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Class 2
Year 3 have just completed the Science topic; Light and Shadows. In this topic, the children recalled examples of light sources, objects that do not give out light and that darkness is the absence of light; they described ways to protect eyes from harm; they described what happens when light reflects, gave examples of reflective surfaces or materials and described factors that may affect the quality of a reflected image; they described how shadows form and identified patterns between groups of materials and the shadows produced; they recalled factors that affected the way a shadow appears, including what causes shadows to change throughout the day and factors that change the size of a shadow; they described the pattern of changing shadows throughout the day; they described how the light source’s distance affects the shadow’s size; they explained why a particular material is appropriate for making a shadow puppet and used knowledge of shadows to animate it. When working scientifically, the children recalled what information needs recording to decide the number of columns in a results table and suggested suitable headings for the results table; they recorded information in the correct columns, they identified if a question is testable, explained why and plan ways to answer a testable question; they selected which variables will be changed, measured and controlled in the experiment; they described patterns in data and quoted values as evidence of patterns in data; they identified odd results that do not fit the pattern; and they used patterns to make predictions for missing data.
Valentines - To celebrate Valentine's day, we have used adjectives to describe ourselves and our friends. We have thought of as many words to describe a person as we can and every single person smiled reading their love heart.
Spring Term - This term our topic is 'The Rainforest'. We have been linking this topic in all areas of the curriculum. In English we have written persuasive letters to stop deforestation. In Computing we have made databases to group different animals from the rainforest. In Geography we have looked at the physical elements of the rainforest, as well as researching and diving into the lives of the Yanomami tribe. The children are loving our topic and here are some photos to show you!
In this unit, children learn about how humans and other animals are born, grow and change, and what we need to survive and be healthy. Children classify different kinds of animal babies, learn about the basic needs that are shared by humans and animals, and research the differing needs of animals within our care. Focusing their own experiences, children explore the need for humans to eat a varied diet, to keep themselves clean, and to take regular exercise. Throughout the unit, the learning materials encourage children to make positive choices that contribute to a healthy lifestyle.
SCIENCE: Year 3 have just recently completed the topic: Animals Including Humans. In this topic, the children learnt that living things need food to grow and to be strong and healthy; plants can make their own food, but animals cannot; to stay healthy, humans need to exercise, eat a healthy diet and be hygienic; and animals, including humans, need food, water and air to stay alive They also learnt that skeletons do three important jobs: protect organs inside the body, allow movement, support the body and stop it from falling on the floor.
Nativity 2024 - All children performed amazingly in their Christmas Nativity 'Babushka'.
Bollywood Dancing
This week in P.E we travelled to India to learn some Bollywood moves!
Nativity 2024
Class 2 present Babushka!
Please see below for the Nativity songs. Please practise the songs with your child at home.
Many thanks,
Miss Gordon
Song 1: You'll Never Find a Mouse
Song 2: Babushka
Song 3: Wipe your feet
Song 4: There's a Stable
Song 5: Everything you give
Song 6: Babushka (Full heart)
Song 7: My feet want to dance
P.E. This half term we are doing Dance in P.E. We are going to be looking at dance from around the world looking at a different country each week. Our first was 'Greece', we had an amazing time learning the 'Hasapiko' step.
Greek Dance
Computing Animations
We have just finished our unit on 'Animations' in Computing. We have had so much fun making our own animations and learning how to make pictures move! I think you will agree they are amazing!
Computing Animations
Computing Animations
Computing Animations
Computing Animations
Computing Animations
Computing Animations
Year 2 R.E. This week Year 2 have been learning about the Sacrament of Baptism. They have discovered many signs and symbols in a Baptism and have even acted a Baptism out to their Year 3 peers! Well done Year 2!
Prehistoric Art: In line with our topic on Dinosaurs, we have been looking at 'Prehistoric Art'. The children had to find natural objects from outside and use them to see if they could create art or colour with them. We found lots! We then made our own paint using flour and water. We made many colours by mixing spices like paprika and turmeric like they would've had to use in prehistoric times! It was amazing! Finally, we have re-created our animals on our 'cave walls' we created! It has been an amazing topic and the children's artwork is fantastic!
R.E. This week we have been looking at what a Psalm is. We looked at Psalm 139 and praised God for always being with us and for creating such a beautiful world. The Year 2 children have made Thank You cards to God based on this.
General Notices
Reading
All children will have 2 reading books sent home per week. We ask that you read with your child every night in order for them to improve their reading, fluency and understanding of a range of texts. Books will be changed on a Wednesday. We encourage children to read their books more than once to fully understand what they are reading.
