Emerald Class 2022-2023

Miss Booler and Mrs Myers

Welcome back to school!

We are looking forward to a busy and exciting year with plenty of wonderful learning.

This page will give you an overview of our learning from term to term. Remember to logon to your child's Class Dojo page for daily updates, photos, notices and information.

Reminders

Please note that PE is on a Wednesday. As the weather is turning colder please ensure your child has tracksuit bottoms and a jumper in their PE kit, as well as shorts for indoor PE. Please ensure that your child has either trainers or plimsols in their PE kit.

Please make sure that the children are completing their homework every week, as well as reading with your child every day so they receive their ‘5 reads and a book talk’ award. To gain the book talk award, please write in their reading records that you have discussed the book and what happened in the story. Year 2 will have 30 minutes of numbots to complete each week. Year 3 will have 30 minutes of Maths whizz and 15 minutes of TTRockStars.

Please also ensure that your child has a named coat, wellies and water bottle in school every day. Thank you for your continued support.

Academic Year 2020-2019

Below you will find a grid with a summary with our home learning. Please do remember that the videos and lessons will be on our Class Dojo page to explain your learning fully. 

Just a reminder...

Year 1 will be having PE on Wednesdays and Zumba on alternate Wednesdays. Please ensure everybody is coming into school in their PE kit for the full day.

We are also changing reading books which have read on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. We can only change their books if they have evidence in their reading logs that they have read at home.

Thank you,

Miss Newbury and Mrs Goodey.

Welcome to Year 1!

Year 1 have settled into the new school year amazingly! We have established a lovely routine, which provides the children with opportunities to work to their full potential in a range of subjects. The children have already completed a depth of learning. We have explored place value and addition in Maths and are preparing to move onto subtraction. In English, we have read 'The Pea and the Princess' and have begun creating our own non-ficition book. In topic, we have continued our learning on everything Castles. So far, we have learnt all about how castles have changed over time, different roles within castles and the parts of castles. Before half term, the class were learning about materials in Science. They have now begun looking at the human body and have been labelling different parts of the body. We have squeezed a depth of learning into a half term and I cannot wait to continue our learning journey together!

Autumn Term 

ICE Zone Learning - The Great Fire of London.

This is our main History topic this year and the children are thoroughly becoming experts on the Great Fire of London. The children have a variety of challenges and activities for them to access and complete on a daily basis. They may chose a subject or learning activity that appeals to them and show their learning in a number of different ways. So far the children have been re-creating London landmarks in the construction area, using the building blocks. Ordered and sequenced the timeline of events in the bakery area and investigated floating and sinking in the Science Lab.

Everyday the children are enthused and eager to tell their teacher new information, facts or share their learning, which is very exciting. 

English

In English we have been beginning to read ‘The Adventures of Egg Box Dragon’. The children have made their own amazing dragons, then written instructions about how to make them. This week the children have used their inference skills to predict what might happen next in the story, some have got very imaginative as the dragon comes to life! As we have read more of the story the children have asked some fantastic questions about what they would like to find out about the dragon and sequenced pictures.

Mathematics

In maths the children have been focusing on their place value knowledge.

In year 1 the children have explored numbers to 20, representing them in different ways and comparing numbers and quantities using greater than and less than.

In year 2 the children have been partitioning numbers into tens and ones, solving problems and explaining their answers. The children have also begun to practice their counting up and down in 2’s, 5’s and 10’s.

Science - Materials

Throughout the half term the children have been investigating, discovering and learning all things materials. As a class we explored our environments (inside and outside) for the different types of materials there are a round us. As a result we were able to realise that materials have different properties which made them suitable for different jobs.

The children have gathered their own materials from around the school and sorted them in different ways (see pictures below). During one lesson we learnt the words transparent, translucent and opaque- can your children remember and explain these words? 

Emerald Class 2018-2019

Miss Crack

Emerald Class will have dance and PE on Mondays. Please ensure your child has a named PE kit in school. They will need trainers for outdoor PE.

English

Over the last two weeks, both year 1 and 2 have been looking at non-fiction texts. They have been sorting fiction and non-fiction texts, and identifying the differences between facts and opinions. In Year 1, we have been writing factual sentences about autumn. We used our senses to help us with our writing. The children in Year 2 have been learning about the structure of non-fiction texts and learning the difference between facts and opinions. They will use this in their own writing about castles.

