Yr4 Curriculum Update – 11/01/19
Working together to achieve success for every child
Transdisciplinary Learning – It’s all connected!
The natural world inspires creative expression
UOI & Literacy
Welcome back and we hope you have all had a wonderful start to 2019!
To kick off the start of Term 2 we have begun our new unit, How We Express Ourselves. Within this theme students have been thinking about the benefits of being outdoors and the various ways in which nature inspires us. Our trip to Tai Po Kau provided us with lots of inspiration for sketching and sculptures. Several students have also taken personal action and brought in items from the natural world that inspire them. This has helped them start to develop their skills of interpretation through viewing elements of the natural world. Following this, students will be introduced to the various elements of art such as color, shape, form, value, texture and line. **Please help us out by helping your student collect natural items to use in class for inspiration, as well as sending a picture of your child outside in nature. Big thank you to those families who have already done so!**
Also, if there are any artists who would be happy to lend their skills to the classroom your time and expertise would be much appreciated!
In language we have been looking at a range of styles of poetry, eg.:haiku, list poems, free verse, and calligrams. We have been looking at the structure of the poems and in some cases using that structure to create our own examples. We have focused on generating ideas and considering word choice that help to create images in the reader’s head. Students have also begun to look at incorporating literary devices such as similes, metaphors and alliteration into their poems.
Whilst reading examples of poetry students are examining text organization, and language features to determine what impact these conventions have on a piece of writing. They are also beginning to practice their inference skills and discuss the meaning behind different poems.
Unpacking the central idea.
Keywords: natural world, inspiration, expression, creative cycle, artist, three dimensional.
Consider exploring these keywords in your children’s mother tongue to help comprehension.
Maths
Our Central idea is:
The four operations are connected to each other and are used to solve problems.
With our focus being on multiplication and division, we are beginning our inquiries with what we already understand about these number operations. The students have been sharing the different strategies they are comfortable using and sharing their strategies with others. This has helped them to visualize the problem and see the process that goes on behind the calculation.
Within our UOI, we are also looking at how symmetry is represented in nature. Also, students have begun to look at the different patterns that can be found in the natural world such as sunflowers, shells and animal skin.
Key maths vocabulary:
Visualise – can you create an image in your head which shows the problem?
Connections – how does the problem/situation connect to other things?
Questions – what questions can you ask to deepen your understanding?
Key maths vocabulary
Multiply, times, groups of, lots of, repeated addition, product, array, divided by, share equally, group, divide into.
Mandarin
In the Chinese classrooms, we continue to focus on the concept of wellbeing and providing different learning opportunities for children to explore their own interests and promote agentic learning.
Here is a glimpse of some of our classrooms:
Reminders
- None at the moment
Important Dates
January 11th, 17th and 25th Mandarin Consultations (Y4 is on Jan 11)
Tuesday 15th January PTA Meeting (5-6pm)
Friday 25th January School Disco (5-7:30pm)
Friday 1st February CNY Assembly (1:30 – 2:45pm)
