for our 'Road Trip' and had fun in PE, where they were practicing dismounts off the gym equipment. A particular well done to the boys who represented our school so well at the Football Tournament on Wednesday - you should all be proud of the sportsmanship and good spirit you showed.

                      

             

13.01.23

In Willow and Hawthorn this week, we have really grown in confidence with fractions, decimals and percentages. Some of us have also looked at percentages of amounts, which is brilliant work! We have also compared lots of poems and started to create our own poem based on food from the Amazon rainforest in English, linking in with our Geography topic of South America. In science, we have explored the differences between natural and synthetic materials, and PE we have been having tremendous fun with Samba, a dance from Brazil, and gymnastics. In RE, we all strongly made our cases for rites of passage to the PM. 

       

06.01.23

Willow and Hawthorn have made a flying start to the Spring Term. Children have been learning in the rainforest(!) and have used clues in some mysterious postcards to deduce our topic for the next term: we will be exploring what life is like in South America to help us answer the question, 'How is Our World Changing?' In Maths, children have begun a unit exploring fraction, decimal and percentage equivalence and have used their knowledge of poetic features to unpick Pablo Neruda's 'Ode to My Socks' in English. Children are busy planning and writing their own odes about their own socks! We look forward to sharing the results with you! In RE, children have looked at key milestones in their lives as part of a new unit exploring rites of passage .

        

16.12.22

Willow and Hawthorn have had a great end to the term. They have produced some beautiful Christmas poetry to round off their English unit of work. Children have tried hard to convert between units of measure when solving problems and have practiced adding perspective to their sketches in art. Of course, the highlight of our week had to be Thursday, when we enjoyed shopping for our loved ones, practicing singing for our Christmas service, our Christmas lunch and stories with Father Christmas! We have enjoyed a fantastic term of learning and thank you for your continued support. Have a wonderful Christmas and we look forward to seeing you in 2023!

                                             

09.12.22

Willow and Hawthorn have had a wonderful week. In maths we have continued our work on measurement, exploring converting units and even thinking about things like the imperial measurement and fractions of measurement. In English, we have created some beautiful poetry inspired by The Christmas Truce by Carole Ann Duffy. In project, we have started pulling together our presentations to really show off what we have learnt this term, and in art we are using the work of war-time artist Henry Moore to inspire our own creations with a focus on perspective and tone. 

       

    

02.12.22

Hawthorn’s week has been a little unusual this week, as children have undertaken their mock SATS week. Year 6 should be proud of their hard work. Well done, guys. Year 5 have worked hard in Maths to convert between units of measure; a tricky skill to grasp, and children in both year groups have begun their new poetry unit in English. In the afternoons, children have worked well to complete their moving WWII toys- they have required lots of resilience and working together to complete; the perfect opportunity to demonstrate our learning powers! 

 

25.11.22

Willow and Hawthorn have worked hard this week. Children have practiced reading a co-ordinate grid and have moved on to translating and reflecting shapes. In English, children have worked exceptionally well to independently plan and write stories inspired by 'The Harmonica'. Mrs Webber and Ms Wright are so excited to read the final versions and we look forward to sharing them with you next week. Children have continued their learning in RE, considering what Christians and Muslims think about God's power and children have generated some amazing questions in response to this. Our wooden toys are coming along nicely and we have enjoyed investigating shadows in Science.

                      

                     

18.11.22

Years 5 and 6 have worked hard again this week. Children have considered how they can portray character in their stories through description and dialogue. They’re almost ready to begin writing their own stories next week. We are sure they are going to be spectacular! In Maths, children have begun a new unit on geometry and have used protractors carefully to measure and draw angles. Year 6’s have also gone on to apply this to drawing 2D shapes! A tricky skill to master! Children have continued assembling the wooden frames for their WW2 toys in DT and enjoyed exploring the lines of incidence and reflection in Science. They have also explored the major events of WW2 and how it came to an end, learning about The Battle of Britain and D-Day. 

                  

        

11.11.22

This week Willow and Hawthorn have been looking at telling the time in Maths with both analogue and digital clocks. Children have worked hard to apply this knowledge to solving time problems. Children have also been exploring the use of figurative language and describing settings in English, using the story 'The Harmonica' which links to our ongoing topic. Some of the writing is beautiful! In Science, we have been investigating the reflectiveness of different materials and have used knowledge of their properties to explain the results, and have got creative with some woodwork in DT and digital poppy art for Remembrance.

 

04.11.22

We have had a wonderful start to the new half term! Year 5's have continued with their learning on fractions and Year 6's have applied this to finding percentages of amounts in Maths. Children have enjoyed reading 'The Harmonica' in English and have been inspired by the images and descriptive features to retell the story in their own words. We have been so impressed with what the children have written so far and look forward to seeing where the unit will take us next. We have tried our hands at wood work in DT this week, making a frame for a toy inspired by WWII; explored the concept of power in RE; continued looking at the impact of WWII on families in Europe; and have identified that light travels in straight lines in Science. A very busy week! 

             

       

21.10.22

We have had a very eventful week in upper key stage 2! We started the week over at Barton Stacey for a WW2 workshop! We enjoyed listening to Warden Parsons and handling the many different artefacts he brought with him. Later in the week, we welcomed a member of the Hebrew Congregation to Micheldever, who spoke with us about the Jewish faith, particularly the festivals that are celebrated throughout the year . We really enjoyed trying on (and tasting!) some of the objects he brought with him.  Children have worked hard to secure their understanding of equivalent fractions in Maths and have demonstrated what they know of persuasive writing. We had an exciting end to the week too - children used their knowledge of electrical circuits to design and build an intruder alarm that Anne Frank could have used in her annexe! We look forward to more fun and learning after half term. Have a restful week.

       

14.10.22

Willow and Hawthorn have had another great week of learning. Children have written some brilliant newspaper reports on the events of Kristallnacht in English and  have used formal written methods for division– some children have even mastered long division!!. In RE , children have enjoyed researching Jewish festivals and have investigated the conductivity of metals in Science. We are really looking forward to visiting Barton Stacey on Monday!

 

07.10.22

Willow and Hawthorn have had another super week of learning. In Maths, children have worked hard to find multiples and factors of numbers in the new unit of multiplication and division and in English, we have worked together on a newspaper report applying our historical knowledge of Kristallnacht - this is still a work in progress but we have been impressed by children's application of grammatical features so far. Children have had great fun in PE with Mr Wallace exploring the importance of marking in defence and have investigated electrical conductors and insulators in Science.