Mathematics

In Year 1 the children have been securing their knowledge and understanding of place value. They have been ordering numbers, making numbers using resources and writing number facts to 10 and 20. In Year 2, the children have been securing their knowledge and understanding of calculation methods. They have also been learning about money and the value of coins. They have been finding different ways to make a total using the coins and calculating how much money is in a given purse.

ICE Zone

This term we welcomed parents into the ICE zone. The children had a great time showing lots of the tasks they have been completing and sharing their learning about castles.

The children are also very excited about our Christmas play ‘Baubles, a tree-mendous nativity’. They have been busy learning the songs and we have started our rehearsals.

English

Over the last two weeks, we have used our class text ‘The Princess and the White Bear King’ to write our own stories. In year 2, we have written setting and character descriptions, focusing on using exciting adjectives. We then planned and wrote our stories to think of the adventure our prince or princess would go on and who they would meet on their journey. In Year 1, the children have been retelling the story, then wrote their own journey for the princess.

Mathematics

In Year 1 have been learning all about 2D and 3D shapes. They have been identifying shapes around the school. They have also been identifying the properties of the shapes and using these to sort them into categories. In Year 2 have been improving their knowledge of multiplication and division. In division, they have been using equipment and drawings to share, before moving on to using a number line. In multiplication, we have been creating groups, then moving onto drawing arrays.

Science

In Science, we have been planning and carrying out an investigation to find out the best waterproof material. We had a selection of different materials and the children worked in small groups to carry out the investigation.

ICE Zone

Year 1 and 2 are continuing to enjoy learning all about castles. They are using their imagination in the role play corner, pretending to be queens, kings and knights. They are then using their imaginative play to write stories. They have also been thinking about how they have changed since they were born. In art, the children have begun to create their own illuminated letters, using patterns and colour.

This week in Maths we have looked at place value and counting. The children in year 1 have been ordering numbers and making them, while the children in year 2 have been busy making 2 digit numbers and representing them.

In English we have started to read "The Princess and The White Bear King". The children have been amazing at inferring from the pictures in the book! That's even before the book has been read.

We have also started Science and are looking at materials. We have been able to identify different materials so far and talk about their uses. The children particularly enjoyed our discussions about what would be a silly material for a chair, a cup and a toilet! They took great delight in explaining why.

January

We have had a busy start to 2018 in Emerald Class. We absolutely love our new topic 'The Great Fire of London' and have already learnt so much about this part of history.

In English we have been reading Toby and the Great Fire of London. We have written diaries by imagining what life was like during the fire. We have also written reports which include a lot of really interesting facts!

In maths we have been improving our methods for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. In Year 2 we have also learnt about data handling and fractions.

Our science topic this term is all about animals and humans. We have been learning how to keep ourselves healthy by eating a balanced diet and doing lots of exercise. We have also done a really egg-citing egg-speriment to see which liquids are bad for our teeth. We put hard boiled eggs into different drinks to see what happened to the enamel on the egg shells. We found out that cola and orange juice were not very good for our teeth and that tea stains the teeth.

Autumn Term

 What an exciting start to term we have had in Emerald Class! The children in Emerald Class have been busy getting to know each other, their new classroom and their new teacher.

This week in Maths we have started to look at place value and counting. The children in year 1 have been ordering numbers and making them, while the children in year 2 have been busy making 2 digit numbers and representing them.

In English we have started to read "The Lonely Beast". The children have been amazing at inferring from the pictures in the book! That's even before the book has been read. Since finishing the story, the children have been planning an alternate version of the story and are ready to start writing.

We have also started Science this week and are looking at materials. We have been able to identify different materials so far and talk about their uses.

2016-2017

A very exciting week at Winhills! The children have finished exploring 'The Princess and the White Bear King' in English and they have developed their use of shape in Maths. We also were privileged to visit the local Tesco St Neots and explore the store!

Spring 2017:

Year 1/2 have come back into school enthusiastic and ready to learn! We are beginning to learn how to tell the time in Maths. In English, we are beginning to look at a new book and have already been predicting what will happen and we have started asking questions about the story. The children continue to develop their writing skills to include more detailed vocabulary and punctuation. In science we are beginning a new topic about plants. The children have been outside to look at the different wildlife this week and have thoroughly enjoyed it!

Castles Day!

