November 2024 - Sleights Church of England Primary School

Marvellous Maths

November 17, 2024November 17, 2024 Scott Grason-Taylor

Learners Class have been working really hard on addition and subtraction in maths over the last few weeks..

This week, Learners have been using many strategies to aid their learning and are able to select the resource or manipulative that supports their learning the best. For some this is using ten frames, for others this is using a number line and for others this is using a place value chart or rekenrek.

Learners have access to all of these resources during each maths lesson. Using different practical resources is definitely deepening understanding. This week Learners have been adding and subtracting across ten.

Our history morning on Monday was a great success. We welcomed many families into Learners class to share in our history learning about Whitby now and then. Families were able to contribute and share their own knowledge with us and could reflect on the how Whitby had changed over time. Thank you to all who could join us.

Learners have decided to hold a Christmas Movie Night, to raise money for the Zambezi Sunrise Trust. Look out for more details on this in this week’s newsletter.

Christmas is approaching and this week we have begun to practise the songs for our Christmas performance. Keep your eye on the newsletters and on Tapestry for any information around this!

The weather is starting to turn colder, so please make sure your Learner has a warm coat in school each day.

Learners are maths marvels this week. Well done Learners, you are awesome!

A Colourful Week in Learners Class

November 10, 2024November 10, 2024 Scott Grason-Taylor

Learners have enjoyed art this week. Building on the skills we developed last half-term, Learners have been looking closely at primary and secondary colours. This week, we enjoyed mixing primary colours to match the colours of autumn leaves. We thought carefully about how to mix just the right amount and ratio of each colour. In some cases, we needed to add a little bit of white to make the shade lighter. There was a lot of concentration and Learners kept checking their c colours until they were happy with the match. Just like our focus artist Wasilly Kandinsky, we listened to some classical music as we painted.

In history this week, Learners have been comparing the changes over time of Whitby fish quay. We looked at old photographs taken by Frank Meadow Sutcliffe and recognised that there was less fishing in the town these days, but more fish and chip shops.

In maths we have been learning different strategies that will help us with addition and subtraction. We are becoming great problem solvers and are able to transfer our knowledge to answer reasoning type questions in maths lessons.

After writing letters to families in English before the half-term, we are excited to welcome our families into the classroom on Monday to share in our history learning.

Lend Your Ears and Open Your Eyes

November 9, 2024November 9, 2024 Scott Grason-Taylor

The Pioneers were very interested in the work of Kandinsky the abstract artist and on his approach to creating the images. We have had the most wonderful week full of energy and intense focus exploring line and colour and shape. We did this on a large scale on the playground and on a smaller scale back in the classroom, at the table and then moving onto the floor. We played Wagner on the Boom Box and experimented with painting to a variety of other pieces familiar to us – Firebird by Stravinsky and Greig’s Hall of the Mountain King.

An artist’s work is never done and the Pioneers are keen to continue their work. They are unstoppable. One Pioneer was heard to say, “Well this is actually art,” as they left the classroom with their larger pieces to take home to parents.

The process and the art produced were inspirational.

Friday 25th October 2024

November 4, 2024November 4, 2024 Scott Grason-Taylor

This week, Leaders learned more about black history through drama activities. Leaders considered segregation and apartheid and had thoughtful discussions around this before creating different scenes to represent these themes. Throughout the afternoon, Leaders enjoyed demonstrating their excellent knowledge of the content we have covered so far and were able to learn so much more through the activities covered in the session.
In maths, Leaders have been learning to use methods for long division and have done incredibly well tackling this challenging topic. They can now use two different methods for long division and have used these methods to solve problems. Well done everyone!
In PE this term, Leaders have been focusing on their tag rugby skills. On Friday, a team of Leaders visited Whitby Rugby Club to take part in a rugby tournament. Throughout the afternoon, Leaders demonstrated excellent rugby skills and teamwork and were thrilled to top their group and make it all the way to the semi-finals. A huge well done to the rugby team for their amazing efforts!