Where is time going? We are officially over half way through the academic year. The class have returned eager to show their best as we get underway with the second half of Spring. 
In our Maths, our hard work in our recent afternoon maths interventions has really paid dividends as we explored column addition. The class were fantastic at applying the skills they have learned to solve a variety of problems up to and including adding 3 digit numbers together using this method. As the class were so confident, we have taken this a step further and developed understanding of missing digit problems and how to solve these. The class are fantastically quick at this and understand how we can use the other digits within the problem to find the answer. 
In Literacy, we have had the pleasure of welcoming some of our parents in to class this week. Parents were invited in for a creative writing session with their children. We used a fantastic hook featuring the book Octavia Bloom and the missing key. The class were transported through the magic door that Octavia discovered and wound up in a winter wonderland (our nature reserve). Down here we explored the setting to develop a senses profile of the area. We developed what we could see, hear, smell, taste and touch into a setting description of the area where children incorporated expanded noun phrases to describe the location. 
In our Computing, we have started our new focus on branching databases and data. The class began this new unit understanding that questions come in two different forms, open and closed. When we are answering closed questions we can separate groups by a key attribute. Children used this knowledge to write their own closed questions which could be used to effectively group information. Next week, we will take this learning further as we explore a branching tree to used and sort closed questions.
In our PE this half term, we are working on games including Hockey and Basketball with Mr Smith and Cheerleading as part of our dance unit. The class were so enthused in our cheerleading sessions, where they began to learn a series of arm positions including; tabletop, high and low v, diagonal and more which will be built into a dance phrase over the coming weeks. 

Whenever I come to updating the blog, I always find myself reflecting on the fortnight of learning that has taken place and being immensely proud of the class as a whole and their efforts which never waver. 
In our Maths this week the class have been exploring angles with a specific focus on right angles. We have had many practical sessions using square corners and geosticks to help develop our understanding. The class have identified different right angles in the environment and can explain the properties of quadrilaterals where right angles are present. We developed our reasoning skills in the week as children were tasked with answering "Is a square a rectangle?". We reflected on the properties of a rectangle and used this to prove that a square was in fact a regular rectangle. We concluded by investigating polygons with right angles using our geosticks.
​In our Literacy we have continued to develop our understanding of the plot of Fantastic Mr Fox. Our new writing focus has been to create an alternate ending for the story. To do this, we have worked in different groups to develop ideas for how our story could end at the point of Mr Fox entering Bean's cider cellar. The class had a clear focus of ensuring that their writing was coherent and flowed. They also needed to ensure that they were broadening and developing their vocabulary and sentence structures through the support of the thesaurus to uplevel word choices and through using a range of simple, compound and complex sentences. 
​In our wider curriculum, the class have been working exceptionally hard to conclude their learning on 'puedo' in Spanish. The class can now confidently recall ten different verbs in Spanish that they can do. They are able to pronounce these with accuracy and can use them to describe some of their daily events. Well done Team CB!
In our Science, we have been working on our new topic of Rocks. The class have loved comparing the physical features of rocks through careful observation. They have examined the texture, hardness, colour and shape to discuss key properties. They were then able to explore which rocks had similarities and which had differences. From this, we have moved on to looking specifically at naturally formed rocks and the three types - igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary. As a class, we used Starburst to help us recreate the different types of rock through practical investigation and explain how each type is formed.