Learners are learning outdoors.

Learners have enjoyed some wonderful outdoor learning this week. 

On Wednesday, we enjoyed a morning in the forest. Our focus was art and to use small pieces of natural materials to create collage. we gathered sticks, stones, grasses, leaves and feathers to create collages of trees and flowers. We also linked our collages to the myth of Blodeuwedd and created collages to represent characters from the story. There were some very impressive owls among the creations. Learners worked wonderfully together and were respectful of each other’s ideas, displaying great teamwork! 

Back in the classroom, in science Learners have been learning about ‘matter’. We could identify that matter was all around us and could name the three states of matter, solid, liquid and gas. We could explain how temperature could impact changes between each of the three states.

In maths, we have begun learning about fractions and have been finding out more about wholes and parts of objects around the classroom.

We finished the week enjoying more wonderful outdoor learning, with some musical improvisation on the school field.  We took a selection of musical instruments outside in the sunshine. We discussed the meaning of the word ‘improvising’ and were keen to give it a try. Along with a conductor, we created some improvised pieces of music together. We tried different instruments and were able to create many alternative sounds using rhythm and melody. We enjoyed being able to use our own creativity to improvise with music.

Learning outdoors is such a wonderful way to learn.

Check out our class page next week, to see what we have been learning.

Learners Class

Maths Happens Everywhere

Maths happens all over the place in Pioneers and always involves stuff-things to subitise, count, compare, move around and measure. It is a noisy process with lots of chat and articulation of thinking. There’s lots of comparing and repeating how you did it and if there might be an answer. What appears initially straightforward is actually really complex and we need time to think and do.

Some incredible discoveries were noted when using a ruler then moving to looking at a powerpoint on how to measure with a ruler. The Pioneers were not satisfied that the graphics were accurate and were frustrated, understanding that small differences can make a huge difference.

During the week, Pioneers were observed using stuff to make connections and talk about odd and even numbers and their links to doubles. 

Congratulations on a wonderful week of learning.

Anyone for tennis?

Learners have had a busy week. In maths, we have been finding out the difference between volume and capacity and measuring the volume of different containers. We and have been able to carefully read the scales using millilitres and litres, estimating the volume on a scale between two markers on a measuring container. While measuring, we have used language such as ‘full’, ‘half-full’ and ’empty’ and have been able to identify which container was holding the greatest or smallest volume.

In PHSCE this week, Learners were able to discuss and record positive things about themselves and celebrate the achievements in their lives. It was lovely to hear our friends talk about the things they admired about us too. There were smiles all round as we listened to how we impacted our friends positively too. It was such an uplifting discussion. 

Learners finished the week with a fun PE session on the field. Our focus this half-term is tennis. We used racquets and balls to practise our ball skills, concentrating on controlling the ball by holding our racquets close to our bodies. Once we had mastered keeping control, we began to bounce the ball on our racquets while moving around. There was lots of focus and we could how we had improved by the end of the session. Learners are excited to learn more tennis skills and are looking forward to getting the nets out in the coming weeks.

Keep an eye on our class page, to see what we are learning each week.

Learners Class

Preparing for Map Making

In geography, fieldwork is obviously a priority and when making maps we have to do the research. To begin with we looked at how we would represent our environment on a map. We identified items on a prepared map before drawing a map of our own, very familiar classroom. Next we went on a information gathering tour of our site. Managing a clipboard and a pencil is a skill in its self and we all did very well on that.

We are familiar with how to make a pictogram from our work last term so we repeated this to gather information to make a map of our site. We stopped to record a various places around the school, checking that we were not making double recordings when classrooms were seen from different locations.

 

 

PE in the Sun

It was so lovely to be able to use the field to kick off our Athletics for the term. We began with a great warm up being able to use the space and run. We discussed managing sprinting mixed with fast walking to manage pace. Everyone was able to feel their heart beating. We stopped to talk about how we can encourage each other and also discussed finding your own pace. It is not just about overtaking.

We moved on to a circuit of jumping, slalom and hurdles, working together to share space and equipment which is always a challenge.

We finished our session with a relay race. These have become more complex over time and the Pioneers always enjoy the challenge and the competition 

The wind blew and the parachute gave us a nice little upper body workout!

Happy Learning

The Myth of Blodeuwedd

The whole school began the new term with an amazing  writing launch day on Tuesday. Our writing focus over the next few weeks will be myths and legends and Learners will be writing about the welsh myth of Blodeuwedd. This week, Learners used drama to reenact the story and bring it to life. Ask your Learner about the story and they will be delighted to share it with you. We have seen using adjectives to write descriptive sentences this week, which we will used to create our own version of the story. We are excited to see where our creativity takes us.

Our last writing focus – persuasive writing about the city of Tromso in Norway, saw us create some amazing finished pieces. So much so, that we decided to post them to the Tromso Tourist Information Centre! We are excited to think they have our work to read and enjoy!

We have begun looking at our new artist this week, where our focus is collage. We researched Beatrice Milhazes and Kazimir Malevich and are keen to find out more about their styles and techniques.

In RE we have been thinking about places that are special to us and the places of worship that are special to believers of different faiths. It was incredible to see the retrieval of knowledge we have from previous units in RE.

Learners are excited to be back are enthusiastic to learn as always!

Learners love to learn. 🙂

Learners’ Trip To Danby Moors Centre

Learners enjoyed a wonderful day at Danby Moors Centre this week.

Linked to our science topic, animals and their habitats, we explored Crow Wood and searched for micro-habitats and mini-beasts among other woodland activities. The sun was shining and we enjoyed a full day in the outdoors.

In the classroom, we have been busy measuring using metres and centimetres and have been able to sort ourselves into height order, which was lots of fun.

We are busy practising for our Easter Church service and are learning some new songs to perform.

We are putting finishing touches to our persuasive writing about Tromso in Norway and are extremely proud of our finished pieces.

Please check out our class page next week, to see what we have been learning.

Visit to St John’s Church

We picked a beautiful day for our visit to St John’s church and the walk together was a real treat. 

Before our visit we discussed the features of a Christian Church and we knew what we were looking for. From a data handling perspective, Year 1 made a pictogram to help gather and organise their information.

Once we got up to church we walked together spotting the features and discussing their purpose. We then split into smaller groups to look more closely and take time to question.

We located and discussed:pews, the font, the aisle, the altar, the pulpit, the lectern, the bible, the organ and many candles,crosses and statues.

We looked carefully at the content of the stained glass windows focussing particularly on the image behind the altar showing the crucifiction.   At this time of year the cloth on the altar is purple and linked this with the colour on our Worship Table at school and the church liturgical calendar. We noted that there were no flowers in church either.

We finished our session with a parable from the bible, also shown in one of the windows-The Shepherd and the Lost Sheep.

Such a lovely way to spend an afternoon of wonderful learning.