Lots of opportunities for maths and literacy throughout the classroom linked to Christmas.
Well done Primary 123 who raised an amazing £331.29 for Children in Need today.
They organised a coin collection in the school and got everything ready for other classes to come and sort their coins into the different tubs.
The children did really well and had to ensure the correct coins went into the correct buckets.
They had spent time the day before in pairs and small groups preparing the buckets and learning about the different coins as well as where the money collected is going to.
The p2 children have been learning about Magic e and practising reading and writing words. It is great revision and consolidation for the p3’s who have loved all the games and different ways to practise the spelling patterns
Recently the children worked in groups to create a map which they then went on to write about. It was great to see them supporting each other and being so engaged in writing tasks.
There are lots of spelling and literacy games in the classroom which the children play. The p3’s love the opportunity to be the ‘teacher’ in these games and take on the organisational roles.
It is such a busy environment so often difficult to capture photos of all the amazing learning that happens in the classroom.
We have a go at Drawing club usually about twice a week.
Below are 3 examples of stories we have used this term to inspire wonderful drawings by p1,2 and 3.
It is not just about the drawing though, there are so many skills being developed through not only the delivery of the story but new vocabulary, maths concepts, phonological awareness, spelling and rhyming patterns etc. It is also a great way to focus in on the children who may need a little bit of extra help building their confidence with pencil grip, fine motor skills and forming shapes, numbers, letters etc on paper.
The children draw with me in little groups to be able to hear repeated vocabulary and have a go at creating their own masterpieces. They love it and get very excitied about Drawing Club.
The children loved hearing the story of the three Little Pigs.
The children worked in groups to create houses made of straw, sticks and blocks. They had to decide how to join the different materials and make it as strong as they could.
It was great to listen to the children sharing ideas, chatting about the story as they made the different parts of the houses. The three versions look great.
The primary 2 and 3 children used the story for writing practise and have written books of their own. below are examples of writing from three different primary 2’s.
The Primary 3’s have been focusing on extending their vocabulary and including different connectives to lengthen their sentences.
The primary 1’s and 2’s loved using the story for Drawing Club. It is amazing to see the progress in the P1 fine motor control.
The have also been using stick puppets and masks to role play the story and make up their own adventures too.
The children had to build towers as tall as they could manage using a variety of different construction materials. Some children chose to work in pairs or in a small group and some wanted to build their own ones.
Willum’s tower was the tallest and he only used three blocks! Good thinking Willum. The children quickly learned that they needed to make the base of the tower larger and get smaller as it got higher for it to be more stable. Lots of great discussion and problem solving going on.
We are very lucky at Whiteness Primary to have such excellent outdoor spaces that provide rich environments for learning. Today we focused on using the loose parts in the shed to build, experiment and play. It is amazing seeing how the children use the various resources to create, solve problems and develop more flexible thinking.
Firstly the children thought about what they needed and took the materials they needed to an area they wanted to play/develop.
There was lots of discussion, collaboration and physical work to gather materials.
The children worked together to solve problems, develop ideas and negotiate. The spaces they created were fantastic and they had so much fun.
We also had snack in the new polycrub, which was lovely but quite hot.
Lots of the children were involved in using a series of pipes and guttering to get water to flow down a slope. There were so many peerie engineers helping and coming up with ideas and solutions to problems. They were so excited when each new section worked and they just wanted to make it even longer.
The children listened to the story of Rumplestiltskin and then they all had a go at Drawing Club in little groups.
The children learned a little bit about forces and we focused on the spinning motion of objects which they have loved investigating.
They then made their own penny spinners and designed them so they would look really cool when they were spun around.
Through role play the children have learned a lot about how to look after their bodies and what it would be like to be a patient or a nurse/doctor in a hospital.
The children learned about their bones and loved having Bob the Skeleton in the classroom for a visit.
They created wonderful skeleton pictures using art straws and had to think carefully about where there were joints.
They also had a torso in which had removable organs. It was like a puzzle to get everything to fit in and a great way to learn about some of the different parts inside their bodies.
They learned a little bit about their heart and lungs and completed some exercise challenges to see how this effected the different parts of their bodies.
The children worked in groups to create these amazing posters spending time learning about the different things they need to do to look after their bodies.
There are so many aspects of their school day which lend themselves to the Busy Body topic this term. working in the Polycrub, growing their own food, snacktime and lunchtime are also perfect opportunities to discuss healthy food and a balanced diet and outdoor play really provides lots of exercise and fresh air.
The children had a great morning at the beach and they loved searching in the seaweed and amongst the rocks for crabs and shells.
Carina made this wonderful pattern with lots of similar sized whelks which she had collected on the beach.
We stayed at the beach for snack which is always a treat.
