Topic

This term in DT, we have been helping Willy Wonka create packaging for his new confectionary called Triple Strawberry Marshmallow Swirlies.

We first looked at the different packaging that our food comes in and we found that different food items were packaged to protect the things inside, show what was inside, have information about the product and some even had windows to show what the product actually looked like.

Our class also explored different nets that made 3D shapes to decide which ones were the strongest, easy to make and stackable. After a lot of testing and experimenting, we thought that best nets were the cube and cuboid.

Lastly, we made prototypes to send to the factory. Mr. Wonka sent us a design brief which we had to follow. They had to be attractive, protect his sweets and have a window so that the customers could see the sweets inside. Here are some we made. 

We've made significant progress in Math this term! We began by solidifying our understanding of the four operations and mastering methods for solving one and two-step word problems. We then picked up where we left off with fractions, successfully learning how to add, subtract, and find fractions of amounts. Additionally, we started counting in and ordering decimal numbers, laying a strong foundation for future learning.

In Literacy, the children have started reading a new book by a BAME author. Planet Omar by Zanib Mian. This book explores many themes such as diversity and inclusivity. The children have really enjoyed reading this book so far and many of them identify with the main character, a Muslim boy, called Omar, who is dealing with a huge change in his life. 

So far, the children have been using various reading skills such as prediction and inference to learn more about Omar and the kind of boy he is. 

To do this, we have looked at the front cover, the blurb and discussing Omar’s many likes and dislikes, which the children have had a lot of fun reading about.  

Literacy

For literacy this half term, students have started to practise their first reading skill, prediction. The children have discussed the importance of being able to make appropriate predictions and have talked about how a blurb or an image can help to make a sensible guess about what will happen in a story. The children have engaged very well with this and their enjoyment is reflected in the predictions they have made and their thoughts and ideas about the characters.

In addition to making predictions, the children in year 3 have also completed a non-chronological report, which talks about school meals at Curwen. This was their first formal piece of writing since moving up to year 3 and though it was a challenge, the children all strove for success and completed something they can be proud of.

Can I partition numbers using concrete resources? 

In Year 3, there is a big push to make Maths accessible to all. Some people learn best by doing.  In fact, it is said that all children benefit from learning by doing.  Some parents have admitted, that they have even used kidney beans to explain addition and subtraction.

So far, we have worked on the Properties of Numbers, and have used the Dienes to represent hundreds, tens and units/ones.  The children were effectively able to find the answers to their Maths questions, and feel an overall sense of achievement.

In topic, we have been learning about our local area.  So far, we have learnt that Plaistow, our local area, is a town, which is within the borough of Newham. We also learnt that the smallest human settlement is called a hamlet and that counties are bigger than cities but smaller than a country. To help us understand place the settlements in the correct order, we created settlement hierarchy circles. We have also looked at 4-ficure grid references to help us locate place on a map.

Summer 1 Literacy – Year 3

In Literacy this half term, we have been writing our own narrative stories about volcanoes. We have been doing this alongside our topic lessons which have also been about volcanoes. We used a range of grammar skills such as fronted adverbials, expanded noun phrases and prepositional phrases to make our writing more dramatic. We also used speech and powerful verbs to engage our readers. To help us visualise what a volcanic eruption might have felt like in order to create our narrative stories, we listened to a story on “Now Press Play” about the eruption of Vesuvius in Pompeii.

Geography summer 1

This term in geography we have been learning all about volcanoes! We have learnt about different features of Earth’s structure, tectonic plates and effects of natural disaster on the people and the environment. We have also completed some exciting work including locating 7 main tectonic plates on the map of the Earth and labelling volcanoes. The children learned that volcanic eruptions begin deep inside the Earth. The molten rock stored in the magma chamber rises and travel through the vents. As it travels up, gases expand and water becomes steam, creating pressure. When the pressure can no longer be contained, it erupts through the crater and secondary side vents.

Math Summer 1

In Maths this term we have been consolidating our knowledge of the four operations, and the methods we can use to decipher and calculate word problems.  After this, we have been delving deeper into fractions, picking up from where we began this work in Autumn 2.  We have begun adding and subtracting fractions, as well at looking at mixed and improper fractions.  Currently the children are working on properties of shape, and recognising the relationships between 2D and 3D shapes and how angles and lines can be described to help us identify certain shapes.