What an amazing way to start off the new term! On Monday 9th January all of Key Stage One warmly welcomed in History Off the Page to launch our new topic of castles. The children loved it and spent the morning working hard in the castle completing all sorts of jobs. In the afternoon, the children had a feast. Some children trained as jesters and dancers to entertain the nobles.

It’s nearly Christmas! The year one children have been learning all about the bar model in Maths to represent their number bonds to 10. In English, the children have continued to write their space stories thinking carefully about what descriptive words they can use. The children have also started getting into the festive spirit by making Christmas decorations to decorate the school.

The year two children have been getting Christmassy in the last two weeks. They too have made decorations and they have been decorating the school. In Maths, the children have learnt all about multiplication and division and they have developed a written method for both. In English, they have also continued to write their space stories.

In year One, the children continue to be busy learners! They have explored some more place value and addition and subtraction in Maths. The children have been using numicon to support their learning with visual representations. In English, the children have been planning their own space themed stories. They have already written the introduction and we are all excited to see where our writing takes us!

n year Two, the children have been exploring data handling. They have enjoyed lots of outside learning where they have all collected leaves to create a tally chart and then they displayed their data in pictograms and bar chart. The children have also planned their own space stories with more detail to include expanded noun phrases, commas and time connectives. In Science, the children have been learning all about recycling.

The year 1 children have come back eager to learn after half term! In the past two weeks, the children have been learning about the properties of 2D shape in Mathematics and they have recapped their understanding of place value again. The children can all confidently count, order and find missing numbers in sequences to 20 and beyond. In English, the children have impressed their teachers with their wonderful adjectives to describe the moon and their very own aliens. The children continue to develop their writing skills to include more detailed vocabulary and punctuation. In Science, the children have explored different properties of materials.

After half term, the children have developed their knowledge of measures in their Mathematics lessons. The children have enjoyed their outside learning opportunities where they measured and ordered the lengths of sticks and explored if the tallest box was always the heaviest. In English, the children have developed their descriptive writing to include expanded noun phrases. The children have continued to develop their use of commas to include even more fantastic vocabulary in their writing. In Science, the children have enjoyed exploring different properties such as absorbency and water resistance.

Another quick update from Key Stage One. The children have been really busy in Maths learning all about subtraction. They have used lots of resources including counters, dienes and numicon.

In English, the children have been developing their descriptive writing of the sun and the moon to include noun phrase.

The children are nearly halfway through their ICE zone topic: Great Great Britain! The children have continued to explore the map of Great Britain and identify the characteristics of the local areas. During their outside learning, the children are exploring the colours and sounds of Autumn and they are starting to keep a weather and seasons diary.

In year 1, the children continue to work extremely hard towards their learning! In Maths, the children have been learning about addition and subtraction. They have been using lots of counters, cubes, numicon and bead strings to help them count on and backwards from a number. In English, the children have been learning how to write a character description about Bob; the man who works on the moon. The children used lots of fantastic adjectives to describe what Bob looks like and what his personality is like.

The year 2 children have been working extremely hard in the classroom and in the ICE zone. In Maths, the children have been learning all about addition. The children have been adding one digit numbers, two digit numbers and tens and two digit number with other two digit numbers. A very busy two weeks in Maths! The children are starting to show their understanding using a numberline. In English, the children have started to explore Bob; the man who works on the moon. They have described his appearance and his personality in detail using commas to separate a list of adjectives. The children have also continued to explore the properties of materials.

They have explored place value in Maths. The children have been learning to count backwards, forwards and in twos! In English, the children have been writing sentences about space and impressing their teachers with their use of full stops, capital letters and finger spaces. The children continue to develop their letter formation using the read, write, inc rhymes. In phonics, the children are exploring the letters and sounds phases and are already showing us their wonderful sound knowledge. All of the children have settled in wonderfully and are getting to know the Key Stage One area excellently.

In year 2, the children have started off the year exploring place value in Maths. They are able to read, write and build two digit numbers and they have used lots of visual and practical resources to develop their understanding of number. In English, the children have been developing their knowledge of non-fiction texts so they can write their own non-chronological reports. The children have already started to research lots of information from books, the internet and lots of pictures.

A busy start to the academic year! The children have been busy painting, creating, inventing and inspiring!  The children have spent the first week getting to know their friends and all of the adults that are working with them. All children in year 1 and 2 have PE on a Tuesday. Also, if anyone has a spare shirt that the children could wear as a painting apron that would be great!

