Finding out about structures.

This week in DT, Learners have been finding out about structures. Learners have been identifying man-made structures and natural structures. We had to look carefully at igloos and Stonehenge, as although these structures are made from natural materials, man has created the structure. We have been looking around our school grounds to identify different types of structures and are looking forward to learning more in the coming weeks.

In maths we are starting to learn about length and height and are looking forward to measuring everything we see next week!

In science, we have been finding out about adaptations and could identify different adaptations animals had and understood why these had evolved over time. We are looking forward to our class trip in a couple of weeks to consolidate our science learning.

In history, we have been finding out about the first rulers of Great Britain. Learners have been extremely interested in learning about Alfred The Great and William the Conqueror and how they fit in to British history. Next week, we will have a history Drama session with Louise from Red House Theatre, who helps us bring our learning to life!

Check out our website page next week, to see what we have been learning!

Springtime has sprung

In science, Learners have been monitoring what time the sun has been setting each month. We first started to record the times in September and have watched the hours of daylight shorten. We have been excited to begin identifying that the days are getting longer with this week’s sun setting at 5.29pm. Spring is on the way, as we have spotted some spring bulbs beginning to peep through outside the classroom and buds appearing on our class tree. 

In maths we have been getting to grips with arrays. We have been using resources to make arrays and were able to match these to a multiplication sentence. 

 

We are enjoying dance sessions with Hannah Verity dance each Tuesday and are keen to learn new moves to add to our routine in order to lead towards a finished performance.

We were excited to welcome families into the classroom on Friday to celebrate World Book Day 2025. We enjoyed sharing many stories together and discussed our favourite characters and made our own book marks.

In English, we have worked extremely hard on writing a balanced argument about whether we think books are still relevant today. 

visit our classroom page next week, to find out what we are learning.

Learners love to learn!

 

Food Chains

In Science this week, Learners have been finding out about food chains. We recognised that the sun gives energy to a producer, which is then eaten by one or many consumers. In the classroom, we made our own food chains, using pictures.  This then helped us to create our own food chains, using our own drawings and adding the terms herbivore, carnivore and omnivore correctly.

In History, we have been finding out ‘who is in a monarchy?’. Learners were very interested in identifying the members of our current Royal Family. We discussed the terms heir and heiress and Learners were keen to understand the rules of succession. Learners were particularly interested to find out what abdication was and they agreed this was a fair choice for a prospective King or Queen.

Learners have begun dance sessions with Hannah Verity this week and are looking forward to practising their new routine over the coming weeks.

Marvellous Monarchs!

In history this week, Learners have been learning all about monarchs. We used drama to build our learning. We enjoyed becoming absolute monarchs, where we could make ALL the rules, dishing out punishments for anyone who didn’t comply. We then became part of a constitutional monarchy. Here, the monarch needed the partnership of a Prime minister, together with an elected Government to help make any decisions and rules. We were relieved to learn that we now have a constitutional monarchy and unlike the past, there would be no “off with your head” punishments.

Learners have been busily drawing story maps around the Peter and the Wolf story and are excited to begin writing a narrative next week. We have been gathering words with the suffixes -ment, -ness, and -ly in order to make our writing even more interesting! 

Learners attended a Gymnastic event in Whitby on Thursday, where we had lots of fun. Sports leaders organised events and Learners enjoyed rolling, jumping and balancing. We were able to show-off all our gymnastic skills and we enjoyed every minute. 

Next week, will be our last swimming session at Whitby pool. It is clear to see the progress made over the last months  and how confidence  has improved. We will be looking forward to starting dance sessions with Hannah Verity after half-term.

Learners love to learn, keep checking our class page to see what we are learning!

Pop Art Creation

Learners have had a fantastic week. In art this term we are focusing on printing. Inspired by Andy Warhol this week, we have created our very own Pop Art piece, with the repeated pattern of our handprints. We chose bright and bold colours just like Andy Warhol and we are astonished at just how effective our finished piece looks. It is already proudly on display outside our classroom!

In English this week we have been finding out about Haiku poetry. We learned the rules of Haiku poems and were able to clap along to check syllables contained in each word. With great determination and focus we used our knowledge to create our own Haiku poems inspired by Peter and the Wolf. Again, Learners were immensely proud of their finished pieces.

In history we have been finding out about the monarchy past and present. This prompted many interesting questions and Learners were keen to broaden their knowledge around this.

In RE we have been thinking about the Jewish religion and have been interested to find out the things that are important in Judaism.

In maths we are getting to grips with money. We have been making one pound using many different coin and are learning how to calculate change. 

We have been learning batting skills in cricket and are really enjoying these fun sessions each week.

What a busy week of learning, just how we like it! Check our page next week to find out what we have been doing!

Learners Class

How things work!

Learners have been looking closely at how things work this week. In DT our focus is mechanisms. This week we have learned about input motion and output motion and have identified the everyday objects that would need this movement. We delighted in creating our own moving pictures with a slider mechanism. 

In Maths we are learning about money and this week we have been counting in pound and pence and have successfully been able to choose a given amount, using different coins.

In English, we are loving the inspiring music of Peter and the Wolf. This wonderful music is guiding our poetry writing over the next few weeks. This week we have been introduced to each character and instrument and have been collecting adjectives that we will use in our poetry. 

Reading is always high on our enjoyment list in Learners class, we have visited the library and have enjoyed listening to many new poems this week. Learners love to enjoy library books at home with their families, alongside their own school reading book. 

