Goodbye Year 2!
As we come to the end of a wonderful year in Year 2, we wanted to take a moment to say a huge well done! We are so proud of everything they have achieved this year. They have worked incredibly hard and built some super strong friendships.
Today, we spent some time reflecting on our favourite memories from Year 2. It was lovely to hear the children sharing the moments that meant the most to them.
🌟 Cian said, “My favourite memory was our trip to the Hepworth Gallery and the printing workshop.”
🌟 Hallie said, “Meeting my new best friends and playing every day.”
🌟 Alfie said, “Eating gingerbread men and watching TV on our last day.”
🌟 Deacon said, “Our super fun maths lessons.”
🌟 Elsie said, “I’ve loved seeing how much progress I’ve made with my writing!”
🌟 Jolyon said, “Reading Extra Yarn.”
These memories remind us that Year 2 has been filled with exciting learning experiences. It has been a joy to watch the children grow, not only in their learning but also in their confidence.
Thank you to all of our families for your continued support throughout the year. We hope you all have a fantastic, restful summer break and we wish the children every success and happiness as they move on to Year 3. We know they will continue to shine!
Miss Ward and Mrs Bye
Year 2 Ready to Read Assembly
Year 2 Ready to Read Assembly
Last week, our Year 2 children were delighted to welcome parents and carers to our Ready to Read Assembly, where we celebrated the fantastic progress they have made in reading throughout the year.
The children confidently showcased the key reading skills, including fluency, comprehension and prosody. They shared some of their favourite stories and poems and performed two poems with actions, demonstrating expressive and confident reading.
We also gave parents an insight into how reading is taught in Year 2 and how this supports children to become fluent, thoughtful readers who can discuss texts, answer questions and develop a love of reading.
Finally, we looked ahead to Year 3, sharing how reading will continue to build on these strong foundations through longer texts, deeper comprehension and richer vocabulary, preparing the children for the transition into Key Stage 2.
We are incredibly proud of the children’s confidence and progress as readers, and we would like to thank all the parents and carers who joined us to celebrate their achievements.
DT – Hand Puppets in Year 2
Today, Year 2 proudly completed their hand puppet projects! Throughout their topic lessons this half term, the children followed the design process, just like real designers. They planned their ideas, selected suitable materials, made their puppets and evaluated their finished products.
To create their puppets, the children carefully sewed the front and back pieces together using either an over stitch or a running stitch, showing great patience.. They then brought their designs to life by adding decorative features such as eyes, felt shapes and sequins.
Food Technology – Cheese Wraps
Today, Year 2 became chefs in our Food Technology lesson. We learned how to safely prepare and make a delicious cheese wrap. Everyone practised following instructions, spreading carefully and rolling their wrap neatly.
Ingredients:
- Soft tortilla wrap
- Soft cheese
- Grated cheese
- Cucumber
- Lettuce
How we made our wraps:
- Wash your hands.
- Lay the tortilla wrap flat on a plate or board.
- Spread a thin layer of soft cheese over the wrap.
- Sprinkle grated cheese on top.
- Add slices of cucumber and some lettuce.
- Carefully roll the wrap up tightly.
- Cut the wrap in half.
- Enjoy your tasty cheese wrap!
The children did a fantastic job working safely, following each step.
Science- Growing up
This term in Science, we have been learning about how living things grow and change. We have explored the different stages of life, from being a baby all the way to becoming an adult. We also compared how animals and other living things grow and develop too.
This week, we focused on the human life cycle. We learned how humans change through each stage of life and practised describing the journey from infancy to adulthood. We discussed some things that might change and that some things can stay the same. It has been exciting to discover how all living things grow and develop in their own unique ways!
Help at Home: Can you recall the four main stages of a human lifecycle?
Extra Yarn
The children have enjoyed reading and exploring the story Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett. The book tells the story of Annabelle, a young girl who discovers a magical box of colourful yarn that never runs out. She uses the yarn to knit jumpers for people, animals and objects around her.
The story was used as inspiration for the children’s independent writing. They created their own narratives, drawing on the characters from the story and using the imaginative ideas found in Extra Yarn. The children wrote some fantastic sentences and showed a growing understanding of how to use possessive apostrophes accurately in their writing.
They’re beginning to give their characters distinctive voices and are developing confidence in writing character interactions. The children’s creativity and enthusiasm for storytelling has been evident throughout the week and they should be very proud of their work.
Help at home:
A simple way to practise possessive apostrophes at home is choosing everyday objects around the house and asking your child who they belong to. You could challenge your child further by asking them to write a full sentence using a possessive apostrophe.
e.g. Dad’s car is outside.
Maths Update
This week in Maths, we have been learning how to add multiples of 10 to a 2-digit number. We used our class shop to help us solve real-life money problems, such as adding £20 to an item costing £23.
To support our understanding, we represented numbers using tens and ones and recorded them on a tens and ones chart. We noticed that when we add a multiple of 10, the tens digit changes while the ones digit stays the same.
Try this at home: Ask your child questions such as:
- 34 + 20 = ?
- 52 + 30 = ?
- 17 + 40 = ?
Encourage them to explain what happens to the tens and ones in each number.
Design and Technology in Year 2 – Textiles
This half term, Year 2 have started an exciting Design and Technology topic on Textiles. Over the coming weeks, the children will learn basic sewing skills and use the design process to plan, make and evaluate their own fabric puppets.
The children made a fantastic start this week by practising an overstitch on sewing boards. They showed great concentration and perseverance as they learned this new skill and developed their fine motor control.
This project links to the Key Stage 1 Design and Technology curriculum, where children learn to design purposeful products, use a range of tools and materials safely, develop practical textile skills and evaluate their finished work.
We are looking forward to seeing the children’s creativity as they begin creating their own puppets!
Maths Curriculum – Summer Update
I wanted to say a big thank you for all the support you have given your children to help improve their confidence with the addition and subtraction facts that we have been focusing on this half term. We have just completed their assessments and we are so proud of the progress they have made.
In line with guidance from the DfE, we have prioritised our maths curriculum to ensure that children move in to Year 3 with all of the core maths knowledge and understanding that they need. This means that next half term, the biggest unit of learning for Year 2 will be about addition and subtraction of two digit numbers. They will also do smaller units of learning about division, shape and measure.
If you would like any advice or support about extra practice you can do with your child at home please let us know.
Safety Week
During Safety Week, the children explored lots of important ways to stay safe in everyday situations. We discussed how to keep safe at home, around animals, in the sun, on the roads and especially near open water. We were also lucky to welcome some special visitors into school. PCSO Louise spoke to the children about staying safe near roads and highlighted the importance of always wearing a seatbelt when travelling in a car.
We also took part in a Zoom call with Claire from the Canal and River Trust, where we learned about the dangers of being near open water such as canals, rivers and ponds. The children enjoyed spotting potential hazards in different pictures and discussing how to stay safe in these environments.
Can you spot any more dangers in the picture below?
The children came up with some fantastic responses throughout the week and showed a great understanding of how to keep themselves and others safe.
