Barbara Hepworth Art Gallery
Last Friday, we had an absolutely fantastic school trip to the Hepworth Gallery in Wakefield .
The day included looking around the garden, the different galleries in the art museum and sketching some of the sculptures.
We also enjoyed a print-making workshop which included looking at some Barbara Hepworth sculptures and finding inspiration from their shapes. We learned that Barbara Hepworth was inspired by nature to produce her own art.
Using different materials, we created a tile with different textures, lines and shapes. Then, we rolled ink over our tiles and printed them onto paper.
Our finished masterpieces are on display in the classroom. Please pop in and check them out!
PE: Gymnastics
Year 2 have been enjoying their Gymnastics sessions this half term. We’ve been moving our bodies in lots of different ways. We’ve been thinking about how we can change the height of our body.
Topic: Hepworth Museum
On Friday, we had a lovely trip to the Hepworth Museum. We spent the morning exploring the art gallery. We carefully observed the drawings, paintings and sculptures. We focused on the different colours, tones, textures and shapes.
After lunch, we met Sarah, an artist at The Hepworth. We went back into the gallery and created a picture, taking inspiration from the artwork and scenery around us.
We then worked with Sarah in her workshop to do some print making. We used a variety of different materials to create our print and used the rollers to roll the paint on.
Living and Learning: I can talk about my feelings
We started off our lesson by thinking about how we felt today. We had lots of different emotions such as happy, excited, grumpy and nervous. We spoke about how we can feel lots of emotions in a day depending on what it is we are doing. We looked at a list of different feelings and thought about:
- Where in our body we experience this feeling?
- What might happen to our face when we feel it?
- What might happen to our body when we feels it?
We then worked together in groups to read some different scenarios and think about how the characters would be feeling in each one. We then read some help cards and discussed which of the suggestions would be best for helping the characters.
Help at home: What emotions have you felt today? How did they make you feel? What could you do if you needed some help with your emotions?
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 those 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 are nocturnal, they are awake at night!”
“Hedgehogs are night time animals”
Help At Home: Draw a nocturnal animal and label it.
We have also had so much fun exploring shadows, when the sun eventually can out! The children really enjoyed trying to stand on each others shadows, especially on Mrs Kendrew’s head! They even used objects to try to see the shadow shapes they made on the ground. Great work everyone!
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: Today, your child has come home with a new ‘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 Shoes
Before I jump into my bed,
Before I dim the light,
I put my shoes together,
So they can talk all night.
I’m sure they would be lonesome,
If I tossed one here or there,
So I put my shoes together,
For they are a friendly pair.
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.
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 and we will also be looking at the artist Claude Monet.
Thank you to those families who sent in recordings of the children singing their favourite nursery rhyme, they have been lovely to watch. 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
Reminders
We will be doing PE on Monday, please send your child to school wearing their PE kit and trainers and all jewellery removed. They will stay in their PE kit all day.
Stay and Learn Sessions
This is an opportunity for you to come into school to find out about the Early Years Curriculum and watch your child Learning in school.
Phonics Phase 3- 16.1.24 2.20pm-3.00pm
Early Writing- 05.02.24 2.20pm-3.00pm
World Book Day 07.03.24 -8.50am-9.20am
Learning Journey Drop In’s
An opportunity to “drop into” school and share your child’ learning journal with them.
Times- 8.45am-9.15am and 3.15pm-3.45pm (Tuesday and Thursday)
Week beginning 11.12.23
Week beginning 25.03.24
Week beginning 08.07.24
Have a lovely weekend!
Mrs. Kendrew, Mrs. Rippon and Miss. Feldman
Forest Forage
This week the children took inspiration from our focus story- Hodge the Hedgehog! We decided to build our own hedgehog house to take into the forest, we have noticed that the hedgehogs have been taking residence near the holly bush. We did some research to see what would make a comfortable and cosy home for a hedgehog and here’s what we got up to …
I wonder..
The children have been noticing recently that some pine cones are spiky and some are smooth. So we did an experiment!
Why do pine cones close their scales in water?
predictions…
because they don’t like getting wet
it’s their coat
so it doesn’t get full of water
The answer is…
To protect their seeds from freezing temperatures and hungry animals!
Help at Home:
Have a go at your own pine cone experiment. What happens to the pine cone in water? What do you think will happen when it dries?
Send us some pictures of your experiment to share in nursery to stjamesnursery@spherefederation.org
What’s happening next week?