Homework
Homework will be sent out on a Friday and will be due in on the following Wednesday. This will also include some spellings for the children to practise. Any questions about this please see Miss Gordon.
Maths
To support children at home with their maths, they all have a log in for 'Times Table Rock Stars' (TTRS). Please encourage them to use this as much as possible. If you need help with this please see a member of staff.
Contact
Our main contact platform from school to home is via Seesaw. If you need a new log in please see Miss Gordon.
Miss Gordon's email: egordon@st-catherines.cumbria.sch.uk
I am always available for a chat so please do not hesitate to contact me!
Miss Gordon
Dinosaurs: We have been investigating fossils this week. As part of our topic on Dinosaurs we have been learning about the work of Mary Anning, so we looked at some fossils just like her! This week in art, we have been creating charcoal pictures of animals in the style of 'prehistoric art'. Aren't they amazing!
P.E. Our P.E days this half-term will be Monday and Friday. On a Monday we have been given a fantastic opportunity and are going to Penrith Leisure Centre for gymnastics sessions. The children are taught by professional gymnastics coaches with amazing apparatus. Here are some photos from our first session.
WELCOME BACK! Class 2 have settled back to school so well and are already making memories and learning so much! This year Class 2 is a mixed Year 2 and 3 class. Miss Gordon is the class teacher and Miss Thomson and Mrs Robinson are the teaching assistants. We cannot wait to see what this year has in store!
SCIENCE: Our final topic in Science for the year was more learning about Animals Including Humans. The children sorted plastic animal toys into groups and learnt about carnivores, herbivores and omnivores. They created a habitat shoebox diorama for a toy animal ensuring that the animal in question had everything they need in order to survive. They also made a message in a bottle and thought about what they need in order to survive. And finally they considered all the stages of life from baby to elderly and matched other animal babies with their adult parent.
School Trip 2024 - This year, in line with our topic 'Under the Sea', Class 2 went to Maryport Aquarium and Allonby beach. It was amazing to see the sea creatures we have been learning about in real life! Some of us even got to hold some! We had such fun on the beach and the weather was very kind to us! What a fun trip!
SCIENE: Class 2 have just completed another Science topic: They explored plants outside and prepared tubs for planting potatoes. They recorded the growth of a bean and looked at how it developed. They recreated the plant with craft materials and labelled the parts of the plant. Lastly, they looked really closely at little cress plants that they grew from a seed, tasted them and drew what they saw.
SCIENCE: Another topic recently completed: Living Things and Their Habitats. In this topic, the children talked about food chains and the interdependence between creatures in a chain, considering what part each plays in its survival. Explored the school grounds, looking for examples of food chains. Learnt about water-based food chains. And learnt the transfer of energy in a food chain originating from the Sun.
Design & Technology (May 2024) - In line with our topic on 'Transport' this half-term we are making our own cars. We have been looking at how vehicles move on wheels. We have began experimenting with materials to make our own wheels and axles. We are loving this topic!
Computing (May 2024) - In Computing this half term we are looking at Digital Music. We have been exploring and making rhythm patterns with coloured blocks and our bodies. We then progressed to using 'Chrome Music Lab' technology to create rhythm patterns on the computer! We had great fun!
SCIENCE: We have just completed our latest topic: Wild Weather. The children thought about the weather, learnt how to present data and make their own weather forecast to present to the class. They set up rain gauges to observe rainfall, made wind socks to observe the wind and set up a white box to store a thermometer to observe the temperature over a period of time.
Science Week 2024 - We have had an amazing Science Week in Class 2 focussing on 'observations' over time. We began observing the changes in fruit over time. We noticed that the banana changed colour, shape and texture over the course of the week. We then observed the changes in materials when heated. We experimented with a piece of slate and a chocolate button in our hand at body temperature 37 degrees. Finally, observed with our touch senses to look at the changes in our heart rates over time! We did some walking and yoga but realised our dancing and running raised our heart rate the most! It has been so much fun!
WORLD BOOK DAY 2024! We began the day by learning the 'World Book Day' song which we then performed! It was such good fun and the words really showed us the importance of reading! We then entered the Class 2 'Book Choice Bistro' where we learned how we should choose a book. Once chosen we then made a paper copy of our chosen book and expressed our reasons for this choice. Finally, in line with our recent work on Paddington, we planned our own adventures for Paddington! There were some amazing ideas from Paddington in the sea to Paddington visiting Disneyland! A great day was had by all!
