About this class
Year 4
Teaching and learning in Year 4 does not stand still. We are constantly striving to excite, challenge and motivate all pupils. If you would like to contact your child's class teachers, you are welcome to talk to them at drop off and pick up times or contact them at the school email address.
General Information
What do I need to bring to school?
Book Bag:
All children require a book bag which they will need to bring every day.
Water bottle:
All children to bring a clear plastic, medium sized, bottle of water. Please can we ask for no metal bottles.
Fruit & Snack:
Fruit is not provided in Year 4. The children should only bring pieces of fruit (grapes, strawberry, mango etc in a plastic pot are fine) to have as their snack at break time. On Fridays, we are happy for this to be a fruit based snack (yoghurt covered raisins etc) as an end of week treat.
Milk
If you would like your child to have a carton of milk at snack time, please order this through www.coolmilk.com.
Important information
PE Days:
Monday and Wednesday
Reading:
In school, we complete a range of reading activities throughout the week, including having a class book/s ongoing and a weekly book club session. The focus for these are continually extending the children’s sight vocabulary, developing reading fluency and comprehension of texts read. We are passionate about children developing a love of reading; we ask that families read with, hear their children read or encourage their child to read independently for the equivalent of approx. 1 and ½ hours weekly. We also value parent/ carer comments and parents signing their child’s reading diary. In KS2 the children should be regularly reflecting on the books they read in their reading diary.
In Year 4, the children can independently change their reading book regularly, filling in their reading diary and having a member of staff check it.
Phonics is still provided to those children who require it. Phonics is taught weekly in 30 minutes slots 3 x a week.
Timetables:
In Year 4, the children are expected to develop and strengthen their knowledge of their times tables. The children will have a weekly times table test on a Friday. They are to achieve 30/30 twice (under teachers discretion) and then they will move up to the next timetable.
The order of the times tables is as follows:
2,10,5,3,4,6,7,8,9,11,12, mixes
The children are given regular opportunities to access Times Table Rockstars, which allows them to practise and explore a range of times tables. The children are provided a log in and password, which is stuck in the front of their reading diaries. The class teacher is responsible for assigning children the correct times table they are learning.
By the end of year 4, the children are expected to recall all times tables facts from 1 to 12. In early June, the children will undertake the Government Statutory test of their times tables knowledge using an online resource. During the lead up to the test, the children are expected to use Times Table Rockstars on a very regular basis in and out of school. The results of this test will be sent home before the end of the summer term.
Home learning:
Homework will be sent home every Thursday and will need to be returned the following Tuesday. Homework will be a mixture of Maths, Literacy or Project tasks. It should take approximately 45-60 minutes to complete.
Spellings:
Spellings will be given on a Thursday and be tested the following Thursday. The children will be given a spelling diary at the beginning of the school year. Spellings are broken into blocks. Each block contains 5 spellings words which the children are to practise in their homework books. Each spelling word should be written in a sentence as part of their home learning task. Children also have the opportunity to practise their spellings online on Spelling Shed.
If a child is continuing with weekly phonics sessions, the child will be provided alternative spellings, linking to the sounds they have covered in these sessions.
Beat Your Score:
If you wish to practise at home, your ‘Beat Your Score’ sheets can be found on the right side of this page.
Online Resources:
You will find your login details for the following site in your child’s reading diary.
My Maths: www.mymaths.co.uk
Times Tables Rockstars: www.ttrockstars.com
NumBots: www.numbots.com
EdShed: www.edshed.com
Language Angels: www.languageangels.com
Curriculum- Yearly overview of topics
Topics Covered Throughout the Year:
- Autumn Term: Just Like Me, Just Like You (diversify) / Plymouth and Beyond
- Spring Term: Stone Age to Iron Age / Dartmoor, then and now
- Summer Term: Ancient Egypt and Ports Study
Autumn term:
Maths – Place Value, Addition and Subtraction, Multiplication and Division. Times tables will be taught explicitly and practised in a range of ways throughout the term. Alongside this additional arithmetic sessions will happen during Beat Your Score practise. Times tables will be taught explicitly and practised in a range of ways throughout the term.
In English, we will be starting the year by revisiting basic sentence and word skills, using a story called ‘The Day the Crayons Quit’ by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers. We will also look at the non-fiction text ‘ A Question of History’ where the children will create their own information text.
Our Science focus this term is Light & Shadow Within this unit the children will:
- Recognise that we need light to see things
- To know that dark is the absence of light
- Notice that light is reflected from surfaces
- Recognise that light from the sun and there are ways to protect our eyes
- Recognise that shadows are formed by a light source that is blocked by an opaque object
- Find patterns in the way that the size of shadows change
Our first PHSE unit for the Autumn term will be ‘Just Like Me, Just Like You’. This is a whole school project where we will discover the importance of looking after our mental health. This work will continue in our PSHE sessions where we will be learning about families and relationships.
In Art we will begin the year by exploring the artist Pablo Picasso and using line to create our own self portrait. As well as this, the children will have fortnightly Keepy Uppy sessions, alternating between Art and Music. The children will explore using different mediums, techniques and resources. Examples of the work they children will do include colour wheels and tracing.
In Geography, the children will cover a unit called ‘Going Beyond Plymouth’. They will learn about comparing Plymouth landmarks to London’s, landmarks in a northern county, geographical regions of the UK and they will compare the northeast to the southwest.
In Design Technology we will be using mechanisms to plan, create and evaluate our own shadow puppets, linked to our learning in our science topics. The children will select materials according to their aesthetic and functional properties. Children will also choose specific tools for their desired outcomes and will join components together successfully using appropriate adhesives.
