Class 2 | Mellor St Mary Church of England Primary School

Hello and welcome to Class 2!

Class 2 is taught by Mrs. Marshall on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and by Mr. Bent on Thursday and Friday.

Our Teaching Assistant is Mrs. Holroyd, who works with us every day.

We have got lots of fun activities planned to help us learn through enjoyment! We want every child to be happy. That's our mission!

Mellor St Mary CE Primary School Learning Overview

This is the new Learning Overview for this half term. It shows what we will be learning about in school and this can be developed and enriched at home either through the activities listed below or by some of your own choosing.

*Class 2*		*Term: Summer– 2nd half*
*Subject*	*In school we will be learning about / to*		*Follow up home activities*
English	Year 1 Phonics – Final preparation for Phonics Check. Reinforce Phase 5 vowel digraphs, including work on split digraphs: a-e, e-e, i-e, o-e, u-e, in order to be able to read and spell words such as “cake,” “these,” “like,” spoke” and “tube.” Work on plurals – adding “s” or “es” to words. Explore adding the prefix “un” to words, to create “unhappy” etc. Continue to look at suffixes at the end of words: ing, ed, er. Continue work on spelling words that do not conform to phonic rules, which we read and write frequently, from Y1 lists. Year 2 Spelling – Go over which words end in “al,” and “il” and see how “o” can make an “u” sound in certain words Continue to highlight grammar, including the use of apostrophes to show possession. Work on spelling homophones correctly. Continue to spell words that are exceptions to phonic rules from Year 2 lists. Year 1 and 2: Non-fiction In connection with our theme “Penguins, Possums and Pigs,”(Animals) each child will create their own non-fiction book about animals. The books will link with our Science work on classifying creatures into groups of mammals, reptiles, birds, fish and insects. The children will undertake their own research through reading books and using the internet, and choose to write about their own creature from each category. They will develop the skill of taking notes whilst reading and watching video clips, to provide the information for their own book. Narrative reading/writing: We will be reading and enjoying stories written by the same author: Roald Dahl. We will be reading Key-Stage 1 age appropriate books, e.g. George’s Marvellous Medicine and The Magic Finger.		Daily reading and practice of the words for our homework. Children are welcome to bring in books, magazines, guidebooks from zoos etc. from home to help with their research for their own book. Children may access information about their chosen creatures on the internet at home as well as at school.
Mathematics	Year 1 – Continue to develop an understanding of addition and subtraction, including filling in “missing number” questions, working with numbers up to at least 30, and generally to 100. Explore “subtraction” in terms of “finding the difference” between two numbers. Continue to explore multiplication and division, using pictures to support calculations. Go over how we measure length and mass. Reinforce a concept of fractions, in terms of halves and quarters. Through using Bee-Bots, explore position and direction. Develop a concept of the length time – eg. by investigating how many times you can write your name in 1 minute. Find out how we define even and odd numbers. Year 2 – Explore how we can reason about addition and subtraction, multiplication and division from the knowledge we already have, such as how adding 2 odd numbers will result in an even number in the answer. Work on describing position, direction and movement, using Bee-Bots. Program them to make quarter, half and three-quarter turns. Link with continuing work on telling the time. Introduce the concept of a “right angle.”		Practise homework questions. Practise looking at clocks, and working out how many minutes it is to bedtime etc. Continue to practise times tables and matching division facts. It is always very helpful to practise telling the time at home, working out what time is shown to the nearest 5 minutes.
Science	Year 1 and 2 Linked with our topic on Animals we shall be exploring different categories of creatures: mammals, reptiles, insects, birds and fish. We shall focus on characteristics, similarities and differences, eg. what they eat (carnivore, herbivore, omnivore) climate of their habitat, and fantastic facts about animals’ characteristics (such as lizards that change colour.)		Children will enjoy learning more about their own pets at home, for instance working out why their pet is a mammal.
