Grafton

Summer Term 1 Newsletter 2024

The Ark

This half term the children have been learning about ‘Growing.’ We have looked at books about growing plants such as 'Jasper’s Beanstalk' and 'Jack and the Beanstalk'. We used a sensory story approach to help us remember and sequence key events and have been developing language to be able to name, and describe characters, objects and settings to help expand our vocabulary and sentence building.

Some of us have also been looking at life cycles inspired by 'The Hungry Caterpillar', and have sequenced the stages for humans, caterpillars and frogs. We have looked at patterns and explored the world around us using our senses for fruit tasting. We have collected information about the fruits that we like and dislike using pictograms and begun to think about what these can tell us.

We have grown our own beanstalks and learned the different parts and what they do. We have thought about what they need to help them grow, and have been measuring and using comparative language for longer/ shorter/ taller to talk about them.

We are also excited to have some caterpillars of our own that we are looking after and watching them change. They have just started to build their cocoon and we are excited to see the butterflies emerge in a few weeks.

Green Class

This term has been very exciting for the children in Reception, particularly in Green Class! The children have been reading the book ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar' and as part of their Understanding of the World lesson, the children have been learning all about Healthy and Unhealthy eating. Green Class thoroughly enjoyed learning about the different types of food that the caterpillar had eaten on each day of the week and deciding whether each piece of food was healthy or unhealthy.

The children in Green Class have also been looking at the life cycle of a butterfly. As part of their learning, the children created the lifecycle of a butterfly using pasta shapes to represent each stage of the life cycle as well as green and brown paper to represent leaves and branches. The children were able to carefully recite each stage of the life cycle in order and were able to carry out this work independently!

Another very exciting opportunity that happened in Green Class was the evolution of their caterpillars. Each day, the children were able to observe their caterpillars growing bigger and bigger and eventually, forming into a chrysalis. The children were very excited and were very careful that they did not disturb the caterpillars in their habitat! Last week, The children in Green Class were able to watch their butterflies climb out of their chrysalis and fly around the net, eating the food we provided. After 2 days of looking after the butterflies, we were able to release them in the garden to be with their other butterfly friends!

4 Oak Class

It has been a busy half term in Oak class. In our Literacy lessons, we have been reading the book ‘Mouse, Snake, Bird, Wolf ‘ written by David Almond. This book is about three children- Harry, Ben and Sue who are not impressed by the gaps in the world around them and decide to create their own animals to fill in the holes. Inspired by the book, we created different things and explained what difference our creations would make to the world. Later on, we expressed our own opinions by telling Ben what we thought about the creation of the animals by the children in the book.

In Maths, we continued learning about fractions. We learned how to add and subtract fractions, find equivalent fractions and solve different real life problems. We have started learning about decimals and recognizing the relationship between decimals and fractions. In addition to that, we were busy preparing for our Multiplication Test Check and completed a mock test on the DfE website.

Our Science lessons have been very exciting this half term. During the half term, we became electricians and learned a lot about electricity. We liked making our own electrical circuits and exploring which materials were the best conductors and insulators. As a final outcome, we have made our own electrical torches.

In History, we were exploring the primary and secondary sources to answer our enquiry question: ‘How has Dagenham changed over the years?’ We were studying old maps and watching interviews with the people who still remember what our local area looked like many years ago. We also visited the Valence House, where we had an opportunity to find out more about the History of Dagenham. We were all fascinated by the old toys and the items (for example the kitchen utensils) that people used years ago.

It has been a very interesting half term and we have learned a lot. It has been lovely sharing experiences with our learning partners and finding out different things from one another. We look forward to our final half term in Year 4, which we believe will be equally exciting.

5 Rowan Class

It’s been a fun half term here in Rowan class where we enjoyed a workout led by Joe Wicks as well as an informative and engaging workshop about Carbon Monoxide.

In Literacy, we have been learning about ancient Greek myths. As a hook to our learning, we held a mini Year 5 Olympics in the playground. We read the Greek myth ‘Daedalus and Icacrus’ and explored the characters and the story structure. At the end of the unit, we wrote our own Greek myth and then wrote a narrative poem based on a myth we knew or our own myth.

In Maths, we started off by multiplying fractions and finding fractions of an amount. We then moved on to exploring decimal numbers and linking our knowledge of fractions with decimal and percentage equivalents. Later on in the half term, we found the perimeter and area of different rectangles and polygons. Finally, we worked on drawing and plotting graphs and interpreting information.

Whilst in Science, we have continued learning about materials and their properties. We explored reversible and irreversible changes and how we can separate different mixtures using sieving, filtering and evaporation.

In History, we have been learning about ancient Greece and considering what legacies have been left behind from ancient Greece.

Finally, in RE, we have been considering how Christians try to follow Jesus' example.

6 Beech Class

What a busy term it has been, not only for 6 Beech, but all of our Year 6 pupils! Well done to each and everyone of you for completing your SATs - you did great and have made us all extremely proud!

