How to Catch a Star
This week our focus book has been How to Catch a Star by Oliver Jeffers.
Our word of the week has been reflection and we looked closely at shiny and dull objects. The children where challenged to find objects they could see their reflection in.
‘I can see my reflection in the tv. Look at my angry face!’ Leo
‘I can see myself in these glasses, my mouth is moving.’ Noyan
‘I found a shiny bowl, I can see myself on the side.’ Billie
Phonics
This week, we focused on the new digraphs sh, th, ng and nk.
We’ve also learnt the tricky words; she, he, of, go, no
Tricky words are words that should be read by sight. We start by identifying which part of the word is ‘tricky’.
Please continue to revisit this week’s sounds, by using the learn at home sheets. Thank you.
Poetry Picnic
Each week we will be learning a new poem. We will recite this poem each day. By saying the poem out loud, we can focus on the sounds and rhythm of each word or line. We talk to the children about how this can help us become better readers. This week’s poem is called Mice by Rose Fyleman
I think mice are rather nice.
Their tails are long, their faces small,
They haven’t any chins at all.
Their ears are pink. Their teeth are white.
They run around the house at night.
They nibble things they shouldn’t touch.
And no-one seems to like them much.
But I think mice are nice.
Next week our focus story is Owl Babies by Martin Waddell.
Topic review
This afternoon, we welcomed parents into Year 6 for our art topic review. During this session, we revisited some of the sculptures we have been studying this half term. We then sketched some sculptures to gain further inspiration before we begin creating our sculptures next week. Finally, we created some mini sculptures using clay. Everyone did a fantastic job and the creativity shown by all was amazing.
You could see how proud everyone was of their creation; the children were able to talk about pieces that were abstract, figurative, modern and classic in their design.
PE
Gymnastic
This week, we’ve really enjoyed getting the gymnastic equipment out and finding new ways to express and challenge ourselves. It has been wonderful to see the children’s confidence grow each lesson.
We have been focusing on jumping and landing with two feet, control and balance (ensuring that we are safe).
Topic Review
Today, Year 5 welcomed parents into our classroom to take part in a topic review. This half term, we have been learning all about art and sculpture, focussing on three key artists (Thomas Price, Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth). The children discussed similarities and differences between the artists and their work:
Barbara Hepworth and William Moore are similar because they grew up going to the same art college and took ideas from each other.
Barbara introduced negative space in her sculptures and Henry adopted this idea. They are both very abstract.
Thomas Price is different because his work is very figurative as it’s based on real life and the human figure.
Then, the children had a go at sketching some work by our artists, looking for inspiration across different sculptures. Using this inspiration, we had a go at creating a mini sculpture of our own! The children worked carefully and you could really see their own ideas shining through, with little snippets of inspiration from our artists. Here are some of the results!
Help at home:
Next week, we will be sculpting using bars of soap! Please bring in some soap for this – we are hoping to have more than one go if possible.
Science – Material Detectives
This week in Science, Year 1 have been learning all about materials and what everyday objects are made from. We became material detectives and explored our school, inside and out, to see what we could discover.
The children worked brilliantly as they searched for objects made of wood, plastic, metal, glass, fabric, and rock. They were excited to spot wooden doors, metal railings, plastic chairs, glass windows, cosy fabric cushions and even rock paving slabs outside.
As we continue to develop our Working Scientifically skills, the children focused on making observations, noticing not just the material but also its texture, use and why it might’ve been chosen. Their curiosity and attention to detail were fantastic to see.
Help at home
Invite your child to look around your home and choose an object of each material (wood, plastic, metal, glass, fabric, rock). Ask them to describe the material and why they think it’s suitable for that object.
Balancing, climbing and Brilliant Gymnastics
Year 2 had an exciting Gymnastics lesson this week as they explored all the large equipment in the hall. The children practised climbing the ropes and climbing frame, developing their strength and control. They carefully balanced along the beam and moved across the apparatus in different ways, stretching, jumping, twisting and travelling with confidence.
Everyone worked brilliantly to stay safe, take turns and use the equipment responsibly. Using the apparatus helps us learn key gymnastics skills such as balance, coordination and body control.
RE – Waiting for Christmas
In our RE lesson this week, we’ve been learning about why waiting and preparing for Christmas is such an important part of the Christian faith.
We began by exploring the Nativity story. The children thought carefully about which characters had to wait for something special to happen. They spotted lots of examples:
- Mary waiting for baby Jesus to arrive
- Mary and Joseph waiting to find somewhere safe to stay in Bethlehem
- The Wise Men waiting and travelling a very long way to meet the new baby king
It helped us understand that waiting has always been a big part of the Christmas story.