             

30.09.22

Willow and Hawthorn have made fantastic progress in their learning this week. In maths, children have applied their existing skills in multiplication and division to calculate area of rectilinear shapes. In English, we have applied our history knowledge of Kristallnacht to begin exploring writing newspaper articles, preparing to write our own examples. In Science, we have examined different types of switches for our circuits. In P.E, we have continued developing our basketball skills, particularly in cross-dribbling. Finally, we had an amazing time tasting apples and honey in celebration of Rosh Hashanah, or Jewish New Year.

                        

         

23.09.22

Willow and Hawthorn have had another brilliant week of learning. Children have worked hard to apply their skills in addition and subtraction to calculating the perimeter of composite rectilinear shapes in Maths. In English, we have loved writing from the perspective of Anne Frank and particularly enjoyed making freeze frames to support us with this. In Science, we have enjoyed investigating the impact of cells and components on the success of circuits and considered our responses to the concept of belonging in R.E. In class worships this week, we have talked about 'Democracy' and what makes a good school councillor.

                

                 

16.09.22

Willow & Hawthorn–Hello! Willow and Hawthorn have had a fantastic week of learning where we have started to explore the difficult situations families in war time Europe found themselves in, examining how and why Anne Frank and her family went into hiding. We have developed our diary writing skills by writing passages from Anne's point of view, getting to know her as a character through our guided reading. We’ve also worked hard in maths; using column addition and subtraction to solve problems using large numbers; and continued exploring circuits in science.  

                        

09.09.22

Hello and welcome back! Willow and Hawthorn have had a great first week of learning where we have begun an enquiry into how WWII impacted the lives of families in Europe. A bizarre scene awaited the children on Monday: a desk and its contents had been trashed and children were tasked with trying to find out who it belonged to! Some investigating revealed that the desk (and an accompanying diary) were that of Anne Frank’s! We have taken inspiration from her writing and have started creating diary entries of our own in English; we’ve worked hard to secure our place value knowledge of large numbers in Maths; and had fun creating circuits in Science.

                  

        

Goodbye from the Year 6 (and staff!)

15.07.2022

Willow have had a fantastic final full week of term. They have written some lovely autobiographies accompanied with some very cute baby photos! In Maths, they have revised the vocabulary of geometry and used clues to draw shapes. They have continued to show a mature approach in PSHE and have learned how cast and impression fossils are formed in Science. A highlight for us all however, was Willow's production of 'Olivia'. I'm sure those of you who attended this afternoon will agree that they have done an absolutely phenomenal job! Thank you for all of your help in sourcing costumes and for your ongoing support this year. Have a safe, healthy and restful summer and I look forward to welcoming back Year 5's in September!

     

      

08.07.2022

Willow have had another excellent week. In Maths, we have continued our learning in geometry and have made tremendous progress in using a protractor to both measure and draw angles. In English, children have brought in some lovely photographs (thank you for your help!) and have used these to inspire some autobiographical writing. We have used Mary Anning's autobiography to support us in this and look forward to writing our final versions. In Science, Willow have classified fossils and considered what they can tell us about past life; we enjoyed a visit from Henry Beaufort's Monsieur Leggatt in French; and have learned how to use Excel to display data. Our production of 'Olivia' is looking good! Please make sure your ticket requests and costumes are in as soon as possible.

                 

01.07.2022

Willow have worked exceptionally hard this week. We have written fantastic playscripts in English and have been able to reflect on the progress they have made throughout this unit of writing. In Maths, children have revised their knowledge of angles to calculate unknown angles and have practiced their summarising skills in guided reading. Children have explored the 5 pillars of Islam in RE to consider how Muslims feel part of their community; have explored Spreadsheets in computing; and have taken an incredibly mature approach to their learning in Jigsaw. 

           

24.06.2022

We have managed to squeeze in SO much learning this week! In Maths, we have worked hard to solve problems involving ratio and proportion and enjoyed getting to know the characters of Bill and Nancy in English. This has helped children in their playscript writing, where they have worked hard to try and convey character through dialogue and stage directions. Wednesday was particularly exciting as children experienced what school was like for Victorian children at the time. We did our arithmetic practice on slates and used an abacus to support our understanding of ratio in Maths as well as investigated the invertebrates that occupy the churchyard in Science. Children were unsure of Mrs Webber and Mr Johnston, as they were especially strict, but thankfully all children managed to avoid the cane!! Since then, children have worked hard to explore the concept of 'Community' from an Islamic context and have practiced their production. Please encourage your child to be learning their lines - this makes a huge different to rehearsals.

                        

17.06.2022

Willow have had a brilliant first week back together after last week's residential. Year 6 enjoyed sharing photos of Calshot with Year 5, especially the video of Mrs Webber on the team swing! Children have revised fraction, decimal and percentage equivalence this week in Maths and have applied this skill to contextual problems. I have been very impressed with how children have approached this - some of it has been rather tricky! In English, we have begun a unit on playscript writing and considered the importance of stage directions in particular. This has supported with our first rehearsals of our production, 'Olivia'! You are in for a treat! A reminder that this coming Wednesday is our Victorian day, where children are encouraged to come in dressed as Victorians! 

         

        

10.06.2022

Willow have had a super week this week. Year 6 have thoroughly enjoyed their residential at Calshot, where they have enjoyed lots of activities including climbing, sailing, kayaking, archery and shooting! Well done to Year 5, who’ve worked hard with Mr Johnston and Mrs Owens this week. They have written biographies of Victorian inventors and honed their fraction skills! 

Residential updates

Day four

 

The morning begun with glorious sun, and a birthday breakfast, for a special one.

 

Quite at home on the range, 

our bulls-eyes in sight.

shooting stars we became,

With our rifles held tight.

 

A mid morning break,

Sitting on the sea wall

Then off to the hangar

To stack crates so tall

 

So crate stacking next

Building the tallest of towers

Fantastic team work

And victory was ours!

 

Back onto the water

With kayaking galore

The wind was so strong

it blew us to shore.

 

No need to fear

we didn’t want to turn back!

Us being us

We gave it crack after crack!

 

Our last evening of fun

Called for ringos downhill

All joined up together

With plenty of thrills!

Day Three

Calshot, day three!

How fantastic it will be!

 

First, adventure in the woods at Spratsdown,

We used maps to find our way around.

