Term 5

Design & Technology – Structures: Stiff, Stable, Strong

In Design & Technology this term, we’ve been exploring what makes a structure strong, stiff, and stable. We investigated how different shapes and materials affect a structure’s strength, and then put our learning into action by building our own pavilion structures using marshmallows and spaghetti! This hands-on challenge involved lots of teamwork, problem-solving, and a fair bit of mess—but it was a fantastic way to explore real engineering principles in a creative and memorable way.

Forest School Celebration

To celebrate the success of our Learning Exhibition, the children spent some relaxing time at Forest School, enjoying free play, exploring nature, and celebrating all their hard work this term. It was a lovely chance to unwind in the great outdoors!

IntoUniversity Careers Workshop

We were lucky to welcome Phoebe and Ben from IntoUniversity this term for a series of inspiring workshops focused on careers. The children explored the different skills used in a range of professions and enjoyed discussing what they might like to do in the future. It was a fun and thought-provoking session that really got everyone thinking about their goals and dreams.

Year 4 Learning Exhibition

Our Learning Exhibition was a huge success! The children proudly shared their fantastic work from across the term—from creative projects to thoughtful presentations. It was amazing to see their confidence and enthusiasm as they explained their learning journeys to parents, carers, and staff. A big thank you to all the families who came along to support and celebrate their achievements—it meant a lot to the children and the school!

Maths – Decimals and Place Value

In Maths, we’ve been learning how to divide 1-digit numbers by 10 and 100 to create decimal numbers. Using place value charts, we’ve explored how each digit moves one or two places to the right depending on the operation. This has helped us understand the link between whole numbers and decimals—for example, how 7 ÷ 10 becomes 0.7, and 6 ÷ 100 becomes 0.06. Seeing the digits shift on the chart made it easier to visualise and apply this understanding to problem-solving tasks.

Term 4

Daffodil Breakfast

A huge thank you to all the parents and families who joined us for our Daffodil Breakfast! It was wonderful to see so many of you enjoying hot cross buns, colouring activities, and a cuppa with your children. Your presence truly made the morning special, and it was heartwarming to witness families coming together to share in such a delightful experience. We’re already looking forward to more events like this—thank you for making it so memorable!

Story Time Together

Thank you to all the parents and guardians who joined us for “Story Time Together”! Sharing stories with the children alongside their adults made for a truly special and meaningful experience. Your involvement brought even more joy to the session, and we loved seeing the connections being made through the magic of storytelling. We can’t wait for more moments like these in the future!

History – Crime and Punishment

As historians, we have been exploring the fascinating topic of Crime and Punishment through time. The children have been learning to identify connections and contrasts between different historical periods, people, events, and artefacts. They explored how everyday life in the past compares to our own, using a variety of primary and secondary sources to deepen their understanding of historical changes and continuities. It’s been an eye-opening and engaging unit!

Geography – Water and the Environment

In geography, we continued our focus on the water cycle and broadened our understanding by investigating how we can clean water and why it’s important to protect our water sources. Through hands-on activities and thoughtful discussions, we explored purification processes and the significance of clean water for health and well-being. We also delved into environmental issues like flooding and water pollution, examining their impact on both communities and ecosystems. The children showed great critical thinking as they considered ways we can care for our planet’s water resources.

Art – Rainforest Printmaking

In art, we have been exploring the vibrant world of the rainforest through printmaking. Inspired by the beautiful, nature-themed patterns of William Morris, the children experimented with repeating patterns to design their own rainforest-themed prints. The results have been stunning, showcasing creativity, attention to detail, and an appreciation for the natural world.

Term 3

English

This term in English, we have been diving into two exciting texts: Oliver Twist and Oliver and the Seawigs. Through these stories, we explored different styles of writing, including play scripts, formal letters, and alternative story endings. We focused on key elements of play script writing, ensuring our dialogue was clear and stage directions were precise by using prepositions to add depth. We also practised writing letters of advice, incorporating modal verbs (such as can, should, and must) to make our suggestions strong and persuasive. To develop our storytelling skills, we experimented with alternative endings, using fronted adverbials to clearly indicate when, where, and how events unfold in our narratives. It’s been a fantastic term of creativity and skill-building!

