Year 4 Newsletter

A reminder that children can change their books on any day. Please ensure that your child has their planner in school every day as well.  We read with the children frequently at school and it would be very much appreciated if you could encourage your child to read as often as possible at home, too. Thank you for your continued support.

All Year 4 children across the country will participate in the Multiplication Tables Check in June. Further information will be provided closer to the time but in the meantime it is crucial that children know their multiplication tables and are able to recall these facts quickly and fluently. We are working on them in school but any further work at home will be much appreciated. Children can also access Times Tables Rockstars and a practice MTC check below. We are also hosting an information evening for parents and carers on Thursday 7th May at 5pm. It would be great if you could come along. Slides will be sent out to those unable to attend.

Children continue to bring spellings home to learn each week. Their spelling test is on a Tuesday morning and this is when they will be given their new spellings, too. These will be written in their planners and are set using the National Curriculum spelling rules for Key Stage Two.

English

In English, we will be writing non-chronological reports linked to our Vikings topic from History. We will then be using the Talk for Writing model to explore the structure of biographies and to write our own. In these non-fiction units, we will be looking at the use of sub-headings, paragraphs and writing in the third person. Finally, we will be reading and responding to the poem, The River by Valerie Bloom.

In addition to all of our fantastic learning in English, we will be focusing on our handwriting. In Year 4, children's handwriting should be joined; this is a focus in our weekly handwriting lessons where we also look at consistency and sizing of letters. It would be greatly appreciated if you could remind the children of the above when practising their writing at home, too.

Geography

In Geography, we will be learning about volcanoes. This will include looking at how volcanoes are formed and the eruption process. We will learn about the structure of the Earth and the impact that volcanoes have on the people and places surrounding them.

PE

In PE this half term, we will be working outdoors to develop our skills in lots of different sports. Teamwork, communication and cooperation will be themes running throughout the lessons alongside the skill development.

In RE this half term, we will learn more about the beliefs, festivals, holy books and symbolism related to the religion of Hinduism.

PSHE

In PHSE this half term, we will be exploring how to earn money and keep it safe. We will also be looking into different careers and the stereotypes that often surround them.

Art

In Art this half term, we will be looking at sharing our opinions on paintings. We will use tints and shades to paint an object in 3D, try different arrangements of objects for a composition and create sketches and paintings to show contrast of light and dark.