Computing	Year 1 and 2 Program Bee-Bots to explore direction and turns, linked to maths above. Find pictures of animals to illustrate children’s own Animal books. Learn how to transport pictures from Google images to Word, so the size can be adjusted. Complete Coding skills using “Espresso Coding” for our two year groups.		Try to give your child access to a computer with a mouse. Practise double clicking on left button to access programs. Explore how to access internet sites to find pictures of animals and their habitats. Practise skills such as enlarging and cropping images using software. Be aware of how to stay safe on internet sites, by always showing an interest in what children are accessing on screen.
RE	Year 1 and Year 2 – Learn about Islam and Judaism. Learn about customs at home, festivals and celebrations. Find out about places of worship for these two religions. Look for similarities with Christianity throughout.		Talk to people from different faiths.
History
Geography	Year 1 and Year 2 – Explore what we mean by “Human” and “Physical” geographical features, beginning with what we can see in the view from our playground. Explore hot and cold places of the world, identifying physical and human features in different climates e.g. frozen environments, deserts, types of housing, towns etc. Compare the sorts of animals found in hot and cold places of the world. Locate the position of the equator and the North and South Poles, and contrast the types of animals found in these localities. Name the seven continents of the world and the five oceans. Learn about Japan in preparation for class presentation linked to the World Cup.		Look at local, national and world maps. Take in the view from the playground, looking west out to the coast. Identify the equator on a globe and locate the North and South Poles. Find the continents children may have visited on holiday, or may be going to visit this year. Talk about oceans and seas the children may have flown over/sailed on during family holidays.
Art / DT	Year 1 and Year 2 – Textiles: Design and make a fabric stuffed insect/animal. Be able to design the shape of insect/animal. Use fabric scissors to cut felt. Practise sewing skills, using running stitch. the insect with shiny sequins etc.		Practise sewing techniques, including pulling thread tight after each stitch.
Foreign Language	Optional – French Club Year 1 and Year 2. We usually have a drink and often eat food (!), saying “please” and “thank you” in French. We will be learning how to say types of animals in French. We will learn how to describe the weather.		Recall any French you have and ask your child simple questions. Use French words at meal times to say “please” and “thank you.”
PE	We shall be practising dances for school displays. We shall develop our athletics skills in preparation for Sports day: running down the track, relay, skipping, jumping in sacks, balancing eggs on spoons.		Enjoy watching children dance. Give children space to run as fast as they can, enjoying freedom and speed.
Music	We will be trying to use our voices expressively by singing and chanting different songs.		Your child will probably enjoy singing you the songs s/he is learning at school to entertain you at home!

*Class 2*		*Term: Summer– first half*
*Subject*	*In school we will be learning about / to*		*Follow up home activities*
English	Year 1 Phonics – reinforce Phase 5 vowel digraphs, including work on split digraphs: a-e, e-e, i-e, o-e, u-e, in order to be able to read and spell words such as “make,” “these,” “like,” spoke” and “cube.” Work on alternative pronunciation of letters and letter patterns in words. Look at suffixes at the end of words: ing, ed, er. Year 2 Spelling – Reinforce how we use double consonants in the middle of words which end in “ing,” “ed,” “er,” “est” or “y.”Go over which words end in “le” or “el.” to highlight grammar, including completely accurate use of capital letters and full stops, the correct use of question marks and exclamation marks, and the use of apostrophes to show possession. Develop understanding of sentences as questions, commands, exclamations and statements. Go over all parts of speech: nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs. Year 1 and 2: In connection with our theme “The Great Outdoors,” we will work on the story of Little Red Riding Hood, from an age-appropriate version for our mixed aged class. We will look at all the features of language mentioned in our grammar focus above. In addition, we will write instructions taken from elements of this story. Our intended outcome is to retell the story through Red Riding Hood’s eyes as she reflects on the events of her day. Non-fiction writing: Linking to our topic of “The Great Outdoors,” our learning outcome is to write instructions about how to roast marshmallows. We will be looking at the features of instructions.		Daily reading and practice of the words for our homework. Enjoy books and poems together, including other stories and non-fiction texts about being outdoors and enjoy a range of traditional tales.
