Dear Parents/Carers,

Kingfishers and Doves worked extremely hard this week during their maths lesson as they were adding two numbers together to make 10. Some of the children even wrote their own number sentences using the correct mathematical symbols. On Tuesday, the children in Reception loved learning all about Shrove Tuesday. They celebrated by sharing pancakes and choosing their own toppings. 

Throughout their curriculum lessons, the children in Year 1 were identifying what toys were made from. The children defined the term generation and discussed the three generations; themselves, their parents and grandparents. They then progressed onto learning about toys that their grandparents might have played with and compared them to their toys that they currently have at home.

In their PE lesson, Year 2 were practising throwing and catching skills with rugby balls. The children threw the ball above their heads and were then encouraged to catch it with two hands. The more the children worked on this, the more confident they became and the higher they then threw the ball. Throughout their history lesson, the children were exploring and comparing what education was like for poor and rich children in the Victorian Era.

As part of their curriculum learning, the children in Year 3 explored features of the River Thames and compared it to their learning about the River Medway last week. The children identified key similarities and differences between the two rivers and then wrote a paragraph explaining the comparison. During their science lesson, the children explored the structure of a plant and then worked together to explain each features function in detail, focusing on using scientific language.

Throughout their geography learning, Year 4 were using atlases and maps from 1909 to plan a journey  inspired by Matthew Henson. The children then created a double page route to describe their journeys, focusing on using positional language.

Throughout their RE learning this week, Year 5 were identifying the key events of Hajj, which is the Holy Pilgrimage to Mekkah. The children in Year 5 then worked collaboratively to make notes when watching a film about Hajj. The children created a story map of events that take place during Hajj, focusing on annotating and summarising what happens at each step. As part of their curriculum learning, the children explored how the Trojan War started. The children were given a timeline of the Trojan War and worked collaboratively to order the events in chronological order. 

In science this week, Year 6 researched variation and adaptation across specific animals and plants. Firstly, the children worked together to categorise plants and animals according to their habitat and traits which they've adapted, considering how the environment has impacted them over time. During their curriculum lesson, the children compared the physical geography of the Democratic Republic of Congo to the UK. They presented information about the physical geography of both countries and then created a poster to present to the class about advantages and disadvantages of living in each place.

On Friday, the PTA set up a wonderful Book Fair to celebrate World Book Day and raise money to help us buy a vending machine for reading books! Thank you for your support with this event and for making and buying so many wonderful outfits to celebrate World Book Day. The children looked amazing! 

We hope you have a lovely weekend,

Miss Capes, Mrs Jackson and the Maundene Team

Developing strong oracy skills is crucial for children's success in school and beyond. It empowers them to express themselves confidently, think critically, and engage effectively with others. To support this vital skill, our weekly newsletter will feature fun and engaging oracy activities that families can enjoy together at home, fostering communication and building confidence in your children.