Year 4
Welcome to Year 4!
Mrs. Burrows and Mrs Draycott - Class Teachers
Our class saint is:
Saint Genesius
Saint Genesius is considered to be the patron saint of actors, lawyers, barristers, clowns, comedians, converts, dancers, people with epilepsy, musicians and victims of torture.
His feast day is August 25th.
Genesius was once an actor who had performed in plays, which mocked Christiainty.
According to legend, while performing in a play that mocked baptism, he fell ill on stage. Claiming he could see angels, he asked to be baptised there and then, which converted him.
He proclaimed his new belief, and he steadfastly refused to renounce it, even when the emperor Diocletian ordered him to do so.
He was sentenced to death for his beliefs.
Year 4 Summer Term
RE
The first unit is: Easter where the children will be introduced to accounts of the Resurrection appearances of Christ in the four Gospels.
The second unit is Pentecost where the children will study the story of Pentecost and identify the effects that it had upon disciples.
The third unit is Sharing in the life of Christ where the children will be given the opportunity to find out about religious customs from around the world.
Our final unit is Special roles and Responsibilities where the children will learn about the different tasks and responsibilities given to the people in the church.
MATHS
This term in Maths we are preparing for the MTC - Multiplication Check. Please keep practicising your sound checks on TTRS.
We start the term with decimals - making a whole, ordering, comparing, adding and subtracting decimals. We then move on to Money - Estimate, compare and calculate different measures, including money in pounds and pence, Solve simple measure and money problems involving fractions and decimals to two decimal places.
Finally before half term we make a start on Time - convert between different units of measure [for example, kilometre to metre; hour to minute. Please can you practice telling the time with your child at home.
After half term we continue with time, then move to Statistics - solve comparison, sum and difference problems using information presented in bar charts, pictograms, tables and other graphs, and finish the year with Geometry and property of shapes - compare and classify geometric shapes, including quadrilaterals and triangles, based on their properties and sizes.
ENGLISH
We will start the term learning to write a recount.
Our class book this term will be The Boy at the Back of the Class by Onjali Q. Raúf. We will read this together and enjoy time to reflect and discuss the themes and characters within the novel.
In GEOGRAPHY the children will focus on Rivers. They will start by learning about the Water Cycle and the impact that this has on our world. They will then compare the different water bodies across the Earth and consider why they are all necessary.
In DT during the Summer term, Class 4 will complete the unit, Structures where the children will make a pavilion. They will explore different techniques and materials and consider which are the most effective to create their design.
PE – We will continue swimming every Friday. We will also have a PE lesson on Monday’s with Mrs Rowland's where we will be learning cricket, rounders and athletics.
Music - In music will continue to sing rhythmically and expressively using a range of an octave with increased control. The class will learn songs in two parts to celebrate the King's Coronation to perform as a whole school performance and also a song from the movie, Mary Poppins, to sing in unison with reception children at the school fayre. Children will learn to follow a conductor and have a go at conducting their peers. We will continue to develop our listening skills by deconstructing a piece of Romantic music and a piece of Orchestral pop music focussing on the instruments used, dynamics, texture and structure. We will evaluate our class performances using musical vocabulary and consider the question how music can shape our lives.
HISTORY - In History we are going to be finding out about what life was like in Tudor times. We will find out about Henry VIII, and consider the cause and consequences of the the English reformation. We will also find out why he divorced one of his six wives, Catherine of Aragon. Then we study another monarch, Elizabeth I, finding out how parts of Tudor life in Elizabethan times are similar or different from our lives today. Lastly we will investigate the sinking of the Mary Rose in 1545. Throughout this topic we will use both primary and secondary sources of evidence to formulate ideas.
ART - This term we are being inspired by the amazing sculptors, Henry Moore and Louise Bourgeois. We will experiment with some of techniques using lines and shading to make drawings of their work , then we will design and make our own sculptures influenced by their work. Henry Moore was also a printer and we will be discovering how printing is different to painting. Finally, we will be researching the botanical sculptor Azuma Makoto.
Science - Our Topic for this term is sound. We will be exploring how sound is made and experiment how it travels to our ear drums.
Parent Guide to Year 4 DfE Times Table Test
Standon Bowers
Standon Bowers
Helpful homework hints:
- Maths
Times tables need to be practised consistently throughout the year. Below are some websites to support you with this.
- TT Rockstars - I reccommend the 'sound check' as this gives a time limit of 6 seconds per question, which reflects the times table check in June.
- Hit the Button
- Mathsframe Multiplication Tables Check (MTC) - No need to log in. This is a close approximation of what the check in June will be like.
This website has a nice friendly breakdown of what the new times tables check means. You can also sign up for a free resource pack which includes some great paper based activities.
Here's a link to the government website and their full framework on the checks in June.
Below are some resources to support you at home.
- English
- MC Grammar
- Look, cover, write, check - a spelling game. You will often find this week's spellings on here! A fun way to practise.