Mathematics	Year 1 –Continue exploring Place Value with numbers up to 100. Continue to develop an understanding of addition and subtraction, applying this to answering questions about block graphs. Explore volume and capacity, reading scales on measuring cylinders. Reinforce a concept of fractions, in terms of halves and quarters. Through using Bee-Bots, explore position and direction. Recap how to tell o’clock times, and learn what half-past times look like on analogue and digital clocks. Go over the characteristics of 2d and 3d shapes. Year 2 – Revise how to construct, read and interpret block graphs when handling data, and apply this to Place Value by reading scales on axes that are demarcated in steps of 2, 3, 5 and 10. Through exploring capacity, read scales on measuring cylinders that are demarcated in different steps. Revise how to add and subtract two 2-digit numbers. Continue to learn about fractions, exploring thirds, quarters, halves and three quarters signs and what they represent. Revise “quarter to” and “quarter past” times, and learn how to tell the time to the nearest five minutes. Recap the characteristics of 2d and 3d shapes.		Continue to explore how to pay for items using all coins up to £2. Develop the ability to recognise o’clock and half-past times. Practise homework questions. Continually take the opportunity to pay for items in shops, counting out coins or values in notes. (We do not combine pounds and pence at this stage with a digital point, but we say “and” instead – e.g. £2 and 43 pence.)Practise counting out coins and notes from money boxes. Please practise basic subtraction skills, such as counting backwards in ones from 50. Continue to practise times tables and matching division facts. Explore such questions as “How many 5p coins do we need to make 35p?” It is always very helpful to practise telling the time at home, working out what time is shown to the nearest 5 minutes.
Science	Year 1 and 2 Linked with our topic on The Great Outdoors, we shall be exploring mini-beasts. We shall focus on characteristics, similarities and differences, e.g wings/no wings, legs/no legs etc.		Children will enjoy looking for mini-beasts in their own gardens and surrounding area.
Computing	Year 1 and 2 Program Bee-Bots to explore direction and turns, linked to maths above. Apply skills from Art lessons to on-screen drawing and painting activities, representing flowers and plants in our school environment on “Paint” and iPad sketchbook programs. Develop Coding skills using “Espresso Coding” for our two year groups.		Try to give your child access to a computer with a mouse. Practise double clicking on left button to access programs. Explore how to access internet sites to practise mathematics and phonics skills, including accessing Phonics Play free activities from home – Phase 5 - and Y1/2 maths activities. Be aware of how to stay safe on internet sites, by always showing an interest in what children are accessing on screen.
RE	Year 1 and Year 2 – Explore church buildings, including looking at the furnishings in different types of Christian places of worship. Visit St. Mary’s Church and compare with pictures of other churches in different parts of the world and from various denominations.		If you have the chance to attend a church for any reason, look at such items as the font and the altar, acknowledging that all churches share similar furnishings, although the styles of decoration may vary.
History	Year 1 and Year 2 –Continue our theme on diaries.		Continue to write the entries for our Class Diary.
Geography	Year 1 and Year 2 – Understand the features of seasonal change into spring time and weather patterns. Develop an understanding of how maps work through exploring aerial views of our school and our village of Mellor. Look at Ordnance Survey maps of this area, and identify features represented by the key. Understand what we mean by “human” and “physical” geographical features, in connection with our school grounds and the views from the playground. Explore the four points of the compass in practice on our playground and apply them to looking at maps.		Look at local, national and world maps. Take in the view from the playground, looking west out to the coast. Spot landmarks from your windows and on car journeys, including human geographical features such as Blackpool Tower, and physical geographical features such as Pendle Hill. When outside, discuss weather changes compared to winter, mentioning temperature changes. Watch the Weather together on T.V. and discuss where we are on the map.
Art / DT	Year 1 and Year 2 – Food Technology: Make fruit kebabs. Practise chopping skills. Follow instructions and write instructions for others to use. Art: Go outside to sketch wild flowers we find on our school field and in the hedgerows. Use the sketch to draw and paint these flowers using close observational skills. Look at how famous artists have painted the same features outdoors in different lights, including Monet’s work. Explore sketching the landscape view from our playground.		Practise using a safe knife to prepare fruit salad. Practise drawing and sketching anything you wish, including signs of spring in the natural environment.
Foreign Language	Optional – French Club Year 1 and Year 2. We usually have a drink and often eat food (!), saying “please” and “thank you” in French. We will be learning how to say where we live. We will learn how to describe the weather in French.		Recall any French you have and ask your child simple questions. Use French words at meal times to say “please” and “thank you.”
