Science 
Team JF have made a fantastic start to our new science unit, plants and animals at the seaside, by exploring the differences between things that are dead, alive, and never been alive; the children used MRS GREN to help them remember the seven life processes and showed brilliant curiosity as they sorted objects and discussed what living things need to survive.

One Life 

Team JF have shown incredible thoughtfulness this week as we explored the power of now, focusing on healthy friendships, being present in the moment, and beginning to understand healthy behaviours online; the children demonstrated impressive maturity and emotional intelligence as they discussed how to look after themselves and others both in real life and online, and we are so proud of the kindness and awareness they have shown.

Music 
Team JF have had a brilliant week in music, working hard to identify and keep a steady beat while learning the song ‘I Wanna Play in a Band’; the children learned both the verses and chorus with great enthusiasm before performing to one another, showing growing confidence, rhythm, and teamwork throughout their sessions.

Maths
This week in Year Two, we’ve been busy becoming measurement experts. Our focus has been on understanding length, using the correct vocabulary, and learning how to measure accurately using standard units. We began the week by comparing everyday classroom objects. The children used the vocabulary longer, shorter, and the same length to describe what they could see. They loved investigating which items stretched the furthest — from pencils and glue sticks to books and even their own arms. Next, we moved on to using centimetres. The children practised lining up a ruler carefully at zero and measuring objects with increasing accuracy. They discovered that centimetres are perfect for measuring small items and enjoyed recording their results in simple tables. Later in the week, we explored metres, using metre sticks and tape measures to find out which objects were too long for a ruler. The children were surprised to learn how many centimetres fit into one metre — a whole 100 cm. To finish the week, we compared centimetres and metres, discussing when each unit is most useful. The class worked brilliantly to decide whether an object should be measured in cm or m, and they explained their reasoning with growing confidence.

Literacy 
Team JF have had a wonderful week in literacy as they worked on their independent write, creating an alternative version of Esio Trot told from the perspective of Alfie the tortoise; the children’s stories are truly incredible, filled with confident punctuation choices, rich expanded noun phrases, and the most beautiful letter formation, showing just how much pride they take in their writing—well done, Team JF.

Art

Team JF have been diving into their new topic, Life at the Seaside, and this week our young artists have been exploring the beauty of shells through sketching. The children looked closely at a range of real shells, noticing their shapes, patterns and textures before carefully sketching what they could see. They practised using light and dark pencil strokes to show detail and experimented with shading to bring their drawings to life. It’s been wonderful to see how confidently they are beginning to observe like artists and translate those observations onto paper. Our seaside theme is already inspiring some fantastic creativity, and we can’t wait to build on these skills in the coming weeks.

Computing 

Team JF have started an exciting new computing unit all about digital music. To begin, the children listened to a selection of pieces composed by Gustav Holst, each inspired by a different planet and designed to express a particular feeling or atmosphere. The class listened with great focus and shared thoughtful responses, explaining clearly what they liked or disliked about each piece and why. Their ability to describe the mood, instruments and emotions within the music showed fantastic listening skills and a growing understanding of how sound can be used creatively in digital composition.

RE

In Year 2 RE, Team JF have been exploring Christianity and deepening their understanding of what makes this faith special to its followers. The children began by looking at a variety of significant places, discussing how and why Christians worship God in churches and other sacred spaces. Building on this, they moved on to identifying important events within the Christian calendar, recognising how celebrations such as Christmas, Easter and Harvest help Christians remember key moments in the life of Jesus. The class showed great curiosity and respect as they learned about these traditions and their meaning for believers.

PE

Team JF have kicked off their new PE unit on football with great enthusiasm. This week, the children focused on developing their passing skills, learning how to control the ball with accuracy and send it smoothly to a partner. They practised using both the inside of their foot and careful positioning to make each pass successful. It was brilliant to see their teamwork grow as they encouraged one another, concentrated on improving their technique, and celebrated each small success along the way.

Maths 

Team JF have begun their new maths unit on fractions and have shown fantastic curiosity as they explored this important concept. The children started by discussing what a fraction is and how it represents part of a whole. They then practised shading half of different shapes, thinking carefully about making the parts equal. Building on this, the class moved into finding fractions of an amount using concrete objects, which helped them visualise how quantities can be shared into equal groups. It has been wonderful to see their confidence grow as they develop a strong foundation in fractions.