 

Next, we needed to stop,

So we made a beeline for the on-site shop!

 

Time for the team swing -

What fun it will bring!

 

Second session on the slopes,

Made it to the top, just like we'd hoped.

 

Looking forward to this evening-

'Epic Engineering!'

 

Prepared for another good night's sleep-

These memories, we will keep. 

 

 

Day Two

Hip, hop hooray, it’s sailing day
The the sea is flat, the wind’s okay!
Yellow Fun Boat’s the name, fun is it’s nature,
‘Hop aboard me Hearties’, we’ll see you lot later!

To the water we flew, like a bird in the air.
We were heard to exclaim as we sailed off in pairs…
“What a great morning task, we’re so glad we all came,
Regular school work now seems boring and tame!

Despite this great task we were soon climbing walls,
Not in annoyance but, with rope and other tools.
Some were like spiders scuttling up quick,
Others more considered, not missing a trick.

Whilst climbing in groups others skied or shot arrows
As yesterday’s time was just far too narrow.
To the castle tonight for Tudor Twilight tasks,
A step back through time- a blast from the past!

 

Day One

Initiative and skiing to start the day.
We’re ready, eager-we’re here to play!
Initiative by name, initiative we used
There’s no place on the course to be confused.

Swinging to safety, scaling walls,
Traversing ‘The Tunnel’, balancing seesaws.
Onto the archery, arrows at the ready!
A strong arm required to hold them steady.

After all this, it went down hill quickly!
With boots, skis and helmets, so fast we felt sickly!
For a first lesson session, the slopes remained low.
Next time we wear this gear, we’ll all be ski pros!

Rushing rockets this evening we launch from the beach.
As far as our dreams the vessels may reach?
Goodbye to day one, so quick it has passed.
On to day two-long may it last!

27.05.2022

Willow have had a lovely end to this half term. They have produced some fantastic writing from the perspective of Dodger in English and have worked hard to solve multi-step problems in Maths. In Project, children presented their posters and winners were announced: special well done to Jude, Hannah, Amelia, Esther, Eva and Millie for their hard work. Children have also used coding in the programme, 'Scratch' to create a Victorian music box and have especially enjoyed the added excitement of holding chicks, making scones for the Jubilee and receiving their parts for the end of year production! Have a happy half term everybody!

       

20.05.2022

Another wonderful week in Willow. We have been brushing up on our mental arithmetic methods for the four operations, particularly scaling and compensation. In English, we have had great fun writing persuasively from the perspective of Oliver Twist's, Fagin! We have enjoyed reading them aloud with the slang and colloquial language modelled in the book and look forward to applying the same skills when writing as Dodger! In RE, we have begun to explore the concept of stewardship and children have considered their own experiences of being entrusted with something special. Finally, children enjoyed a Drama workshop and even golf in PE!

                                  

                            

13.05.2022

A HUGE WELL DONE AND CONGRATULATIONS to our lovely Year 6's, who completed their SATs assessments this week. I hope you are as proud of yourselves as we are of you. Thank you too to the Year 5's for working flexibly and considerately in support of their peers this week. In addition to the assessments, we have completed some fantastic discursive writing about the Victorian workhouse and whether or not it was a place of hope or despair. Children have also collaborated and undertaken research to produce powerpoint presentations about volcanoes and earthquakes in Geography this week and worked well together in handball during their PE lesson.

                             

              

06.05.2022

Willow have had another busy week. We have worked really hard in Maths to identify the prime factors of numbers and have also investigated squared and cubed numbers. I have been tremendously impressed by children's independent writing this week, where they've been busy innovating a balanced argument - some of the best writing the children have produced! I really look forward to seeing how they apply these skills to writing about the Victorian workhouses. Children are also well under way with their poster competition about the Victorians (see photo) and really enjoyed their additional football lesson this week! A special mention must go to the Year 6's this week, who have worked their socks off in the lead up to SATs! Best of luck next week, Year 6's! You CAN do it! 

      

29.08.2022

 It has been absolutely wonderful to see Willow this week after what I hope has been a brilliant Easter break for you all. We have had great fun launching our new project: 'How have the lives of British school children changed since the Victorian era?' - children entered the classroom on Monday to find some rather strange (and rather disgusting!) items dotted around! The attached QR codes provided information about what life was like for Victorian children, including school and work. Children have started the term curious to find out more. We have begun our new unit on discursive writing in English and have had lots of fun playing with and investigating multiples and factors in Maths. We've begun to look at the work of Victorian scientist, Carl Linnaeus in Science and have enjoyed getting to know 'Oliver Twist'. Particular well done to Willow children for their excellent application of the new Golden Rules this week. Keep it up!

        

08.04.2022

I am so proud of Willow this week - this week has looked slightly different and has involved several different adults teaching them but the children have demonstrated just what a lovely class they are to teach! All adults have said just how impressed they were by children's behaviour and attitudes towards their learning: this has resulted in some fantastic investigating involving algebra, some wonderful story writing in English and poetry in RE, as well as some investigations thinking about the factors that impact the pitch of a sound in Science. Children have evaluated their delicious African dishes from last week's exhibitions and really enjoyed practicing some of the skills required in cricket. I hope you all have a happy Easter and I very much look forward to seeing you all in the summer term.

            

      

01.04.2022

Willow have had a really fantastic week. I have been impressed by the resilience children have shown in Maths particularly, where we have been doing algebra and finding the 'number behind the letter mask'! In English, children have produced some beautiful dream poetry and some children even made dream catchers at home to accompany their wonderful writing! We had fun in Science making 'String Cup Phones' and used our knowledge of sound to explain how our partners were able to hear at the other end! The highlight however, has been cooking with Mrs Owens - children researched and cooked some delicious African delicacies, which we shared at exhibition this afternoon. Well done for your hard work, Willow!

                              

     

25.03.2022

Another lovely week in Willow Class! We have enjoyed learning to read scales accurately with a whole class investigation and solving measurement problems involving the multiplication of fractions! In English, we have begun a unit of writing based on Pie Corbett’s ‘Dream Poem’. We conducted another investigation in Science considering whether the medium around a sound source impacts its volume. We found that paper reduced the volume by the most decibels! We ended the week with an RE day where we considered the Christian and Muslim interpretations of God. Keep up the hard work, Willow!