PE	We shall be developing the skills of catching and over-arm throwing. We shall develop travelling skills.		Play throwing and catching games outdoors as a family, and on days out on the beach (if the weather is suitable!)
Music	We will be trying to use our voices expressively by singing and chanting different songs.		Your child will probably enjoy singing you the songs s/he is learning at school to entertain you at home!

*Class 2*		*Term: Spring – second half*
*Subject*	*In school we will be learning about / to*		*Follow up home activities*
English	Year 1 Phonics – focus on Phase 5 vowel digraphs, including work on split digraphs: a-e, e-e, i-e, o-e, u-e, in order to be able to read and spell words such as “make,” “these,” “like,” spoke” and “cube.” Year 2 Spelling – Focus on how we use double consonants in the middle of words which end in “ing,” “ed,” “er” “est” or “y.” Highlight grammar, including completely accurate use of capital letters and full stops, the correct use of question marks and exclamation marks, the use of apostrophes to show possession and when words are shortened, as well as on-going work on identifying and creating noun phrases in texts. Year 1 and 2: Ongoing History Topic: Fire! Fire! We are continuing our work on the fictional account of the Fire of London, entitled City of Fire. Children will write their own story using this text as a model, with innovation of the characters and the events they witness as they flee from the fire. Science Topic: Growth and Green Fingers: We will be working on the narrative: Grandpa and my Sister, Bee.		Daily reading and practice of the words for our homework. Enjoy books and poems together, including other stories and non-fiction texts about The Fire of London and about growing plants, such as traditional tales like “Jack and the Beanstalk” and “The Enormous Turnip”.
Mathematics	Year 1 –Introduce data handling through constructing and interpreting block graphs. Explore doubling and halving numbers. Continue work on addition and subtraction, highlighting bonds, patterns and relationships within numbers up to 20. Continue learning about fractions, highlighting halves and quarters. Learn how to tell half-past times on analogue and digital clocks. Year 2 – Develop an understanding of how to construct, read and interpret block graphs, when handling data. Revise addition and subtraction with numbers to 100, moving from horizontal to vertical presentation of sums. Continue learning how to tell the time, reading the clock in 5 minute intervals and exploring “to” and “past.” Explore position and direction, programming Bee Bots to make turns and focus on recognising “left” and “right.”		Continue to explore how to pay for items using all coins up to £2. Develop the ability to recognise o’clock and half-past times. Practise homework questions. Take opportunities to pay for items in shops, counting out coins or values in notes. (We do not combine pounds and pence at this stage with a digital point, but we say “and” instead – e.g. £2 and 43 pence.) Continue to practise times tables and matching division facts. Explore such questions as “How many 5p coins do we need to make 40p?” Practise transferring addition and take-away questions written horizontally, to vertical presentation e.g. 43+22= to 43 +22 and 58-26= to 58 26
Science	Year 1 and 2 Linked with our topic on Growth and Green Fingers, we will learn about common trees and flowers. We will plant various seeds and bulbs in class and measure their growth. We will investigate which conditions lead to the best plant growth and observe the changes that occur.		Children will enjoy planting different types of seeds at home, particularly seeds which grow quickly, such as mustard and cress, bean sprouts, and some mixed wild flower seed collections.
Computing	Year 1 and 2 Develop mouse control and the ability to navigate programs whilst practising maths and phonics skills on PCs and ipads.		Allow your child access to a computer with a mouse. Practise double clicking on left button to access programs. Explore how to access internet sites to practise mathematics and phonics skills, including accessing Phonics Play free activities from home – Phase 5.
RE	Year 1 and Year 2 – Explore how the true meaning of Easter is shown in the symbols we see around us at this time: eggs, chicks, the Cross and candles. Understand why Easter is considered to be the most important Christian festival.		Look at the Bible at home, both adults’ and children’s editions. Highlight the events of Holy Week and Easter, from Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday to the resurrection on Easter day.
