P2/3 Highlights

Good afternoon everyone,

The highlight of this week was outdoor learning day. The children had great fun spending their discovery time outside. They also took part in a litter pick and collected everything from plastic bottles to bags for life. In the afternoon the chidren completed two outdoor activites. They made firework patterns using brightly coloured Autumn leaves and nature crowns using any natural materials they could find. Please look at Seesaw for lots of pictures of the day.

The children enjoyed their time outdoors so much that we are now going to make discovery learning time outside every Thursday. We will also participate in an outdoor learning slot every Thursday as well so clothing suitable for outdoors should be worn. A waterproof coat, trousers and wellies are recommended. Also a change of shoes for wearing in class.

The writing focus this week was Bonfire night. The children listened to a story about a visit to a bonfire event. They wrote down or remembered what the girl in the story saw, heard, tasted, felt and smelled. These were then added to a class word list/plan. The children then wrote a senses poem using these ideas. The learning intention for the lesson was to add description to their writing so this was modelled for the children. For example, 'I hear a firework'  should have added description such as ' I hear a colourful firework banging and popping in the sky.'

In Maths this week some children were learning strategies to help them add 11, 21, 31, 41, etc and 9, 19, 29, 39,etc. This was a challenging concept so the children were given plenty of time and support to work through the problems. Other children were learning addition facts to 11 and 12 using double tens frames. 

Our new project is 'Children Around the World.' This week the children learned about the countries that made up the United Kingdom. They also learned the names of the five continents. All children were introduced to a globe and an atlas and these are available to use at discovery learning time. During the project discussion I was asked why it can be day in one country and night in another. I was also asked why it can be Summer in one country and Winter in another. This resulted in us investigating day and night and the seasons using a globe and a torch to represent the sun. It's wonderful to have such an inquisitive class who like to ask questions an investigate. 

Finally, just a wee reminder to double check that you have chosen dinners or the packed lunch option for your child. Thank you very much.

Have a lovely weekend.
Kind regards, Mrs Thomson and Mrs Greig.