           

18.03.2022

Willow have worked tremendously hard this week. They have persevered with converting units of metric and imperial measure and yesterday, moved on to estimating and calculating volume. In English, children have completed a 'drop-in' write, where they have written informative reports about the creatures designed on Science Day - I have been thrilled with what children have remembered of non-chronological report writing. Some of their best writing yet! In Science, we conducted a class experiment investigating what happens to volume as you move away from the sound source - most children were able to have a go at using a decimetre! Children have also worked hard in art to produce their own Nuer and Dinka tribe inspired piece. We look forward to sharing these with you soon.

            

         

11.03.2022

Willow began the week by reflecting on their African workshop- what a day it was! Some children have written reviews of their experience. In Maths, we have been learning how to convert units of measure and, in English, have practiced writing to inform and to persuade. Children have explored the themes and techniques of Nuer and Dinka tribe art work and have begun planning their own piece. In Science, children have learned how vibrations travel through mediums to create sound and have explored what sound waves look like. We also had an exciting end to this week with our Science Day where we worked in groups to produce a stop motion video! A special well done to Year 6, who have completed their second round of mocks.

                         

 

0            

4.03.2022

I have been amazed by Willow's approach to their learning this week after a sudden end to last half term! They have continued some fantastic story writing in English and we look forward to sharing them with you later in the term. In Maths, children have been interpreting line and bar graphs and enjoyed finding the mean number of books on library shelves on World Book Day! In Science, we started a new unit on sound and children conducted some practical activities to prove that sound is caused by vibrations. We had an exciting end to the week by reading to our buddies in Oak as part of our World Book Day celebrations and have LOVED our African workshop today!

                  

         

       

18.02.2022

Willow have had a great end to this half term. The class have produced some really fantastic journey narratives in English and I have been amazed at the quality of the writing. We look forward to sharing them with you next half term. In Maths, children have been exploring statistics, particularly the use of line graphs. Children have thought about the ‘stories’ they tell and some have even had a go at constructing their own! In Science, children completed our unit of learning by creating life cycles for their own Switchzoo characters, applying lots of the vocabulary explored in recent weeks. Children have also taken the role of geologists, climatologists, public health officers and village elders in discussing solutions to Africa’s ‘Water Crisis’. Thank you for your support this half term. Have a restful break.

 

11.02.2022

Willow have had another very busy week of learning! The children have shown real resilience with adding and subtracting mixed numbers this week - a tricky skill to grasp! The class have also been working really hard in English, where they have been using prepositions and sensory details to create setting descriptions. On Tuesday, we celebrated Internet Safety Day and enjoyed creating Digital Footprints, which showed the apps, games and sites that children access regularly. We then had some brilliant conversations which encouraged children to think about their responses in different situations. Particular well done to the E-cadets for leading a fantastic whole school assembly! In Science, we learned all about the life cycle and adaptations of an ostrich and have considered some of the reasons behind water shortages and their impacts in Geography.

                       

04.02.2022

Willow have had a really lovely week. We have especially enjoyed our novel, 'A Long Walk to Water' and mapping out the story in pairs. We have boxed up the story and developed a character profile of the main protagonist, Salva. In Maths, I have been astounded by the children's approach to describing and generating linear sequences - this has lent itself well to some investigative work. In Science, we have learned about the life cycle and adaptations of a mosquito  and have considered the importance of water in our lives in Project. However, our highlight has got to be the 'Safari Adventure' we hosted for Birch, who came and learned about our Switchzoo creatures!

                                 

                                 

                                 

28.01.2022

Willow have enjoyed another week of learning! They have produced some wonderful non-chronological reports of fictional creatures and we are really looking forward to sharing them with other classes next week on our 'Safari Adventure'! In Science, we loved learning about the African Bullfrog, its adaptations and how its life cycle differs from that of a mammal. In Project, we learned how we drink the same water as the dinosaurs did thanks to the water cycle (!) and have set up our own water cycle investigation in class - we look forward to seeing the results.

                     

21.01.2022

Another busy week of learning in Willow! On Monday, children had fun using the 'Switchzoo' app to create their own creature as a subject for writing. Children have given such thought to their creatures' appearance, habitat and diet and have produced some really fantastic writing that informs the reader. We are looking forward to sharing our reports with other children next week. In Maths, we've worked hard to read and interpret pie charts using our knowledge of fractions, decimals and percentages. I was particularly impressed by the resilience children showed to start with - their persistence has proved they CAN do it! In Science, we have enjoyed learning about the life cycle and adaptations of a giraffe and have loved keeping scores of the AFCON tournament. Between us, we can now name the 54 countries of Africa in three minutes!

 

14.01.2022

Willow have worked tremendously hard this week and have really impressed me in all areas of their learning. Children tackled some complex problems requiring decimal, percentage and fraction equivalence in Maths at the beginning of the week and have moved on to solving problems involving ratio - we even scaled up a recipe for a berry smoothie, which we hope to test out for snack soon! In English, we have started innovating and writing about some fictional creatures - created by the 'Switchzoo' app- in practice for hot writes next week. In Science, we have been looking at the lifecycle of mammals and look forward to learning about giraffes in next week's lesson. In addition to all of this, we have managed to work together to name ALL 54 countries of Africa and are excited to see how events unfold in the AFCON tournament over the next few weeks.

    

07.01.2022

What a fantastic start to the new term Willow have had! It has been lovely to see the children again and commence a new unit of learning based on the enquiry question: 'Africa: What is needed to succeed?' We have had lots of fun trying to name all the countries in the continent, which has included creating a 'bedsheet map' of Africa using lines of longitude and latitude to locate them. We have really liked becoming naturalists, inspired by David Attenborough, and researching different African animals in preparation for non-chronological report writing in English and life cycle work in Science.

     

17.12.2021

Willow have had a really brilliant end to the term and have thoroughly enjoyed their visit to the panto, the Christmas lunch, stories with Santa and, of course, the school disco! In amongst the festivities, we have enjoyed some learning about the phases of the moon and the different interpretation of the Christmas stories in the gospels of Matthew and Luke. Children should be really proud of how hard they have worked this term and have certainly earned a rest over the break. With best wishes for a merry Christmas and a happy and healthy new year. Mrs Webber  

                           

                 

10.12.2021

Huge congratulations to our Year 6's, who completed their Mock SATs this week - they should be so proud of how hard they have worked. Well done to the Year 5's too, who have coped superbly well with the change to their usual routine. In addition to Mock SATs, Willow have been learning about units of metric measure in Maths and have produced some beautiful free-verse poetry about the planets in English. We look forward to sharing it on the school website soon. In Science, children have been learning about what causes day and night, as well as the phases of the moon.

