Learning this half term – We will be learning all about citizenship. This will build on our previous learning on Democracy when we studied the Ancient Greeks, exploring in more depth what it means to be a Citizen in the United Kingdom today. During the next few weeks, we will also be focusing on our British Values and the idea of Tolerance. During our Personal, Social, Health, and Economic Education lessons, we will be talking about diversity, including family groupings, as well as religious tolerance, and physical and ideological differences. We will be teaching the children that we are all different in different ways, and that this diversity is something to be celebrated not discriminated against. We would encourage you to spend time talking to your child about these issues at home.

In addition, we will be investigating how we can be Active Citizens within our local area. This will lead to a child-led project in and around our local area, first identifying areas that need improving and then taking action to act upon it. This aspect of the learning experience will be developed further when the children go into year 5 and 6 and look at how to be a Global Citizen.

If you have any pastoral concerns or observations you wish to share, or any questions about this learning experience, please speak to your class teacher at the end of the day. Alternatively, you can email our pastoral team: pastoral@preston.torbay.sch.uk

Vocabulary – we will be exploring the following topic vocabulary:

Tier 2 – high level words:

 rights, responsibility, volunteer, community, charity, fair, local.

Tier 3 – subject specific words:

society, citizenship, equality, diversity, tolerance, citizen, discriminate.

Wider curriculum, including music, art, poetry and film.

For our music lessons this half term, we will be learning how to sign a song. In art, we will be studying different arts, comparing their styles and techniques and recreating our own versions. In addition, in our Spanish lessons will cover words and phrases to do with My Town.

School Value – Creativity

Working alone or with others to turn a great idea from your imagination, into something of value or beauty.

Maths -  In Maths this half term we will be focusing on fractions and decimals. Fractions will include finding fractions, ordering and comparing, finding equivalents, adding and subtracting fractions, and also starting to look at mixed number and improper fractions. You can help by talking about fractions in the real world. For example: “I am going to cut your sandwich into 4 equal parts, each part is one quarter of the whole.” We will then move onto learning what decimals numbers are and how they relate to fractions. Please support your child in Maths by helping them practice their times table facts.

Literacy:

After the success of the No Nonsense literacy sequences last half term, we are again going to be focusing on two different texts this half term. The first is a persuasive leaflet produced by the RSPB, and the second is a lovely book called Poetry Pie. The children will be following the three-week learning sequence for each of these texts, producing their own, independent persuasive letters and poems.

Home Learning:

Weekly spellings practice. Spellings are set every Friday on Spelling Shed. Please enable your child to spend time learning their spellings.

Daily reading – at least 15 minutes every day.

Project – Research and create a presentation on your favourite charity. This task will be posted on Microsoft Teams. The work will be shared in class during the final week before half term.

Please also support your child to continue to learn their times tables by using TTRockstars each week as part of their maths homework.

Reading at Home

We have recently set up children’s individual targets on Accelerated Reader. These are based on your child reading a book in their range for 15 minutes a day. There will be House Points rewarded to children who manage to reach their target by the end of the Summer term, so please keep encouraging them to read at home. This could be a physical book, or by accessing MyOn – an online library of eBooks which all children can access, on a device or tablet.  

PE: children to come to school in PE kit. Swifts – Monday, Starlings & Sparrows – Wednesday.

Allergies: Remember, no kiwi or nut items in packed lunches due to allergies.

Everyday items: Can we remind you that your child should not be bringing anything in from home, other than a water bottle and a packed lunch, if needed. Please ensure that they have a school jumper and a coat every day in school. We will be keeping the classrooms well ventilated so they may need a jumper even on a warm day.

Absence: Should your child be absent due to illness please call the absence line on 01803 607589 and leave a message with your child’s name, class and reason for absence. Alternatively, you can text this information to 07786208446. If your child has sickness and/or diarrhoea, they will need to be absent for 48 hours after the last episode of illness. For planned absences of any nature, you will need to complete an absence request form, these are available on the school website.

Times of the school day: The school day begins for us at 8:50am and finishes at 3:15pm.

Thoughtful Parking: Please park thoughtfully with regard to our neighbours. We do not want grass verges torn up, and unsafe parking. We encourage as many of you are possible to walk to school. When Covid guidance allows, we ask you consider car sharing. Together we can keep everyone safe and ensure a positive relationship with our school neighbours.

Dates to remember: Monday 3^rd May-Bank Holiday, Monday 31^st May-Half Term begins, Monday 7^th June-Non Pupil Day.