Year 4 - Spring 1 - Week 2

Date: 9th Jan 2023 @ 8:31pm

We have had a fantastic week, here in Year 4.

After recognising what authority looks like to us, this week, we identified Jesus’ authority in a range of Bible stories. By reflecting on Bible stories such as Jesus calms the storm, it became evident that Jesus has authority than just humanity, as well as creation and life. It was clear that his authority is respected and admired by others, all hoping he will assert his authority to benefit them. In Collective Worship, we discovered that Humility is equally important in all religions and is one of the virtues of Sikhism. Sikhs believe that ‘Nimrata’ or ‘Humility’ is an important characteristic of a person, and they should ensure they develop this virtue with their actions.

It is apparent that our focus on volcanoes this term is a huge interest and we are intrigued in all aspects of the curriculum to discover more about volcanoes to support our learning. In English, we have discovered a wealth of vocabulary this week to describe volcanoes and the environments they might be found in. We have defined and illustrated words such as barren, tremors, eruption and pumice, in order to remember their connection to volcanoes and how we can use them in our writing. Using conjunctions, we formed sentences to explain what happened in the opening of our story ‘Escape from Pompeii’, ensuring that we used a range of conjunctions and stayed away from the word ‘and’ as much as we could. We considered the words in the story which would need to be considered in order to create an image of the setting, spotting vocabulary that explained what could be seen, heard and smelt in the Roman town. Using our ideas, we formed a descriptive piece of writing to tell the reader what they would be able to see, hear and smell if they were to visit Pompeii. Next week, we will compare our lives with that of Tranio, the Roman child in our story and create a diary entry of his daily life.

Connecting our understanding of multiplying by 10, we began the week by multiplying numbers by 100. We discovered that in order to multiply by 100, we need to move our place value counters two columns to the left. Using our knowledge of place value and how the digits move on a place value grid when we multiply by 10 and 100, we recognised that to divide by 10 and 100, we simply moved our counters to the right instead. Using our knowledge from the week, we completed word problems by recording the multiplication calculation we needed to complete and demonstrating the multiplication on a place value grid. Next week, our focus moves onto written methods and how we can use the grid and column method to support us in multiply two and three digit numbers.

In Geography, we discovered that the Earth is made up of four layers; the crust, the mantle, the outer core and the inner core. We identified what each layers substance is and the distance from the Earths crust. PE saw us taking on a defence game  of dodgeball. Working as knights, we had to defend our castles from the incoming cannon balls and aim for the oppositions defences. After discovering how sound travels from a sound source to our ear drum, this week, we investigated how sound travels through different mediums – solid, liquid and gas. Our predictions were put to the test as we discovered that sound travels best through a solid.

We also took the time to watch ‘The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse’, a hand-drawn animated film based on the children's book by Charlie Mackesy on BBC iplayer - It is a must watch! The story reminded us about the importance of kindness, friendship, courage and hope

Have a wonderful weekend, Year 4. 

Reminders:

• Parent-Teacher meetings can be booked via School Spider.
• Children are encouraged to bring a water bottle to school and a healthy snack for breaktime.
• PE days remain on a Tuesday and Thursday this term. Please ensure children arrive to school dressed in their PE kit on these days.