Welcome to Year 4 - Beech Tree Class.  

We hope you have all had a lovely summer holidays and are ready for an exciting term ahead. 

Have a read through our welcome letter and curriculum overview to see all the exciting things we have planned for the Autumn term.

On this page, you will find some useful information about the term ahead and any key messages that you need to be aware of.  If you scroll to the bottom of the page, you will see our class Twitter feed and link to Google Classroom. We love to use Twitter to share some of the excellent things going on in class and will use Google Classroom to support learning at home - spellings, homework and useful documents will be uploaded and made available on there.  If you are on Twitter, please follow @beechtreeGSP to see regular updates.

We are set to have a great term and have some really exciting things planned and lots of new things to learn about.  If there are ever any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to get in touch, either by popping in or telephoning.  The support you give is essential for your child's progress and the closer we can work together the better it will be for them.

Kind regards

Mrs Rowlands and Mrs Blackburn

Our Curriculum:

In English, the children will use a variety of different stimulus throughout the term to engage and inspire the children’s writing.  The children will begin the year looking at our whole school Together We Learn and Grow topic - Bewilderwood.  We will then look at the book, When The Giant Stirred and cover a range of writing such as a setting description, stories and poetry.  Children will also focus on spelling, punctuation and grammar.

In Maths, children will be studying the topics: Place Value; Addition and Subtraction and Multiplication and Division. We will also focus on mental arithmetic and Times Tables.  In Year 4, children are expected to know their times tables up to 12x12 ready for their mutiplication check in June.  To help the children practise their times tables, they need to be using TTRS at least 3 times a week at home.  

Children will begin the term learning about how animals, including humans, need to get nutrition from what they eat. They will explore the different organs of the digestive system in humans and the functions of teeth in both humans and animals. Children will then learn more about herbivores, carnivores and omnivores in the context of teeth, digestion and food chains.

Children will then move onto the topic Electricity.  The children will learn about common electrical appliances and how to construct simple series circuits. They will become familiar with cells, wires, bulbs and buzzers and about the different types of switches. The children will also learn about conductors and insulators and know that metals are very good electrical conductors.

Our first Geography topic, the children will ask the question What makes the Earth Angry? Children will learn about the destructive powers of nature, from volcanoes and earthquakes to tsunamis and tornadoes. Through discussion and practical tasks, children will look at how and why these natural phenomena occur, and the ways in which they affect people and the environment.  Children will also look at preventative measures that are put in place to protect people.

In our first topic, the children will ask the question Who were the Mayans? Children will learn about the ancient Maya civilisation. The children will learn who the ancient Maya people were and where and when they lived. They will also learn about the religious beliefs and rituals and find out more about some of the many gods they worshipped. The children will also learn about the Maya number and writing systems.   

Reading:

Please make sure that you read at least 3 times a week for 10 minutes.  This can be your school book, own book, newspapers, comics, shopping list etc and record in your planner.

Spellings:

Spellings will focus on a particular spelling rule/pattern or will be taken from the statutory word list and will be taught and practised throughout the week. Tests will take place each Friday and new lists posted on Google Classroom and Spelling Frame.

PE:

The children will have Indoor PE on a Tuesday and Outdoor PE on a Friday.  This term our outdoor PE will be swimming.  Children should wear their PE kits to school for each of these PE days.  Please make sure that jewellery is removed and that long hair is tied up. For swimming, the children need to bring a swimming costume, swimming cap and towel in a small bag.

Homework:

Homework will be set on a Friday and this should be returned by the following Wednesday. Homework will consist of a Maths activity and an English activity linked to the unit of work they are covering in class, so they should be able to complete the activity independently. 

Some useful websites, resources and links: