Here is an overview of what we will be learning this half-term.  

Our topic this term is…. 

‘Ready, Steady, Sow!’ 

We are looking forward to an exciting half-term, with a focus on plants and growing. We will make the most of the warmer weather as we explore what is growing in the school grounds and carry out some geographical field work. After finding out how fruits and vegetables grow, we will make some delicious smoothies. 

English – ‘Little Charlie’ 

We will learn the story of ‘Little Charlie’, who takes a bag of tasty treats on a walk to his Grandma’s but meets lots of hungry animals on his way! We will then create our own stories using a similar structure. We will focus on how to write about characters. For example, the names that we give them and how we describe their movements and appearance. We will also focus on the action in the story, thinking about choosing verbs carefully and using onomatopoeia. 

Key vocabulary: story, opening, middle, ending, character, events, once upon a time, who, early one morning, next, till, but, so, unfortunately, luckily, action, verb, adjective, full stop, capital letter, finger space, onomatopoeia, exclamation mark. 

Maths - Length and height, Mass and volume & Multiplication and division 

In our work on length and height, we will compare lengths and heights of objects using language such as “longer than”, “shorter than” and “taller than”. We will begin to measure the lengths and heights of objects, using non-standard units of measure such as cubes or paper clips. We will then measure the lengths and heights of objects using a ruler and a standard unit of measure: centimetres. 

In our work on mass and volume, we will begin by holding objects to compare them, using the language of “heavier” or “lighter”. We will then use balance scales to check our comparisons. We will use a variety of non-standard units, such as cubes or bricks, to measure the mass of an object. We will compare the masses of two objects, still using non-standard units of measure. We will practically explore the idea that capacity is the maximum amount that something can hold and then explore the concept that volume is the amount of something inside a container. We will then further develop our understanding of volume and start to compare volumes using the language of “more than” and “less than”. Finally, we will measure the capacity of different containers using non-standard units of measure.  

In our unit on multiplication and division, we will practice counting backwards and forwards in twos and look at patterns when counting in twos on number grids and number lines. We will then practice counting forwards and backwards in tens. We will explore multiples of 10 to 50 using practical resources and then begin to count on in tens from numbers that are not multiples of 10. We will move on to counting on and back in 5s. We will use ten frames to explore the five-wise patterns. We will work on recognising equal groups, especially when the groups are arranged differently. We will add equal groups together to find a total. We will focus on counting equal groups of 2, 5 and 10, exploring this within 50. We will record number sentences as repeated addition. We will use our knowledge of recognising and adding equal groups to arrange objects in columns and rows as arrays. We will build and draw our own arrays to represent a story. We will revisit doubling, describing it as two equal groups. We will develop confidence with doubles to 20 and begin to explore doubles beyond 20. We will begin to explore division by grouping, using objects and pictures to find if different numbers can be grouped equally or not. We will then explore division by sharing, using concrete resources.  

Key vocabulary: length, height, longer than, shorter than, taller than, same, compare, measure, ruler, centimetres, cm, heavy, light, heavier, lighter, mass, balance scale, heaviest, lightest, unit, capacity, empty, nearly empty, nearly full, full, hold, amount, volume, fills, twos, forwards, backwards, pattern, groups of 2, 2s, equal groups, altogether, total, counts up, counts back, groups of 10, 10s, after, before, full ten frame, groups of 5, 5s, equal, unequal, number sentence, greater, less, column, row, array, fill, doubling, doubles, sorted into, sharing, sharing equally, shares between. 

Science – Plants 

In Science, we will learn to name and identify the parts of a flowering plant – roots, stem, leaves and flower (including petals). We will carry out a simple plant dissection to demonstrate our understanding of the different parts. We will think about how we can sort plants into different groups. We will identify and name tree parts – roots, trunk, branches, leaves and fruit. We will learn to identify and name common wildflowers and garden plants. We will explore the types of plants that we can see growing in our local area and count how many we find. We will make scientific drawings of wildflowers and garden plants and label the parts that we can see. We will find out what a deciduous tree is and think about which season leaves fall from trees. We will observe a range of deciduous trees and look at the leaf structure of different trees. We will learn that evergreen trees keep their leaves year-round and explore how their leaf structure differs from deciduous trees. We will explore the types of trees that grow in our local area. 