Another busy two weeks! The children have celebrated World Book Day by wearing their pyjamas for a bedtime story. They have also had a visit from St Neots fire station to teach us all about fire safety.

After a lovely half term, the children have returned eager and ready to learn! The children have started a new topic in English looking at Julia Donaldson with a focus on her book, Zog. The children have read a whole range of books from her collection and analysed her style of writing ready to write their own sequel to Zog. In Maths, the children have learnt about time and fractions. The children have thoroughly enjoyed using the clocks to test each other on o'clock, quarter past, quarter to and half past. We then moved our learning onto money and enjoyed finding out how much Miss Larbey's food shopping cost!

The children have been very busy in the past two weeks! In Maths we have explored measuring. The children have estimated in grams and kilograms and then practised their measuring skills by weighing out ingredients. In English the children have started learning about poetry. They have explored rhyming, alliterations and syllabic pattern. The children have used these new skills to write their own poems. In the ICE zone the children have continued to develop their skills and learning about the Great Fire of London. The creative writing has been fantastic and we are excited to finish our Stuart houses.

In Miss Larbey's class the children have been extremely busy! In Maths they have learnt how to add using a number line and applied our learning to counting money. The children set up their own shop and we able to find totals and find change. In English, the children have started their topics of non-chronological reports. They have identified non-fiction texts, gathered information and written an introduction! The children in Emerald class have also started their new topic about materials where they have learnt about the different types of materials and their uses.

2016 already! The children have returned to school with fabulous stories of their Christmas celebrations! We have sprung into action already this term and launched our new topic; The Great Fire of London. In Emerald class we researched how the fire started and who Samuel Pepys was. We have also had a History Off the Page day to generate lots of information and further questions that the children want to research in the ICE zones!

Wow! What a busy two weeks! The children have been learning about multiplication in Maths and persuasive writing in English. They have also been working extremely hard in the ICE zone to find lots of interesting information about our three explorers: Neil Armstrong, Christopher Columbus and Mary Anning. The children have been accessing their learning in lots of creative ways including outside learning, using iPads to record their work and they have been using lots of practical resources in the classroom. A super two weeks!

In Miss Larbey’s English lessons the children are starting a new topic about adverts. They are exploring the key features of adverts and what information an advert needs to have. All of the children have enjoyed writing about the fireworks they have seen or the firework videos they watched in their classes. They have used a range of fabulous adjectives and descriptive sentences. In Year 1, the children have learnt about shape. They have explored the properties of shape and they have even been outside to discover different shapes. In Year 2, the children have started learning about subtraction. Using physical equipment, the children were able to start using number lines.

During the English lessons with Miss Larbey, the children have explored the story ‘The Tiger Who Came to Tea’. The children have adapted the story to create their own story where an animal comes over and eats all of the food! They have also been learning how to use speech punctuation. The children in Emerald, Sunstone and Amber class have learnt about measures recently. They have use rulers and metre sticks to measure length and they have used scales to measure weight. After exploring the life cycle of a human, they learnt about a life cycle of a frog and a butterfly. The children have been using fantastic vocabulary to describe each stage of the life cycles, especially the life cycle of a butterfly where they were able to relate their learning to the story, ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’.

Another busy two weeks! The children have been extremely busy with their Read Write Inc lessons and their English lessons. They have continued to work hard learning their speedy sounds and they have focussed on their writing and reading comprehension. During the SPaG (Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar) lessons, the children have been exploring nouns and adjectives ready to further develop their writing! In the ICE zone, many children are taking opportunities to write fantastic space themed stories, diary entries from the Santa Maria and writing lists of what to pack to explore different countries. Not only have they been busy with their writing, Emerald class have also been busy in Maths! The children have explored counting and recognising amounts effectively. They have been able to estimate how many items in pots and check their estimations by counting them.

The children have had a superb start to the new school year. They have had two wonderful creative weeks to get to know each other and their new class teacher; Miss Larbey. Emerald class have been extremely creative making robots, their own emerald and they have even begun learning about their 'Exciting Explorers' topic. It has been fascinating learning about Christopher Columbus, Neil Armstrong and Mary Anning. We can't wait to learn more about these exciting explorers in the ICE zone.