       

03.12.2021

I have been really impressed with Willow Class this week, who have shown a real eagerness and commitment to their Maths learning, in particular. Children have worked hard to identify missing angles and translate shapes on a co-ordinate grid - a difficult skill to master! In English, children have published their portal stories ready to send to Jennifer Bell, the author of Wonderscape, and have had fun putting actions to the poem; "Six Ways to Look at the Moon." In Science, children had fun learning about the movement of the planets around the sun and we even found out what our ages would be on each planet! Children also enjoyed the Trashmouth puppets who came to visit on Thursday.

        

          

26.11.2021

We had an exciting delivery in Willow Class this week - the manager at Trailfinders, Winchester, wrote to us to congratulate us on our fantastic persuasive flyers from earlier in the term. He seems confident that we would make very successful travel agents! Children have done some more brilliant writing this week and have completed their own portal stories - these have been a real labour of love so we hope you enjoyed reading them this afternoon! In Maths, we have been developing our understanding of time and applying this to solving problems and have learned about the planets, their size and distance from the sun in Science.

                         

19.11.2021

Another lovely week in Willow. Children have worked tremendously hard in Maths to calculate percentages of amounts - I have been really impressed with children's determination to grasp this. In English, we have finished our portal story innovations, which are really wonderful to read. Children have also planned their own, which we hope to be able to finish in time to show you at exhibition this week. In Science, we discussed how the curiosity of Nicolaus Copernicus has changed the world and we have been celebrating our differences as part of Anti-Bullying Week.

 

12.11.2021

Willow have worked hard again this week! Children have commenced a new unit in Maths, where they have applied their knowledge of multiples to find equivalent fractions. In English, we are using class-writes to write a practice version of a portal story. Willow worked as a team to create a story, which transports the main character to space! Do ask your child to re-tell it at home! As part of our Remembrance commemorations, children have also spent time creating black-out poetry and the Y6’s represented our school at the war memorial on Thursday. It was lovely to see you all at parent’s evenings this week – please do get in touch if you weren’t able to attend.

                     

05.11.2021

I am SO proud of Willow this week: they have made a fantastic start to this half term and have worked extremely hard. We have had lots of fun in English learning a portal story to help us write our own over the coming weeks and in Maths, we have been learning efficient methods for dividing numbers and applying this to problems - the progress children have made in this area this week has really blown me away! Willow have also enjoyed investigating the effects of friction in Science this week.

         

     

22.10.2021

What a great end to half term! Children have had a busy week finishing their persuasive flyers, advertising holidays to US cities. A lot of effort has gone in to them and I'm sure you'll agree they are fantastic! I am really proud of the commitment children have shown during this unit of work. In Maths, children have revised the methods of short and long multiplication to solve calculations and in Science, we have been learning about the force of friction and considering its uses in our lives. We ended the half term with a day of D.T., where we applied our knowledge of forces from Science to design, make and evaluate parachutes to keep an egg safe! A lot of fun was had!

 

15.10.2021

Willow have had a fantastic week! Children have made a brilliant start to their hot write; persuasive flyers about US cities that the children have researched. I have been astounded by the children's writing so far and I cannot wait to share the finished products with you! In Maths, children have made a great start to their new unit of learning - they have had fun finding factor pairs and creating factor and multiple chains. Children have enjoyed exploring one-point linear perspective in art and have considered how it revolutionised art during the Renaissance Period. In Science, children had great fun investigating water resistance and using blue tack to determine the most appropriate shape for a submarine!

          

08.10.2021

Willow have had another great week. They have persevered at calculating perimeter in Maths and have enjoyed innovating a persuasive flyer advertising Micheldever as a holiday destination: we all enjoyed a walk around the village in the sunshine identifying key sites that would be attractive to a visitor. Children have worked hard to apply what they saw and discussed on their visit in their writing. Children have also continued to enjoy learning about the USA, this week, its human geography!

                            

01.10.2021

Willow have had a great week and have really enjoyed getting stuck into their new units of learning! In English, children have been learning about what makes a good persuasive flyer. Children have put actions to three paragraphs and can say it off by heart! We have found balancing equations in Maths a little tricky but I've been impressed with their resilience and persistence! In Project, children have loved learning about the USA; they have particularly enjoyed the challenge of seeing how many states they can recall! I'm sure they'd love to show off their knowledge at home!

    

24.09.2021

Willow have had another great week. Children have produced some fantastic biographies of Renaissance Figures and  I was particularly impressed by the reciprocity they showed when supporting one another in editing their writing. Children have made a start on their new addition and subtraction unit in Maths and have loved having some extra PE with Mr Menning. A real highlight has been designing and planning games to play with buddies down in Oak, who children met on Thursday! Very exciting! We look forward to spending more time with our buddies throughout the year.

                                

17.09.2021

Willow have had another busy week! Children have applied their knowledge of place value to representing and estimating numbers on a number line and rounding numbers. In English, children have learned how to extend their sentences by using relative clauses and have drafted paragraphs for biographical writing next week. In Project, we explored how maps have changed thanks to the curiosity of explorers and advancements in technology and in Science, children enjoyed learning about air resistance.

        

10.09.2021

Willow have made a great start to the new term and I am very excited for the year ahead with them. We have enjoyed considering our project enquiry question, 'Can Curiosity Change Our World?' and have researched significant figures from the Renaissance Period to support our answers. Our research has also inspired some biographical writing, which we will complete next week. In Maths, children have revised place value and have been working to read, write, order and compare some rather large numbers on a Graffiti River

                                      

23.07.2021

And just like that this academic year is over! We have had a lovely last week of term. Children performed superbly well at their end of term production, ‘Heroes of Troy’ and we so loved having you come and look at the learning we’ve been doing this term. Children have enjoyed spending time with each other in the sunshine at the field and in the churchyard this week and have taken time to reflect on the things they are grateful for this year and thought ahead to things they are excited for in September. It has been a pleasure teaching Willow class this year. Y6’s- all the best in your next adventure and Y5’s, I look forward to seeing you in September. Have a lovely summer! 

                 

16.07.2021

Willow have had such a fun penultimate week of term involving lots of sport! Children displayed lots of the Olympic values at our Sports afternoon on Monday  and enjoyed their Tokyo 360 Day on Tuesday – Boxercise and Shooting were firm favourites! In addition to this, children have worked hard to find similar rectangles using England flags, which required their knowledge of ratios to support them, and have completed their chapters of ‘Who Let the God’s Out?’ Some absolutely fantastic writing! Children have also worked hard to get things ready for their production of ‘Heroes of Troy’ next week! You’re in for a treat!

