All posts by Mrs Henderson

Spooky Houses

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Our spooky house paintings are complete and we are so proud of them!  Everyone listened carefully to the instructions and put in 100% effort.  Fantastic!

Last week we focused on creating a spooky beginning to a story, linked to our paintings.  We talked about how to draw the reader in and how to use different punctuation to add suspense and excitement.  We then spent time reading each other’s work and editing what we had written, looking for capital letters and correct punctuation.  We also had to check that it made sense.

Here is a sneak preview of some story beginnings…

One cold, dark night I found a haunted house. It was dark so I couldn’t see much but I could see enough to make me shiver. A tree fell making me jump but I kept on going, intrigued by it’s spooky silhouette. Lightning struck and in the flash of light, I saw a cloak swish past the window, but it was too late to turn back now. As I opened the door I heard an evil cackle, was it a witch? Or a ghost? My heart skipped a beat as I walked into the unknown.

 

One night, I was walking through a dark, gloomy forest. I noticed a haunting house. It was old and dusty and the garden was covered in fungus and parasites! As I walked to the door I heard some spooky sounds. the noises continued. I tried to ignore it and moved on. Inside things were even worse!  The furniture was broken and the hallways were putrid. I went into the basement and the lights started to flicker.

 

One dark and stormy night I found myself in a giant corn maze.  I could smell the horrible smell of still lifeless decaying bodies of animals and even humans. After what felt like hours of walking, I found the way out. Then I had found a house. I thought “Finally! I found somewhere to sleep!”

Week 3

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Week 3 was another busy one with lots of opportunity to work with others and be creative.

We played a variety of word building games and revised some common high frequency words.  These words are used regularly in our writing, so we will work hard to learn them in many different ways.

Thank you for sending in resources to help with our Rainforest in  a Box project.  We started building them this week and it has been lovely to see so many creative ideas being shared amongst the class.  We plan to have them ready to show parents towards the end of term.

In Maths this week we have been looking at Place Value and how to construct larger numbers.  The class had fun using the Place Value blocks to build models and then work out the value of each model.  It was great to hear the children sharing their thinking and supporting each other to understand.  We will be moving on to comparing numbers and ordering them too.   I’m sure everyone will be keen to challenge themselves with even larger numbers!

We love to hear about any achievements outside of school and this week enjoyed hearing about one P4’s success at a recent athletics competition.  Well done!

 

Research Projects

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This afternoon we got the chance to share our learning with each other and the P6/7 class.  For the past few weeks, P4/5/6 have been busy researching and learning new things about Shetland in the past.

Each pupil got the chance to choose an area of local history that interested them and they could decide how they wanted to present their information.  Everyone was encouraged to think creatively about the different ways information can be shared.

In our classroom, we displayed posters, leaflets,  models, and stop motion animations.

Pupils chose to find out about The Braer disaster, Jarshoff, Shipwrecks, Historical landmarks in Shetland, World War 2 in Shetland, The Quendale Mill, Sumburgh Lighthouse, The Shetland Bus, Sumburgh Airport,  Mousa Broch and Whaling.

We also got the chance to see what P6/7 had chosen to research.  It was a lovely afternoon of sharing and learning new things.   How lovely it was to hear so many wonderful compliments being given by everyone!

Magical History Tour

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What a week it has been in P4/5/6!

On Monday, P4/5/6 and P6/7 spent the whole day in Virkie, learning about what went on there throughout history.

First we took a little walk to see the remains of the Braer oil tanker, which ran aground 30 years ago.   Some pupils have chosen this topic to research further and we look forward to seeing what they have to share with us later in the term.

 

We could see one of the funnels stuck between some rocks.
I wonder if it will still be there in 30 years time?

Next it was time to visit Old Scatness and the iron age village.  Archaeologists from The Amenity Trust took us around the site and gave us a little insight into what life was like and how archaeologists can learn more about how people lived in the past.

Looking fierce!
It was great fun dressing up!
We made a timeline jigsaw together. We could see just how long ago Old Scatness was built!
We dissected some “poo” to see if we could find out what had been eaten. (Thankfully, it wasn’t real!)
Was it easy to make flour using this method?
Getting a tour of Old Scatness.
We enjoyed sitting in the reconstructed round house. I wonder what it would have been like to live there?

After some lunch in Betty Mouat’s Bod, we set off to Mrs Leslie’s farmland to find out about what was going on there during World War 2.  We were amazed to find out that around 5000 men were stationed there at that time!  There are still some remains of buildings and roads that were built for them.  We had fun trying to guess what some of the different structures were used for.

The remains of an old house that had to be knocked down to create a clear view of the runway during the war.

