Year 3

Welcome to Year 3 2019-20!

The teachers in Year 3 are:

Miss Hall (3H)

 Mrs Bate (3B) 

The Teaching Assistants in Year 3 are Mrs. Capper and Mrs. Farmiloe

Our termly topics are as follows:

Autumn Term: Staffordshire Superstars - What is unique about me and where I live?

Spring Term: Meet the Flintstones - Stone Age to Iron Age

Summer Term: Romans - Rotten or Righteous?  Did the Romans make Britain great?

Science: The curriculum areas covered in Y3 are:

Autumn term - Animals including Humans: skeletons, bones, muscles and diet

Spring term - Forces and Magnets; Rocks and Soils

Summer term - Helping Plants Grow Well; Light and Shadows

Organisation of the curriculum: Mornings are given to the teaching and learning of skills in English (reading; writing; spelling; punctuation and grammar; speaking and listening) and Mathematics. Through the Creative Curriculum approach, we aim to introduce the children to a very wide range of knowledge, skills  and understanding by making as many cross-curricular links through our topics as possible. For example, after investigating different rocks and their formation in Science, the children learn about volcanoes and earthquakes in Geography and also find out about historic cataclysmic events such as the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. They follow an extended unit in English based on the text 'Escape from Pompeii,' which helps provide a rich background context to the 'Romans in Britain' focus in History, as well as having the opportunity to create an exploding volcano in Design and Technology, and perform volcano mimes and dances.  

Reading, Phonics and Spelling: These are taught in groups organised around the children's needs. Reading diaries should be signed by an adult three times a week and can earn the children points on the Reading Rocket chart. The signature will inform the teacher that you have listened to your child read at home - the reading can be their Accelerated Reader (AR) book, their class library book or their group Guided Reading text. Additional information about reading can be found at the end of General Information. Weekly spellings aren't put on the web page but, if you require an additional sheet, then please contact the class teacher.

Homework: In addition to regular reading, your child will have 2 homework tasks per week which consist of ten to fifteen spellings - which follow a spelling pattern - and a focus Times Table with its related division facts. The children stick their new spellings (and new times table if appropriate) into the front of their Homework book on a Monday morning, with the whole week to practise them at school as well as at home. The children are tested on their spellings and tables the following Monday; this is recorded in the back of the Homework book so that parents can keep track of how their child is doing. The children self-mark their own spellings and tables tests in red pen: this gives the children instant feedback and involves them actively in the learning process, encouraging them to assess their own strengths and identify the areas on which they need to work next.

Tables facts need to be recalled very quickly rather than worked out: your child may not necessarily move on to a new times table each week, but will probably need to repeat a set of number facts until their speedy mental recall develops securely. The aim is for a response time of 7 seconds or less. In Y3, the main focus is learning the 4, 8, 3 and 6 times tables, in addition to the 2s, 5s and 10s from KS1. Many children will also securely reach the 9s, while some will go further and complete all or most of their tables facts up to 12x. Related division facts also need to be learned and are a tricky challenge. Log onto Top Marks Hit the Button for lots of fun practise against the clock! Hit the Button is also a very good tool for practising doubles, halves and other number facts.

In addition, your child will be asked to do one homework task each term in researching, creating and presenting a project linked to a particular area of learning. Information regarding the first project, about a family tree, has been sent out recently. Completed projects are due in after half term, on Tuesday, 5th November. 

PE: 

        In the spring and summer terms, PE will take place on alternate Tuesday afternoons as the timetabled slot has to be shared with other curriculum areas. In March, PE will be orienteering: the children don't need PE kits but do need a warm coat in case of cold weather! After Easter, the children will need their PE kits for games and athletics.The children should ideally have their PE kit stored in their lockers.

Basic kit: blue shorts, a yellow tee-shirt and trainers

Additional (outdoor) kit for chilly weather: jogging bottoms, a fleece top and extra socks 

ALL kit should be named and kept in a named kit bag.

From the second half of the spring term, Y3 has weekly swimming lessons at the Jubilee 2 baths

each Thursday afternoon. This continues until the end of the Summer term, and then carries on in Y4 up to February 2021. At the swimming baths, the children are taught in groups according to ability and water confidence by both the swimming coaches and Langdale teachers, and work towards certificates and improvers awards.
 

Classroom equipment:

· Children need to bring a water bottle filled with fresh water every day.

· Inhalers should be clearly labelled and will be kept in the classroom: please come in to

check expiry dates on ventolin regularly.

· Book bags, with all reading books and diaries, should be brought to school every day.

Routines and expectations: You may find that some routines and expectations are different from KS1; this is because we aim to start building greater independence in Year 3. For example the children are expected to remember to hand in all reply slips and forms at the beginning of the day, ready to go down to the office in the class bag at 9 a.m, and those children who go to Care Club after school will walk around to the Care Club building by themselves after the first week in September. However, we think that it is very important that all children are still released to an adult by a staff member at the end of the day for safety reasons, and the class teacher will also remain on the playground for a few minutes to be available to talk to parents informally after school.

