English

This half term, we are reading the text The Great Explorer by author Chris Judge. We will be looking closely at the main character Tom and the journey he goes on to find his dad at the North Pole. We will consider the significant events that happen in the story and how he chooses to overcome them.

We created our own explorer poems based on different adventures and had a go at performing them for the rest of the class. Here are a few of them to listen to.

We considered what it would have been like for Captain Robert Scott to travel to the South Pole in such treacherous blizzard-like conditions. We created music using a range of instruments to set the scene and acted it out through drama.

We will use this learning to help us write a letter from Captain Robert Scott to his wife during his journey.

Outdoor Elements

We went on a trip to Outdoor Elements in Simonstone and became explorers for the day. We built dens, baked bread over a fire and worked together to solve problems in the woods. We had a fantastic time!

Art

In our art learning, we have been looking at the work of the famous artist, Ted Harrison. We began by discussing the colours that we could see within his paintings and created our own colour strips.

What warm and cold colours can you see?

We looked closely at the different parts of his paintings, including the foreground, mid-ground and background. We discussed how Ted Harrison commonly used lines to create mountain ranges. We then had a go at identifying the lines in a picture of some snowy mountains and created our own sketch in his style.

We then added blocks of colour to our sketches using vibrant pastels, carefully considering the use of warm and cold colours to depict the setting.

We also practised a new skill of using silk painting techniques to create arctic landscapes. This required us to have an extremely steady hand. We learnt that the black outline prevents the other colours that are added from bleeding.

Geography

In our geography learning, we have been looking at the continents and oceans of the world.

How many can you name?

Here are some songs to help you learn them.

We have researched and created our own holiday brochures advertising trips to visit the seven continents of the world. Read some of our amazing facts.

History

We began our history learning this half term by slowly revealing a picture from the past. We then used our detective skills to attempt to identify clues for who this picture might be of.

What clues did you identify from the picture?

Based on the clues we identified, in groups, we then thought of questions for what we would like to find out.

We found out that the picture was of a significant explorer named Captain Robert Scott and the rest of his crew whilst on an expedition to reach the South Pole. We learnt about the events that took place during their journey and placed them in order on a timeline.

Science

In science this half term, we have been learning about the use of everyday materials and their properties. We began our learning by going on a material hunt and finding different objects.

What objects did you find that were made out of different materials?

We had a visit from one of our creative practitioners, Steven Lewis Neille, who helped us to lead an investigation to find out which materials are the most absorbent. We then used what we found out to create a home for a mouse.

We led our own investigation based on wanting to find out which material is best used to keep Tom's drink warm at the North Pole.

Was it the cotton towel, bubble wrap or tinfoil that kept his drink the warmest?

We led another investigation to find out which material would be best used to keep Tom dry at the North Pole. This involved us testing different materials by adding a measured amount of water using a pipette and observing which ones were absorbent/waterproof.

Which material did you find was waterproof?

Music

This half term, we have been learning to sing a Christmas song by Joanna Mangona and Jane Sebba called Ho Ho Ho. It is a mix of different genres of music, including rap, and provides opportunities to freestyle.

The children have loved learning it!