On Wednesday we walked to the Crofthouse Museum to find out about life in Shetland over 100 years ago.  It has been so well looked after, one of the pupils asked if it was a reconstructed house.   We are grateful that it continues to be cared for and enjoyed by so many visitors.

We learned about the crofting way of life and all of the different things people used.  Everyone listened really well to the information and there were some super questions being asked too.

We passed around some items inside the crofthouse. These are some “rivlins” that were made from seal skin.
We did a scavenger hunt around the garden area and tried to answer questions on what we had just learned.

Thank you again to all of our parent helpers who accompanied us on our trips this term.   Your support is greatly appreciated and has given the children the opportunity to safely explore all of the wonderful things on offer in their local  community.

Swan and Museum Trip 15th May 2023

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What a day!  The pupils in P4/5  had an exciting day in  Lerwick today, learning about life in Shetland in the past.

On our way to set sail with The Swan, some pupils were unsure and feeling a bit nervous.  It wasn’t long before these feelings disappeared as we got busy on deck with the skipper and his 2 crew mates.  We got some hands on learning to see what it takes to sail a traditional vessel, the history of the Swan – and our maritime heritage.

It was good fun, working as a team to raise the sail and have a go at steering the boat!  Some future skippers at Dunrossness perhaps…?  One of the highlights was definitely exploring the bunks downstairs.  Most folk thought it would be quite a comfortable sleep in there, apart from when you would have to put in the extra plank of wood across the bunk opening, to keep you from falling out on a rough night out at sea!  On Wednesday, P6 will have a whole day on board The Swan, learning “the ropes” and working as  a team.  We know they’ll have great fun!

As well as our sailing experience, we spent time at the Shetland Museum, hopping through the ages and discovering the different people who have settled in Shetland over thousands of years.

We learned about crofting and fishing life in Shetland and the different jobs men and women were responsible for.  After our tour, we got a chance to do some “carding” with sheep’s fleece, to make it soft enough to then spin into yarn.  We can certainly see how hard life must’ve been in the past!

Fairtrade

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In Term 3 we were learning about Fairtrade.  We talked about what it means and who it affects.  We learned about people in other parts of the world and the different things that they can grow in their warmer, tropical climates.

We all love chocolate, but do you know what happens before it arrives at the shop for you to buy?  We do!  Our class learned about where cocoa comes from and all of the different parts of the chocolate making process.  It is important that people involved in this process are paid a fair price for the food that they produce.

We looked for the Fairtrade logo on different products and tried out a couple of different recipes containing these products.  Everyone helped to either measure, mix, whisk, fill muffin cases or wash/dry dishes.  What a busy morning we had!  Then we each enjoyed a muffin at snack time.  Yum!

There were several requests to have the recipes posted on our blog so that they can be tried out at home too.!  See below for the recipes.

Working with a partner, we spent time researching different foods that we want to see being traded fairly.  Our research posters are on display now for all to enjoy.

Banoffee Overnight Oats

Ingredients

80g  porridge oats
2 tsp sunflower seeds
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
200ml semi-skimmed milk
clear honey (optional)
2 tbsp toffee sauce
6 tbsp fat free Greek style yogurt
1  Fairtrade banana, sliced
40g fruit and nut granola

Method
Divide the porridge oats, sunflower seeds and ground cinnamon between 2 clean jars with lids, then pour 100ml milk into each
Cover and leave in the fridge overnight
In the morning, top each jar of overnight oats with 1 tbsp toffee sauce, 3 tbsp yogurt, 1/2 of the banana and 20g fruit and nut granola.

Gluten Free Triple Chocolate Muffins 

We used Fairtrade products where possible.

INGREDIENTS

  • 100 g unsalted butter, (softened)
  • 175 g caster sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 140 g natural yoghurt
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 210 g plain gluten free flour
  • 40 g cocoa powder
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • ¼ tsp corn flour
  • 50 g white chocolate chips
  • 50 g milk chocolate chips
  • 50 g dark chocolate chips

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Preheat the oven to 200’C and place 12 muffin cases in a 12-hole muffin tin.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together with an electric whisk until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, yoghurt and milk and mix again until combined.
  3. Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and cornflour. Fold in using a wooden spoon or spatula until combined. Then pour in the chocolate chips and stir in until evenly distributed.
  4. Spoon the mixture evenly between the 12 muffin cases, and then place in the oven. Bake for 5 minutes and then turn the temperature down to 180’C. Bake for a further 15-18 minutes and remove from the oven. They should be golden on top and a skewer in the centre should come out clean.
  5. Cool on a cooling rack before eating. Will keep in an airtight container for 2-3 days after baking, but best served slightly warm from the oven.