Year 4

Spring 2024

It has been lovely to welcome you all back to class as we start our exciting Spring term!

In Geography, we will be learning about 'raging rivers' and their very important role in the water cycle. We will be looking closely at the features of rivers, and we will be exploring the globe to learn some fascinating facts about our amazing natural landscapes. Rivers do not only provide a home to some of our planet's most interesting creatures, but they are also vital for our everyday lives and daily routines. This also links nicely to our new Art topic, where we will be creating our own landscape art to represent the movement of water.                             

In English, our new class book is 'Oliver and the Seawigs' by Philip Reeve which we will later use as inspiration to create our own fantastical adventure story involving mythical creatures. Our first writing unit is based on a short film called 'The Windmill Farmer'. We will be writing diaries and letters to express our thoughts and feelings as residents of the countryside town Blusterville, following a destructive storm. We will also write creatively to produce a metaphor poem to describe a storm and the damage it can cause.

In Maths, we are continuing with our multiplication and division topic which focuses on larger number calculations and the use of different written methods. We will then be moving on to measurement, where we will be comparing different units of length and calculating the perimeter of rectilinear shapes. Throughout the year, we will also continue to practise our times tables through games, whole class activities and morning starters.

In Science, we will be investigating how sounds are made, how they travel and how sounds can be described and classified. Full details of the learning taking place in Year 4 this term can be found here. Our Year 4 homework grid for Spring 1 can be found here.

Autumn 2024

We have had a lovely start to the new school year! It has been great to see the children settle in so quickly after the summer break, and I am looking forward to the year ahead at my new school We have got lots of fun things planned, an outline of what we are learning in the autumn term can be found here.

In Topic, we will be travelling back in time to learn all about the fascinating settlers known as the Anglo-Saxons and the 'vicious' Vikings. We will be discovering why they decided to invade and settle in Britain, how they lived their everyday lives and what happened during significant raids and battles. This links nicely with our Art topic, where we will be designing and creating our own Anglo-Saxon crosses and dragon eyes using clay.

In English, we will be starting a descriptive writing unit based on the book 'The Tunnel' by Anthony Browne. This beautifully illustrated picture book tells the tale of a brother and sister, who learn an important lesson after discovering a mysterious new realm beyond a dark and gloomy tunnel. We will use this book to inspire us when creating our own exciting stories with a hidden message... We will then be transporting ourselves to the Isle of Berk, where we will follow the adventures of the unlikely hero Hiccup and his unruly group of Hairy Hooligans as they try to train their troublesome dragons. This book will be our whole class reading book for the Autumn term. 

In Maths, we have started our place value topic, focusing on base ten and how we can use pictorial resources to help us represent larger numbers. We have also made a good start on practicing our times tables, as this is an important part of maths in Y4 in preparation for the times tables check we will complete in Summer. 

In Science, we are learning about living things and their habitats. We will be exploring the similarities and differences between different types of plants and animals and how scientists organise them to make sense of our amazing world.

Summer 2024

It has been lovely to welcome you all back as we start our exciting and very busy Summer term! We are looking forward to sharing our fabulous work and achievements as we move through our fascinating new topics, lesson tasks and activities...

In Topic, we are learning about the Ancient Egyptians and what makes them so memorable. We will be looking at past and present Egyptian life, Egypt's magnificent landmarks and the important historical figures, including their unusual gods and goddesses. Linking in with our Topic, in Art we will be learning how to print intricate Egyptian patterns and we will also be developing our sketching skills to draw 3D images of pyramids and historical monuments.

Following the fantastical adventures of Oliver and his mythical friends in ‘Oliver and the Seawigs’, our new guided reading book explores the magical world of Narnia. We will join the Pevensie children on their amazing journey in ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' by C.S Lewis. We will also be using this book to inspire amazing narrative writing as the character of Lucy. Following on from this, we will be practising explanation writing skills. We will be writing our own explanation all about mummification! 

In Maths, we are starting with our 'decimals' topic, where we will be using place value charts to help us order, compare and round decimal numbers. We will then be moving on to the key life skills of calculating amount of money and reading time on different types of clocks. Throughout the term, we will also continue to practise our times tables using group games, quizzes and whole class activities. It would also be useful if children could practise regularly at home. Below is a link to a ‘times tables check’ activity that can be used to practise for the official online test:

https://www.timestables.co.uk/multiplication-tables-check/

In Science, we are continuing with our 'Animals, including humans' topic, where we will be moving on to looking at the teeth of different animals and the sequencing of food chains. Our second topic is 'Electricity', where we will focus on the different components of a working electrical circuit.

 A full outline of the learning this term can be found here and the homework grid for this half term is available via this link.