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Woodpecker 2024- 2025
Newsletter and Power Projects
Welcome to our new Woodpeckers class! Your children will have come home today (4th September) with a copy of our class newsletter, whish has all the information you will need to support them and us with the day to day routines in our class. They will also have brought home their Power Project sheets, with ideas for this half term's homework. If either documents get misplaced, there is a copy of each here:
If you have any other questions, please do grab us first thing in the morning or after school.
It's going to be a great year!
Woodpeckers 2023 - 2024
Poetry performance
Woodpeckers class have been studying the book 'Jim: a Cautionary Tale', which is written as a poem in rhyming couplets. Here is our performance of the whole poem, which we learned by heart!
Terrific tennis: July 2024
This half term, Woodpeckers have been learning tennis skills. We have practiced forehand and backhand, and are now working on our accuracy. We think we definitely have some future Wimbledon champions in our midst!
Constructing 3D shapes!
In our Maths lessons, Woodpeckers have been learning all about 3D shapes. Using cubes, tooth picks and play dough, Woodpeckers had lots of fun constructing their own models! Fantastic work Woodpeckers!
Selly Manor trip: May 2024
On Wednesday, Woodpeckers class enjoyed a trip to Selly Manor, a real Tudor house in Birmingham! We learned all about how Tudor people lived, ho they built their houses, what they ate, and even how they slept at night. We also dressed up like Tudor children and played games that they would have enjoyed too.
When asked what their favourite part was, Matthew replied, 'The kitchen, as it was so interesting to learn how they grew all their own food, and even built their own houses', and Troy's response was, simply, 'everything'! The children learned a huge amount from this interactive and immersive museum visit, and, as always, represented the school wonderfully. Well done Woodpeckers!
Woodpeckers super artwork!
To begin our new art unit we have been looking at Tudor portraits! We have decided to begin by creating our own portrait using half of our own photograph! We then carefully observed our features before using pencils to draw the other half of our face. Mrs Stallard was amazed by the results and Woodpeckers enjoyed observing their art after and having a guess at who is who! You should be so proud of yourselves Woodpeckers. We are really looking forward to seeing where this unit takes us!
Ukulele concert: March 2024
On Monday, Woodpeckers class welcomed parents and grandparents into school to watch our ukulele concert! The children have been working really hard on their chords this term, and have now just about mastered C, F, C7 and even G chords! Well done Woodpeckers!
Super Science Experiment!
Woodpeckers have enjoyed investigating the transportation of water in plants this week! Our investigation enquiry is 'Does temperature affect how quickly water is transported through the plant?' We have planned the stages of our experiment and have carefully measured out the water before adding food dye to see if it will change the colour of the petals as this will indicate how quickly the water has been absorbed. We look forward to observing and recording the changes over the next week!
Woodpeckers Fantastic Firework recipes!
This week in Woodpeckers we have started our new book for Guided Reading 'The Firework-Maker's Daughter'. To begin our new book we have created our very own fireworks! We have used exciting ingredients such as Salt of shadow. fly-away powder, spark-repellent, thunder grains, scorpion oil and glimmer juice!
More magnet mayhem: December 2023
To finish our forces and magnets theme with a bang, Woodpeckers class have designed their own games using magnets. We had fishing games, maze games, even magnetic Monopoly! The class then built, played and evaluated their games. What a fabulous afternoon we all had, and what a fun way to demonstrate all their learning from this half term!
Dance festival at the Chantry: December 2023
Woodpeckers class had a fabulous time on Wednesday at the Chantry school, taking part in their annual year 3/4 dance festival! We jived along to Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree, and then had a go crissing and crossing to some very cool street dancing. The children represented our school perfectly and threw themselves (quite literally) into the activities. A huge thank you to the staff and young leaders at the Chantry, what a brilliant time we all had!
Magical magnets! November 2023
As part of our forces and magnets science topic, we have been investigating magnetic and non-magnetic materials. We discovered that not all coins are magnetic, and not all metals are magnetic. We also found out that some magnets have such a strong magnetic field that they still attract magnetic materials through other materials - like desks, or even our own hands! We considered that human beings have iron inside of us, and iron is magnetic - so maybe that was why we were so attracted to the magnets ourselves!
Woodpeckers Autumn 2: Practical Maths Lesson!
In our Maths lesson this week we have been applying what we have learnt about Capacity to carry out our Maths investigation. Using various containers, Woodpeckers have been given a challenge to show how many different ways they can make up a volume and working out how much more is needed to fill each container to a certain capacity!
Woodpeckers Autumn 1: October 2023
What a lovely half term we have had with our lovely Woodpeckers! Woodpeckers have been working hard to create different balances, shapes and movements in gymnastics whilst also creating some posters for our classroom all about teamwork. Woodpeckers are also in the process of finishing their final piece of Egyptian artwork - more pictures coming soon!
Wonderful writing: October 2023
Woodpeckers have been studying the book Leon and the Place Between for our model text in our writing sessions, and over the last couple of weeks we have planned, written, edited and published our own fantasy narratives!
It was a joy to read each and every story, the children have worked immensely hard on them, and they are all proudly displayed on our writing celebration wall for you to admire at Parent's Evening next week!
Class newsletter: September 2023
Below is a link to our class newsletter, with all important information and procedures for the year ahead.
/docs/Class_newsletter_September_2023_woodpeckers.doc
Country Dancing superstars! June 2023
On Saturday 30th June, Woodpeckers class stole the show at our annual summer fayre! The children opened the show at midday and danced 3 traditional summer dances, performing absolutely perfectly and making their teachers and parents extremely proud. Well done Woodpeckers, and thank you to the parents for showing your tremendous support as always.
Science wormeries: May 2023
As part of our current science topic of Rocks and Soils, we have been looking at soil formation, and yesterday learned how important worms are to the quality of soil. To investigate this further we made worm farms, using the structure of soil. The children learned so much about the layers of soil and we all had a wonderful time hunting for worms!
Dan the Skipping Man: May 2023
We were very lucky to have representatives from Dan the Skipping Man come and visit us last week and teach us how to skip! We learned lots of different techniques and had great fun. As well as being a fantastic way to get exercise, skipping is super for the brain.
Year 4 multiplication tests: April 2023
As many of you know, in June, all children in year 4 will be tested on the times tables up to 12 x 12. We will very soon have logins for each year 4 child to practice their tests and familiarise themselves with the format, layout and timings etc. Until this point we are using the tests found at https://www.timestables.co.uk/speed-test/ to practice.
Please encourage and support your child to practice as often as possible, both on TTRS and the website above to give them the optimum amount of confidence going into the tests in June.
Many thanks,
Mrs Quill and Mrs Stallard
Dog's Trust visit: March 2023
Yesterday we had a very special visitor in school: a lovely lady from the Dog's Trust, who came to speak to all the children about how to take care of dogs and and stay safe around them by respecting their boundaries and understanding their cues.
It was really informative and great fun, and we all (staff included) learned so much about dogs and their amazing brains.
Dragonology homework: Spring 2
Dear parents;
Woodpeckers’ children are required to bring in one piece of theme based homework per term. This half term we are continuing with our theme of Dragonology, and I would like each children to bring in one piece of homework about the Anglo Saxons.
This could be an artistic piece of work, fact based, using diagrams, computers, even cooking! Power projects are a chance for the children to adapt our themes to their own passions and interests, so please do encourage them to think of their own ideas.
Ideas:
- Imagine you are a time-travelling child spending a week in an AngloSaxon village. Write a diary entry describing your experiences.
- Design a realistic Anglo-Saxon coin. Use this link to help you get information, ideas and designs: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/trail/conquest/wessex_kings/coins_e adbald.shtml
- Recreate an object that was found at Sutton Hoo, or any other Anglo Saxon find, using suitable techniques and materials. Write an information card to go with your artefact explaining what it is and why you think it was buried at Sutton Hoo or Mildenhall.
- Find out about Anglo-Saxon medicine and how they cured some common ailments such as colds and headaches.
- Find out about Anglo-Saxon law and order. Create a wanted poster for a Saxon criminal.
Please make sure your child has brought in one piece of homework by Wednesday 29th March.
We are very much looking forward to seeing what the children bring in!
The children have all taken home their homework sheet, but just in case it has lost its way on the way home there is a pdf version here: /docs/a_a_a_maths_010221/Dragonology_homework_spring_2.pdf
Viking Day: February 2023
As part of this term’s Dragonology theme, Woodpeckers have been studying the Viking and Anglo Saxon periods of British history, and to bring that subject to life, on Friday 2nd February we had a visit from a ‘real life’ Viking!
We spent the day learning about all aspects of Viking life, from their customs to their games – and finally, their battles. We had a brilliant day, where we learned lots of amazing facts, enriched our theme, and of course had lots of fun!
PE: Chinese dragon dances
As part of our Dragonology theme, Woodpeckers class have been exploring Chinese dragon and lion dances, focussing on linking actions to create new actions for year 3 and linking movement phrases with increased precision and designing their own movement phrases for year 4.
They explored traditional lion and dragon dances, and then worked in either pairs or groups to innovate their own dances, using canon and unison techniques.
Here is their final class performance!
/docs/woodpeckers_dragon_dance.mp4
Dragonology homework: Spring 1
Woodpeckers’ children are required to bring in one piece of theme based homework per term. This term (as I am sure your children have told you) our theme is Dragonology!
This theme does not have Power Projects in the traditional sense, so instead, I would like the children to bring one piece of homework based around ONE OF the following:
- Dragons
- Chinese new year dragon dances
- The Vikings
- The Anglo-Saxons
- Countries in Europe (specifically Scandinavia)
This could be an artistic piece of work, fact based, using diagrams, computers, even cooking! Power projects are a chance for the children to adapt our themes to their own passions and interests, so please do encourage them to think of their own ideas.
Please make sure your child has brought in one piece of homework by Wednesday 15th February.