D&T: 6th March 2024: Class 2 have had an amazing day at North Lakes Hotel. The aim of the day was for children to put our work on Cooking and Nutrition into practice. The children began by tasting many different fruits including physalis and kumquat! The children used these fruits to make their own smoothies! Next we made our very own pizzas and enjoyed them for lunch. We considered the many food groups and nutritional value of our pizzas. It was great fun!
Thursday 22nd February: Instruction writing - Today Class 2 had a surprise call from Paddington Bear! He set us the challenge to follow his instructions for making a marmalade sandwich. We had great fun taking part and even tasting them too! Thank you Paddington!
Spring 2: This half-term our topic is 'London'. We have been detectives in History using sources and clues to find the answers to questions we had about the Great Fire of London! It was so much fun! We have a song to help us remember the key information too. We have also been having great fun in continuous provision building upon our learning through play!
Art: In art we have been experimenting with different materials when mark-making. We have used appropriate language to describe lines; experimented with mark-making techniques when responding to music; used different media to colour neatly and apply a range of marks successfully to a drawing. These skills have lead to us producing a drawing that displays observational skill, experimenting with a range of lines and mark making. Class 2 did an amazing job!
Spring 1 Topic - 'On the Farm' - This half-term we have been learning all about life on a farm. We have been focussing on the story 'Farmer Duck' and have written some amazing recounts pretending to be the duck! We also had a very exciting visit from Jonathon at Lloyds Ltd Penrith with his brand new 'New Holland' tractor! Not only did we get to sit inside, we were given 2 toy tractors as a gift from Jonathon, identical to the one we saw in real life! We have had such great fun this half-term!
PE - Spring Term - We have 2 PE sessions per week in Class 2. On a Monday we do gymnastics where we have been moving like different animals on the equipment! On a Wednesday in our multi-skills lessons, we are developing our throwing and catching skills and our bouncing skills. It has been great fun!
Year 1 Maths - January 2024. In Year 1 we have been busy adding and subtracting with numbers up to 20! We have used lots of different methods and even used resources to show our thinking!
Snow! January 2024 - We have loved playing in the snow this week and the children have used their Science knowledge to explain the weather! We have made all sorts of shapes and pictures using the snow! It was so much fun!
PJ Day 2023! The children loved wearing their pjs to school for our 'House Faith Day!'
Class 2 have just recently completed their second Science topic: Materials. The children explored and compared different materials and sorted them into groups. They considered what it would be like if the tables were made of jelly or the chairs were chocolate! They then recreated the story of the three little pigs and predicted what would happen to their houses.
Reindeer Run! The children of St Catherine's took part in the Reindeer Run this year in aid of Jigsaw Children's Hospice. We raised an amazing amount of money for an amazing charity! The whole school put on some antlers and had great fun running round the playground together! Thank you to everyone for your kind donations!
RE: We have loved our new topic on 'Advent'. We have made some beautiful advent wreaths and have been retelling the Christmas Story in many different ways!
RE: In Year 2 we have been learning all about the signs and symbols of a Baptism. The children looked closely at the symbol of water and what it is used for. We used chalk to write down our sins outside and the children used water to 'wash their sins away'. We linked this to baptism and how water represents 'new life'. Also, the children looked at the symbol of oil and how the Priest is 'anointing' the baby with the oil.The children are experts!
Black History Month (Oct 23). To celebrate Black History Month, Class 2 looked at the work of Mary Seacole. We discovered the amazing work she had done and how she had helped the soldiers in the war. We used maps to look at the journey Mary Seacole took and the Year 2 children used iPads to further their research. We loved learning about this amazing lady!
Class 2 have just recently completed the topic Animals Including Humans. During this topic the children thought carefully about what they were like as a baby and how their body has changed since. They compared foot and hand sizes. They also considered how to investigate what we can hear in the playground. Finally, they investigated fruit and vegetables.
Autumn 2 - Our topic in Class 2 this half-term is 'Fairytales'. We have made moving pictures using sliders in DT! It was great fun! The children have used our classroom resources during continuous provision to retell various fairytales using appropriate repeated language! We are having such fun in Class 2!
Forest School: Some of our Year 1 pupils have been very lucky and experienced Forest School! Emily from the Wildlife Trust has been working with the children outdoors looking at colours, shapes and all things outdoors on our doorstep! The children are loving it!
Art - Autumn 1 - In line with our topic on Emergency Services and Superheroes in the community, we have been looking in detail at some X-Rays. We used a variety of materials to create our own X-Rays of our hands. We had to study the X-Rays hard to identify the different bones and shapes. It was great fun!