History	Year 1 and Year 2 –Continue our topic on The Fire of London. Explore Samuel Pepys’ diary entries – written in code – and write our own diary entries through Samuel Pepys’ eyes. Learn about the rebuilding of London after the fire, including how St. Paul’s Cathedral was rebuilt to look as it does now.		Continue to write the entries for our Class Diary.
Geography	Year 1 and Year 2 – Understand the features of seasonal change from winter to spring, linked with our science topic of growing seeds.		Look at globes and world maps. Go on walks to spot the signs of spring in the hedges and trees around where we live. Look out for birds building nests and baby farm animals, including new lambs in the fields surrounding Mellor.
Art / DT	Year 1 and Year 2 – Having completed our designs and prototypes, we are now ready to make a picture of the Fire of London, with moving parts such as flames and boats on the Thames using lever mechanisms.		Practise drawing and sketching anything you wish, including signs of spring in the natural environment. Explore how to make objects in pictures move, using levers and split pin mechanisms. Look at books together that have moving parts in the illustrations.
Foreign Language	Optional – French Club Year 1 and Year 2. We usually have a drink and often eat food (!), saying “please” and “thank you” in French. We will be learning how to say the months of the year and days of the week, as well as when our birthdays are. We like to sing as much as possible! We will be learning how to say where we live.		Recall any French you have and ask your child simple questions. Use French words at meal times to say “please” and “thank you.”
PE	Cricket – Develop the basic skills of throwing, catching and batting.		Develop throwing and catching skills in the garden, as well as the ability to hit balls with a bat, which is a surprisingly hard skill to master!
Music	Music this half-term will be led by a Music specialist teacher from St. Wilfred’s High School on an out-reach program to work with primary school children. look forward to learning the songs and enjoying the musical opportunities with percussion instruments that the teacher will bring.		Sing along at home to the new songs that we learn.

*Class 2*		*Term: Autumn – first half*
*Subject*	*In school we will be learning about / to*		*Follow up home activities*
English	1 Phonics – revise all consonant digraphs (ch,sh,th etc,) and Phase 3 vowel digraphs and trigraphs (ai, ee, igh, oa, oo), for reading and spelling. Year 2 Spelling – introduce new trigraphs (dge) and the use of silent letters (kn, gn, wr). Year 1 and 2: Read Dogger (Shirley Hughes) and undertake writing activities linked to empathy with the characters in the story.		Daily reading and practice of the words in our homework books. Enjoy books together, including other stories about family life, written by such authors as Shirley Hughes.
Mathematics	Year 1 – Be able to mentally picture the value of numbers up to 10. Understand “more” and “less” than given numbers. Explore addition and subtraction facts with numbers up to 10, highlighting addition bonds that add up to 10. Year 2 – Explore place value with numbers up to 100. Introduce symbols that indicate “more than” and “less than.” Practise addition and subtraction with 2-digit numbers.		Count out household objects accurately. Work on the concept of “1 more than” and “1 less than” when handing out food/toys etc. Count out values of money using ten pence and one penny coins. Practise homework questions. I will inform parents of specific methods for addition and subtraction we are using in school.
Science	Year 1 and 2 To identify, name, draw and label the basic parts of the human body and say which part of the body is associated with each sense and compare that to animals. To notice that animals, including humans, have offspring which grow into adults. To describe the importance for humans of exercise, eating the right amounts of different types of food, and hygiene.		Talk about different body parts and explore the five senses. Discuss different types of food and nutrition.
Computing	Year 1 – focus on improving mouse control, particularly through drawing on screen. Year 2 – focus on word-processing skills, linked with on-going writing activities in English.		Allow your child access to a computer with a mouse. Practise double clicking on left button to access programs. Explore using “Paint.” Practise typing letters and notes to family members using “Word.”
RE	Year 1 and Year 2 – Explore the Bible as a collection of very special books. Consider aspects of Harvest, following whole school theme.		Look at the Bible at home, both adults’ and children’s editions. Look for stories that children are familiar with, such as Noah’s Ark, and aspects of the life of Jesus, such as Christmas and Easter.
History	Year 1 and Year 2 – “Family Album” topic. Sequence photographs of adults showing them as a baby through to their present age. Consider generations within families. Compare birthday celebrations now with those in the past. Learn about members of the Royal family.		Look at photographs of your own family members over the years. Discuss how people change. Talk about your own birthday parties when you were young. Point out pictures of the Royal family in the news media.
