Oliver’s Vegetables
Following on from planting our bean seeds last week, we continued with a vegetable theme. We listened to lots of stories about vegetables, including ‘Oliver’s Vegetables’, ‘The Runaway Pea‘ and ‘Supertato’.
We talked about our favourite vegetables to eat at dinner time and in the Sensory area, we investigated the insides of peppers, peas, beans and sprouts. We had great fun peeling the layers off the sprouts, which was also a super fiddly finger challenge as well!
We’ve been practising our counting again, too. This week, we tried to put 1-5 peas in a pod. We talked about counting carefully and remembering to stop when we reached our ‘stop’ number. We also talked about who had the fewest/most peas in their pods.
Children enjoyed exploring what patterns vegetables make when we printed with then. Our favourite pattern was the one made using corn on the cob!
Outside, there was lots of communication and turn taking in our new role play ‘farm shop’. The basket weighing scales provided lots of discussion about which vegetables were the heaviest.
Throughout the week, we monitored the changes in our bean seeds; some of them have started to germinate and now have roots beginning to grow. As part of our learning about plants, we watched carefully each day to see what happened to some flowers and celery that were in coloured water. Children were fascinated to see the petals change colour towards the end of the week and the colour inside the celery sticks.
Next week, we will continue to observe our bean seeds and we will find out about Easter time and how some people choose to celebrate.
5/6 S Certificate Celebration
This weeks certificate winners are…
For great learning…
Jude – you concentrated so well in the lesson and gave very thoughtful answers. You were a good role model – thank you.
For sport and physical activity…
Jessica – for showing determination in cricket this week. You didn’t give up trying to hit that ball. Well done!
For living and learning…
Ellie – you contributed so well to the discussion about where to find help. You were sensible and mature. Thank you.
Well done everyone!
Living and Learning: I understand that rights come with responsibilities
The Atlantic Slave Trade
Our local history topic is really making us think; think about British history, think about the primary resources we have and the information it gives us; think about how people were treated in the 1600s, and making us think about the effect on our lives today.
We’ve been learning about The Atlantic Slave Trade during the 1600s and how enslaved people were brought across from Africa to the West Indies, by boat, to work on plantations there. The British were the most active trading nation during these times.
We learnt about the horrific journey that people took, with only 5ft by 1ft of space for a child. This was easier to understand when we measured the space out on the floor to ‘feel’ how craped the conditions were. Unbelievably, boys were chained to this space for a minimum of 6 weeks whilst aboard the ship. We sadly learned that not all people made it and died on the journey because of the unsanitary conditions.
Here are some photos of the ship.
Living and learning – rights and responsibilities
This week’s living and learning lessons we have been talking about rights and the responsibilities that come with them.
Encouraging children to be responsible and increase their independence is a important.
We matched some rights with the responsibilities that go with them.
Congratulations
Let’s celebrate the brilliant work from the last two weeks in school. These children received certificates for their outstanding contributions in class.
Thomas – for demonstrating good control when bowling.
Elliott – for focussed learning all week. You ignore distractions and try your best.
William – you are working really hard to improve your handwriting. Your presentation continues to impress.
Michaela – for a successful return to school. You are ready to learn.
Ella – you show perseverance during maths lessons.
Artemy – demonstrating ingenuity by developing your own cricket skills game.
Living and Learning – Speak out Stay safe from the NSPCC
The NSPCC would usually come into school to talk to us about how to stay safe. This year, we watched a virtual assembly instead.
Sometimes things make us happy and sometimes they can make us sad, worried or unhappy. It’s important to understand our feelings and not keep worries to ourselves and that’s what we would like children to know.
History topic – real life heroes
We are learning all about significant people (real life heroes) in our topic lessons this half term. Below is the key vocabulary that we will be focusing on.
equality – being treated fairly and having the same chances in life
rights – the basic things people need to live (eg food, housing) and reach their potential (eg education, safety)
apartheid – a system that keeps people apart, usually because of their different skin colour
racism – treating people differently because of the colour of their skin, their religious beliefs or their culture
suffragette – a woman who campaigned for the right of women to vote
protest – people coming together to show others that they are against an idea or an event
impact – a strong and powerful effect on something or someone
belief – a strongly held opinion that something is right
Sarah Allen from Abbey House Museum talked to us about Leonora Cohen last week. Leonora Cohen was a suffragette. She was involved in the fight for women to have the right to vote. The children asked some super questions and shared their thoughts.
Why was she sent to prison three times?
Why did she not give up?
It wasn’t fair that girls and boys were paid different money.
Women should have been allowed to vote too.
We have also learnt about Apartheid and how Nelson Mandela changed things.
3,4NV class news
What another fabulous week of learning!
Over the last couple of weeks, we have been learning all about the Leeds West Indian Carnival. This week, we have started to design our own carnival costumes. Have a look at our sketches.
Our flowers are growing nicely.
Congratulations to our certificate winners for this week:
For Living and Learning
- Well done Harry B. You are always so polite and cheerful. Well done for excellent manners.
For Sport and Physical activity
- All of 3,4NV for excellent, creative ideas in PE.
For Great Learning
- Grace – well done for taking the time to make sure your sentences make sense and that you have included the Must Dos.
Enjoy the weekend everyone.
Mrs Wadsworth, Miss McAleer and Mrs Richardson
Fee Fi Fo Fum!
We loved listening to the story of ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ this week and children are really excited about growing their own beanstalks. We’ll be looking after them and watching them grow over the next two weeks. Ask your child to talk to you about their seed and tell you about any changes that they notice.
Lots of our learning activities have been linked to ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ this week. Here are few that children have really enjoyed.
- In the story corner, we practised our story telling skills. Children enjoyed using the props to re-tell the story with their friends. Lots of children remembered the key events in the story and some could remember the Giant’s favourite phrases too.
- ‘Eughhhh!’ could be heard quite a few times in our sensory corner as children explored the textures and smells of different types of beans. We had kidney beans, butter beans and even baked beans! Despite the initial texture and feel of the beans, many children enjoyed investigating what happened when you ‘popped’ the beans and removed the outer shell.
- During group time, we practised our subitising skills. We had to say how many beans there were (1,2 or 3) without counting. We continued this in the maths area, as well as using the tweezers to fill each pot with the correct number of beans. It was very tricky!
- In the creative area, children enjoyed sitting together and talking as they created their own beanstalks and drew Jack climbing up to the top.
As well as the ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ themed activities, we also enjoyed lots of other games and followed some of the children’s own interests -all of which helped to develop important skills such as turn taking and sharing, building friendships and balancing.
Finally, to end the week, children loved joining in with some Red Nose Day fundraising Friday fun by playing a special game of ‘Red Nose Day’ musical statues.
Next week, we will be talking about seasons and looking for signs of spring in our Nursery garden. Talk to your child about springtime and see what you can spot on your walk to Nursery. Send us a picture or let us know what you spotted. Email – scholesf1@spherefederation.org
We’ll also be talking about healthy eating and finding out about where vegetables come from as we read ‘Oliver’s Vegetables’.
Reminders
- Many children are still arriving over 10 minutes before their group’s drop off time. Please stick to your child’s allocated time as it helps to ease congestion outside Nursery and allows staff time to welcome each child and help them with their coat and handwashing. Thank you for your support.
- Does your child’s water bottle have their name on? Please check and write it on if not. Thank you