Category: Pioneers Class

The elves left a video and a letter asking for a rocket. The Pioneers made great efforts with glue and string and paper fasteners and tape to create a wide selection of rockets. They created annotated diagrams noting the materials used and their function. This was stunning work.

A delivery arrived of a water powered rocket and this caused great excitement. We took it out on to the field after discussing any possible risks. We found a safe spot away from houses and trees where the rocket may have got stuck.

The Pioneers counted down from 10 to blast off then ran to collect the rocket after each flight.

They successfully managed their outdoor kit and we didn’t make too much mess of the carpet.

Then later in the week our families joined us for a wonderful session of rocket building and story telling.

It was a wonderful week of learning.

This has been another truly tremendous week of learning in Pioneers. We know what we need to do and we are getting it done. The Pioneers have been excited about number with a focus on the composition of 6,7 and 8. We have talked about what we see and how we see it when looking at collections of objects. We then used counters and wonderful blutac to represent 6,7 and 8 and then wrote calculations using = and +. We also worked on our number formation.

We talked about the shapes and built with them,discussing which were best to stack and roll and why some others were a bit more challenging. The Pioneers spotted faces they recognised and built up their mathematical vocabulary to describe what they saw. We sorted them by colour and by shape and by size. This was fabulous to observe.

Notes were written to add to our buildings.

This week the Pioneers have been very busy joining a variety of materials using  a range of methods. The classroom has been quiet and the Pioneers have been very focussed on their work. They used a selection of tools to take apart some Beebots and other junk. They used tape and lots of glue, paper fasteners and pipecleaners.

The classroom was packed with happy learners this week as we explored Chinese New Year traditions and stories. The Pioneers were excited to teach their families and they did a really good job. The Pioneers told their families the story of the rat and the ox and the names of the years.They showed their parents how to use a paint brush and paint the greeting in Mandarin Chinese. Everyone had a look at our current phonics and tried out our subitising maths app.

It was so lovely to have everyone in the classroom and we look forward to the next get together very soon.

The Pioneers have been writing and reading all over the place this week. The Elves have increased in numbers and now there are 7 although one is only visiting. The elves have been leaving notes and the Pioneers have been replying. They have labelled pictures,used a story map and read our own version of the story with Stan and Jan and the elf.

It has been buzzing this week and the use of phonics and resulting writing has been absolutely glorious to see.

We have been very busy in our first week back and we have been visited by the elves from our story,”The Elves and The Shoemaker”.

We got together to handle some artefacts belonging to a shoemaker. There were a variety of shoelasts with nobbles and bumps and a selection of soles,laces and zips and collars. We got our hands on a typewriter and an old telephone and discussed how they were so different to the things we use today.

The elves left us some notes asking for Elf Snacks and Buns and Hot Coffee so we got on with making these. We have also written replies to the elves.

The elves joined us in the library too.

This has been a great start to the term.

Happy Learning

What a week we have had in Pioneers and a wonderful week it was. We started with a dress rehearsal in Church and made the long walk up and down the hills to get there. Then we had the excitement of a live performance in front of all of the families and friends and the church was packed full of happiness. A day of learning in the classroom was followed by an exciting trip to church for our second performance and this was magnificent.

We woke up to a cold and frosty morning with a blanket of snow and this was the day to travel to the Pantomime. Dick Whittington did not disappoint and we booed and hissed and cheered until we got back on the bus in time for a late lunch.

Party Day was full of new learning. We mastered the balloon relay and the flappy fish game. Musical Chairs has so many rules!

A very happy week in Pioneers.

There has been a flurry of maths activity this week with so much subitising,comparing and sorting going on. The Pioneers are super keen to write numbers and draw pictures and use symbols. They have been spotting 5 all over the place and enjoy saying what it is made up of.

The progress is exciting.

This week we have been reading “Lost and Found” and a selection of other texts by Oliver Jeffers. The Pioneers have all drawn wonderful story maps and pictures of the characters. They are able to retell the story using the story map and have added vocabulary to this.

At the end of the week we focussed on finding out about day and night and the rotation of the earth and the earth’s relationship with the sun and the moon. We looked at the globe and representations of our planet, spotting that blue was the sea and greens represented the land. In the story the boy and the penguin travel to the South Pole so we located this on the globe and painted this on our own representations.

We continue to explore the world around us. Sunflower heads have been drying out on the window sill and we got stuck in with the tweezers to harvest the seeds. We dried them out alongside last week’s pumpkin seeds and popped them into jars to plant in the spring. This involved a huge amount of concentration.

We went to the forest to collect forest treasure to add to our version of Pumpkin Soup. Compost,grass,seeds and conkers were mixed and mashed. The Pioneers used mashers and ladles to create a huge Pumpkin Feast. They filled egg boxes with soil and water to make chocolate eggs. Everyone helped with the tidy up job which made life much easier.

We looked closely at a number of different types of fungus but we decided not to touch. All the Pioneers were aware that some things should not be picked.

We noted the changes in the forest and kicked up the wet leaves.

Everyone manged their own welly boots and this is quite an achievement.

Well done Pioneers!