We are very much looking forward to seeing what the children bring in!
The children have all taken home their homework sheet, but just in case it has lost its way on the way home there is a pdf version here:
/docs/Dragonology_homework_spring_1_docx.pdf
Music Christmas cornet concert: December 2022
For our music lessons this year, Woodpeckers are learning how to play the cornet, and the children have been doing so well that Mr Blake thought we were ready for our first performance!
The children played beautifully and really impressed their grown ups- and made Mrs Quill extremely proud. The highlight was definitely our version of Jingle Bells, we feel most festive now!
DT Chocolate making day: December 2022
This term, Woodpeckers have learned about the history of chocolate and how it is made, ‘from bean to bar’. They then conducted all important market research to find out what they liked and did not like about current available bars. (see below)
Woodpeckers class were then informed and ready to design their own bars, considering the purpose and ideal consumers of their bars. They chose ingredients and designed a wrapper that would suit their given purpose and consumer, e.g. a luxury treat for adults, or an everyday lunchbox snack for children.
After that, they used grating, mixing and chopping skills to actually make their bars, and once cooled, were able to wrap them in their wrappers. We completed our project by evaluating the finished product against our plans, and concluded if they were in fact ‘fit for purpose’.
Gymnastics: November 2022
This half term, Woodpecker children have been working really hard on creating strong partner balances which show control and tension. The children have shown amazing perseverance and co-operation to create sequences of 3 partner balances which are linked by continuous movement, and also have a clear start and finish. We are really proud of their super progress.
DT: Making our own chocolate bars: November 2022
As part of our Rainforest topic, Woodpeckers class are currently learning about chocolate, before we design and make our own bars later in the term. Of course, before making our own, we had to try different types of chocolate in the name of market research!
As well as sampling the different types of chocolate, we also looked at the packaging and evaluated what we liked about it in order to consider more what we would like to include in our own bars.
Happy Halloween: October 2022
Tonight was our annual Halloween disco where we were able to dress up as wicked witches and ghastly ghosts! We were all VERY excited about showing our costumes and dancing to some scary tunes! Don't they look fantastic?
Rainforest dioramas: Design and Technology project: October 2022
This half term Woodpeckers class have been building their own rainforest dioramas. They started by taping shoeboxes open, then stuck coloured paper over the outside to cover the original colour. Then they painted the inside of the shoeboxes and used toilet roll holders to make trees. After that they added texture and detail using recycled materials, and tea lights to make camp fires or to represent the sun. They then created pulleys and finished off with a push and pull mechanism using dowelling and cardboard animals or vines. The results are quite spectacular! We are very proud of how hard Woodpeckers worked on this project, and all the design skills they used to make their dioramas such a success. Well done Woodpeckers!
Woodpeckers quick sticks hockey tournament: October 2022
On Wednesday 15th October, we took an enthusiastic and excited team of Woodpeckers children to the Chantry for our yearly quick sticks hockey tournament. We played 7 matches, and after a hesitant beginning the children improved in skill and confidence at quite an astounding rate!
We ended up drawing 2 matches and winning another 2 (one with a mighty 4:0 result!). The children represented their school absolutely brilliantly, showing teamwork, cooperation, a healthy sense of competition against the other schools and above all, support for their teammates.
A huge thank you to Mrs Hughes for organising our attendance at this fantastic tournament, and to the staff and young leaders at the Chantry for running such a friendly and inclusive event. It was wonderful to see so many parents supporting from the side-lines as well.
The children made us all very proud, and we are all looking forward to our next sporting fixture!
Design and technology simple circuits: October 2022
Our DT project this half term is building our own rainforest dioramas, and today we had a go at making simple circuits, with lightbulbs to represent the sun shining down over the Amazon. The children challenged themselves well, and some even extended themselves to investigate what would happen if you added more batteries, bulbs, or both!
Gymnastics: September 2022
This half term in Indoor PE, we have focusing on exploring and creating different pathways and movement with control and co-ordination. Today, we worked in groups to perform different body shapes which had to be contrasting. The children then had to teach each other their shapes to create a sequence, and finally add movements to link all the shapes together. Woodpeckers class showed great co-operation and worked brilliantly to create some super sequences. Well done!
Super Science: September 2022
Our Science unit this half term is Animals including Humans, and we have been learning about digestion. Last week we identified which organs in the body help us to digest our food, and this week we talked about the function of each organ. We then had great fun carrying out an experiment to show how the digestive process worked. If you are interested in trying it out at home, click on the link below.
Marvellous Maths: September 2022
We have really enjoyed using our new maths equipment to help us explore number and place Value. We are all becoming very confident at reading and writing 2, 3 and 4 digit numbers. Well done Woodpeckers!
Welcome to Woodpecker's Class
We are very much looking forward to working with our new children and meeting their parents over the coming weeks.
Please click on the image below to read our class newsletter and this term's Power Project.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
Best wishes from Mrs Quill and Mrs Allen
Archive 2021-2022
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Archive 2020-2021
Click on the image to see previous work.