December Newsletter Regent Farm First School

In reception the children began exploring the night sky when the night pirates invaded, hoping for some children to join their band. These were no ordinary pirates, these were rough, tough, little girl pirates eager to steal treasure and have night time adventures! The inflatable planetarium arrived, turning the hall into a winter’s night. Our astronomer guide helped the children identify the constellations and planets. It really was a magical experience to explore the change of the seasons and welcome in the festive period. Recently things have got very Christmassy in all of early years as elves arrived, needing help with inventions, wrapping and even fixing sleighs. Nursery found the perfect tree in the woods to bring indoors and dress while Reception followed the Jolly Postman, helping him make his all important deliveries to the correct addresses.

Everyone enjoyed getting outdoors when the snow arrived and we all have our fingers crossed that it might return just in time for a white Christmas!

Half Termly Curriculum Information - Key Stage 1

This half term, Year 1 are looking to answer the question, 'Do I understand you?' Through their different books of the week they are exploring different celebrations as well as how peoples views and opinions matter, as Hank and Hoog taught us meeting in the middle can be a great place for all. They are enjoying learning about the History behind bonfire night and have had some fantastic debates on the roles Guy Fawkes and King James I played in the events of that November night. They concluded by thinking about why bonfire night is still celebrated and significant today. They have learned how to created different tones of colour and select which brush size to use for each task in Art and have used their knowledge to create their cards and calendars in the style or Georgia O'Keefe. Over the past few weeks they have worked really hard on their performance of Wriggly Nativity and wowed their audiences with their lines and singing, especially when the music was not on our side!

Year 2 are jetting off to Shanghai, comparing what life is like there compared to Newcastle. After comparing, schools, the river and buildings the children will answer the question, 'Would you prefer to live in Newcastle or Shanghai.' They have also been inspired by traditional Chinese stories such as Dream of the Butterfly and The Great Race in their English lessons, writing a newspaper article reporting on the events of the race. In art they have been exploring different types of dye including brusho and tie-dye: their final t-shirts are spectacular. They took full advantage of the stage to model their final designs and evaluate their products. They have finished off the term getting in the festive spirit creating some wonderful crafts and have loved learning songs for their concert.

Half Term Curriculum Information - Key Stage 2

At the moment Key Stage 2 are focused on our ‘Regent Farm Respects topic’ and the children are learning about different religions (Hinduism and Islam) through stories, artefacts and visits to places of worship. In Year 3, the children have been using the story of Rama and Sita as a stimulus in their writing and they've created their own wonderful stories. The children learnt about the Hindu Festival of Diwali and made Rangoli patterns using rice and lentils. They also made traditional Diwali Diya lamps using clay. In Science, the children are learning about light and dark. They have carried out investigations about shadows and they're showing great curiosity throughout the topic. In Art, the children have been developing textures and collage techniques which they will use to create a collage bird in the style of Mark Hearld.

In Year 4, the children have been looking at the lives of inspirational figures such as Walter Tull and Rosa Parks. They have been finding out about who they were and what they did that was so inspirational. They have been historians, looking at a range of sources. In English, they have written emotive speeches and used informal language to write a postcard from Walter Tull. In science the children are learning about States of Matter. They are exploring the concepts of melting and freezing through simple hands-on activities: they have particularly enjoyed melting different types of chocolate! The children also visited the Laing Art Gallery where they explored the use of watercolours.