Spring 1
It’s been another busy half term in year 4, getting back into a good routine after the Christmas break.
In English, we completed our ‘How to Build a Snowman’ instructions before beginning our new Talk for Writing topic, Suspense Stories. We learned the text Zelda Claw and the Rain Cat and then used a clip from Disney’s Brother Bear to apply the suspense toolkit to our own writing. The children focused on using rhetorical questions, setting the scene effectively, and adding short, sharp sentences to build tension.
Our second unit focused on explanations. We explored the book Until I Met Dudley to understand how explanation texts work and to identify their key features. After this, we used Wallace and Gromit’s Cracking Contraptions as inspiration to write our own explanations about the “Snowmanotron”.
In Science, our unit was Electricity. The children explored what electricity is and identified common electrical appliances, sorting them into those that use mains electricity and those powered by batteries. They investigated how to create simple circuits, learning how to connect wires, bulbs, switches and batteries so that electricity can flow. Through practical experiments, the children tested which materials are electrical conductors and which are insulators, helping them understand how electricity travels. They also learned how switches work to open and close a circuit and discussed the importance of using electricity safely. Finally, the children applied their knowledge by designing and making their own switches, using their understanding of circuits to create working electrical components.
In Maths, we have been learning different methods for multiplication and division. The children have practised multiplying 2‑digit and 3‑digit numbers by a 1‑digit number, using equipment such as base 10 to help them understand what happens when we multiply or share amounts. They have also been using their knowledge of partitioning to break numbers into smaller, easier parts before putting them back together to solve a calculation.
The children have continued to build confidence with their times‑table facts and recently completed another ‘Soundcheck’ as part of the ‘Official Unofficial MTC’. They are showing fantastic progress and growing accuracy in recalling their multiplication facts.
In Geography, we began our unit on Extreme Earth. The children have been learning about the structure of our planet and how the movement of tectonic plates can create dramatic natural events. They explored how earthquakes happen, what rift zones are, and how volcanoes are formed. We carried out lots of research using books, maps and videos to help us understand these powerful processes in more detail. The children especially enjoyed creating their own volcanic eruption using bicarbonate of soda and vinegar, bringing their learning to life in a memorable and exciting way.
In DT, the children have been learning about healthy eating by designing and making their own vegetable soup. We began by researching different types of soups and carrying out taste‑testing sessions to help us decide which ingredients we wanted to include. Working in teams, the children planned their recipes, thinking carefully about flavour, texture and nutrition. They then designed an eye‑catching label for their soup, considering colour, layout and the information a customer would need. When it was time to cook, the children followed important food hygiene and safety rules, such as washing hands, using equipment safely and keeping their work area clean. They chopped, prepared and cooked their ingredients before tasting and evaluating their final products. The children were incredibly proud of their soups and enjoyed seeing their ideas come to life.
We can’t believe we are already halfway through Year 4, and we’re looking forward to the lighter mornings and evenings as we move into the Spring 2 term after the half‑term holiday.
Autumn 2
It’s been a very busy and exciting half term in Year 4, with lots of learning taking place across the curriculum.
In English, our first Talk for Writing unit was a portal story, where we learned the text The Whispering Wardrobe before writing our own portal stories that took our characters to a contrasting setting. The children used tools from the setting description toolkit to make their story settings vivid and engaging. Our second unit focused on instructions. As Christmas approached, we explored the text How to Make Reindeer Food and made our own as a fun “hook” into the genre. We then studied the instruction toolkit and applied this to our shared piece of writing, How to Make a Plate for Santa, followed by our independent piece, How to Build a Snowman.
In Science, our unit was Sound. The children explored how sounds are made through vibrations by carrying out a range of practical experiments. They investigated what happens when banging a drum with rice on top, placing tuning forks in water, hitting a triangle, plucking elastic bands and flicking rulers, helping them to see and feel how vibrations create sound. The children then learnt about how we hear sounds by identifying and labelling the different parts of the ear and understanding the role each part plays. They also explored pitch, discovering how sounds can be high or low. Finally, the children learned about the different mediums sound can and cannot travel through and investigated how sound changes over distance.
