New academic year 2019-20

Welcome to another new academic year, the 7th since this blog started!

We kick off our new academic year with the topic 'Scream Machine'. This is a science and technology topic looking at the science behind how roller-coasters work. This will culminate in pupils using their new found knowledge and skills to make their own moving ride.

In our literacy focus, we will read the text Room 13 by Robert Swindells. This is a humorous horror novel based on a school trip to a mysterious hotel in Whitby. Pupils will be learning about biography and letter writing.

Our PE day has been set as Thursday, though this may have to be altered as our ukulele sessions have resumed during the time allocated for our PE sessions.

We have initiated a new reading system as a school this year - www.oxfordreadingbuddy.com Pupils have been given usernames and passwords and can access the reading materials whenever they choose on a variety of digital devices. They can then take quizzes once the books have been read which can give us as a school information on how they are doing, and when they are ready to progress to the next level.

This will negate the need for reading records as the system is an online digital record of books read. Pupils can also read as many books as they choose, rather than having to wait to change a book.

This is a new system for us, and we appreciate that there will be teething problems as we all take time to get accustomed to it.

I am also very aware that we have some very good and keen reader in my class who love reading books. Pupils are more than welcome to borrow a book from my class library as in previous years and even make a record of it on their oxford reading buddy profile. Pupils will also still have their reading journal, which they can use with the books they read on oxford reading buddy or any reading material they use. These are to be returned into class on a designated day once a week for marking and assessing.

We are also opening up Class Dojo to parents this year, to enable better engagement between staff and parents.

It is going to be a busy term!