After a whirlwind seven weeks, we've finally reached the half term break and a well earned week off!
Just a reminder: School reopens to children on Tuesday 2nd November (there is a teacher training day on Monday 1st November).
I hope you all have an enjoyable break - stay safe if you are out and about, especially for Hallowe'en - and I will look forward to welcoming you back to class, refreshed and ready for the remainder of the autumn term!
Mrs Vaqueiro
Today at Swan Lane we celebrated all the different languages and cultures that are represented in our school. Each class chose a different country as their focus for the day. Year 3 represented the Iberian Peninsula, with 3W celebrating all things Spanish and 3V (perhaps somewhat predictably!) choosing Portugal.
It would be useful
if you could discuss the following with your child in preparation for our work this week:
In Year 3 we are very lucky to have some visiting artists from Art Base to assist us with our art lessons. Beth and George have been working with us to create some fantastic new artwork for the corridor outside our classroom.
The theme for this term's corridor art was 'Printing' so we decided to link our work with our recent history topic of Ancient Egypt.
In our RE studies this half term, we have been learning about the Hindu faith, with a particular focus on the concept of Brahman. Hindus believe that Brahman is part of everything in the world: it is the supreme spirit and takes many different forms, which are represented by the different deities.
Today in RE, we have been looking at an extract from the Upanishads: an ancient Sanskrit text which forms part of the basis of Hindu teachings. We looked carefully at the text to try and interpret its meaning, prompting some interesting class discussions.
You are a woman. You are a man.
You are the dark blue bee
And the green parrot with red eyes.
The lightning is your child.
You are the seasons of the year
And the sea.
You are a part of everything.
You are everywhere.
Everywhere that is, is born of you.
Svetsvatara Upanishad Ch4
Then we had a go at drafting our own versions, trying to imagine how a Hindu might write about Brahman. Here is a small selection of our work...
This afternoon, class 3V continued their studies of Ancient Egypt by taking a trip back in time to 1922, and the discovery of the lost tomb of the boy king, Tutankhamun. The children role-played the discovery of the tomb, making field sketches of the artefacts that they found in the burial chamber (which had mysteriously appeared in the corner of the classroom). The children were asked to observe details of the artefacts and try to work out what they were made of, how they might be used, and to whom they might have belonged.
Piecing together the evidence the children decided that the artefacts - which were made of gold and other precious metals, and encrusted with jewels - must have belonged to someone very important... perhaps someone like a Pharaoh.
They were puzzled, however, that there didn't seem to be evidence of a royal coffin in the tomb. We looked closely at some photographs taken by Howard Carter's team in 1922, and the children spotted that a patch of plaster on the wall of the chamber looked rather different to the rest of the wall. When we scraped back the patchy plaster, we discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun in all its glory!
On Friday 22 October 2021, we will be celebrating all the different countries and cultures that are represented within our school community, as part of International Cultures Day. Each class will spend the day learning a little bit about the language, food and traditions of a country chosen by their class teacher. In 3V, perhaps unsurprisingly, we will be learning all about Portugal.
Mrs Pearce-King has agreed that Friday 22 October will be a non-uniform day for children. If you are able to do so, please wear something colourful to reflect the colours of the flag of Portugal. However, please do not go to any expense or feel you must buy anything in those specific colours just for that day—just wear ordinary, comfortable clothes and sensible shoes suitable for outdoor wear.
I am really looking forward to sharing some aspects of Portuguese language and culture with the children!
Mrs Vaqueiro
Over the next two weeks in 3V, the children will be creating their own fact file about life in Ancient Egypt. Although we have been learning about the Ancient Egyptian civilization during our history lessons over the past few weeks, there is always plenty more information to find out!
This morning, the children worked in mixed groups to research a different aspect of life in Ancient Egypt. Over the next few days, they will build on the information they have gleaned and present it to their usual table groups. They will then use this shared research to create an exciting, illustrated information text all about Ancient Egypt.
For our literacy work over the next two weeks, we will be drawing on the knowledge we have gained in our recent history lessons in order to write a factual report all about Ancient Egypt.
In order to support your child at home, you could:
1. Practise using the word of the week, fascinatingly
2. Think about how information is presented in non-fiction text, focusing on organisational devices such as subheaded paragraphs and glossaries. Why are these used? How do they help the reader?
3. Talk to your child about what life might have been like in Ancient Egypt. You could explore some of the BBC Bitesize resources online here.
Any work that your child completes at home can be used to support their literacy work in class.
Thank you.
Mrs Vaqueiro
In our history lessons in 3V we have been learning all about the Ancient Egyptians. This week, we looked at how the Ancient Egyptians looked after their dead.
For our literacy lessons this week, we will be continuing our work on ‘The Day the Crayons Quit’ by Drew Daywalt. You can watch a version of the story here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=489micE6eHU
In order to support your child at home, you could:
1. Practise using the word of the week, despondent
2. Encourage them to think about how each of the crayons is feeling in the story. What were the clues in the story that helped you to know how each one feels? How might these feelings show? E.g. someone who is angry might have clenched fists, a frowning face, flushed complexion etc.
3. Think about how a letter is structured. What are the main features of a letter?
Any work that your child completes at home can be used to support their literacy work in class.
Thank you.
Mrs Vaqueiro