Year 2 Maths: Autumn 1: In Year 2 we have been exploring the numbers to 100. We have considered the place value of numbers and used resources to display the tens and ones in a number. We have also used vocabulary such as 'greater than' and 'less than' to compare numbers!
Year 1 Maths: Autumn 1- In Year 1 we are exploring the numbers to 10. We have been counting, ordering and comparing numbers using resources to help our learning! We are amazing mathematicians. We have also been superstars with our number bonds using part-part-whole models!
Computing - This half term we are looking at Robots and programming robots with commands. We have been exploring the Beebots and matching commands with outcomes to move the Beebots. It was lots of fun!
EMERGENCY - Our topic this half term is Emergency Superheroes that help us in our community. We have had many visits from different services including Fire, Police, Blood Bikes, Vets, Mountain Rescue and Paramedics. We have listened to the experts and even tried on some uniforms! We have reflected on our visits in Literacy as you can see in the pictures! We are loving our new topic!
September 2023 - We have had a great first week in Class 2! We have made new friends and have enjoyed exploring our new outdoor area!
THE LITTLE BIG SING: Use the link below to the Music Page to check out the photos from our amazing concert!!
SCIENCE - PLANTS: Our final topic in Science was all about Plants. In this topic, the YEAR 2s had the opportunity to closely study plants and trees in the natural environment, took measurements and made observational drawings. The children also planted a seed and a bulb and compared them as they grow. They recorded changes in their plants in words and pictures, took measurements throughout the unit and finally drew bar charts to show the growth of the two plants. They also set up a comparative experiment to observe what plants need to grow well, and watched the germination process first hand by growing cress seeds. The children began to learn about plants we eat, and learnt about the farming involved to create the right conditions for food crops to grow. The YEAR 1s, were taught about the structure. The children engaged in a variety of activities including identifying common plants and trees in the garden and in the wild, sorting deciduous and evergreen leaves and crafting collage plant pictures. The children also planted cress seeds and observed them closely, measuring and recording their growth.
YEAR 1 SCIENCE: Year 1 have been obserivng the seasons through out the year. During this unit the children observed and recorded the weather in different seasons and started to make comparisons across all four seasons. They also observed changes across the seasons by exploring the signs of spring and summer through nature and wildlife. A range of learning activities was used in this unit, including ,making observations, discussions and learning outside. The children also worked scientifically by collecting, recording and interpreting simple data.
MAY 2023: Maths - In Class 2 we love to take our maths outside! We used chalk to create maths equations, representations and drawings on the playground! We have such fun learning outdoors!
MAY 2023: Cumbrian Art - In line with our topic on Cumbria, we created some beautiful River Valley artwork. We used watercolour and our previously taught art skills to create these! We thought about how we need to use lighter colours and smaller scales to making things look further away! We loved it!
MAY 2023 - KING'S CORONATION: To celebrate the King's Coronation, we all came dressed in red, white and blue! We enjoyed a gorgeous picnic made by Sue on the school field! We wrote letters to the King, sang songs, made crowns and watched videos from the Queen's coronation! A lovely day!
MAY 2023 - LAMBS: Mr Dent was very kind and brought 4 of his lambs to see us! We asked lots of questions about the lambs and watched Mr & Mrs Dent feed them! We had such a lovely morning.
YEAR 2 MATHS: This half-term in Year 2 we are working on Fractions. We have been practically folding paper into 'equal parts' and writing matching fractions. We have been learning new vocabulary; 'numerator, denominator and fraction' and using these in our explanations. It is great fun!
AFRICAN ART: In art this half-term we have been looking at African patterns. We have explored the shapes, lines and colours used in African Geometric Patterns. We then designed our own mask using the patterns we explored before creating our masks using a range of materials! It was so much fun!
SCIENCE: Year 2 have just completed their most recent topic: 'Animals Including Humans'. In this unit the children learnt about a variety of habitats and the plants and animals that live there. They learnt to tell the difference between things that are living, dead and things that have never been alive, and applied this in a range of contexts. They made observations of a local habitat and the creatures that live there, investigated conditions in local microhabitats and how they affected the minibeasts found within them. This unit allowed the children to research a range of global habitats and how the living things that live there are suited to their environments, and also provided an introduction to the idea of dependency between plant and animal species.
GEOGRAPHY - In Geography Class 2 have been looking at the continents and oceans of the world. We are also now experts at the United Kingdom. We can name the countries and their capital cities of the UK! Miss Gordon is so impressed!