Literacy

Team JF have jumped enthusiastically into their new book, Esio Trot, and it has already become a class favourite. The children find the story hilarious, especially the clever riddle Mr Hoppy shares with Mrs Silver in his attempt to help Alfie “grow”. Inspired by this moment, the class decided to create their very own rhyming riddles based on an animal of their choice. The children are keeping the identities of their animals top secret for now, ready to reveal them by reading their riddles aloud once they are complete. Their excitement, creativity and sense of fun have made this a brilliant start to our new literacy unit.​

One Life 

Team JF have begun their new One Life unit with a focus on the Power of Now, exploring what it means to be truly present in the moment. This week, the children learned that it is completely normal for our minds to wander and drift away from what is happening right in front of us. Through discussion and simple mindfulness activities, they discovered how important it is to gently bring their attention back to the present, helping them build their own sense of calm, focus and awareness. It was wonderful to see the children engaging so thoughtfully as they started developing the skills needed to strengthen their personal “power of now”.

DT
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Team JF have had an exciting time in Year 2 Design and Technology, where they designed, made and evaluated their very own fire engines using recycled materials. Working collaboratively, they thought carefully about their design choices, considering which materials would be most suitable for each part of their model. Once their fire engines were complete, the children carried out thoughtful evaluations, discussing what worked well and what they might change or improve next time. Their creativity, teamwork and problem‑solving skills shone throughout the project, and they should feel incredibly proud of what they achieved.

Maths 

Team JF have started an exciting new maths unit all about money, beginning with exploring each coin to understand its value, size, shape and the materials it is made from, which helped the children recognise and identify coins more confidently. As the week progressed, they learned how to compare different amounts using the symbols <, > and =, discussing which values were greater, smaller or equal. To finish the week, the children worked hard on counting money, using their existing knowledge of counting in 2s, 5s and 10s to add different amounts with increasing independence and confidence.

Literacy 

Team JF have continued their literacy learning using the stimulus The Big Book of the Blue, recently completing their own fascinating fact files and beginning to write an exciting setting description about life under the sea. The children have been working hard to develop their use of apostrophes for possession, expanded noun phrases and a range of conjunctions to add detail and depth to their writing. They have made a fantastic start, and the progress in their descriptive language is already clear—I’m really looking forward to reading their vivid underwater settings once they are complete.

Science 

Team JF have continued to develop their understanding of animals including humans, focusing this week on identifying carnivores, herbivores and omnivores. The children began by exploring the key vocabulary to ensure they had a secure understanding of each term, discussing the different diets animals have and what this tells us about them. Building on this, they then sorted a range of animals according to their diets and placed them accurately into a Venn diagram, showing clear reasoning and growing confidence in classifying living things.

History

Team JF continued exploring life in 1666 and the events of the Great Fire of London, focusing this week on how we know about the past through primary and secondary sources. The children showed great interest as they discussed the differences between these types of evidence and why each is important for understanding historical events. They did a fantastic job identifying a wide range of primary and secondary sources before sorting them into groups with growing confidence and accuracy.​

Maths

This week, the children of Team JF started exploring subtraction. To begin with, we looked at the minus symbol and mind mapped as many different words to represent it as we could and what we already knew about it. From this, we used tens frame to represent numbers and started to discuss what happens to numbers when we subtract. As we practised our skills, we started to recognise patterns within our calculations and our number bonds to 10. Finally, we worked with our partner to use two tens frames to start with a whole of twenty.  As the week progressed, we began to think about how to solve trickier calculations quickly. We used our knowledge of partitioning to help us do this. The children used Base 10 to make their numbers and place them in the correct columns on the place value chart. After that, we started taking away from our whole number. Finally, we were able to identify what we had left.

Literacy

This week, Team JF started a new unit of learning based on the text driver ‘The Lost Happy Endings’. This was shared with the class as part of an exciting hook to write our very own diary entries! After sharing the text, our text, audience and purpose for writing was established. Children were clear that the focus for this unit of writing would be to write a diary entry from different perspectives to share with each other. During this lesson, the focus of learning was centred around one of the main characters ‘Jub’ to gain a better understanding of her thoughts/feelings throughout the story. 
As the week progressed, Team JF had to think about the characters in the story the Lost Happy Endings. The children focused on the witch’s thoughts and feelings. They learnt what ‘hot seating’ was and how it was important to get into character. The children worked hard in pairs to practice hot seating, as the witch. Team JF really enjoyed asking and answering questions as a group.