Geography	Year 1 and Year 2 - Identify on a map where children went on holiday, both in the U.K. and abroad. Know the four countries of the U.K. and identify the capital cities. Name the seas surrounding the U.K.		Look at globes and world maps. Children love finding places on a globe! Talk about special places children may have visited, such as London. Look at photographs.
Art / DT	Year 1 – Create a self-portrait using paint. Year 2 – Create a portrait of a family member using paint.		Practise drawing and sketching skills, particularly from looking closely at real objects.
Foreign Language	Optional – French Club Year 1 and Year 2. We learn to ask and answer questions about our name, age, where we live etc. We always have a drink and often eat food (!), saying “please” and “thank you” in French.		Recall any French you have and ask your child simple questions. Use French words at meal times to say “please” and “thank you.”
PE	Gymnastics- Dance		Practise pike, straddle and other sitting positions. Practise performing a sequence.
Music	To learn about the different families of musical instruments and what characteristics they contain that relate them to each other.		When listening to music ask the children if they can identify which instruments are being played.

*Class 2*		*Term: Autumn – second half*
*Subject*	*In school we will be learning about / to*		*Follow up home activities*
English	Year 1 Phonics – revise all Phase 3 vowel digraphs and trigraphs (ai, ee, igh, oa, oo, ar, or, air, ear ...) for reading and spelling. Year 2 Spelling – introduce new spelling patterns (words ending in “le,” “el,” “al” and plural word endings.) Year 1 and 2: Topic: Robots. Read the first chapter of The Iron Man and work on recognition of adjectives, adverbs, verbs and nouns from text. Write “thought bubbles” from characters that describe the scene. Plan and write own story about a robot, stimulated from this opening chapter of The Iron Man. Christmas Writing - compose own letter to Father Christmas, considering the need to be appreciative and gracious for what we have and aware of the needs of others at this time. Read and write Christmas poetry, e.g. “Hoping” by Shirley Hughes. Read verses from Christmas carols to understand their meaning and their message to us.		Daily reading and practice of the words for our homework. Enjoy books together, including other stories about robots or programmable toys/ toys that come to life. Enjoy writing letters to family members, especially any who are abroad at this time. Enjoy singing carols, and talk about the visual scenes they conjure up in our imaginations, e.g. “Away in a manger.”
Mathematics	Year 1 –Investigate numbers to 20, including reading and writing numerals and words. Explore addition and subtraction facts with numbers up to 20. Investigate multiplication and division, looking at 2s, 5s and 10s. Year 2 – Explore addition and subtraction with numbers up to 100. Use various methods to calculate, including vertical presentation of sums, with and without “renaming.” This was previously known as “carrying tens.” Continue to work on multiplication tables and division, within the 2, 3, 5 and 10 times tables.		Count out household objects accurately and add up totals of objects. Count out values of money using two, five and ten pence coins as well as one penny coins. Practise homework questions. The Year 2 children will be adding and subtracting in columns now known as “ones” (units) and “tens.”
Science	Year 1 and 2 To identify, which parts of the body are associated with each sense. Link with understanding how animals use their senses.		Talk about different body parts and explore the five senses. Discuss parts of bodies used for each sense. Find fascinating facts e.g. that butterflies taste with their feet!
Computing	Year 1 – focus on improving mouse control, particularly through drawing on screen. Explore Y1 Coding (programming pictures to move on screen) using Espresso teaching resources. Year 2 – focus on word-processing skills, linked with on-going writing activities in English. Explore Y2 Coding, using Espresso teaching resources.		Allow your child access to a computer with a mouse. Practise double clicking on left button to access programs. Explore using “Paint.” Practise typing letters and notes to family members using “Word.”
RE	Year 1 and Year 2 – Explore the role of Angels as messengers within the Christmas Story.		Look at the Bible at home, both adults’ and children’s editions. Highlight the story of the Nativity and the build up through the angel’s visits to foretell the birth of John and Jesus.
