Oak Week Beginning 9th January 2023
Happy New Year!
We have had a very productive start to 2023 and it has been great to see the children settle back into class routines really quickly.
On the first day back, we launched our new topic all about Ancient Islamic Civilisations. We started to research Baghdad, where the centre of power was, and have subsequently investigated why this civilisation is key to our understanding of Ancient history. The children have already learnt about how advanced they were through studying pictures of them studying astronomy, learning about anatomy, their love of literature and books and their advanced medical knowledge. They decided which of these developments had the most significance by putting them on a line ranging from least to most important. This led to some fabulous discussion and differences of opinions - a super opportunity to explain their historical reasoning. There are lots more fascinating lessons to follow and we will be making comparisons to Ancient Egyptian and British civilisations during the same time period.
Our learning in maths has centred around multiplication and we have been learning the small steps leading up to long multiplication. We have been learning the formal written method and this has taken lots of concentration and resilience to be successful.
In English, the children have started to read Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver and are using this to learn how to structure a 'quest' story. In guided reading we are using the play script for our production, to look at the features of a script and developing inference skills.
Our learning outside of the classroom the first week back, had a French focus. On January 6th Epiphany is celebrated in France with a Bank Holiday and a very special tradition called Fete des Rois. Mrs Emond visited France in the holidays and very kindly brought back some special cakes which form part of the celebrations. Mrs Peacey re-enacted this with the class and the youngest child sits under a table and selects children to receive a piece of cake until all children had some. They then eat it and if they find a charm inside they become the king or queen for the day and get to give out instructions for everyone to follow. The children thoroughly enjoyed themselves, especially the eating part, and it was great to get involved in a different cultural tradition.
In PE this half term it is Tag Rugby (in preparation for a tournament) and dance. The children enjoyed practicing their passing skills this week and have been working very hard on strategy and tactics to help them develop their game and team skills. Check out the gallery to see some action shots.
PLEASE NOTE : the Oak team have decided to alter the dates of the performance for our production of Jo White and the Seven. The new dates are Tuesday 14th March in the afternoon and Thursday 16th March in the evening, please add these to your diary.