Maths

This term in Year 4, we focused on multiplication and division, strengthening our fluency and problem-solving skills. A big highlight was mastering formal written methods for multiplication and short division, especially in solving real-world problems like scaling and correspondence problems (e.g., finding different combinations of items). We also deepened our understanding of place value, which helped us confidently multiply and divide numbers by 10, 100, and 1,000. Exploring patterns and relationships, we used arrays, number lines, and partitioning to reinforce our conceptual understanding. It’s been great to see the children develop confidence in tackling increasingly complex problems!

Design & Technology

The children have been working on an exciting project: designing a Mindfulness Moment Timer for The Nest classroom. From the start, they engaged in the full design process, from research to prototyping. They explored key concepts such as ergonomics (ensuring comfort and usability), the aesthetics of their design, and how their product’s branding would make it unique. They also considered variable factors, such as different time settings and sound options, to make their timers adaptable to classroom needs. By the end of the project, students had developed detailed protocols explaining how their product functions and how to use it effectively. They are incredibly proud of their innovative designs and can’t wait to see the final results in action!

Geography: The Water Cycle

This term, we have been exploring the water cycle and how water moves continuously through the environment. We learned about key processes like evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and collection and created detailed diagrams and models to visualize these stages. To bring the learning to life, students took part in two exciting investigations:

1.Cloud Formation Experiment – Using simple materials, students simulated condensation, watching water droplets form to better understand how clouds develop.
2. Water Cycle in Action – Using a metal bowl, coins, hot water, a pot, and cling film, they recreated the cycle, observing evaporation, condensation, and precipitation in real-time.

These hands-on activities sparked curiosity and deepened their understanding of the natural world.

Computing: Coding & Problem-Solving

This term, we’ve been building core coding skills using Code.org, where students have been learning to create precise commands to move objects within a digital space. Through engaging challenges, they developed a logical approach to programming, understanding how small changes in their code can lead to big differences in outcomes. This has not only enhanced their critical thinking but also given them hands-on experience in debugging and troubleshooting. Many students are so enthusiastic about coding that they’re eager to share their skills at home!

Chinese New Year Celebration

We had a fantastic time celebrating Chinese New Year and learning about this vibrant festival! The children explored how the colour red symbolises good luck and happiness and discovered how homes are decorated to welcome prosperity in the new year. One of the highlights was learning about the Chinese Zodiac—students matched their birth years to their zodiac animals and learned about their unique characteristics. To bring the celebration to life, we got creative and designed our own Zodiac animals with matching symbols. It was a wonderful way to combine culture, tradition, and creativity, making this festival meaningful and memorable for all!

Term 2

Maths

In Maths this term, we are focusing on building strong skills in multiplication and division. Our students have been learning to multiply and divide both mentally and using written methods, including long division and multiplying larger numbers. We are also exploring times tables and using these to solve problems more efficiently. To support their learning, we are practicing word problems, real-life scenarios, and strategies to improve their number fluency and confidence in handling calculations. We are excited to see the progress the students are making and look forward to continuing to strengthen their mathematical understanding!

Geography

We have been exploring the fascinating concept of the Prime Meridian and how it helps us understand the world’s geography. We’ve learned that the Prime Meridian, located at 0 degrees longitude, divides the Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. We’ve also discovered the countries the Prime Meridian passes through, such as the United Kingdom, France, Spain, and several others. Our students have been engaging in activities to locate the Prime Meridian on maps and globes, deepening their understanding of how this imaginary line shapes our global navigation and time zones. We are excited to continue our exploration of Earth’s geographical features in the coming weeks!

Christchurch Cathedral

The children had a wonderful time attending the Christingle service, where they learned about the symbols of the Christingle and the significance of light and love at Christmas. During the service, each child created and lit their own Christingle, which helped to highlight the message of Jesus as the Light of the World. The children also enjoyed learning about the cathedral’s history and exploring its stunning architecture. It was a meaningful and memorable experience for everyone, and the children behaved beautifully throughout the visit. We hope they return home with a deeper understanding of the Christmas message and the joy of this special tradition.

Science – Natural History Museum & Pitt Rivers Museum

An amazing day was had by all. We managed to see lots of rocks & fossils (and a dinosaur or two), complete the rock trail and find all the mice in the Pitt Rivers museum. A huge thank you to Ms Ben-Aldjia, Miss Church & Mrs M for coming along and supporting Year 4. Our focus has been on how rocks are formed. We explored the different types of rocks through an engaging activity where the children matched statements to either igneous or sedimentary rocks. Each child received a secret message indicating which type of rock they were representing, and then they had the choice of how to showcase their rock knowledge.
The children could choose from several creative activities: creating a poster to share with the class, taking part in a hot-seating session, acting out a short drama scene, or presenting a news report. Afterward, their classmates used their newly acquired knowledge of rocks to guess which type of rock each group was representing. It was a fun and interactive way to reinforce their understanding of rock formation, and we were impressed by their creativity and teamwork!

Jack Peers

We had a glorious day at Jack Peers in the sunshine. We did some observational painting of the flooded landscape, collected bits from outside then created our own nature collages, we made some clay tree faces and even went on a ‘mountain hike’ around the grounds. Lady Margaret were AMAZING and we have made some brilliant memories together.

Writing

In English, we have been producing character descriptions, setting descriptions, and adventure narratives, focusing on sentence structure, subordinating and coordinating conjunctions, and dialogue using quotation marks. The children draft, plan, edit, and publish their work throughout their writing sessions.

Term 1

Geography

In Geography, we have been learning lots of new facts and skills. We focused on longitude and latitude, trying to locate ourselves on a map or on the globe. We even took our learning outside to put everything into practice!

Maths

We have been working hard with place value this year, using resources to make our learning hands-on—right up to numbers with 1000s in them. Have a look at our brilliant learning below! We’ve also learned all about Area—the space inside a shape. The students have been exploring how to calculate the area of simple shapes like rectangles and squares.

A Special Visitor – Victoria Ohuruogu

The children loved taking part in the fitness circuit led by Victoria Ohuruogu and also listening to how she got to where she is. This was an inspiring opportunity for the children, with a powerful message to never give up when things get tough. Perseverance and patience lead to great things!

Writing

We’ve been having a creative time in class! The students have been writing non-chronological reports about mythical beasts they’ve designed in Art. They’re learning how to describe their creatures in detail and organise information clearly using subheadings.

Computing

We’ve been exploring the fascinating world of networks! The students are learning about how different devices connect and communicate with each other, including topics like the internet, Wi-Fi, and more. They’re gaining a solid understanding of how technology works behind the scenes.

Science

We’ve delved into photosynthesis, the fascinating process plants use to make their food. The children now understand how plants take in carbon dioxide from the air, water from the soil, and use sunlight to create glucose, which fuels their growth. A big focus has been on how plants make their own food, unlike humans, who need to consume food from external sources to get energy.

We’ve also discussed how humans rely on digestion to break down food and absorb nutrients, while plants create their own food through photosynthesis and absorb additional nutrients (like minerals) from the soil through their roots. It’s been fun comparing plant and human nutrition, and the students have shown great interest in the differences!

PSHCE

We focused on understanding how our actions can affect others, encouraging the children to think about the impact of their choices on those around them. The children created freeze frames to show an action that could impact others.

Reading for pleasure

The children have been focusing on reading for pleasure this term. They spent time carefully choosing a book that interested them and then enjoyed reading in a calm, quiet environment. This has been a great way to foster a love of reading and encourage independent learning, allowing the children to relax and immerse themselves in their chosen stories.

MFL

In Modern Foreign Languages (MFL), the children have been learning about different types of fruits. Through fun games and interactive activities, they’ve been practicing new vocabulary and building their language skills. The children have enjoyed engaging with the material, making learning both enjoyable and effective!