History	Year 1 and Year 2 – Continue our “Family Album” topic. Compare birthday celebrations now with those in the past. Learn about members of the Royal family and succession to the throne. How do they spend Christmas?		Talk about your own birthday parties when you were young. Point out pictures of the Royal family in the news media, especially with news of Kate’s new baby on the way!
Geography	Year 1 and Year 2 – Continue to work on the capital cities of the four countries of the UK and also consider Dublin in the Republic of Ireland. Identify the location of Israel on the globe and on world maps, in relation to the events of Christmas.		Look at globes and world maps. Children love finding places on a globe! Talk about special places children may have visited, such as London, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Belfast and Dublin. Look at photographs.
Art / DT	Year 1 and Year 2 – Design and make a robot using card and box modelling techniques. Consider how to fix pieces together so that they are securely connected and ensure the robot has a firm base. Christmas Art – make a Christmas card to give to a family member.		Practise drawing and sketching. Explore how to fix different shapes of tubes and boxes together, e.g. cutting the base of a cardboard tube so it splays out at the bottom.
Foreign Language	Optional – French Club Year 1 and Year 2. We learn to ask and answer questions about our name, age, where we live etc. We always have a drink and often eat food (!), saying “please” and “thank you” in French. We will be learning how to say “I like..” or “I don’t like...”and learning how to name types of fruit in French. We will also learn a simple Christmas carol in French.		Recall any French you have and ask your child simple questions. Use French words at meal times to say “please” and “thank you.”
PE	Fundamental skills – running, throwing and catching. Dance - Learn a robot dance. Learn dances for the Christmas Concert.		Practise performing a sequence of dance actions, linked to moving like a robot, and in relation to the Christmas Concert.
Music	Use untuned instruments to compose music that represents how a robot moves. Learn songs and dances for our Christmas concert. Practise Christmas carols for our Nativity Services in the Cathedral and at our parish church.		Sing along at home when your child is practising for the Christmas Concert and for our nativity services!

*Class 2*		*Term: Spring – first half*
*Subject*	*In school we will be learning about / to*		*Follow up home activities*
English	Year 1 Phonics – focus on Phase 4 combinations of adjacent consonants at the beginning, within and at the end of words – e.g. best, mend, faster, strap, street, sprint. Year 2 Spelling – Focus on past tense, comparative and superlative words, adding –ed, -ing, -er and –est to a root word ending in –y, e.g. try-tried, try-trying, cosy-cosier, cosy- cosiest. Learn to take off the “e” and add “ing” with verbs that end in “e” to make the present/past progressive tense, e.g. drive – driving. Year 1 and 2: Topic: Fire! Fire! Read non-fiction texts: How do we know about The Great Fire of London? and Start-Up History – The Great Fire of London. Each child to design and write a page for our own class information book about the Great Fire. Read the fictional account of the fire: City of Fire. Children will write their own story using this text as a model, with innovation of the main character. Read the poem: The Great Fire of London. Children will compose their own poem, prompted by their own imaginative sensory response to being at the scene of the fire. History link: Explore Samuel Pepys’ Diary, in which he recorded the events of the Fire of London.		Daily reading and practice of the words for our homework. Enjoy books and poems together, including other stories and non-fiction texts about The Fire of London. Homework activity: Each child to write one diary entry to record a day in their life, to compile a class diary.
Mathematics	Year 1 –Introduce Place Value with numbers up to 100, partitioning numbers into tens and ones. Explore measurement of weight. Practise recognising and using different denominations of coins and notes. Explore doubling and halving numbers. Continue work on addition and subtraction, highlighting bonds, patterns and relationships within numbers up to 20. Year 2 – Apply our understanding of place value to measures: capacity, weight and length. Through this, we will explore how we round numbers up and down to the nearest multiple of ten. Extend our understanding of using money, introducing pounds. Continue working on multiplication through counting up and back in sequences of 2s, 3s, 5s and 10s, and continue to explore repeated addition. Continue to explore division as sharing and grouping. Ongoing work on subtraction, moving from horizontal to vertical presentation.		Count out values of money using ten pence and one penny coins to link with Place Value. Explore how to pay for items using all coins up to £1. Practise homework questions. Practise rounding numbers up and down to the nearest 10. Take opportunities to pay for items in shops, counting out coins or values in notes. (We do not combine pounds and pence at this stage.) Continue to practise times tables. Explore such questions as “How many 5p coins do we need to make 40p?” Practise transferring addition and take-away questions written horizontally, to vertical presentation e.g. 23+20= to 23 +20 and 53-20= to 53 20
Science	Year 1 and 2 Linked with our topic on the Great Fire of London, explore materials in our environment and their properties. Link with our historical understanding that the wooden buildings people lived in during the 17^th century were very flammable, which led to the fire spreading rapidly. Children will also carry out a simple investigation to explore which materials would be most suitable to use to make an umbrella.		Talk about different materials used in buildings in our locality. Discuss why we use certain materials e.g. in cooking utensils, for example metal frying pans, wooden spoons etc.