Apart from working towards our SATs, we have been working hard right across the curriculum. In Literacy, we wrote narratives based on the short film called 'Alma'. We wrote in first person, worked on cohesion throughout the piece, included powerful descriptions that captured the eerie atmosphere in the film and included dialogue to move the story forward.

In Maths, we have been learning how to solve a range of real-life word problems linked to the four rules of number, fractions, percentages, position and direction, ratio and proportion, time and properties of shapes. When solving these problems, we found that most of them were either two or three-step word problems and they were quite tricky to solve. We found that drawing or annotating pictures as well as underlining important numbers and key words helped us understand what steps we had to take in order to solve the problem.

In Reading, we practiced answering a range of SATs style questions such as retrieval, inference, vocabulary and mixed questions. We found it helpful to practice answering these questions and revising strategies for unknown words, such as, replacing the word with another word, reading around the word and using our previous knowledge or looking for root words within a word. We have now started reading the book ‘Wonder’ by R.J Palacio. To begin with, we found reading a large chapter book quite tricky but we are starting to pick up the pace and are enjoying reading about August (the main character) and his school life.

In Science, we have been learning about Evolution and Inheritance. We have learned about natural selection and how this has enabled living things to adapt to their environments and evolve into living things as we know them today. We also learned that offspring inherit some characteristics from their parents but some characteristics develop through the environment in which they live. For example, eye colour, blood type and hair colour are all inherited traits, however, weight, the languages we speak, and talents, are dependent on our environment. We will also be learning about fossils and how they have helped scientists learn about evolution and how living things have evolved, and we researched Charles Darwin's famous theory of evolution and his discovery on the Galapagos Islands.

We are looking forward to winding down for the summer and enjoying our last ever term at primary school before moving on to our secondary schools.

Grafton will miss each and everyone of our Year 6s and we wish you all every success in the future.

School Council

Our school council has been very busy this term. During our weekly meetings, the children have discussed the role of the school council and what it means to be a school council member at Grafton. We discussed the school menu and shared our ideas with the Barking and Dagenham Catering team. In which, we then had a meeting to discuss the changes that had been made.

We were lucky enough to visit the Councillor at Barking Town hall. In our school council meetings, we discussed what questions we would ask. We then got the opportunity to sit in the chamber and ask our questions to Councillor Rodwell. The school council got to try on the Mayor’s outfit and got to visit her office. In our school council meeting, we wrote an email to thank Councillor Ghani for organising the trip.

This week, the school council children met with the catering team from BD catering to give their feedback on our new lunch menu. The children had many great suggestions and ideas for the future menu.

KS1 Rights Ambassadors

Meet our KS1 Rights Ambassadors:

Year 1 - Alyan, Rean, Mikaeel, Muhammad Arham, Aleksa, Amelia, Prihan, Iyanu

Year 2 - Kayden, Eshaal, Lia, Lily, Gursharan, Mashiat, Elijah-Lewis, Aiyla

Our dedicated Year 2 Rights Ambassadors have been busy helping us keep on track with our Walk to School (WoW) achievements and promoting active travel. At the end of each month, the ambassadors count out and distribute the correct number of WoW badges earned by each class from year 1 to year 6.

At playtime, the Rights Ambassadors have been monitoring the friendship stop benches and are suggesting games that children could play or join in with.

Our Ambassadors have lots of great ideas to improve the school. Rights Ambassador Elijah shared he would like to ‘have more toys in the playground like scooters, I would help keep it fair by making sure there is a timer so there would be no arguing.’

Next half term the Rights Ambassadors have plans to keep the playground clean by using litter pickers to help pick up litter that may have fallen. The Rights Ambassadors would like to remind everyone to use the bins on the playground, especially in the mornings before school and after school.

Religious Education

This half term at Grafton Primary, children have shown great respect and tolerance when learning about various beliefs.

In RE this term children in EYFS and KS1 have explored and celebrated the Islamic celebration of Eid-Al-Fitr.

To celebrate Eid, children in the Nest made colourful collages of the moon.

In Nursery children’s learning journey has been focussed around the big question - What is Important to me? They have read stories such as 'The Lost Sheep' and 'The Hare and the Tortoise' to reflect on important relationships.

Reception have expanded on this big question to incorporate awareness of others too - What is important to me and others? This half term they have been exploring how to make friends and what a good friendship looks like.

Year 1 big question focus What does it mean to belong? Discuss how Hindu people belong by learning about Karma and the duties of Hindu people, as well as drawing and naming all the objects on a puja tray and explain how they are used and why they are important to Hindu people.

Year 2 big question Can Stories Change People? This half term explores how special food and fasting helps people in their faith. Children have learned about Ramadan and fasting and made comparisons between this and fasting for Lent. They also considered what they might give up and why if they were to fast.

