Let’s take a look at some of the learning this week … 

In Nursery this week, the children have continued settling into the routines and expectations of life at Rockliffe Manor. Together, they collaboratively created their own class rules, focusing on being kind friends and keeping our environment tidy. The children have loved exploring all areas of provision, especially the outdoor water area, where Jordan discovered that squeezing a syringe makes the water squirt out (much to the surprise of Mrs Rainey and Mrs Budd!).

In Reception, the children explored colour mixing during their curriculum lesson. Mrs Rainey put blue paint on one hand and red on the other, mixing them together to create purple. The children were fascinated by the transformation and many quickly shared their prior knowledge of how other primary colours blend. They have also been thoroughly engaged in continuous provision, especially making "Autumn soup" using conkers, pinecones, and acorns.

Year 1 had a fantastic gymnastics lesson in PE this week, where it was wonderful to see everyone enthusiastically trying out different body stretches. In English, the children are really enjoying the story Beegu and have been practicing using the word "and" to extend their sentences. Applying what they have learned about the character, they wrote brilliant sentences such as, "Beegu was sad and lost." Well done, Year 1!

This week in Year 2, the children have been showing great determination in their maths lessons as they tackled estimating numbers on a number line. They worked hard applying their place-value knowledge to reason through their choices, carefully considering where each number should sit. In Geography, they have been learning all about London transport and successfully identifying the different ways people travel around the city!

Year 3 have shown great resilience this week in their maths and English learning. In Maths, they finished their place value topic and are now more confident in their ability to work out interval points on number lines using information given to them, such as start and end points. They are also using precise mathematical vocabulary to compare numbers based on their place value to answer reasoning questions. In English, they continue to enjoy their core text The Hunter and have been combining speech punctuation with character action to bring real imagery and pace to their narrative writing.

Year 4 have shown a great mindset while learning about Roman numerals this week. It was wonderful to see the moment when the learning clicked for Ethan, Khaleed, and Ahnaf. They were very proud of themselves when they were able to independently answer questions converting numbers. They also had a very active RHE lesson where they learnt about ‘energy givers’ and ‘energy takers’ by taking part in a relay race to sort scenarios. Isabel explained that while sweets might make you feel energised, you’ll feel more tired afterwards.

Year 5 this week have been working extremely hard on their English learning, where they have been using relative clauses as well as generating vocabulary for a setting of Ethiopia. They have used phrases such as “the arid, desolate landscape” to describe the loneliness of the areas around our main character Salva from our core text A Long Walk to Water. Furthermore, the children have been rounding numbers to the nearest ten, thousand, and beyond. It was evident that the children have retained a lot of knowledge from Year 4 and remembered the rhymes to support them with their learning. Within art, the children have been creating their own gradients, mixing two colours and blending them together to match the savannah style of landscape.

Year 6 have really enjoyed their English learning this week, analysing Imara’s character by looking closely at her actions, thoughts, and words to make inferences. They have developed a deeper understanding of the complexity of her character—recognising that although Imara can appear fierce, cold, and defensive on the outside, these behaviours are a coping mechanism for a character who is ultimately caring, compassionate, and vulnerable. In maths, the children have been developing their number knowledge by exploring divisibility rules, multiples, factors, and prime numbers.