This week in Maple Class, in English, the Y5 children continued their learning about the Titanic. They developed their journalistic writing skills by writing recount paragraphs, including eyewitness quotes and effective closing paragraphs for a newspaper report about the disaster. The Y4 children continued writing an information text about London landmarks. They organised their ideas into clear sections and used factual language to inform their readers about some of London’s most famous attractions.
In Maths, Year 4 practised their 3, 11 and 12 times tables to improve fluency, while Year 5 explored the links between percentages, decimals and equivalent fractions. In addition, all children took part in another MoneySense lesson where they explored the role of banks and developed their understanding of key banking vocabulary and the different services that banks provide. Through discussion and collaborative activities, they considered why people choose to use bank accounts and how they can support effective money management.
In Geography, the children explored the geographical features of North America. Working with partners and using iPads for research, they investigated some of the natural and man-made wonders found across the continent. Using the information they gathered, they created colourful and informative posters, showcasing interesting facts about these remarkable landmarks while developing their research and presentation skills.
In Art, the children had the privilege of taking part in a special art lesson led by Mrs Hopkins, the Head of Art from Bishop’s Stortford College. Inspired by the work of Marion Bolognesi, the children explored a range of watercolour techniques, including layering, blending and controlled dripping to create striking and emotional effects. The children experimented with how watercolours can be used to convey mood and expression within a portrait. They also learned about the artist Pablo Picasso and discussed how artists use colour to communicate feelings and emotions. Through exploring harmonious colour combinations, the children developed a deeper understanding of how art can express personality and mood. The lesson resulted in a collection of vibrant and expressive portraits that showcased both creativity and newly acquired artistic skills.
In PSHE, linking with our art lesson, the children focused on understanding emotions and resilience. They used a wide range of vocabulary to describe the intensity of different feelings, discussed the difference between pleasant and unpleasant emotions and explored strategies that can help them build resilience when facing challenges.
On Friday, we were delighted to welcome parents into Maple Class for a fun and engaging maths session. Together, we explored 3D shapes and their properties.
The children and their parents worked collaboratively on an exciting challenge: finding all 11 possible nets of a cube. They carefully folded, tested, and discussed different arrangements of squares to discover which ones would successfully make a cube.
It was wonderful to see such fantastic teamwork, problem-solving, and mathematical thinking. Thank you to all the parents who joined us and helped make the session such a success!
Well done to everyone for another week of excellent effort and enthusiasm for learning.