Focus story– Whatever Next by Jill Murphy
Nursery rhyme of the week – 1,2,3,4,5 once I caught a fish alive
Sound of the week – I for Iguana
Parent Consultations:
Tuesday 28 November 3:30-6:00pm
Thank you to those who have booked an appointment. We can’t wait to share your child’s progress with you. It’s still not to late to book if you would like one, there is a booking form in nursery if you wish to come.
Have a happy and healthy weekend!
Miss Ward and Miss Harvey
Artists at work
Our current topic is an art focused one. The children are studying the work of two featured artists: Paul Klee (modern artist) and Leonardo da Vinci (Renaissance artist).
Here is a list of our art related vocabulary and definitions.
- shape: a two-dimensional area which may be created using lines or colour
- tone: how light or dark a colour is
- primary colours: three colours (red, yellow, blue) that can’t be made by mixing other colours, but can make other colours
- secondary colours: three colours (orange, green, purple) that are made when two primary colours are mixed using paint
- pattern: arrangements of things such as colour, shapes and lines that repeat in a logical way
- texture: how something feels, like smooth or rough
Today, the children learnt about primary and secondary colours. We had fun mixing the primary colours to make the secondary ones.
Mixing colours
The primary colours are blue, yellow and red. When you mix these colours you can make new colours.
When you mix red and yellow together, you make orange.
When you mix red and blue together, you make purple.
And when you mix blue and yellow together, you make green.
The festival of light
This week we explored the Hindu festival of light known as Diwali. The children got busy making their own Diva lamp, Menhdi patterns and using natural resources such as pumpkin seeds to create Rangoli.
It has also been World Nursery Rhyme Week!
This is a great way for the children to develop their listening and attention skills that will support them into becoming confident readers throughout school.
Here are some of the rhymes that we’re learning to sing:
- Wind the Bobbin Up
- Baa Baa Black Sheep
- Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
- Incy Wincy Spider
- Hickory Dickory Dock
Help at home: Listen to these Nursery rhymes and sing them together at home. Does your child have a favourite rhyme? Can you think of anymore? Let us know or send us an e-mail/video to stjamesnursery@spherefederation.org
We’ve also been having lots of fun in our PE sessions recently. We’ve been exploring different ways of moving our bodies.
Like a Snake- Mia
Like my Puppy- Charlie
I can do a Caterpillar – Louie
What’s happening next week?
Focus story– Hovis the Hedgehog
Nursery rhyme of the week – I’m a little teapot
Sound of the week – P for Penguin
Parent Consultations
This week you will receive an email to book an appointment to discuss how your child has settled into nursery and their learning, plus an opportunity for you to ask any questions or raise any concerns.
Have a happy and healthy weekend!
Miss Ward and Miss Harvey
Living and Learning: Anti-bullying day and odd socks day
We kicked off anti-bullying day with our odd socks to celebrate that we are all unique and different.
We explored our school definition of bullying, created by our junior leaders, by looking at what some of the words meant.
What are the different types of bullying?
Our school definition helped us understand the different types of bullying – physical (hurting our body), emotional (hurting our feelings) or cyber bullying (online).
Our main message is Start Telling Other People and to continue to do that until you are heard.
Seeking help can be done in a number of different ways.
Who could you tell? (taken from our child friendly anti-bullying policy)
- Safeguarding team – Miss Beetson, Mrs Small, Mrs Walshaw
- Any other members of staff
- A trusted adult
- Someone in your family
- Friends
- Childline (0800 1111)
- Write a worry slip and put it in your Living and Learning box or the whole school worry box (outside the school office)
- Email stayingsafe@spherefederation.org
Help at home: discuss our school definition of bullying with your child. Do they know the difference between falling out and bullying, and between a one-off situation and something that’s happened more than once?
Living and Learning: Anti-bullying week
For our anti-bullying week, years 5 and 6 have been listening, discussing and supporting each other with anything and everything around bullying.
In our school, we know that bullying is when something negative happens:
Several
Times
On
Purpose
If we experience this, we know to Start Telling Other People.
Recently, we have been focussing on online behaviours and what respectful behaviour looks, feels and sounds like online. The class were very engaged and responsive during this discussion, providing definitions of respectful behaviour, along with advice and support to people who may have been treated unkindly online.
Here are some of the pupils with their definitions of respectful behaviour:
Help at home:
Check in with your child about their online experiences. Make sure they feel happy, healthy and safe when accessing online content and guide them in continuing to make safe and respectful decisions online.