P7 Termly update

Welcome to our first blog post of the current school year.

 

Literacy

Instructional Writing – In Term 1 we introduced Talk4Writing. Over a number of weeks we have taken different approaches to planning our writing, created initial drafts, edited our writing and up-levelled it to create a final piece. Our focus has been instructional writing, with a twist! Ask us how to trap a mythical creature, you won’t be disappointed!  We enjoyed sharing our work with P5 and P6, celebrating our success.

In term 2 we will be looking at persuasive language and writing persuasive letters for a specific purpose.  We will also be focusing on writing settings and character descriptions as beginnings for stories.

Spelling – We are currently following the Wraparound Spelling progression which has involved revisiting the fundamentals of phonics, decomposing words, identifying root words and growing them with prefixes and suffixes. In addition to this, we are also concentrating on sentence work and grammar. Term 1 revision can be found on Google Classroom.

Reading Comprehension Skills – During Term 1 we focused on reading comprehension skills through group reading and individual accelerated readers. We will continue this in term 2. To date, we have been developing our understanding of tricky vocabulary, visualisation and illustration skills, asking and developing effective questions and making predictions. A guide to reading skills strategies can be found on Google Classroom.  We would encourage the children to continue reading at home.  They can access the Accelerated Reading site from home to complete online quizzes and there is a link in the Google Classroom for Bookflix – an online library document with a variety of titles featuring a mix of full texts and extracts from books.

 

Numeracy

Our Term one focus was to revise and extend our knowledge of place value. This has included identifying the value of whole digits and decimals, ordering and sequencing of numbers and rounding. We have explored the properties of 2D and 3D shapes, identified them in our environment and created our own tessellations. We made 3D shapes and nets.

Using natural resources outdoors, we have been learning to play games that enhance our strategy and problem solving skills. Ask your child to teach you how to play ‘Game of NIM’ – it can get quite intense!

We have been sharpening our mental agility and quick recall with mixed daily 20 mental maths questions. You will find links to supporting resources and games on Google Classroom.

In Term 2, we will be focusing on the properties of special triangles and circles. We will continue to deepen our understanding of fractions, decimals and percentages.

 

H&WB

Throughout this year our social, emotional and mental health remains a priority. Through the Zones of Regulation and circle time we continue to explore our emotions, including the triggers and behaviours associated with different feelings. We have identified and devised our own regulation strategies that help to support us during challenging times.

During Term 1 in PE, we successfully developed our throwing, catching, shooting, dribbling, hand-eye coordination, communication and team work skills through basketball. Through the game of field hockey we have focused on stick control, ball control techniques and match play. Ask us to name all of the new moves we have learned!

 

Outdoor Learning

We love outdoor learning and enjoyed playing team building games on the field in Term 1 – we are especially competitive when playing rounders! We had an opportunity to learn skateboarding skills. Doing so allowed us to manage our own speed and risk whilst manoeuvring, as well as challenging our balance and coordination.

Our Outdoor Classroom at Pilmuir has given us an opportunity to engage with loose parts play. We have built dens and assault courses that encourage clear communication, problem solving and team work. Ask us about the Mountain Rescue Challenge!

 

Modern languages

This year we will be learning conversational French with Mrs Lyon and German with Mrs Horne.

 

IDL

Our IDL context for this term will be Christmas Around the World, developing our knowledge and understanding of how other countries, cultures and faiths celebrate Christmas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The children in Primary 5 have been very busy since coming back to school in August.

We have started using the Talk for Writing process and wrote some super sets of instructions on how to trap mythical creatures last term.  We shared our learning with P3/4.  We acted out and read our instructions to them.

We have also been working really hard on revising our short vowel sounds.  We have started to use the Wraparound Spelling programme.

We learn to play the ukulele on Thursdays with Mrs Gillies.

In maths we have learned about coordinates, angles, direction, compass directions, symmetry and 3D objects. We have had great fun being creative with our learning during our morning activities too.

In Health and Well-being we have had some great discussions about being Safe, Healthy, Active, Nurtured, Achieving, Responsible and Respected. We still have to cover Included.

 

In term 2 we will be focussing on writing settings and character descriptions as beginnings for stories.  We will continue to revise our short vowel sounds and move on to the long vowel sounds.  During reading lessons we will focus on the skill of inferring. In Numeracy we will move on to learning about Place Value, Rounding, Estimating, Addition and Subtraction.  Our I.D.L. theme will be Christmas around the World.

Primary 6 Termly Reflection Term 1

Talk for Writing

During term one P6 focused on recount and instructional writing by using the Talk for Writing approach. The children learnt how to create story maps to retell the tale of The Enormous Pumpkin. The children also learnt how to write a set of instructions about trapping a mythical creature. The highlight of the writing block was our celebration event. The class were delighted when they were given the opportunity to share their writing with children in the upper stages. The event was a great success as it showcased how proud the children were of their efforts and enabled them to share the progress they had made since the onset of the writing block with their peers.

 

Expressive Arts

Another of our highlights from term one was creating artwork inspired by Pablo Picasso. The children especially enjoyed creating their own portraits which was inspired by Picasso’s Cubist style.

 

Term 2

This term our focus in Primary 6 will be as follows:

Reading

The children will be working in small working groups during weekly Guided Reading lessons. During these sessions the children will continue to develop their knowledge and understanding of the different reading strategies. Our class novel this term is The Witches by Roald Dahl. The children have engaged well during whole class discussions about the text and have enjoyed opportunities to discuss the characters and themes. They are looking forward to finding out what happens to the main character as the plot develops.