 

09.07.2021

I have been so impressed by the wonderful writing Willow have completed this week. They have worked hard to re-write a chapter from our school novel, who Let The Gods Out, by Maz Evans. Children have made use of the resources around them and the feedback from adults to create some fantastic, entertaining and descriptive writing. Well done everyone! In addition to writing, children have worked hard to calculate ratios and enlarge shapes using scale factors in Maths and have taken a very mature and sensible approach to their learning in RSE. Well done Willow!

    

              

02.07.2021

In Willow this week, children have started a mini-maths unit exploring ratio. Children have displayed real resilience with this: despite it being new and intimidating for many, children have worked hard to develop their understanding. Children have done some lovely writing reflecting on the last year and, of course, Marwell has been a highlight for us all - the sloth, tiger and giraffes being firm favourites! Willow have also had a visit from the fire service this week and have made excellent headway in their production! 

 

   

School Trip to Marwell

Willow had a great break away from the classroom as they embarked on a school trip to Marwell Zoo! Children enjoyed observing all the animals, particularly the tiger, giraffes and rhinos! Children also got a lucky glimpse of the resident sloth on the move in the Tropical House.  As we made our way around, children thought about the ways in which species had adapted to suit their habitats. 

 

Project Day!

Willow Class had a well-earned Project Day to mark the end of their SATs week. I'm so proud of how hard the children have worked and the resilience they have shown this week. As part of our day today, children created leitmotifs associated with Greek gods and goddesses using graphic scores and percussion instruments. They tasted a selection of Greek foods and I was so impressed with how many children 'gave it a go'! Greek yoghurt with honey was a firm favourite! This afternoon, we practiced our end of term production, which is coming along nicely! 

25.06.2021

A HUGE ‘Well Done!’ to Willow children for all their hard work this week. Year 6’s approached their SATS papers with maturity and really gave their all- I am very proud of them. The Year 5’s have also worked hard to create posters about countries drawn in our class Euro 2020 sweepstake! When children weren’t completing SATS papers or poster-making, they practiced using figurative language in their writing, found percentages of amounts, had a go at ‘Zentangle’ patterns and even made a start on the end of term production! To end the week, and as a celebration of all their hard work, children participated in a Project Day and tasted some Greek foods! What a busy week, indeed!

 

18.06.2021

This week in Willow, we have enjoyed sharing our experiences of last week with one another. Children have written recounts of their favourite day from residential or, in the case of Year 5s, a day they particularly enjoyed over half term. Children have also begun their new unit of writing, where they will be re-writing a chapter of our class novel, 'Who Let the Gods Out?' We have revised how to add, subtract, multiply and divide fractions in Maths and have conducted an experiment in Science investigating the impact of exercise on our heart rates. Y6 children have also learned how to use a bicycle safely on the road in their 'Bikeability' sessions AND have started to learn some songs for the end of term production. A super busy week!

 

11.06.2021

Willow have had a rather different, but fantastic week this week. Y6 have been away at Calshot on their residential, where they have had fun kayaking, climbing, skiing, orienteering and much more. I have been blown away by children’s resilience and teamwork and am very proud of them. Meanwhile, the Y5’s have been busy making a book about what life was like during Ancient Greek times, as part of their Project work. They will share what they’ve learned with the Year 6’s upon their return next week!

Calshot Residential Update 10.06.21

We have thoroughly enjoyed today! There was a change to our schedule, which meant we began the day with kayaking, instead of sailing. It was a real hit and has been a highlight of the week for many of us. This afternoon, we completed 'Initiative Tasks' and climbing before spending the evening doing the 'Ringo' (sliding down the ski slope in a big ring!) It was FANTASTIC and a lovely way to spend our last evening together. We have also spent time today reflecting on the past week and sharing our experiences and highlights. Children have each gained an award, which we are looking forward to telling you about when we see you tomorrow! 

Calshot Residential Update 09.06.21

We have had another fun-filled day at Calshot and are sad to think that tomorrow is our last full day together here! We began the day with a second go on the ski-slopes - it was wonderful to see how much children's confidence had grown since their first session. We then had great fun crate stacking and were reminded of the importance of communication and teamwork! This afternoon, we took part in 'Epic Engineering' and the team swing, which were both great, and ended the evening with a tour of Calshot Castle and some bridge making! We are SO excited for sailing tomorrow. 

Calshot Residential Update 08.06.21

Wow! What a day we've had! Air rifle shooting (a hidden talent of Mrs Webber's!), climbing, orienteering, several games of 'Camouflage' (a new favourite we're keen to teach the Year 5's) and an evening of scavenger hunting and art making on the beach! Children have thrown themselves into everything and have had such fun together. We are so proud of them!

Calshot Residential Update 07.06.21

The children have had a fantastic start to their time here at Calshot. We have all enjoyed archery, skiing and rocket building today! We are looking forward to more fun tomorrow! 

 

28.05.2021

Willow have worked exceptionally hard this week. In English, children have applied all they've learned over the past fortnight to write balanced arguments discussing whether or not democracy was the most important legacy left by the Ancient Greeks. They have made for really interesting reading! In Maths, children have been writing algebraic expressions and solving equations! I've been particularly impressed by children's determination with this. Willow have also been exploring Muslim rites of passage in RE and enjoyed an extra PE lesson with Mr Donaldson from Henry Beaufort.

 

 

 

21.05.2021

Willow have carried out some brilliant writing this week in preparation for their hot write next week, where children will be writing balanced arguments considering the most significant contribution the Ancient Greeks made to society today. In Maths, we have moved on to looking at coordinates on all four quadrants; translating and reflecting shapes. In Science, children moved around the classroom to understand how the circulatory system carries blood and nutrients around the body and got messy in Project by making Papier Mache Greek vases! We hope to paint them next week! In PSHE, Y6's created a 'Conscience Alley' when considering 'Power and 'Control'.

