Year 3

Bonjour! Year 3 have had a very exciting few weeks, full of curiosity and enthusiasm for learning. In French, the children have been exploring why learning another language is such a valuable skill. They can now greet each other and introduce themselves with growing confidence, and it has been wonderful to see how proud they are of practising their new words.

In English, the class impressed us with some fantastic, imaginative setting descriptions for their Quest stories. We have now moved on to a new text, Sparky, about an unusual pet sloth. This has led to some lively discussions, with questions such as, “What would you do if you suddenly had a sloth to look after?” and “Do you think a sloth makes a good pet?” The children have really enjoyed sharing their creative ideas and thoughtful opinions.

In maths, we are building confidence with adding and subtracting three-digit numbers. To support this, we have been looking carefully at the structure of numbers and how smaller facts can help us with bigger ones. For example, if we know that 6 – 2 = 4, then 60 – 20 = 40 makes sense too. We have also been exploring different ways to break numbers apart, such as 7 being 5 + 2 or 3 + 4, to make trickier problems easier to solve.

Our geography learning has focused on rivers. We started by looking at river sources and are now following their journey downstream, identifying features such as meanders and wider channels. The children particularly enjoyed building their own model rivers to see how water flows.

In science, we have been exploring forces and movement. The children have worked hard to identify pushes and pulls, while also recognising the difference between contact and non-contact forces by observing the effects on different objects.

Finally, it’s that time again when we get a surge in colds.  We would be really grateful for any donations of tissues - thank you so much!

 

          

                                

w/b 22.09.25

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

Key words: adjectives, adverbs, hundreds, tens, ones, place holder, water, source, waterfall, force, pull, push

Maths facts: 10 and 100 more nor less

 

w/b 29.09.25

Spelling rule: Words with /ur/ sound spelt with ear (eg. earth, early, learn, heard)

Key words: start point, mid point, end point, intervals, ascending, descending, greater/less than, tributary , main channel, meander, erosion, floodplain, contact/non contact force, magnet

Maths facts: 10 and 100 more nor less

 

Key dates: 

• Photographs: Monday 6th & Tuesday 7th October
• Family Teacher Meetings: Tuesday 14th (3.30 - 7.00pm) & Thursday 16th (3.30 - 6.30pm) October

 

Year 4

What a fantastic couple of weeks it has been in Year 4! The children have settled brilliantly into their routines and shown real enthusiasm for their learning.

In our reading lessons, we have recently finished The Firework Maker’s Daughter, which proved to be a class favourite. The children particularly enjoyed bringing the characters to life through reading with expression and impressive characterisation. We have now moved on to The Barnabus Project in English, and the story has captured everyone’s imagination. Inspired by the book, the children created their own “imperfect pets” and ended the week with some truly terrific character descriptions, full of detail and creativity.

In maths, we are continuing to strengthen our understanding of place value. The children have explored this concept in a variety of ways, using Dienes, counters, part-whole models, and number lines. 

In science, the children have been learning how to classify vertebrates. They enjoyed working with classification charts to sort animals into different groups, showing great teamwork and reasoning. Meanwhile, in geography, we have been exploring the link between climate and biomes. The children have investigated how lines of latitude and proximity to the equator influence the world’s climate zones.

Our art lessons have been a real highlight, as the children have designed their own Islamic tiles. They have been fascinated by the use of repeating geometric patterns and symmetry, producing some stunning designs of their own.

It has been wonderful to see such excitement and engagement across all subjects. We look forward to sharing more of the children’s achievements with you in the next newsletter.

  

                                

w/b 22/09/25

Adding the prefix im- (before a root word starting with ‘m’ or ‘p’)

immature

immeasurable

impossible

immortal

imperfect

impatient

immovable

impolite

important

improper

Key words: 

Numerals, digits, value, Roman numerals, rounding, fronted adverbial, expanded noun phrase, geometric pattern, clay, classifying, climate, tundra

 

w/b 29/09/25

Adding the prefix in- (meaning ‘not’)

Adding the prefix il- (before a root word staring with ‘l’) and the prefix ir-(before a root word starting with ‘r’)

illegal 

illegible 

illogical 

illiterate 

illicit 

irregular 

irrelevant 

irresponsible 

irrational 

irresistible 

Key words: 

Addition, subtraction, exchanging, vegetation, vegetal pattern, features, characteristics

 

Key Messages: 

• 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 - a huge thank you for your support with this so far!

• A reminder children should also practice spellings and times tables. 

 

Key dates:

• 14/10, 16/10 - Family Teacher Meetings (evenings)
• 22/10 - Wetlands Centre Y4 school trip