Year 2 Plant Investigations
Year 2 have started learning about plants this half term. This week, the children observed a range of plants and thought about different ways to group them. They grouped plants by size, whether they are trees or not, if we can eat them, and whether they grow fruit. The children showed great curiosity and were excited to share their ideas.
Beau “We grouped by plants you can eat and plants you can’t.”
Louis “Some of these plants have fruit and others don’t.”
Ava “The fruit grows from a flower!”
Merry Christmas
We have had a lovely last day of the term in Year 2 . We loved our Christmas party and did some crafts.
I have really enjoyed teaching and getting to know the year 2 children this term. Whilst I will miss them, I will look forward to seeing them around school.
Merry Christmas
The year 2 team
Festive Fun in Year 2
Today, Year 2 had a very special surprise – a visit from Santa. The children were so excited and loved sharing smiles, laughter and festive cheer.
We also enjoyed a delicious Christmas dinner together, which was a lovely chance to sit with friends and celebrate as a class.
To finish our festive day, we shared the much-loved poem ’Twas the Night Before Christmas, enjoying the rhythm of the words and the magical story it tells.
It’s beginning to feel very Christmassy in Year 2, and we are all enjoying the excitement, warmth and joy of the Christmas season.
Final Prints Inspired by Paul Klee
Today, we finished our art topic by creating some fabulous final prints.
We used styrofoam to make our own printing plates to create artwork inspired by the artist Paul Klee. The children explored bold lines, shapes and patterns, just like Klee did in his artwork. Their designs were inspired by things Paul Klee often used in his work, such as houses and buildings, symbols, dream-like pictures, and bright, playful shapes.
The children carefully pressed their plates onto paper to reveal their prints and were very proud of the results. They showed great creativity, focus and perseverance, and the final artwork looks fantastic.
Describing a Monster
We have been superstar writers in year 2 this week!
As well as writing recounts, we have learning about expanded noun phrases and using them to write amazing monster character descriptions.
Inspired by the monster in ‘Not Now Bernard’ by David Mckee, we collected nouns and understand that a noun is a person, place or thing. We then made our nouns more exciting by adding adjectives to describe the noun.
We know that if we are going to use two adjectives, we need a comma to sperate them.
Hasel is a cheerful, joyful monster. Elsie
She has long, sparkling teeth. Luna
He has scary, dangerous horns on his head. J
Help at home: Can your child give some examples of nouns and adjectives. Maybe they could write a description of a character of their choice.
Recount Writing
This week, the children wrote their own independent recounts of making their banana sandwiches and they were fantastic. Using what they have learned this half‑term, they included expanded noun phrases (adjective, adjective noun) and time connectives, remembering to use a comma after each one.
The class impressed me with their careful handwriting, neat presentation, and brilliant word choices. They used adjectives such as soft, bright, crumbly, scrumptious, and delicious to describe the process.
Why does Christmas matter to Christians?
This half term, our big RE question is “Why does Christmas matter to Christians?” We have spent time exploring the events of the Nativity story, which we now remember very clearly.
One of our key vocabulary words is Incarnation, which means that Christians believe Jesus was God in human form, coming to Earth to show people what God is like.
In our most recent lesson, we compared the birth of Jesus with the birth of a baby today. We identified many differences and discussed them thoughtfully. We also considered how people today prepare for a new baby, and how people in the Nativity story prepared for Jesus’ birth.
My sister was visited by friends and family. Jesus was visited by kings and sheppards. – Lyla
It must have been a very difficult journey for Mary. -Frankie
Normally a baby is born in hospital. – Austin
Banana Sandwiches in Year 2
Year 2 had a fantastic time making banana sandwiches this week. The children worked safely and sensibly. They washed their hands carefully and learned how to hold a butter knife correctly while preparing their snack.
What We Did
- Washed hands with soap and water
- Spread butter on bread
- Peeled and sliced bananas with adult help
- Put the banana slices on the bread and made their sandwiches
The children showed great teamwork, followed instructions brilliantly, and enjoyed tasting their creations.
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.
Subtraction Through 10
This week, Year Two have been learning to subtract through ten using their knowledge of number bonds to ten. We used a bus story to help us picture the maths:
“There were 12 children on the buses. Then 4 got off, so 8 were left.”
We repeated this idea to explore 12 − 5, 12 − 6, and 12 − 7 with the children partitioning the number being subtracted:
subtract to get to 10, then subtract the rest.
To deepen understanding, the children also used tens frames to model the same number stories, showing 12, removing counters and checking how many were left. This helped them clearly see how subtraction through ten works.
💡 How to Help at Home
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Practise number bonds to 10 (e.g., 6 and 4, 7 and 3).
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Use small objects (pasta, buttons, Lego) to model stories like “12 take away 5”.
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Ask your child to explain how they got to 10 first before finishing the subtraction.
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Try quick oral questions: “If you have 12 and take away 3, how many to get to 10? What’s left?”