                                         

                     

14.05.2021

Willow Class have had another brilliant week! Children have enjoyed finding missing angles in triangles and quadrilaterals and have revised the properties of 2D and 3D shapes. In English, we have started a unit on balanced arguments, which has inspired some debates around some contentious topics such as school uniforms: I have been particularly impressed with children's ability to see both sides of an argument. In Project, children have carried out some research about how the Ancient Greeks changed the world and have created posters to showcase what they have learned. In Science, we used tights, bananas and crackers to model how the small intestine absorbs nutrients into our blood and we had a delivery from Saints Football Club in response to the letters we sent last term! Exciting!

 

Thank you, Saints!

Today, we opened a very special parcel from Southampton Football Club containing a letter and some signed goodies in recognition for our hard work in letter writing to them last term! Mrs Webber even got a signed shirt! Well done Willow Class for all your hard work. 

07.05.21

We have been busy in Willow again this week! Children have worked hard to complete their non-chronological reports on Ancient Greek gods and goddesses and have used the illustrations by Victoria Topping in the book 'Mythologica'  as inspiration for some photo editing work in computing. In Maths, children have been drawing angles accurately using a ruler and protractor and have started applying their knowledge to finding missing angles on a straight line and round a point. In Science, we have been learning about the structure of the heart and its important function in our bodies and have been thinking about mental wellbeing and online safety in our PSHE sessions.

             

 

 

30.04.21

Willow have had another brilliant week full of fantastic learning. Children have been revising types of angle as well as learning new ones including reflex and straight. They have also learned how to use a protractor in Maths! In English, children have practiced using cohesive devices to help their writing flow and in Project, children have continued their learning about Greek gods and goddesses with a 'Knowledge Harvest-Heptathlon'! Children have also been exploring the myth 'Theseus & the Minotaur'; Ancient Greek beliefs about the after-life; AND have looked at the function and composition of the blood in Science! We HAVE been busy!

 

Knowledge-Harvest-Heptathlon!

We enjoyed sharing and collecting information about 7 of the Ancient Greek gods and goddesses this week, in preparation for our non-chronological report writing. 

 

Clay Bust Making

Look at our amazing sculptures! Willow Class have worked incredibly hard to create clay busts of themselves as Greek gods and goddesses as part of their Project launch this week. They began by looking at examples of real life busts of Greek gods and goddesses and then explored the dimensions of the face through sketch. They then applied what they'd learned and produced these models which, I think you'll agree, are fantastic!

Volume and Capacity

Willow children have had fun investigating volume and capacity this week. They launched the unit by exploring different ways of making shapes with a volume of 12 cubic centimetres. 

Welcome Back, Everybody!

  

Really well done to Willow children, who have made a fantastic start to their time back in the classroom. The class have been really busy this week revising the skills required to find the perimeter of 2D shapes. They have also sent off their letters to Southampton Football Club, encouraging the Kit & Equipment Team to think about further ways they could reduce their impact on the environment. Children even took a trip to the post box to check they had been sent !

Willow class exhibition - Autumn Term 2020

Have a watch of our exhibition video below to see all the learning we have been doing this term.

w/c 16th November

Willow have moved on to multiplication in Maths this week and have shown great resilience in learning a formal written method to show their workings. Children are prepped and ready to start writing their diary entries in English and have really enjoyed exploring the concept of power in RE and what some Christians believe about God's power. Take a look at our class Word Cloud! 'P' for Power:  

Resilient Ruby!

As a school, we've been exploring the four Learning Powers. Each power is associated with an animal and Willow have worked hard to create stories about how each animal gained their learning power to share with the rest of the school. This week, we are looking at 'Resilient Ruby'. Who will win our 'School Values' star of the week for showing resilience this week?

Remembrance Day

We hope you have had chance to take a look at the Remembrance Video put together by KS2, which you can find on our homepage. In addition, Willow have undertaken a 'Butterfly Project', which provides a poignant reminder of those who have died in war, including Jewish children, which has been the focus of our WW2 learning this term.  Children have worked exceptionally hard to create a beautiful final product and it can be seen at the main gate. Here's a sneak preview:

w/c 2nd November

Willow have made an excellent start to the new half term. In Maths, children have been applying their knowledge of rounding to make estimations of answers to addition and subtraction problems. They have also started looking at diary entries in English and have expressed great enthusiasm about the life of Anne Frank, who they'll be studying this term. In the afternoons, children have been learning about 'Learning Powers' and have been writing stories to help the launch of these across the school. In addition, children have enjoyed making use of the library, which is now stocked full of new books - thankyou to those of you involved in our 'Sponsored Read'.

w/c 19th October

Willow have really enjoyed their last week of the half term. Children have worked really hard to write stories from the perspective of objects. They have also applied their knowledge of electrical circuits to create Morse Code machines and have visited the school allotment to prepare it for growing winter vegetables, as people would have done during WW2. Well done to Esther and Jonathan, our Stars of the Week.

.  

w/c 12th October

Willow have had another fantastic week of learning. In Maths, we've applied our knowledge of rounding and multiplying my 10, 100 and 1000 to decimal numbers and we've made excellent progress in English, where we've worked really hard to vary our sentence structures in preparation for story writing next week. In RE, we've contextualised the concept of 'Belonging' by looking at the duties of Muslims, Christians and Jews.

w/c 21st September

Willow have had another great week and have made excellent progress with their newspaper reports in English and place value in Maths, where they've been applying their knowledge to more complex problems. We have conducted investigations in Science and have taken the role of reporters and eye-witnesses in Project. We have also started learning about the Kindertranport and making leaflets for children arriving in Britain pre-WW2.

w/c 14th September

We started our week with a book tasting session (see below). We really enjoyed it and came away with some great new books we look forward to reading! We have also started some fantastic work in Maths looking at place value and have started looking at Newspaper Reports in English, where we will be reporting on the event of 'Kristallnacht' (The Night of Broken Glass). In Project, we have looked at the countries involved in WW2 and have placed them on a map. In Science, we revised symbols of a circuit by using chalk on the playground!

 

Welcome to the Book Café!

Today, Willow Class experienced a book tasting! You may remember the 'Sponsored Read' children undertook in the Spring Term. Today, children were able to "taste" some of the fantastic books that have arrived.

"It was fun and exciting!" - Daisy

"I liked the fact I came away with some great books!" - Florence

"I am excited to read something new!" - Arthur

 

w/c 7th September 2020

This week, Willow Class have begun their topic on World War 2. We have studied the origins of the war as well as created memory boxes; gas masks and learned how to darn a sock! We have also experienced an air raid in our very own air raid shelters! We have been thinking about our identities and how we are special and unique. This has led some fantastic art work! We have also started our topic on electricity in Science, where we practiced making circuits!