Computing	Year 1 and 2 Use Espresso and Google to search for information about the Fire of London, including images, which we can use to inform our pages for our class book. Print out images that we could use to illustrate our pages. Use Paint programs to create images of London burning, using a black background for effect.		Allow your child access to a computer with a mouse. Practise double clicking on left button to access programs. Explore using “Paint.” Practise typing key words into Google and explore images using Google images.
RE	Year 1 and Year 2 – Through learning about Jesus’ friends and accounts of the Miracles, explore how we know Jesus was special and had divine power and authority.		Look at the Bible at home, both adults’ and children’s editions. Highlight the parts where Jesus selects his disciples and accounts of the miracles, such as The Feeding of the 5000. Discuss issues arising from such stories, such as messages about sharing.
History	Year 1 and Year 2 – The Fire of London topic Compare London today with London back in 1666, in terms of the types of houses, width of streets, building materials. Sequence the events of the fire chronologically. Explore Samuel Pepys’ diary entries – written in code! Learn how methods of fighting fire have changed over time.		Talk about the Fire of London at home. Sing the nursery rhyme, London’s Burning – in a round! Discuss what is meant by the line, “Fetch the engine! Fetch the engine!” Do they mean fire engines like the ones we have today?
Geography	Year 1 and Year 2 – Following on from last term’s work on capital cities, identify where London is on a map of the U.K. Be aware that even in 1666, when people who lived outside London heard about the devastation caused by the fire, they organised sending money to help those who had lost everything. The money came from all over the country. Find where the places are from receipts of money that was sent for the Fire effort.		Look at globes and world maps. Talk about places we send money to nowadays to help with relief efforts.
Art / DT	Year 1 and Year 2 – Design and make a picture of the Fire of London, with moving parts such as flames or boats on the Thames using lever mechanisms.		Practise drawing and sketching, particularly old buildings/street scenes from the past. Explore how to make objects in pictures move, using levers and split pin mechanisms. Look at books together that have moving parts in the illustrations.
Foreign Language	Optional – French Club Year 1 and Year 2. Recap how to ask and answer questions about our name and age. We usually have a drink and often eat food (!), saying “please” and “thank you” in French. We will be learning how to say the months of the year and days of the week, as well as when our birthdays are. We like to sing as much as possible!		Recall any French you have and ask your child simple questions. Use French words at meal times to say “please” and “thank you.”
PE	Dance – To copy and explore basic body actions. Copy simple movement patterns. Choose movement to make own dance, with a beginning, middle and end. Relate the theme to the Fire of London. Fundamental movement skills - Work on throwing over arm, hopping, jumping, running.		In relation to music (see below), encourage children to move and respond to the music and to create their own dances, from listening to the music at home.
Music	The children will use their voices expressively by singing songs, and saying chants and rhymes. To start with, we will learn the well-known nursery rhyme “London’s Burning.” The children will travel through time to discover how the image and nature of fire has, for hundreds of years, captured the imagination of composers.		Through using YouTube or CDs, children could have the experience of listening to (and moving to) the following music, on the theme of fire: Music for the Royal Fireworks – Handel Ritual Fire Dance – Manuel de Falla Infernal Dance from “The Firebird Suite” – Igor Stravinsky Chariots of Fire – Vangelis Great Balls of Fire – Jerry Lee Lewis Firework – Katy Perry