We then learned that Christians have a special time of waiting and getting ready before Christmas called Advent. The children shared their own experiences of advent calendars and what it feels like to open a door each day. We looked at different Advent traditions such as advent candles and advent wreaths and discussed how these help Christians count down to Christmas in a thoughtful and meaningful way.
For many Christians, Christmas is not only about presents, decorations or delicious food. It is a time to remember and celebrate the Christian belief that Jesus came to earth as both God and human. Because of this, Christians aren’t just waiting for Christmas Day – they are waiting to celebrate the birth of Jesus.
We looked closely at the Advent wreath and talked about what each candle can represent:
- Hope
- Peace
- Love
- Joy
- Jesus – the white candle in the middle, lit on Christmas Day
The children learned that each Sunday during Advent, a new candle is lit, and the final candle is lit on Christmas Day itself.
Help at home by asking your child what they are currently waiting or hoping for – maybe a birthday, a visit, or a special event. Talk about how waiting can feel exciting, difficult or joyful.
Narratives That Sparkle Like Diamonds
This week in Year 3, we have been working hard on our narratives inspired by The Dream Giver (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8k1gUaJvK-4 ). To make our stories more exciting and interesting for our Year 5 readers, we learned how to use similes in our writing.
We discussed how similes help the reader picture what is happening, such as describing someone moving ‘as quietly as a shadow’ or dreams floating ‘like bubbles in the air.’ The children then practised creating their own similes to add detail, mood and fun to their writing.
Everyone enjoyed experimenting with imaginative comparisons and we were very impressed with how confidently the class used similes to bring their ideas to life. Our writing is already sounding more vivid, engaging and entertaining.
Well done, Year 3! Your Year 5 reading buddies are going to love your stories!
Reading – Authorfy
Year 4 LOVE Authorfy!
Year 4 may have mentioned special challenges and videos with authors that they’ve enjoyed in Book Club. Highlights so far have included:
- understanding more about why Onjali Rauf writes the books she writes by listening to her Q&A videos.
- designing our own laser-inspired level in response to a challenge set by 13 story treehouse author Andy Griffiths (see photo below).
- creating our own front cover design to Barb the Brave.
Rumour has it that to celebrate the National Year of Reading in 2026, Authorfy will be making many of their resources free to families to access at home. You can read more about the National Year of Reading here.
Night Monkey, Day Monkey
We have had another busy week in reception, our focus book this week has been Night Monkey, Day Monkey by Julia Donaldson and Lucy Richards.
We have talked a lot about the things we do during the day at school and things we do at night at home.
Our word of the week was: Nocturnal, the children have enjoyed exploring the different animals that are nocturnal and active at night.
“Foxes and bats are nocturnal.”
“Hedgehogs are awake in the night.”
Help At Home: Draw a nocturnal animal and label it.
Phonics
This week the children have focused on the diagraphs zz, qu and ch and the phoneme z. we have also looked at words with s added at the end like hats, sits.
We’ve also learnt the tricky words: go, no, to, into, his
Help at home: Please look at the ‘learn at home’ phonics sheet. The sheet links to all the phonemes we have covered this week. Please support your child by practising these at home.
Poetry Picnic
Each week we will be learning a new poem. We will recite the poem each day. By saying the poem out load we can focus on the sounds and rhythm of each word or line.
this week our poem was A Basket of Apples
I’ve got a basket of apples, picked from a tree.
Apples rosy red for you, and shiny green for me.
Some of them are big, and some of them are small.
Some of them are oval, and some shaped like a ball.
Some of them are sour, and some of them are sweet.
Lots of lovely apples for you and I to eat.
Help at home- we talked about the vocabulary oval (shaped like an egg) and sour (tastes like lemon or vinegar) tell your grown up what these words mean.
Maths
In Maths, we have begun to explore composition by focusing on the concept of ‘wholes’ and ‘parts’. The children have explored their own bodies and familiar toys to begin to understand that whole things are often made up of smaller parts and that a whole is, therefore, bigger than its parts. We have made whole faces by adding different parts of eyes, ears a mouth and a nose and put the parts together to make a whole monkey.
Help at home: Sing Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes to your grown up and tell them some of the parts you have on your body that make up the whole of you.
Next week our focus book is How to Catch a Star by Oliver Jeffers.
Thank you also to those who came to the Maths Stay and Learn session, please do get in touch if you ever have any questions. stjameseyfs@spherefederation.org
Have a happy and healthy weekend