In Maths, we have completed units on area and multiplication and division facts. The children learnt how to find area by counting squares and then moved on to calculating the area and perimeter of squares and rectangles using multiplication. They also created their own rectilinear shapes and compared the areas of different shapes. As part of this unit, the children designed their own shapes to fit a given set of criteria, developing their reasoning and problem-solving skills. We have also begun learning our multiplication and division facts in isolation, which will help the children to confidently recall these facts when practising on TTRS.
In History, we began our Anglo-Saxons unit. The children worked very hard to learn our ‘5 Fingertip Facts’ and enjoyed the retrieval parts of lessons where they could show what they had remembered. They looked at the dates of the Anglo-Saxon period and learnt about where the Anglo-Saxons travelled from and why they came to Britain. The children explored the push and pull factors that led to their migration, including conflict in their homelands and the search for new land and resources.
In Spanish, we have begun lessons with Madam Thallinger (a teacher from Wingfield Comprehensive School). The children have started learning los colores and how to say which colours they adoro (love) and detesto (dislike), using simple phrases such as “Adoro el rojo” and “Detesto el azul”.
We have thoroughly enjoyed the festive celebrations this half term. These have included a trip to the theatre to watch this year’s pantomime, Snow White, taking part in the Reindeer Dash for Rotherham Hospice, Christmas Jumper Day, Christmas Dinner Day, a variety of Christmas activities and our end-of-term party day. We have also been kept on our toes by those naughty little elves who have been visiting our classrooms each day!
We would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We are really looking forward to the Spring Term and all the exciting things that 2026 has in store for us.
Autumn 1
All of the children were very excited to get back into school and begin Year 4, they are starting to settle into the new routines very well.
In English, our first Talk for Writing unit was an adventure story using a text called “The Canal”, using the tools for characterisation the children wrote their own adventure stories. They thought carefully about the actions the characters might do and the words they might say. Our second unit focused on wildlife, creating non-chronological reports. Our visit to Wentworth Estate gave them some brilliant knowledge that we could use along with the skills from the non-chronological report toolkit to create their own fact files for their chosen woodland creatures.
In Science, our unit was Animals including humans. The children learnt about types of teeth and their functions. They explored how other animals have a different arrangement of teeth depending on their diet. They then learned about the human digestive system and even created a model of this to demonstrate what happens when the food reaches different organs in the body. Finally, we studied the diets and food chains of other animals. Children looked at how animals can be classified by their diets (carnivore, herbivore and omnivore) and then looked at how this relates to predators and preys when exploring food chains. Our trip to Wentworth estate deepened children’s knowledge of this topic.
In maths, we have completed our place value units, which covered knowing the value of each digit in numbers up to 10,000 and representing them in different ways, understanding rounding and partitioning numbers, appreciating that the combined parts must still be equivalent to the whole. Also, the children learnt how to apply their knowledge of place value and the number line to compare and order 3-and 4-digit numbers.
In Geography, we completed our Trade and Transport unit. The children worked very hard to learn our ‘5 Fingertip Facts’ and enjoyed our retrieval parts of the lessons where they could show what they had remembered. The children explored the advantages and disadvantages of different modes of transport and looked into different transportation routes (roads, motorways, canals, cycle paths) and the benefits and drawbacks of each of these. They developed map skills by exploring different countries that import and export food from the UK and found it interesting calculation “food miles” of the things we eat. A perfect topic to study before Harvest!
In PE, we have focused on Pilates and invasion games. We used a Halloween theme to learn some Pilates moves and develop our breathing techniques whilst building core strength. The children have enjoyed learning how to explore physical skills like dodging and evading, whilst also developing tactical skills such as following rules, developing strategies and working as a team.
We have also enjoyed outdoor learning and have been lucky enough to toast marshmellows with Miss Bradley, bulb playing with Phil and learning about the countryside code on our school trip!
We are looking forward to Autumn 2 and all of the excitement of the Christmas activities planned.