ART: This half-term in Art, Class 2 are looking at the work of Lowry. We have analysed his paintings by considering what we like and dislike about the pictures. We have also looked at the 3 primary colours Lowry uses and how white makes a colour lighter and black makes a colour darker. We explored this mixing to create our own seascape paintings!
JANUARY - We have had so much fun playing in the snow this week in Class 2! The children have explored the feeling of snow and made some exciting snow sculptures!
AUTUMN TERM - YEAR 2 SCIENCE: During this topic, the children learnt all about the uses of everyday materials including wood, plastic, metal, glass, brick, paper and cardboard. The children then went on to compare the suitability of different everyday materials for different purposes. They explored how objects made of some everyday materials can change shape and how the recycling process is able to reuse some everyday materials numerous times. The topic finished with the children learning about new discoveries which have made over time with a specific focus on John McAdam. A range of learning activities were used in this unit including, discussions, debates, sequencing and a local walk where children work scientifically to identify the uses of everyday materials in the local area.
AUTUMN TERM- YEAR 1 SCIENCE: In this topic, the children learnt about everyday materials including wood, plastic, metal, water and rock. They leant to identify and name everyday materials and had the opportunity to explore the properties of these materials. The children also carried out a simply investigation to help them decide which material would be most suitable to use for an umbrella. At the end of the unit, the children could apply their knowledge of everyday materials to sort objects by their properties. A range of learning activities were used including discussions, labelling and matching activities, games, and an investigation to encourage where children have the opportunity to ask and find out the answers to questions.
December 2022: Today in Class 2 we had a very special visitor! We were all so excited and grateful for the gifts Santa brought us. We had great fun with the wrapping too! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from Class 2.
December 2022: Nativity! Class 1 and 2 were absolute superstars in our Nativity today. They sang and performed like stars and we were so proud of everyone!
December 2022: Christmas Jumper Day! Today was Christmas Jumper Day. The children had some fantastic jumpers on and we all enjoyed Sue's beautiful Christmas Dinner! A lovely festive day in Class 2!
December 2022: Mass: The children in Class 2 attended a Mass service today in church! They were very well behaved!
December 2022: Advent: In line with our RE topic on Preparing, we have designed our own Advent Wreaths. We discussed what each candle represents and why there are 4. The children have really enjoyed discussing how they prepare for Christmas including what they are thankful for.
November 2022: Autumn: This half-term our topic is Autumn. We have used our outdoor areas for inspiration to write Autumn poems. The children went outside to draw what they could see, hear, smell, taste and feel. This then built the foundations for their lovely 'Autumn Senses' poems they wrote.
November 2022: Road Safety Week: As part of Road Safety Week 2022, we were very lucky to have a visit from PC Norman. She did some work with us on how we can keep safe when we are walking and crossing the roads. She also reminded us how we should behave when we are in the car. We really enjoyed her session!
October 2022: DISCO! We held a KS1 Fancy Dress Disco in our school hall! It was great fun and there were some amazing costumes. We played games and danced for exciting prizes!
September 2022: Space: This half-term our topic has been Space! We have made some incredible models using materials in the classroom and we wrote letters to Bob the astronaut. He even wrote back! We took a trip to space in our Class 2 rocket! Class 2 are experts at ordering planets!
September 2022: Autumn Magnificent Maths: This term in Maths we have been working so hard on our Number Bonds and Adding and Subtracting! We have used many resources and methods to help us to be mathematicians.
Year 1 have just competed their first Science topic: Animals Including Humans. In this unit, the children learnt about five of the groups that scientists use to classify animals: mammals, fish, birds, reptiles and amphibians. They learnt how to identify the group an animal belongs to by its features and classified the animals according to their group. They also learnt about the different diets animals eat. The children learn about the parts of the human body and had the opportunity to explore the five senses through a simple investigation.
Year 2 have just completed their first Science topic: Animals Including Humans (including life cycles). In this topic, the children began by looking at animal young and comparing them to their adults. They looked at how animals change as they grow up and was introduced to the life cycles of several varied common animals. They looked in detail at how humans change as they grow older, drawing on their own observations. The children were introduced to the three basic needs of animals for survival (water, food and air). They applied this knowledge alongside research from secondary sources, to suggest ways to look after pets. The children also looked at healthy lifestyles, including the importance of exercise, healthy eating and hygiene. The children developed the skill ‘working scientifically’ through investigating the impact of exercise on our bodies and how handwashing is essential for good hygiene.
