Liam, Lennox, Michael and Dylan created a fabulous pyramid from LEGO. Well done boys!
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primary 4 – a visit from a mummy
This week Ava and Amelia shared a fantastic mummy they had created complete with its own sarcophagus! They also had some interesting Ancient Egypt research to share with us. Well done girls!
Primary 4 – times tables focus
This term we are really going to try to become skilled at recalling and applying our multiplication facts. Week beginning January 13th our focus will be revising our 2,3,4,5 and 10 times tables. If your child knows more tables they should continue to practice those as well.
Primary 4 – Ancient Egypt research
We will be learning about Ancient Egypt and began by looking at www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk . There’s so much information on this site and we really enjoyed looking at facts about mummies, pharaohs and the gods. We will then have a discussion about the different subjects we want to learn more about in the coming weeks.
P4 – multiplication tables
We have been using multiplication in our calculating. We have explored multiplication as repeated addition and have talked about patterns of number when skip counting through the hundred square. Learning our multiplying facts (times tables) will improve the speed of our calculations.
Here are some helpful hints!
1. Look for patterns
In the 2 and 10 times, tables the numbers are all even. In fact, any number multiplied by an even number will be even. In the 10 times table all the numbers end in 0 and in the 5 times table all the numbers end in 5 or 0.
Once they have mastered the 2, 5 and 10 times tables, children should find it easier to move on to 4 and 8. Again, point out the patterns. The answers for the 4 times table are the answers to the 2 times table doubled: for example, 3 × 4 = 3 × 2 × 2. Likewise, the answers for the 8 times table are the answers to the 4 times table doubled: for example, 5 × 8 = 5 × 4 × 2. See if your child notices repeating patterns as in the 8 times table where the ones digit decreases by 2 and repeats after 5×8 or the repeating pattern of the ones in the 4 times table.
When they come to the 3, 6 and 9 times tables, children will see that the digits of each answer add together to make 3, 6 or 9, or a multiple of those numbers. In the 9 times table they will also see a pattern in the tens and ones, with the tens increasing and the ones decreasing as you go up the times table.
2. The rule of commutativity
The rule of commutativity is useful for children learning times tables because it shows that they know more than they might think. Thanks to commutativity, when they learn a multiplication fact, they also learn the following three additional facts:
• When writing a multiplication, the numbers being multiplied can be written in any order. So if a child knows that 2 × 8 = 16, they also know that 8 × 2 = 16.
• For every multiplication fact there are related division facts. So if a child knows that 2 × 8 = 16, they also know that 16 ÷ 2 = 8.
• Lastly, if a child knows that 16 ÷ 2 = 8, they also know that 16 ÷ 8 = 2.
3. Games/songs/online activities/physical activities
There are lots of multiplication activities/times tables games on Topmarks Maths and times table challenges will also be set on Sumdog, if your child wishes to use this at home. Your child can also rewrite their tables in posters as a way of remembering or reciting them whilst skipping or bouncing a ball. Games like Buzz where a multiple of a given number is replaced by a shout of ‘buzz!’ can also be fun to play as a family. There is also musical inspiration on YouTube – Mr DeMaio has a great range of times table songs.
Finally, your child should learn at their own pace. We will have a weekly focus in class which your child can share with you. If they wish to learn more than the weekly focus, they should go for it!
Mrs O
P4 Sumdog Success
In the most recent city wide competition P4 came SECOND! We were only 18 points behind the winners. We were top class on one of the days! Well done to all who played at home and school – a real team effort!
P4- Sumdog Fever!
This week we have been in a Sumdog challenge with another 165 classes from P3-S1 throughout Dundee. As of today we were 3rd top in the whole of the city! Paige reached the dizzy heights of 9th top scorer in the whole of Dundee with Summer, Liam S and Andrasta also entering the top 30. We’ve really enjoyed using our numeracy skills in this competitive way!
P4 – talking and listening
The children have created a plan of a St Ninian’s of the future with as much detail as possible. Now its time to share our designs with the rest of the class in a short talk. To be successful they have to
– speak clearly and so others can hear
– keep the listener interested with tone of voice, use of words and resources
– listen well to others questions and answer them appropriately
The children will be offered feedback from the teacher and a peer. They will also assess their own performance. Here are a few photos of children who have already performed their talk.
P4 Disco Fun
We had great fun dancing the afternoon away at our Autumn Party.
P4-Function Machines and Algebra
This week in maths some of us have been working on the following skills
– Use symbols or words ‘equal to’, ‘not equal to’, ‘less than’, ‘greater than’, correctly to describe & show number relationships
– Within numbers to 100, complete number statements using the symbols for less than, greater than and equals
– Within numbers to 100, create number statements using the symbols for less than, greater than or equals
– Within numbers to 100, use Numicon and/or my knowledge of Fact families to find the missing numbers in given statements when pictures or symbols are used to replace a number.
As usual, we are active in our learning and we played a great game where we had to run to corners with the greater than or less than symbol when we had worked out the answer. We ran to the middle if the equation balanced. For extra challenge there was some mental calculating involved in some of the equations before we could decide.
There are also some good online games to help reinforce our learning.
http://resources.hwb.wales.gov.uk/VTC/greater_less_than/eng/Introduction/default.htm
http://flash.topmarks.co.uk/3439
Some of us worked with function machines. A Function Machine is a diagram that represents a machine that takes an input, applies a rule and delivers the answer as an output.
The task is either to determine the input, the output or whatever operations take place inside the machine. We will all be using function machines as another way of applying our numeracy learning.
https://www.topmarks.co.uk/Flash.aspx?f=inversemachinev3
http://flash.topmarks.co.uk/4437