Explain what food is special to eat at certain times for Muslims and Christians.

Explain why people fast and why it is important to believers.

Children’s RE learning is largely through debate and discussion, threaded with Literacy, Art and Drama.

In Year 3 - Children have been learning about symbols and signs used in religions and why they are special. During one of their lessons, they looked at Islamic geometric patterns and symbols. They then drew and coloured in their own symbolic prayer mats and designed a decorative Christian cross.

In Year 4 - Children have been learning about what makes them who they are. They have explored who and what influences their life, and if these are positive or negative influences. Children have also discussed why someone might allow someone to influence them and explored role models. They have learned about the lives of St Francis and Pandurang Shastri Athavale, and who/what influenced them.

In Year 5 - Children have been learning about how Christians try to follow Jesus’s example. Children discussed who has an influence on them and what makes them a good role model. They then explored who they have an influence on and the influence their actions have on others. Children read an extract from the Bible - ‘Jesus at the Temple’ - and debated if it is right to make a profit from religion.

In Year 6 - Children did their mock SATs papers and have been preparing for their real SATs. We wish them the best of luck!

ART & DT

During the academic year 2023-24, all year groups alternate between art and design & technology every other half term.

Year one, started their journey in art, learning the basics of drawing self-portraits in pencil. Followed by creating a collage of a rocket flying through space. The following half term Y1 learnt the techniques to ensemble a hand puppet made with fabric after that they improved in their mechanic skills by learning the working parts of a windmill, which culminated in the built of a colourful working 3D windmill.

They are currently working on their art drawing techniques of mixing oil pastels and painting beautiful landscapes and flowers.

Year three started with D&T learning how to build a chair for a teddy bear, continuing in art with “hapa zome” Japanese printing with the plants own dye. Later on, while in the classroom they were learning the history and culture of ancient Egypt, in art they were painting the Egyptian gods and learning about hieroglyphs and in design & technology they learnt, sewing to decorate their Egyptian collar using a variety of techniques such as appliqué, cross-stitch, beads, buttons and pinking.

This term in art, they are learning about Vincent Van Gogh and his work, and will recreate his famous sunflowers learning polystyrene printing techniques.

Year four, art started in ancient Rome learning how to draw and decorate Roman vases with watercolours. While dragons were encountered through literature, in art we learnt to draw dragons with individual personalities with multicoloured skin, made of scales or feathers which we turned later into a 3D articulated dragon puppet.

The following term, in design and technology year four studied the building and function of pavilions and cooperatively, they created a model of a functional model pavilion.

This term in D&T they are learning about electricity, circuits and switches that will enable them to design and build functioning torches.

At the start of Year five art began with drawing portraits based on descriptions to publish wanted posters and using watercolours. In D&T they investigated structures and learnt about bridges and built a truss bridge . Later on, while in the classroom year five were learning about the many aspects of Brazil as a country, we in art focused on the Brazilian carnival researching and comparing it with other carnivals in the world which finally informed the children on how to design, decorate and create masks worthy of the famous Brazilian carnaval.

During the summer term, year 5 we are learning about the ancient Greek culture and in art we are developing the knowledge needed to draw and decorate “ like the Greeks in ancient Greece” continuing learning about Greek pottery to create our own Greek inspired clay vases.

in Year 6 art started with the creation of a striking animals collage, followed by WW ll propaganda posters and how some artists during the war used their art to express and inspire emotions. The year six pupils used Pablo Picasso's ideas to recreate some of his art with their own interpretation.

Later on, inspired by the coolness of the polar regions, the children cooperated in small groups To create a collage depicting an Artic scene, using a range of materials. They also painted in watercolours some of the animals living in Artic waters.

In design and technology during the summer term, Year six are starting to work with wood. With their teams are designing and building a safe, active, and enjoyable playground landscape for children , assembling different types of structures used in playgrounds.

Miss Belén

Computing

Our school has been very busy during their Computing lessons this term. Following the ‘Teach Computing’ framework, the children are taught four main themes which are revisited each year to consolidate and build upon their prior learning.

In Year 5 this half term, the children have been learning about programming (which will be revisited in the Summer 2 term). They have been using the online software ‘Scratch’ to learn about selection in quizzes. Building upon their previous learning, they have been exploring selection in programming. They have revisited how conditions can be used in programs and then learning about how the If… Then… Else structure can be used to select different outcomes depending on whether a condition is true or false. The children used this knowledge to design and code their very own interactive quiz.

A child in 5 Alder had this to say about the unit.

In Scratch, we have been learning how to code and make a quiz. First, we learnt how to use a solution (using an ‘if…then’ statement, choosing a code, eg space key pressed, to move 10 steps). Then, we learnt to ask questions and commands by planning them. Now, we are finishing our quiz and are putting everything we learnt together.

Please note: Due to the General Election on the 4th of July, we have decided to reschedule our Summer Fair for Wednesday 3rd of July.

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