Welcome to Willow Class with Mrs Webber

 

Science Day!

We welcomed some visitors to Micheldever today to celebrate British Science Week. We had some visitors from Winchester cathedral, who taught us all about Medieval medicine and visitors from Lionel Hitchin, who taught us all about food flavourings. We had lots of fun learning through some hands on activities. 

  

Dirty Beasts!

Thank you to all those who supported our World Book Day celebrations by enabling their child to come to school dressed as a Roald Dahl character. In Willow, we had a range of characters including: Matilda, Esio Trot, Bean, Bunce, Fantastic Mr Fox, Mr Willy Wonka, Miss Honey, Danny the Champion of the World, Mr Twit and the Wormwoods. Mrs Webber couldn't pass an opportunity to spend the day in her slippers, so came as Sophie from the BFG!

To continue the celebrations, we looked at Roald Dahl's 'Dirty Beast' poems and created some of our own. We've put them together in a class book to share with you at our class exhibition.

 

Spelling Shed

This week, we launched 'Spelling Shed' - a web based spelling game, through which Mrs Webber can set spelling homework and other activities. The children are all very excited about it and have enjoyed familiarising themselves with how it works.

Ndebele Patterns

We took inspiration from the Ndebele tribe in Africa, and created some of our own patterns using masking tape and acrylic paint. We transferred these onto t-shirts, which we hope to wear when we serve you food at our Meal 4 Change on the 23rd March! Please keep that evening free as it promises to be a wonderful fun-filled, uplifting event. 

  

SATs Information Meeting

Thank you to all the Y6 parents who attended the SATs Information Meeting on Monday evening. I hope you found it useful. If you were unable to attend, some highly recommended CGP revision resources are available to purchase at a reduced cost of £4. Please send the money in with your child as soon as possible. All the information and resources shared at the meeting can be found here.

In the 'Hot Seat'

This afternoon, we played the roles of Malawian children. Members of our group then asked us questions about our lives to help with our diary writing later this week. Mrs Webber was impressed with our imaginations and looks forward to reading them!

African Activity Morning

We have had SUCH an exciting morning! We welcomed Kwame, from Ghana, to Micheldever, who taught us some African dances, songs and drumming! We then performed everything we'd learned to the rest of the school. It was just wonderful!

 

A 'Well' Exciting Afternoon!

In order to get a glimpse into the lives of Malawian children, we discussed what it might be like having to go and collect water for your family each day. We worked out that an average UK 10 year old requires approximately 200 litres of water each day (including one load of washing and one cycle of the dishwasher). We had a go at using a pulley system (created by the wonderful Mrs Hann) to retrieve 30L of water from a 'well' in our apparatus area. We talked about the importance of reducing spillage and also had a go at carrying 15L buckets of water across the playground. By the end of the activity, we were all in agreement that we are extremely lucky to be able to have such easy access to clean water.

  

Vloggers for Justice!

In RE, we have been looking at the concept of Justice. Today, we looked at it in a religious context by looking at the parable of the Lost Son. Children then went away and recorded vlogs from the perspective of each of the characters to develop their understanding. 

      

Maths on the Move

Today, we had our introduction to Maths on the Move - a sequence of lessons, which teaches Maths through movement. The children also enjoyed their first Tri-golf session. We will look forward to this on a Friday afternoon!

Welcome Back!

Happy New Year and welcome back! We had a great day in Willow today, kick-starting our new topic; "Can success come from adversity?" We will be using the study of Africa to help us in answering this question. We started by discussing our perceptions of the continent, before moving on to look at a 'Bedsheet' map of Africa. Children practiced using coordinates to accurately place all of the countries! It's hanging at the back of our room - you're welcome to pop in and have a look! 

Exhibitions

Thank you so much to all those of you who came along to our exhibition this week. We really loved celebrating our learning with you. We hope you enjoyed your morning with us and perhaps learned something new, too! 

Green Ambassadors

Huge well done to our Green Ambassadors for putting on such an informative assembly today, on how we can all play our part in helping our environment. As a school, we've all vowed to make more of an effort to put waste in the correct bin and to be more proactive in switching lights off when they're not in use.

E-Safety

Over the past few weeks, we've been looking at how we can keep ourselves safe online. Today, the lesson was focused on how we should conduct ourselves online, and the consequences of poor choices. We spent some time checking out the BBC app, Own It, which prompts children to think before sending! Check it out here

D.T. Day!

Today, Willow Class had the challenge of designing and creating a parachute, which could safely transport an egg to the ground. I was really impressed by the children's application of Science knowledge and the collaboration they showed, both within and across teams. Congratulations to our winning team, pictured below with their final product. All of the children's finished designs are hanging proudly in our classroom - we look forward to showing them to you on Exhibition Day! 

 

Congratulations!

Congratulations Willow, on your FANTASTIC performance of Macbeth at the Haymarket Theatre. Not only was the final product something you should all be incredibly proud of, but the way you worked as a team both on and off stage was just wonderful. Well done! 

Quidditch!

Willow had great fun playing Quidditch this morning and did a great job applying some of their attacking and defending skills learned in Tag Rugby last half term. Congratulations to Ravenclaw who won today's tournament! The trophy can be found in our cabinet at the School Reception.

Double, double, toil and trouble!

Today, Willow Class showed their production of Macbeth to Birch Class. If you are coming along to the real thing at Haymarket Theatre next month - you are in for a real treat! The children have all worked so hard and they should be really proud of themselves. Here's a glimpse of the three weird sisters in costume! 

 

Lunar Learning!                                                   

We had great fun in Science today, where we began looking at the movement of the moon relative to Earth. In groups of three, children replicated the Earth's orbit around the sun AND the moon's orbit around the Earth. We then moved on to look at different phases of the moon using polystyrene balls as a visual aid! Children have been encouraged to keep a moon diary over the next month to see how the moon changes. We'll be extending our knowledge of the moon phases next week, when we'll introduce some more sophisticated vocabulary. I wonder if your child could tell you the phases they've learned in class today?

Shakespeare Festival Company Workshop

 We had a fantastic time at the Haymarket Theatre last week, where we met with 'experts' who gave us five top tips for our production next month. Children have shown a great amount of enthusiasm and commitment to our performance of 'Macbeth' and the final product is something they should feel very proud of. If you haven't done so already, you can purchase tickets from the Box Office website.  More tickets are expected to be released at the end of the month.