Living and Learning – 60 Active Minutes
In Living and Learning, we’ve learnt about the importance of physical activity in being mentally and physically healthy.
Children should be physically active for at least 60 minutes a day.
Physical activity benefits our bodies and minds in lots of ways:
- muscle and bone strength
- fitness and heart health
- mental health
- improved concentration
- better sleep
We considered how we could add moments of physical activity in the day, both at school and at home.
- walking to school
- football
- skipping
- gymnastics
- cycling
- dancing
To summarise our learning, we completed a physical activity diary.
Help at home by asking your child about the importance of physical activity. How can they add more physical activity into their day?
Reading
This week, we have been focusing on poetry during our reading sessions. We have been using the poem ‘Refugee‘ by Brian Bilston as our stimulus.
Refugees
They have no need of our help
So do not tell me
These haggard faces could belong to you or me
Should life have dealt a different hand
We need to see them for who they really are
Chancers and scroungers
Layabouts and loungers
With bombs up their sleeves
Cut-throats and thieves
They are not
Welcome here
We should make them
Go back to where they came from
They cannot
Share our food
Share our homes
Share our countries
Instead let us
Build a wall to keep them out
It is not okay to say
These are people just like us
A place should only belong to those who are born there
Do not be so stupid to think that
The world can be looked at another way
(now read from bottom to top)
The poem is super interesting as you can read it forwards and backwards – this is called a palindrome poem.
First, we read it forwards and recorded our feelings. We were outraged by what we had read:
I dislike this poem because it discriminates against refugees. I felt shocked that people don’t treat refugees fairly. Kamile.
I don’t like it because it’s offensive! Tommy.
They don’t deserve to be treated unfairly as they have just arrived from a long, dangerous journey. Valerie.
I found that I was angry as I think it is a bit racist. Leo M.
The poet made me sad because he was discriminating against refugees. Ralph.
Then, we read it backwards and noticed that our views on the poem had completely changed.
Help at home – Read the poem with your child. Discuss your viewpoints. Can your child relate the poem to our Christian values of Peace, Compassion, Forgiveness, Honesty, Courage and Perseverance?
A few more action shots from the triathlon…
Brownlee Triathlon!
This week, KS2 took part in the Brownlee Foundation Triathlon event! All of the children represented St James well and completed the whole course with huge smiles on their faces! The children had to swim, cycle and run their way to the finish line, working together and spurring each other on. We even got to meet Jonny Brownlee, who very kindly took a photo with our school! Thanks to all parents and adults who helped organise the event. Here are some fantastic photos from our day:
Living and Learning: 60 active minutes
Today, we learned that children need at least 60 minutes of physical activity every day! This can be spread out between school and home, and we discovered that many of the things we already do each day can count towards this.
Some examples we thought of included:
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Wake Up Shake Up
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Playing at break time
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Walking to school
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Swimming lessons
We also talked about the importance of rest. To help our bodies recover and our minds stay sharp, we should aim for 10 to 12 hours of sleep each night. A good night’s sleep helps us feel refreshed, focused, and ready to enjoy a new day of learning and fun!
We discussed how our body needs both rest and physical activity to stay healthy and strong.
🌙 Why we need rest:
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Rest helps us grow. When we sleep, our bodies repair and grow stronger.
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It gives our brain a break. Sleep helps us think clearly, remember things, and feel happy.
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We get more energy. After resting, we feel ready to play, learn, and do our best.
🏃♂️ Why we need physical activity:
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Exercise keeps our hearts and muscles strong.
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It helps us stay a healthy weight.
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We feel happier and less stressed when we move our bodies.
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Exercise helps us sleep better at night.
So, getting enough rest and being active every day helps us stay healthy inside and out!
Help at home: Could you make a small change to your routine to help fit in your active time?
Here are a few simple ideas:
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Walk to school or the shop instead of taking the car
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Ride your bike or scooter after school instead of watching TV
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Have a dance party, play in the garden, or go for a family walk
Even small changes can make a big difference to your health and happiness!
Philosophy Friday – Only people from the West Indies should go to the Leeds West Indies Carnival. Do you agree or disagree?
We now know where to find the West Indies on a map and have also learnt about the culture of the West Indies. We found out that Arthur France travelled to the UK when he was in his early 20s and, inspired by how much he missed the joyful spirit and community feel of the West Indies, set up the Leeds West Indies Carnival as well as other community projects.
This lead us to ponder, should it just be people from the West Indies who should go to the West Indies Carnival?
We were unanimous in our decision… everyone should go to the West Indies Carnival!
Oliver was keen to highlight the benefits of being able to learn about a different culture if you went to the carnival. He also thought people should try new things which they could do if they went to the carnival.
Emily explained that there would be ‘more happier faces’ if everyone mixed together and enjoyed the carnival. She expanded on this by imagining how joyful it would be to sing and dance together.
Help at home: You might want to attend the Leeds West Indies Carnival and see what it is like in real life! Details can be found here: https://leedscarnival.co.uk/
Times Tables Check
This week, all of the children have practised the times tables check using the DfE system that they will use for the real check in a few weeks.
More than half of the children scored their personal best and it is great to see children working hard to learn the facts that they aren’t 100% confident with.
Help at home: Please keep playing TTRS at home! We ask children to play for 15 minutes per week which will earn them a place on our TTRS wheel in Achieve and Believe assembly!
Mad about Minibeasts
We’ve been learning all about the number 5.
Look at the different ways we can represent 5.
Here’s some of our nursery children talking about the ways to make 5. The NumberBlocks episode ‘a part of me’ is a great way to explore this.
Minibeasts
Our caterpillars are here and they’ve started to build their cocoons. We’ve been taking extra care around them so they won’t be disturbed. Look out for some caterpillar artwork!
Help at home.
Have a minibeast hunt in your outdoor space or at the park. Can you find any minibeasts? How many legs can you see? Do they have a pattern? Do they have wings? Let us know at Nursery what you find.
Next week
We will continue reading “Mad about Minibeasts”
Living and Learning: I know the importance of 5 a day
For our living and learning session this week, Year 3 looked into the importance of healthy eating. We discussed as a class how many fruit/veg a day we are currently managing to eat, and set ourselves some goals to further improve.
We also looked into influences and healthy choices when deciding what to eat and drink. Year 3 discussed the importance of a healthy, balanced diet and used their learning about different foods groups from earlier this year to help.
After the session the children felt confident talking about the following statements:
Help at home:
Discuss these statements in more detail at home so your child understands the importance of healthy choices when eating and drinking.
Living and Learning – 5 a day
In Living and Learning, we’ve focused on the importance of a healthy diet and the ‘5 a day’ message.
Fruit and vegetables are a crucial part of a healthy, balanced diet. They’re a great source of vitamins and minerals which help keep us healthy. They can even reduce the risk of disease!
What counts?
Almost every type of fresh, frozen, tinned and dried fruit and vegetable counts towards your 5 a day. Even things like fruit juice, tomato puree (not ketchup) and baked beans count. We were surprised to learn that potatoes don’t count! Potatoes contain a high amount of carbohydrate – another part of a healthy, balanced diet.
What is a portion?
A good rule is to consider that a portion fits in the palm of your hand.
Don’t stop at 5!
A total of 5 portions of fruit and vegetables combined is the minimum number to aim for. You don’t need to eat 5 portions of fruit and 5 portions of vegetables but the more the better!
Help at home by keeping a 5 a day diary. Have a look through The Eatwell Guide with your child. Are you eating a healthy, balanced diet?