Home Learning

We have had lots of positive feedback about the weekly thematic activities which families can engage in together – particularly appreciated by families where siblings can work together, rather than trying to juggle different learning activities for children of different ages. We will therefore continue to provide this option on the home page of our website. This week’s theme is ‘Trees’ – Mrs Grant has coordinated lots of lovely activities on this theme that we hope our children will enjoy.

We also had requests from a few families asking for more structured ‘lessons’ and ‘worksheets’ for their children so our teachers in Years 2 – 6 have been working at home to provide this option for those families. (Reception and Year 1 teachers are posting activities appropriate to their age group). These will be posted by Monday morning each week, with activities for English, Maths, PE and another subject each day for parents to set their children in each age group. We advise that no activity should be longer than a ‘normal’ lesson time of 60 minutes.

None of this is compulsory. Families should adopt what works well for them in their situation. They may choose either option or choose to do bits from both. It is completely up to them.

In our phone calls over the last fortnight many families apologized for not doing the ‘home learning’, telling us that they have been busy doing ‘other’ things like playing games together, baking, doing their own ‘projects’ according to the children’s interests, gardening together etc. This is absolutely fine! This is such a rare opportunity for families to spend quality time together – it is lovely to hear that you’re making the most of it.

There is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ in this situation. Please don’t worry about your child falling behind others – everyone across the whole country is in the same boat. We will pick up from where the children are at when they return to school, whenever that may be. All schools will be doing the same.

Anyway – if you would like to engage in the thematic activities on Trees – please go to the Home Page of the website and click on the link there.

If you would like to engage in the more structured work for your child – please click on the links below:

Kestrels Structured Home Learning w/b 20.04.2020

Kestrels Structured Home Learning Worksheets/resources w/b 20.04.2020

Home Learning updated : 6th April 2020

I was really pleased to see that many of you have been on Mathletics again this week. With 6 bronze and 2 silver certificates and several really high scores, great work Kestrels J

The next two weeks are officially the Easter holiday so you will find some fun Easter themed projects on the school's homepage to keep you busy and having fun while at home over the next couple of weeks. If you would like something a bit different try some of this:

A craft project

Weave your own basket for an Easter egg hunt around your house and or garden. You will need 8 strips of paper 45cm long each, (you can sellotape 2 shorter strips together) 2 different colours look best if you have them. And some cardboard to reinforce the shape, (I used card strips from cereal packaging.) This video shows you how to weave the strips together and reinforce to make a very effective Easter basket to collect your eggs. (If you don't have any spare paper I have also seen these baskets made by folding newspaper pages into long strips and securing with sellotape.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEgEKwHOKSQ&feature=emb_rel_pause

newspaper basket

A maths challenge

egg basket

(I'll reveal the answer after the holidays!)

An English Challenge

How many words can you make from the phrase?

Eggstordinary Easter Egg Eggstravaganza!

Who in your family can make the most words in 1 minute?

Who can make the longest word?

Who can make an adjective, verb, noun etc?

How many words can you find that nobody else in your family can find?

Reading

I recommend that you spend at least 30 minutes reading, everyday. I know a lot of you were very keen to use the audio CDs we’ve been listening to in the classroom. There are a lot of audio books which can be easily downloaded at home. And don’t forget any kind of reading counts including; comics, annuals and magazines (like the Horrible Histories or Wildlife Trust magazines we have in the classroom.) These can also be full of puzzles, quizzes and fun ideas to keep you busy! Listening to and sharing a story is a lovely way to spend the 30 minutes.

For those of you who are members of the public library I have copied the link below from Mrs Smith's page; you can downlaod free copies of books and audio books to read at home.

There are lots of books which you can download for free if you are a member of Cambridgeshire libraries. Ask an adult to have a look for you using the link below:
https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/residents/libraries-leisure-culture/libraries/library-online/ebooks
You can also borrow audio books using the following link:
https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/residents/libraries-leisure-culture/libraries/library-online/eaudio-books

Spelling

I have included below the statutory spelling list for years 3 and 4. These are the words that most children in year 4 should know by the end of the year. I would choose 5 a week you’re not sure of and practise for 10 minutes, everyday. You can use the different methods you’ve learnt with Mrs Read e.g. write the tricky bits in a different colour, pyramid writing etc. whichever method works for you. There are also spelling activities for words with specific spelling patterns e.g. tion endings, on purple mash.You could also play little games like hangman, word searches or this one sounds fun:

Spelling Battleship

In traditional Battleship, you sink your opponent’s boats. In this spelling version, you sink their spelling words. Each person needs two 10 by 10 grids. Have students start by labelling the rows letters A-J and the columns 1-10. Then each person writes the same set of 5-7 spelling words on one grid, in random order and location, either vertical or horizontal. On the other grid, he tracks his opponent’s words. Players take turns calling out a coordinate, for example D-5. His opponent checks his grid and announces whether D-5 was a hit or miss. The first player should mark that square on his blank grid – red for a hit and blue or black for a miss. Play continues until one person finds every letter of all the words on his opponent’s grid.