Swimming sessions are showing incredible progress. We will be finishing our block of session this half-term, but the confidence and progress made is astonishing! We are incredibly lucky to have the opportunity to learn cricket skills each week. This week we enjoyed bowling and learning the correct way to stand and throw!

Learners have also enjoyed writing letters to the Linda Community School in Zambia this week and are excited that these letters will be delivered soon by Jo and John for the Zambezi Sunrise Trust. We are looking forward to Jo and John’s visit to Sleights next week, when we will zoom call with Livingston in Zambia. 

Check in with us next week to see what we have been learning about!

Learners love to learn!

Big Box Build Bonanza!

Happy new year and welcome back to a new term in Learners Class.

We kicked off the new term in a fantastic way.

On Wednesday, families filled Learners class (and so did boxes). We used the book ‘It’s Not a Box’ by Antoinette Portis to inspire us and used our imagination to create something wonderful using many sized boxes and some handy resources. We had the BEST time, we worked together and our creations were sensational! We will be using these creations to inspire our instruction writing in English lessons over the next weeks.

This week we have delighted in creating our final art piece inspired by the painter Wassily Kandinsky. Last term we learnt many new painting skills, such as using different paints, colour mixing, creating texture and making tints. Armed with theses skills, we created our own piece using the Kandinsky style of shape, lines and colour and of course listening to music to guide our artistic persuasion. Our final pieces were wondrous and each Learner was SO proud of their piece. Learners are passionate about art and are extremely excited to immerse themselves in this term’s art topic of printing. Kepp an eye on the website to see how Learners get on!

In PE, we enjoyed a cricket session with Owen Batchelor this week (who has recently been voted Coach of the Year). Learners put 100 percent into everything they do and PE is no exception. Learners were fantastic batters this week and also great team players!

Swimming sessions start again this week for Learners, please male sure a costume and towel are brought on Tuesdays and earrings removed! Thank you for your ongoing support. 

Keep checking Learners website each week, to find out all about their achievements!

Learners love to learn!

A published author in Learners Class

Learners class are bursting with pride, as one of our class has this week become a published author. Learners were delighted to share the wonderful story this week and join in with celebrations. We are extremely proud! What’s more, the Learner is donating all the money raised from the sale of the book to our school charity, the Zambezi Sunrise Trust – what a star! For more information of how to order the book, see this week’s newsletter.

 

This week, Learners have enjoyed being The Landlords in the school Nativity performance at St John’s Church. We were totally awesome and both performances were wonderful. 

In science this week, we have been finding out about George James Symons and were interested to know the meaning of a ‘meteorologist’. We have been watching the daily BBC weather forecasts and were surprised that the people who present these are meteorologists too! 

Learners are holding onto their hats for a fun packed Christmas week ahead, consisting of Christmas crafts with families, Christmas parties and dinner, the annual Christingle service in Church and a visit to the Christmas Pantomime. It’s the most wonderful time and Learners have had a fantastic 2024!

Learner love to learn 🙂

Zambezi Sunrise Trust’s “Big Give Week”

We have had a very busy few weeks supporting our friends at the Zambezi Sunrise Trust. The children planned and delivered their own events to raise funds for the charity’s ongoing work for Linda Community School.

The Pioneers organised their own art exhibition. Families purchased the children’s art, as well as work with the young artists to create their own new pieces.

The Learners held a very successful movie night after school. They ate popcorn and enjoyed hot dogs, as they watched their chosen movie. Everything looked very cosy!

During an afternoon, the doors were opened for the Adventurers’ families, who came into school to play games, drink tea and Sunrise scones. It was great to see the event so well supported!

The Discoverers filled the school hall with games and activities for families to enjoy. Alongside the Leaders’ Teddy Tombola, the hall was jam packed, with families and children playing games and bidding for an exciting new teddy to take home. 

All of the funds raised over the events were being gathered as part of the Zambezi Sunrise Trust’s ‘Big Give Week’. The funds raised are being used to support the building of a new computer block in Linda Community School. As we were able to donate during Big Give Week, the charity was able to get match funding. The children’s recent writing unit has focused on understanding all of this great work. 

In total at Sleights, from our fundraising events, we raised £712. Once donated and match funded, we also were able to add gift aid.

But, that’s not all!

As a result of the brilliant continued kindness and generosity of our families, during our Christmas Nativity performances, we also gathered further donations on the Church collection plates. This raised a further £296.

In total, this means that our school’s collective efforts from the last two weeks raised a MASSIVE £1898!

Wow! Wow! Wow!

Spotting Seasonal Change

Learners have enjoyed science lessons this week. We have been thinking more about how ice and frost is formed. We have been enjoying watching the daily weather report and finding out about meteorologists. Since September, we have been recording what time the sun sets on the first of each month and we are interested to see how the days are shortening as we go into winter. We will continue to monitor this as we go through Year 2.

Learners Class had a wonderful evening on Thursday, where we enjoyed a movie and pizza night in order to raise money for The Zambezi Sunrise Trust. We changed into pyjamas and enjoyed a Christmas ambience of candles and Christmas lights, while we relaxed and ate some tasty treats! Our goal was to raise £100 and we raised £115, smashing our target!

We have begun to write our narratives around The Christmas Jolly Postman. Next week, we will focus on some character description of The Jolly Postman., using some expanded noun phrases and interesting vocabulary. We are beginning to use apostrophes for possession and contraction in our writing which is making our writing simply wonderful.

The Nativity practises are taking shape and we are going to be awesome in the performances next week. Please see the newsletter for the dates and time to join us.

Learners are totally amazing and are so keen to learn!