We would ask that the class teacher or Teaching Assistant is informed verbally (on the playground door, or via a message from the office) - or through a note handed in by your child - of any information which the teacher needs to know that day, such as a change about who is picking up your child, medical or other issues, appointments etc. 

Tuck money should be brought to school in a named purse and not loose in pockets. 

Expectations of behaviour remain high. There are several ways that you will know when your child’s behaviour is good: they will receive certificates from the class teacher or Head teacher or they may receive special stickers

and class rewards. The school follows the 'Good to be Green' behaviour system, whereby children earn Golden Time through their good behaviour all week and join in with fun activities on a Friday afternoon. However there are also Warnings and Consequence cards for repeated misbehaviour: afternoon 'Golden Breaks,' and fortnightly Friday afternoon Golden Time, may be lost and cannot be redeemed in order to reinforce the consequences of making poor choices. In the case of repeated undesirable behaviour by a child, the class teacher may ask parents to come in to discuss issues and formulate a way forward to best address the situation. If you would like any further information, please come in for a chat.

To access our full curriculum planning, please click this link:

https://www.langdaleprimary.co.uk/curriculum-intent-implementation-and-impact/

             Wow Starter to introduce our next History topic -   the Bronze Age

   The children were challenged to find and solve a set of clues which sent them all around the school grounds to collect a range of artefacts. These artefacts which would provide them with little snippets of information about the next 'Age' in our journey through prehistoric times in Britain - the Bronze Age. The children not only found some items made of bronze, which they predicted, but they also collected a strange pottery cup called a 'beaker', as well as other pottery items and some earrings made from gold. The children were very puzzled to find familiar stone and bone tools along the way, which they recognised from previous learning about the Stone Age.

   The purpose of this activity was to intrigue the children with a historical mystery . . .  who were the strangely-named 'Beaker people' with their oddly-shaped cups, and what did they have to do with bringing new bronze skills (and precious gold) to ancient Britain? Additionally, the task was designed to help the children appreciate that periods of History do not have clear boundaries but overlap: during the Bronze Age, people didn't suddenly stop using familiar materials such as stone, bone and simple clay items from earlier times. So who had the skills to make bronze, what was it used for and how did all this affect prehistoric life and society? All will be revealed whilst considering our Big Question during this topic is, 'Why were some people rich and others poor in the Bronze Age?'

   Take a look at the photos of us during our History Mystery Morning!

                    Stonehenge Art

In History, the children have been learning about the truly fascinating stone circles known as Stonehenge in Wiltshire. This iconic structure, whose first phase of construction even predates the Great Pyramids of Egypt, was developed over a very long period of time during the late Neolithic Era of the Stone Age and has been the focus of much speculation and study for hundreds of years in Britain. In the 17th century, scholars thought that Stonehenge was created by the Romans; in fact, by the time the Romans invaded Britain, the monument was already ancient! The children were also amazed to learn that many of the largest stones were transported all the way from Wales, and their developing skills as historians led them to ask many questions along the lines of the 'Why did they . . . ?' and 'How did they . . . ?' variety. To reflect their understanding of the significance to ancient Britons of the summer solstice (which is believed to be central to the siting of Stonehenge and it's alignment with the sun at dawn), the children created artwork showing the familiar standing stones - made by paper tearing - silhouetted against a stunning sunrise paint wash. The results are fantastic and are creating an eye-catching display in school.

                              Stone Age cookery with Stella

Y3 has been very lucky to have a cookery session with Stella, who works for the school's catering company and loves to spend time promoting healthy eating and positive attitudes among our children. Using a Stone Age theme, the children helped Stella prepare 'Stone Age soup' (albeit with modern day implements!) The children had lots of opportunites to learn how to prepare vegetables using knives safely - then finally to sample the soup! Everyone tried some, even if it was only the smallest taste, but lots of the children actually cleared their bowls and, like Oliver Twist, asked if they could have some more! Take a look at the photos - just like Ready Steady Cook!

Stop Press!

Stone Age artefacts found at Langdale Primary

Steve the caretaker made an amazing discovery this week whilst out in the school grounds - he had found what appeared to be items which could date back to the Stone Age! Immediately, Steve cordoned off the area and came to seek Y3's help in carefully collecting all the artefacts from the soil. Our intrepid Y3 archaeologists spent almost half an hour outside on a cold, damp, winter's day but it was worth it! The children later returned to class to investigate the find from the dig site, then needed to come to conclusions about the function and name of each item, giving reasons for their ideas. We hope to be in contact with an expert in archaeology very soon, in order to find out more! So watch this space!

Gladstone Pottery Museum Trip

As part of our Local History project about the Pottery Industry, Y3 visited Gladstone Pottery Museum in Longton to experience at first-hand what a traditional pot bank was like. The museum offers a fascinating insight into the history of Stoke-on-Trent, famous the world over for the quality of its pottery.