Maths:

Although the year 4 multiplication check has been cancelled you’ve all worked so hard to learn your tables facts that it would be a real shame to let them slip. Therefore, I advise you to keep practising daily using either purple mash multiplication monster (what level can you get yours to?) or Hit the button

https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/hit-the-button

Keep a record of your scores and see if you can improve your personal best or challenge a member of your family to beat your top score!

Keep going for a 1000 Mathletics points each week. I won’t be setting any specific tasks but you can choose which games and extra tasks you would like to complete. I suggest you choose a mixture of topics you feel really confident with and those that you find more challenging. You can print your own certificates off at home or we will print silver and gold certificates when we get back to school.

Purple Mash:

There are a lot of cross curricular activities and games you can explore on purple mash. A useful and fun skill, if you have a keyboard, is touch typing; again 10 minutes daily practise is the best way to learn this skill.

Other:

The government has recommended we all get outside for a bit of daily exercise (whilst social distancing,) however when it’s wet and cold outside this can be tricky. To burn off some energy whilst stuck inside try the “go noodle” site, we have used this several times in class the children particularly like the “Bananas, Bananas, meatball.”

https://www.gonoodle.com/for-families/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQ9q4U2P3ig

Joe Wicks 5 minute classroom workouts may also be useful.

Art competition

Enter the Antarctica Stamp competition. The children have been working on their designs in school, already. Details were sent home along with an entry form. More information can be found below.

https://britishantarcticterritory.org.uk/design-a-stamp-competition-discovering-antarctica/

Year 3 and 4 Statutory spelling list

accident(ally)

actual(ly)

address

answer

appear

arrive

believe

bicycle

breath

breathe

build

busy/business calendar

caught

centre

century

certain

circle

complete

consider

continue

decide

describe

different

difficult

disappear

early

earth

eight/eighth

enough

exercise

experience

experiment

extreme

famous

favourite

February

forward(s)

fruit

grammar

group

guard

guide

heard

heart

height

history

imagine

increase

important

interest

island

knowledge

learn

length

library

material

medicine

mention

minute

natural

naughty

notice

occasion(ally)

often

opposite

ordinary

particular

peculiar

perhaps

popular

position

possess(ion)

possible

potatoes

pressure

probably

promise

purpose

quarter

question

recent

regular

reign

remember

sentence

separate

special

straight

strange

strength

suppose

surprise

therefore

though/although thought

through

various

weight woman/women

Mathletics: Log on to www.mathletics.co.uk to find your personalised homework

Maths - Times Tables will be given out on Fridays and tested on the following Friday.

Mild

Medium

Spicy

This term we are focusing on confidently knowing our facts, working on instant recall.

Key Stage 2 Home Learning

In Key Stage 2 we will be setting home learning tasks each week in reading, spelling and maths. Home learning tasks will be set on Fridays, posted on our class webpage.

Reading: Every day

Spelling: practised as frequently as required

Times Tables: practised as frequently as required

Mathletics: 3 activities a week

I will talk to the children about their ‘home learning’ each week so that they know what they are doing. Some time the activities will be revising a concept, sometimes the activities will be practising something we are currently learning, sometimes the activities will be extending their learning.

Reading: At least 20 minutes a day. We will be regularly talking to your child about their reading and monitoring our AR system to ensure that children are reading regularly at home as well as at school.

In addition to the books on the AR system your child may read as many books as they wish- the more the better! If your child reads a book from home and would like to do a quiz on it, please send the book into school and we will be very pleased for them to take a quiz. They may also quiz on books that you have read together or books that you have read to them, perhaps for a bedtime story.

Please help your child by encouraging them to read quality books that they enjoy fiction and non-fiction. Also, by making time to discuss the book and any unfamiliar words they come across with you.

Mathletics: Please login to the system at www.mathletics.co.uk, to access the tasks set for your child. Your child’s personal username and password are stuck into the front of their reading diaries.

Studies have proved that children who engage regularly with Mathletics do significantly better in their assessments so please take advantage of this wonderful tool. If you encourage your child to complete more tasks and they gain a certificate these will be awarded in our Key Stage Assembly on Thursdays.

Your child will be set 3 activities every Friday to be completed by the following Friday

Houghton Primary School

"Working hard to achieve our best"

Home Learning - Kestrels