Comets Years 2/3/4

The children in Comet Class have worked really hard this week and it has been great to see how they are always ready for every learning task as they get used to new routines and ways of working.  We really have been following our 3 Bs:  Be ready, Be respectful and Be safe, and a few more faces have been added to our Recognition Board along the way.  There have also been quite a few 'shining stars' awarded for all sorts of things.  Unfortunately it is not always easy to photograph the event but some of the children's achievements have included enthusiasm for reading, contributions to discussion, use of super vocabulary, speedy recall of number facts, determination in the face of tricky problem-solving in maths and much more...

 
 

We have also got our Class Dojo system up and running so please do take a look at the Dojo Leaders Board on the tab above to see how your child's house is getting on.  Some children have moved to a different house this year to ensure equal numbers so you may need to check with your child about which house they are in.

In English this week, the children have worked hard to complete their information text about swallows.  Today, whilst I have been attending a meeting, they will have worked with Mrs Marley on diagrams to accompany their writing.  I am really looking forward to seeing those when I am back in school next week and helping the children to pull everything together.  The children are fast becoming young ornithologists and are busy looking out for any signs of migrating birds, as well as monitoring a pigeon who has been sitting on eggs in her nest in a tree on the school field.  Many thanks to Olivia who took this photo of some swallows' nests in the bus shelter in Well:

 

 Can you spot them?

We have also now pressed on with our reading and discussion of the story of The Happy Prince using two different versions.  The children are in the early stages of retelling the story in their own words, focusing on our use of vocabulary and 'writerly' techniques to engage the reader.

Our Maths work has continued to focus on place value with the younger children working with 2 and 3 digit numbers, whilst the older children have been getting to grips with 4 digit numbers.  I have been particularly impressed with the children's efforts with problem-solving and reasoning tasks this week, both individually and collaboratively.  They have shown a growth mindset in their approach by trying different strategies when faced with tricky problems, rather than giving up at the first hurdle.  We have practised working systematically too.  Well done, Comet Class, for explaining your reasoning so clearly.  You are all becoming confident communicators in your day to day maths work.

Lastly,  I have been so impressed with all those who have already got into good routines with their homework.  As explained by email earlier in the week, we are gradually building this up.  This week, we have been focusing on reading homework and hopefully everyone has managed to take a look at the information on the 'Homework' tab of this class page.  I shall be adding to this with more information about Maths over the weekend, now that we have successfully got My Maths up and running.  I was really pleased to see how many children had completed this, particularly as it showed me that I set it up correctly! I think I have also managed to work out how to give feedback, so hopefully everyone has been able to view that?  Do let me know if you experience any hiccups along the way as I am sure there may be a few teething problems.

Have a fantastic weekend everyone and I'll see you all on Monday.
Miss Mandelson