Year 3

What a fantastic start we’ve had in Year 3! The children have settled in so well and we are already so impressed with the enthusiasm and curiosity they are bringing to their learning each day.

In English, we’ve been exploring the beautiful wordless book Quest. It has been a joy to hear the children’s imaginative ideas about what might be happening in the story and why. They’ve really enjoyed stepping into the book themselves—using their senses to imagine the setting and even acting out some of the scenes.

In maths, we’ve been strengthening our understanding of place value, revisiting ones and tens before moving into hundreds. Through our fluency sessions, the children have been spotting number patterns and making great connections, which is helping to build their confidence with bigger numbers.

Our geography topic has introduced us to rivers—what they are, how they are formed, and why they are so important. In art, we’ve been inspired by Paul Klee’s idea of “taking a dot for a walk” to create our own line drawings.

PE has been a highlight too, even with the wet weather! The children have had fun developing teamwork and strategies in games such as skipping challenges and “floor is lava,” which they can also enjoy during playtimes.

Most importantly, the children have been busy building new friendships, supporting one another, and setting goals for the year ahead. It has been a wonderful start, and we are excited to see all the learning and achievements still to come.

          

          

  

w/b 08.09.25

Spelling rule: Words with the long /ai/ sound spelt with ei (eg. eight/neighbour)

Key words: river, channel, bank, Thames, Paul Klee, lines

Maths facts: 10 and 100 more nor less

 

w/b 15.09.25

Spelling rule: Words with the long /ai/ sound spelt with ey (eg. they/prey)

Key words: survival, shelter, air, oxygen, food, water, source, waterfall, Paul Klee, lines primary, secondary, tertiary colours

Maths facts: 10 and 100 more nor less

 

Key dates: 

• Friday 20th            PJ reading day - bring in a £1
• Thursday 26th       New to The Vineyard Coffee Morning 9.15am

 

Year 4

A very warm welcome back to the Vineyard! It has been wonderful to see the children settle into their new classes so quickly, and we are already enjoying a fantastic start to the year. The children have shown great enthusiasm for their learning, and we are excited to share some of the highlights so far.

In maths, we have been exploring place value. The children have been representing numbers in different ways and beginning to show real confidence in explaining their thinking. In English, we have been focusing on sentence structure and grammar, ensuring that children build strong foundations for their writing. We have also enjoyed reading Quest by Aaron Becker, a beautifully illustrated book that has sparked the children’s imaginations. Using this as inspiration, they will be writing their own setting descriptions next week.

In geography, our topic is biomes. The children have been learning about the different types of biomes around the world, from icy tundra to lush rainforests. Next week, they will be putting this knowledge into practice by locating the biomes on a world map. In science, we have been looking at the features of living things through the acronym MRS GREN (movement, respiration, sensitivity, growth, reproduction, excretion, nutrition), helping the children understand what makes something alive.

Our art lessons have got off to a creative start with a new topic on geometry. The children are exploring patterns and symmetry with a focus on Islamic tiles – a wonderful opportunity to combine mathematical thinking with artistic creativity.

We are delighted with the positive start the children have made and look forward to sharing more of their learning with you in future newsletters, which will be sent out fortnightly.

  

w/b 08/09/25

Words with /aw/ spelt with augh and au

caught 

naughty 

taught 

daughter 

autumn 

clause 

cause 

astronaut 

applaud 

author 

Key words: 

Place value, hundreds, tens, ones, part whole model, placeholder, subject (in a sentence), adjective, biome, taiga, tropical, deciduous, desert, tundra, grassland, geometric

 

w/b 15/09/25

Adding the prefix in- (meaning ‘not’)

advise

device

devise

licence

license

practice

practise

prophecy

prophesy

Key words: 

Thousands, simile, expanded noun phrase, equator, latitude, Islamic art, geometric, vegetal pattern, classify, features, vertebrate, invertebrate

 

Key Messages: 

• Please ensure your child is coming to school with the correct uniform.

• Please ensure your child has a healthy and delicious snack with them for break times!

• Please record five reading record comments per week, ready for checking on Mondays (starting 15.9).

• A reminder children should also practice spellings and times tables - TTRS is a fantastic resource and children will stick their login details into their homework books on Monday.

 

Key dates:

• 19/9 - Pyjama day! £1 for the classroom book corner
• 18/9 - Volunteer training 9am
• 14/10, 16/10 - Family Teacher Meetings (evenings)
• 22/10 - Wetlands Centre Y4 school trip