In Music, Year 3 will have fortnightly sessions from Plymouth Music Service. The children will explore using different percussion instruments and learn how to read and understand the structure of music. As well as this, the children will have fortnightly Keepy Uppy sessions, alternating between Art and Music. The children will listen to music from around the world, develop a stronger understanding of the different terminology we use in Music. As part of their Christmas performance the children will learn and sing songs linked to the theme of the performance including traditional Christmas carols.
In RE we will be learning about the Christians and the holy trinity. We will also be looking at the topic- What do Hindus believe God is like?
In Computing, the children will be exploring anew programming environment, in which they will input commands to create a sequence including sound. The children will also be thinking about what computing is as a subject.
In PE we will be taking part gymnastics. Within this unit children develop balancing, rolling and jumping. They use these skills individually and in combination. Children will develop their confidence to perform, considering the quality and control of their actions. Our final two unit in PE this term, are basic skills and fitness. The children will also cover an Outdoor Adventurous Activities unit, where they will work as part of a team to overcome challenges.
In MFL, the children will be covering a range of topics to strengthen their language skills. Following on from their enrichment sessions from Key Stage 1, the children will take part in weekly 45-minute sessions. Thornbury Primary School uses the scheme ‘Language Angels’ to allow the children to access a wide and engaging curriculum.
The children are given their own Language Angels log in and passwords, to allow them to practise topics they are covered in school. These will be stuck in the front of their reading diaries.
The sessions that will be covered over the course of the school year:
Autumn Term :
- Phonics
- Months of the year, days of the week
- Mental Maths
Spring Term:
Maths – Multiplication and Division, Fractions, Decimals, Length and Perimeter. Alongside this additional arithmetic sessions where the 4 number operations will be practiced in both formal and informal ways. Times tables will be taught explicitly and practised in a range of ways throughout the term.
In English, the children will be writing narrative about Flotsam as well as a Book Write topic linking to a book called ‘Meet the Artist’ They will also be completing a poetry unit based on the poem ‘A River’. They will finally cover a Book Write unit based on the short film ‘The lucky Dip’.
In Science, our unit this term will be states of matter and rocks as well as an Ocean Curriculum deep dive.
- They will compare and group together different types of rocks
- Describe in simple terms how fossils are formed
- Recognise that soils are made from rocks and organic matter
- Compare and group materials together into solids, liquids and gasses
- Observe that some materials change state when they are heated or cooled
- Identify different parts of the water cycle and the parts they play
Our Art will be focussing on landscapes through textiles linking to Dartmoor. We will be exploring how to use natural materials to dye fabric and working together to create a collagrative weave.
In Computing, the children will create their own audio podcast using Audacity. The children will also be data logging.
In Design and Technology, we will be developing our skills to make houses, tools and materials linked to our Stone Age to Iron Age units of work in History.
In Music, the children will use percussion sounds to create and play their own rhythms. In addition, they will compose their own pieces by applying their learning about how to link notes of different length together. The children will continue to listen and appraise a range of pieces of music.
Our Geography unit will be linked to history, where the children will compare the then and now of land use on Dartmoor and how this has changed over time.
In RE, we will be looking at ‘What does it mean to be Hindu in the UK today’? And why do Christians call the day Jesus dies ‘Good Friday’?
In PSHE, during the Spring Term, the children will cover the following units:
- Health and wellbeing
- Safety and the changing body (RSE)
- Emergencies and road safety
In PE, in spring term 1, the children develop their football skills and they will also learn the new game of handball. In Spring Term 2, the children will focus on their sports day preparations and will look at understanding and developing their own levels of fitness.
In MFL, the children will continue to expand their vocabulary and explore new topics in French. The topics which will be covered are:
- Vegetables
- Fruits
Summer Term:
Maths – Decimals, Money, Shape, Time, Statistics, Position and Direction are the units which will be covered. Alongside there will continue to be additional arithmetic sessions to consolidate and reinforce maths learning. In the lead up to the statutory Times tables assessment there will be frequent in school opportunities for the children to practise these facts in a range of ways.
English – In summer 1 the children will be completing a Book Write unit linking to a traditional tale called ‘Cinderella of the Nile’. They will also do a stand alone poetry unit linking to the seasons. In summer 2, they will complete a Book Write unit based on ‘Until I met Dudley’ exploring explanations and instructions. We will also complete a Book Write unit based on the book ‘Secrets of a Sun King’.
In Science, the children will cover two units; living things and classification. We will also have an Ocean Curriculum deep dive week.
In Computing, the children will be creating their own computer games and explore photo editing.
In Art, Year 3 will be looking at Egyptian artefacts and creating a coil pot inspired by a canopic jar.
In Design and Technology, we will be diving into our food unit of work where the children will create their own flatbreads.
In Music, the children will continue working with a specialist teacher from the Plymouth music service using percussion instruments. The children will also continue to listen and appraise a range of pieces of music. For their class assembly the children will learn a song to perform.
In History we will be focussing on ancient Egypt and will be linking to what we have learned in our Geography topic.
In Geography, children will be exploring the location of Egypt, considering the continent it lies within, the climate and where it lies in comparison to the equator.
In RE, we will cover the unit called ‘the impact of the Pentecost for Christians’. Finally, we will consider how and why people make the world a better place.
In PSHE, during the Summer term, we will be covering the following units:
- Citizenship
- Economic Wellbeing
In PE, the children will cover 4 units including; tag rugby, tennis, cricket and rounders. The children will have opportunities to compete for their house teams in a range of sports day events.
In MFL, the children will continue to expand their vocabulary and explore new topics in French. The topics which will be covered are:
- Shapes
- Do you have a pet?
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