St. Brendan's Primary School and Nursery

Dear Parent/Carer,

A big welcome back to all of the children who will be joining us, Mrs Bridge and Miss Peattie, for their time in Primary 3 & Primary 4. The children in Primary 4/3 have come together from two different classes & we have had great fun getting to know one another properly during the first weeks back at school.

As you will be aware, this is a very exciting year for all children in Primary 3 and Primary 4 as they prepare for the Sacraments of First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion.

Literacy

All children will be continuing to follow the North Lanarkshire Active Literacy Programme to support their learning in spelling, phonics, reading and writing.

Monkeys

To develop further their accuracy in writing, children will begin to focus closely on the different representations of phonemes in addition to learning new strategies and rules for spelling. Furthermore, they will undertake a novel study of the text ‘The Invisible Dog’.

Penguins

To develop their phonological knowledge and spelling,, children will be introduced to a new sound and set of common words each week. Words and sounds will be consolidated through work in class and our active/written homework programme. They will continue to build their fluency and comprehension skills in reading by working with banded books in class and at home.

Numeracy

In numeracy, the class will continue to extend their knowledge of number and the four operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division). Each week, the children will experience direct teaching, partner/group activities and written tasks to build and consolidate their understanding of concepts.

Over the course of the term children will revisit familiar topics including number and number processes and estimation and rounding. They will develop their knowledge of time and their ability to read and record both analogue and digital displays and order the months of the year; linking months to the appropriate season.

Squares

Children will be working with numbers up to and including one thousand.

Circles

Children will be working with numbers up to and including one hundred.

R.M.E.

This term we will be focusing on Sunday, the Lord’s Day, by learning about the story of creation, the importance of Sunday as a holy day and participation in Mass. Children will revise prayers taught in previous stages and recognise the importance of personal and communal prayer.

Health & Wellbeing

A reminder that PE for Primary 4/3 will take place on a Monday and a Thursday. We would encourage the children to bring their full P.E. kit into school on a Monday and take it home on the Friday. All items of children’s kit should be clearly labeled with their name and class. This term, our focus will be developing fitness through various circuits and possession games. Children will also continue to consider Growth Mindset through a variety of lessons.

Social Studies

This term our interdisciplinary learning will focus on ‘The Rainforest’. The class will be exploring weather, the different layers, living things and deforestation of the rainforest.  The theme of water will be addressed through various practical activities, developing children’s investigative and recording skills.

We are looking forward to working together with both you and your child to help him/her to make the very best of their year in Primary 4/3. Please feel free to communicate any comments or concerns using the behavior diaries.

Many thanks,

Mrs Bridge/Miss Peattie

Class Teachers

Dear Parent/Carer,

A big hello and welcome back to all of the children who will be joining me, Miss Burns, this year in Primary 5! The children have really enjoyed catching up after the summer break and have settled in for what is sure to be a busy and exciting year! I am very much looking forward to a year of learning and fun with the boys and girls!

Literacy

All children will continue to follow the North Lanarkshire Active Literacy Programme to support their learning in spelling, reading, writing, talking and listening.

The children will continue to read a variety of quality texts, in class and at home. We will start the term by exploring the novel ‘Emily’s Surprising Voyage’ as a class. This will allow the boys and girls to refresh their memory and consolidate what they know about the comprehension strategies, before moving to work within their own reading groups later in the term.

The class will continue to consolidate their awareness of different sounds, common words and spelling rules this year. This will help the boys and girls to write with increasing accuracy as the year goes on.

Numeracy

In numeracy, the class will continue to apply what they learn in active and practical ways. Each week, the children will experience direct teaching, partner/group activities and written tasks to build and consolidate their understanding of concepts.

Throughout the year, there will be a continued focus on mental arithmetic and problem solving skills. Over the course of the first term children will revisit familiar topics including place value and measure as well as addition and subtraction.

RE

In RE, our class has already spent some time learning about different parts of the Bible, particularly the Epistles, and about the importance of Icons as a focus for prayer. The class will now spend some time learning more about the life of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus. Later in the term, the children will learn more about Mary and how she is celebrated in Catholic tradition.

Health and Wellbeing

At the start of this new year, the class will be spending some time focusing on the importance of challenges in learning and how we can face these with confidence and positivity. A wee reminder that PE for Primary 5 will take place on a Wednesday and a Thursday. We would encourage the children to bring their kit into school on a Monday and take it home on the Friday. All items of children’s kit should be clearly labeled with their name and class. This term, our focus will be on Games. .

Cross Curricular

Our class topic for the first term will be ‘Children’s Rights’. The class have already started to learn more about the rights that they are entitled to under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and worked very hard to plan and prepare for our very successful ‘Day of Play’ last week. The class will now be looking to the past with a focus on the lives of children in New Lanark. They will learn about how things have improved for children in Scotland over time and will be drawing comparisons between what life was like for children in New Lanark and their own lives today.

I am looking forward to working together with both you and your child to help him/her to make the very best of their year in Primary 5. Please feel free to communicate any comments or concerns using the homework diary.

Many thanks

Miss Burns

Class Teacher