We do live in the most beautiful place with fantastic opportunities for learning outdoors.
The children have been learning about about flowers. They have been finding out about the different parts of a flower and how they grow and change.
They have been investigating and naming the different parts of flowers and learning about how dandelions use the wind for seed dispersal and bees take the pollen to different flowers.
This all ties in with discussions about Spring in the classroom and when we are outdoors.
The Primary Two’s used lots of verbs to write poems about Spring. They did a great job of making a good copy to display on the wall using ICT skills they have been practicing recently.
Low tide and sunshine meant it was a perfect time to head out and do our bit for the Voar Redd Up.
It was great that there was not too much litter on the Taing Beach. Great fun finding shells and crabs while we were there too.
The children have been learning a liitle bit about the symbols of Easter and they enjoyed listening to the story from the Bible.
They had great fun today doing an Easter Egg Hunt in the school grounds which resulted in some yummy chocolate treats at snack time.
This tied in with the patterns which the children have been doing in maths as they created repeating patterns using colours and shapes to design beautiful Easter Eggs.
Have a great holiday everyone!
We finally made it out to the polycrub to start planting. The soil was really dry so a lot of watering was needed and then the bairns planted carrots, onions and tatties as well as their own little pot with a sunflower seed.
Opportunities for using loose part to create dens. Great for developing problem solving and teamwork skills.
Collecting the melting snow from icicles dripping from the roof. Great science and STEM opportunities outdoors.
Some of the melting ice was collected in a different way!
Deciding which containers are best for different purposes. Evie’s snowman needed three different sized containers.
Opportunities to develop creativity, confidence and take risks- so many skills being developed.
Collaboration, choice and commitment in play develops so many social skills and friendships. It can also be exhausting!
Testing to see which snowball goes fastest- big or small? Does lifting the guttering higher or lower? So many opportunities for conversation, developing vocabulary and communication skills outdoors.
Checking out footprints and the different patterns boots make in the snow.
The children love learning about the Vikings and have been enjoying role play opportunities in the classroom. It is great to see them all getting on so well together using what they have been learning in their play. Below is a snapshot of Wednesday afternoon’s adventures.
The galley is now finished and they have been taking turns and sailing around the world discovering new places to settle.
Sometimes, just their imaginations are enough. They set out chairs and rowed their longship – even before it was built.
Once in their new lands the children have been learning how Vikings trade items to get what they need. Their are jewels, gems, furs, food and jewellery to swap, using the scales and balances to work out different amounts.
They would also need to cook over an open fire in the middle of the longhouse using foods available.
These viking warriors are getting ready for another attack.
The children are enjoying using the Viking longships in the water tray to set battle scenes and talk about their topic.
River’s dad was in the Lerwick Up Helly Aa Jarl Squad. He came in as River’s Show and Tell which was really exciting.
He told the class about how his suit was made and all the different jobs people did to make the different parts. The children got to hold the shield, the axe and the dagger. The helmet was amazing and he shared lots of information about the detail and feathers on it.
River loved having his dad in and it was super to have a ‘friendly’ viking in to class before the arrival of the fearsome NGUHA jarl squad.
The children were already for their visit from the Nesting and Girlsta Jarl Squad.
In class they made axes, shields and helmets with Viking runes and designs on them.
The children all designed individual shields and they voted for the best one which was enlarged and put on the Jarl Squad’s galley. Esme won this and her shield looked amazing.
The Jarl Squad came in singing and cheering. The Jarl enjoyed his quiz which the children helped prepare and then everyone enjoyed a Boston Two Step with the jarl Squads’ band.
There have been a few sessions of traditional dance this term. The class have been learning the Grand Old Duke of York. The Circassian Circle, The Grand March and the Boston Two Step.
Lots of great listening to follow instructions and keep time to the music.
They also had a session dancing with their Buddies. The Primary 2’s got P6 buddies for the dances. It was so much fun.
Then we had a whole school dance which included the Early Years children and school staff.
The children started by selecting suitable boxes/junk to make their model dinosaur. They worked in pairs so there was a lot of discussion and collaboration to find the parts and join them together.
We spoke about how to make their model strong by creating different types of joins in using PVA and sellotape.
The next stage was seriously messy. They used papier mache to cover the dinosaur, focusing on the joins and making sure the newspaper strips went from one part of the model onto an adjoining part.
Once the models had two coats of papier mache it was time to choose colours for their dinosaur.
Once the paint was dry the children thought about the detail they wanted to add- eyes, teeth, claws etc.
The primary 2’s have been working on adjectives in their literacy work so this was a great opportunity to apply that learning to describing their dinosaur.
The writing was read out in class for the others to guess which model the description matched.
Their is now a little Dinosaur Exhibition set up in the school for the other classes and staff to visit to see the models and the writing.