The Gladstone China Works, as it was known, was not a famous manufacturer like Doultons, Wedgwood, Minton, Beswick, Spode and others. However, it was typical of hundreds of other similar factories in the area making everyday ceramics for the mass market.

The Gladstone Works opened as a museum in 1974, the buildings we visited today having been saved from demolition at the last minute in 1970 when the factory doors finally closed - some ten years after its coal-fired bottle ovens were last operational.

The children had a wonderful day at Gladstone Pottery, finding out how bone china tableware was made in original workshops, going inside the giant bottle ovens, seeing how pots were 'thrown' and marvelling at the speed with which skilled craftswomen could make delicate clay flowers and decorations! We also gained an insight into how hard life would have been in those far-off days, finding out about the gruelling nature of the work - even for young children who were employed in physically demanding jobs for very long hours such as mould runners. Suddenly, having to go to school every day didn't seem like such a bad option!

The highlight for many children (apart from visiting the museum shop!) was having the chance to design and make a product - either a plate inspired by the famous local paintress, Clarice Cliff, or a clay character mask. 

Take a look at our photos - fantastic memories of our brilliant day!

    Smoky Stoke - exploring the Potteries of the past through Art

As part of Y3's Staffordshire Superstars topic, we have been learning about the history of the local area and focussing on our pottery heritage. The children have found out why pottery-making has such a long tradition in this area, and even where the term 'pot holes' comes from! They found out a little about Josiah Wedgewood and how he was at the forefront of turning a local cottage industry into an industrial giant, with china ware from Stoke-on-Trent being used by Queen Victoria's  household, as well as in the royal palaces of Russia and by well-to-do Americans! The children also found out how harsh life was in the pottery factories and towns, especially for children who worked in the pot banks for anything up to 12 hours a day (sometimes more) from a young age.

Many images of Stoke-on-Trent in the past convey its smoky and grim reality, with towering bottle ovens standing guard over the city and creating its iconic skyline. A local artist, the much-missed Sid Kirkham, captured this reality with warmth and nostalgia in his wonderful paintings, and the children spent some time considering Sid's artwork and sketches before using them as a starting point for their own artwork with the theme of 'Smoky Stoke.' Finding inspiration through Sid's eyes, the children made sketches of their ideas then used charcoal to create their own piece of art showing the urban environment on 'firing day.' The results are really fantastic - take a look.

Science - skeletons, bones and muscles

Our Science investigations into human and animal bodies have helped us develop an understanding of the main functions of a skeleton, and appreciate how muscles work in pairs to allow movement. During the unit we were delighted to have a visit from a mum in our school who is a Personal Trainer and yoga instructor, who talked very knowledgeably to us about bones, muscles and the importance of exercise. The session finished with an active 'warm-up' followed by a yoga session which concentrated on muscle control, stillness and breathing. Namaste!

Take a look . . .

. . . at what we have been doing so far this half term in Science and Maths.

In Science, we have been learning about a daily healthy balanced diet which includes some protein, carbohydrate, dairy, fat and sugar, and  - most importantly -  fruit and vegetables. We learned how to use a sharp knife, under supervision, to make delicious fruit kebabs - towards our 5 A Day!

In Maths, we have explored Place Value with lots of practical activities using all sorts of concrete objects and fun games to help us thoroughly understand this very important mathematical concept. We are now moving onto understanding and learning about 'multiples' and then we will learn how to spell and write 3-digit numbers as words. 

                                                                 Starting the Y3 journey . . . . 

Busy times ahead, as the new school year gets under way! In Maths, we will begin by investigating place value, multiples and writing 3-digit numbers as words. In English, we will explore how to use language to engage the reader through diary writing and settings descriptions based on our text, 'Flotsam,' as well as being immersed in the weird and whimsical world of classic nonsense poems. In our Staffordshire Superstars topic, we will begin by learning about some famous local people and well-known places, using maps and grid references to find locations. Then we will develop our geographical language by comparing our local area with the contrasting environments of British coastal towns and the Australian coast, before looking in depth at the history of the Potteries and visiting Gladstone Pottery Museum in November. In Art, we will practise how to use sketching techniques to draw our own self portraits - then toss away the rule book to experience drawing Picasso-inspired abstract portraits! In Computing, we will learn about internet safety; in Science, we will find out about both human and animal skeletons and muscles, as well as planning a healthy diet; and, in PE, we will be learning cricket skills! So much to look forward to . . . 

The Y3 parents' weekly review and newsletter will be put on the web page each week, in addition to being on ParentPay. Other information included on our web page is the half-termly curriculum overview, to let parents and carers know details of the forthcoming learning, as well as articles and photos of the children in action. Additionally, there is a link for End of Year 3 Expectations in Maths and English, which provide an overview of the learning content to be covered this year, and 'Reading Gem' question prompts which help parents and carers support children to engage with stories and texts at a deeper level beyond the words on the page. Useful websites or links will also be added as the year progresses. Please do contact the teacher if you have any questions regarding the above.