Key vocabulary: flowering plant, roots, stem, leaves, flower, petal, where, colour, how many, same, different, group, soil, underground, sort, pattern, trunk, branches, leaves, fruit, underground, upright, flat, outside, seeds, grows, sort, group, wildflower, garden plant, bluebells, buttercups, daisies, dandelions, nettles, sunflowers, roses, spiky, smells, sweet, prickly, stings, chosen, local area, safety, deciduous, fall, autumn, horse chestnut, oak, sycamore, evergreen, holly, pine, needles, season, soil, water, light, sun, grow, change, height, plant, time. 

Computing – Programming: Bee-Bots 

We will explore the Bee-Bots by tinkering with their buttons and then completing a cycle of predict, test and review. We will create a demonstration video to explain how to use a Bee-Bot. We will plan and follow precise sets of instructions. We will plan routes for the Bee-Bots to follow and then program the Bee-Bots to follow them. We will create a program to tell a story by programming the Bee-Bots to move to a series of pictures in order, debugging our instructions if necessary. 

Key vocabulary: algorithm, Bee-Bot, code, debug, demonstration, explain, explore, filming, inputting, instructions, precise, predict, program, review, test, tinker, video. 

Religion and Worldviews – How do we know that new babies are special?  

We will explore the belief in a God that created humans and suggest why babies are special to parents. We will be able to explain why some Muslim people welcome a new baby with the Adhan. We learn about how some Muslim people welcome a new baby by investigating Aqiqah. We will find out about how some Hindu people welcome a new baby by exploring Jatakarma. We will explore how promises are made during Christian baptism ceremonies. We will identify why names are sometimes an important part of baby naming ceremonies.

Key Vocabulary: Adhan, Allah, Aqiqah, baptism, Brahman, celebration, ceremony, Christian, creation, God, Godparents, Hindu, Humanist, Jatakarma, Muslim, Namakarana, promise, Trimurti, Zakat.

DT – Cooking and Nutrition: Fruits and Vegetables  

We will learn to distinguish between fruit and vegetables and find out where they grow. We will learn that a fruit has seeds and a vegetable does not. We will find out that fruits grow on trees or vines. We will learn that vegetables can grow either above or below ground and can come from different parts of the plant. We will design a fruit and vegetable smoothie and accompanying packaging. 

Key vocabulary: fruit, vegetable, seed, leaf, root, stem, smoothie, healthy, carton, design, flavour, peel, slice. 

Music – Pitch and Tempo: Superheroes  

During this unit, we will be learning how to identify high and low notes and make patterns using two notes. We will learn how to compose a simple tune. We will investigate how tempo changes help tell a story and make music more exciting. We will have the opportunity to perform as part of a group. 

Key vocabulary: accelerando, high pitched, low pitch, perform, performance, pitch, pitch pattern, tempo.  

Geography – How is life different in China? 

We will use a world map to start recognising continents, oceans and countries outside the UK with a focus on China. We will identify physical features of Shanghai using aerial photographs and maps before identifying human features, through exploring land-use. We will compare the human and physical features of Shanghai to features in the local area and make a simple map using data collected through fieldwork.  

Key vocabulary: continent, country, different, directional language e.g. near, far, next to, behind etc, key, human feature, map, physical feature, similar, symbol. 

PE – Fielding and Striking Skills 

We will work on throwing a ball with ranges of direction and height and striking a ball with a racket. We will throw from one hand, catch with two hands and use hand-eye coordination. We will follow simple rules to play a game with success. 

Key vocabulary: ball, throw, catch, field, strike, cone, underarm, overarm, game, rules, one hand, two hands, hand-eye co-ordination. 

PSHE - Safety and the changing body  (continued from Spring 2)

The children will learn how to respond to adults in different situations. They will begin to understand the difference between acceptable and unacceptable physical contact. We will develop an understanding of what to do if lost and how to call the emergency services. We will identify dangers at home and how these can be avoided and learn that there are people in the local community who help to keep us safe. 

Key vocabulary: accident, drug, emergency, medicine, physical contact, polite, respect, role, trust. 

PSHE – Citizenship

We will learn about the importance of rules and the consequences of not following them. We will think about how to care for the needs of babies, young children and animals. We will explore our similarities and differences and have an introduction to democracy.

Key vocabulary: care, democracy, different, fair, pet, responsibility, rule, similar, unique, vote.

Important dates: 

May Day – 6th May 2024

Mental Health Awareness week 13th - 20th May 2024

Last day of half term – Friday 24th May 2024