Literacy

Primary 3 have excelled at proof reading this year. They can explain what this is, the importance of doing so and things that we are looking our for. LMc said "we are looking for full stops, capital letters, repeated words and spelling mistakes" and AA added "we also need to make sure it makes sense". I was very silly and did not check over my work however, the Lions and Tigers very successfully found and fixed all of my mistakes! They also got to learn a little bit more about me. I also used work from children's' jotters for them to proof read and fix, which you will see on the PowerPoint.

Children have worked hard to use the context to figure out the meaning of words. We started off with school related vocabulary and children worked in pairs to match the meaning to each word, this was hard as some of the definitions were very similar. Primary 3 have also enjoyed using a dictionary to find out what tricky words mean. They know to look for the first letter of the word instead of flicking through each page. 

Paragraph writing has been a huge focus for us recently. We have created pieces of writing on food and all about me, using paragraphs. The children worked alongside me to create a piece of writing on food. We made sure we had an introduction, 3 paragraphs on breakfast, lunch and dinner and finally a conclusion. DV remembered that "this is where we round off our writing". There are some fabulous writers in Primary 3! Once we completed our writing, we used our proof reading skills to check for any mistakes. This allowed us to produce excellent quality writing.📝

Numeracy

Primary 3 have worked hard to calculate amounts to £20 and calculate change. We used concrete materials to physically calculate the amounts as we put them into the jars. We then used our knowledge of amounts to calculate tricky word problems. Divides were working within a budget and had to complete 2-step calculations to see if they could afford their items. Multiplies had to calculate at least 6 amounts on a receipt and calculate their change. 

We have enjoyed learning about fractions. We created our own dice with fractions on them in order to play a game. Multiplies and Divides have successfully found equivalent fractions and simplified fractions to make calculations easier. They can explain what fractions mean, such as 1/3 of something means to divide it by 3. Knowing our multiplication facts has allowed us to do this very quickly and accurately. 

This year, I have seen a huge improvement with our ability to tell the time! Primary 3 love telling me how long it is until break and lunchtime. We can write the time digitally and using words, in both 12 and 24 hour time. 

Music

This year we have explored a new instrument; the glockenspiel, also known as an xylophone. We practiced our ta, ti-ti and rest, to ensure we can play a rhythm correctly. We practised playing baa baa black sheep and if you're happy and you know it, there are certainly some musicians in this class. I was very impressed with our abilities to keep a steady rhythm and multi-task. The whole class confidently read and played the notes at the same time. Once we all felt confident in reading music, in pairs, we created our own pieces. Children created their own sheet music, remembering that there must only be 4 beats in each bar. After this they played their music to the class, with increasing confidence. I was very impressed!

PE

Wow, primary 3, I cannot believe how talented we are! During athletics, we explored javelin, hurdles, sprinting, standing long jump and shot putt. It was lovely to see our teamwork and competitive come out. We were able to use some of these skills during our sports day, accuracy was very important for our potted sports activities. There were certainly a lot of concentrated faces 😀

We made sure that when it was sunny, we gave our bodies a well deserved rest to make sure we did not over heat. We also discussed the importance of drinking plenty of fluids when exercising and when the weather is hot. ☀️

Primary 3 have worked alongside Primary 2/3 to practise our skills when playing rounders. We started off by working on our accuracy when passing a tennis ball or bean bag in pairs, this allowed us to explore how far we can throw and also how much power we need to use to throw different distances. This meant when it came round to playing in our teams, the ball consistently reached our peers.  From here, we then introduced a tennis racket to practise our batting and bowling skills. I was amazed at how far some of us were able to bat! We then split into teams and discussed the rules. We had several home runs which got us all very excited.🎉

Health and Wellbeing

We have been exploring solving tricky problems and looking into different strategies to solve and manage these problems. Primary 3 were split into four groups and each group was secretly provided with a set of different instructions. This was either put the chairs into a circle, put the chairs into a straight line, put the chairs to the right of the room or put the chairs to the left of the room. Children then had to complete this task when I said go. They soon realised that this was not possible and arguments started to arise. This allowed us to explore strategies that would have allowed us all to complete our tasks. After thinking time, FMc said "we could all complete our tasks if each group goes at a different time". From here, we all explored big problems and small problems. We now know that if it is a small problem then we can solve it independently and when big problems arise we know to seek support from a trusted adult.

We also explored the difference between having a growth mindset and a fixed mindset. Primary 3 were able to provide their own examples of when they have experienced having both mindsets. We used our cutting skills and then had to have arrange the shapes to match the picture provided. This was tricky however, we all managed to keep a growth mindset and stay positive, sharing strategies with our peers when needed.

The End of a Great Year

Primary 3, it has been great to learn with you all this year. We have made lots of lovely memories and I have enjoyed every minute. Although, one mistake I made this year was telling you all about my fear of bananas (I have not enjoyed being chased by bananas at lunch time) however, it has made me laugh:)

You have all been fabulous this year and it has been a delight to see you all flourish. You have worked super hard and I will miss you all. 

Have a lovely summer.

From Miss Cole and Milo:)