Ferney Lee Primary School

What did we learn about in Spring 1?

This half term, our Geographical enquiry question was:

'Why do our seas and oceans need protecting?' 

In our Geography lessons we learnt where the oceans and seas are, what lives in the ocean and where, why the oceans matter, what is harming our oceans and what we can do to help save and look after our oceans. Linking to this topic, we went on a trip to The Blue Planet Aquarium. 

In English, we based our writing on the class text 'Song of the Dolphin Boy' by Elizabeth Laird. We wrote diary entries, instructions and non-chronological reports. 

In Maths, we completed our second Multiplication and Division unit where we learnt written methods to multiply, how to divide with remainders and problem solve with multiplication and division. 

In Science, we finished our topic on 'Animals and Humans' before beginning our topic on 'Electricity' where we  explored common appliances that run on electricity, constructed simple electrical circuits, and learnt about  common conductors and insulators.

In PE, we continued to learn new skills in the water in our weekly swimming lessons every Wednesday and then took part in creative dance lessons every Friday, which involved us choreographing and performing our own class dance routine which we performed infront of the whole school. 

In Art, we created underwater art linking with our oceans topic. We used paints to create a layered underwater scene with silhouetted animals and used pastels to create turtle pictures. 

In Music, we listened to changes in pitch, tempo and dynamics and related it to something tangible and familiar. Linking to our geography learning, we represented different stages of the river through vocal and percussive ostinatos, which culminated in a final group performance.

In PSHE/RHE, our focus wass 'Caring and Responsibility' where we answered the question, 'What are our rights and why are they important?'

In DT, we linked our activity to our Science learning by creating 3D Angler fish with an electrical circuit which allowed our model fish to light up. 

In French, we learnt French numbers 1-31, the days of the week, months of the year, dates and seasons through maths and songs and class surveys. We also researched dates of French festivals.

What did we learn in Autumn 2?

In Autumn 2, our Historical enquiry question was: 

'Why were the Romans such a successful ruling empire?'

In our History lessons we learnt how Rome was founded, what the hierarchy was like in Rome, the different ways Rome was ruled, what life was like in the Roman Empire, what it was like to be a Roman soldier and who the Romans believed in. 

In English, we wrote non-chronological reports and setting descriptions based on our class text, 'Romans on the Rampage' by Jeremy Strong. 

In Maths, we completed our unit on addition and subtraction by using different skills and strategies to add and subtract within 4 digit numbers. We also completed a short unit on finding the perimeter and our first of our multiplication and subtraction units where we finished learning the rest of our times tables, learnt to multiply by multiples of 10 and 100 and how to multiply by 1 and 0. 

In Science, our topic was 'Animals including humans' and we began answering the enquiry question, 'What happens in our digestive systems?' 

In PE, we continued to be confident swimmers every Wednesday and learnt new team game skills every Friday. 

In Design and Technology, we designed, made and built our own Roman Chariots. 

In Art, we created centurion portraits. 

In Music, we used our understanding of repeating patterns, before being introduced to the concept of motifs. We learnt a musical motif based on the Romans and performed it.

In PSHE/RHE, we explored similarities and differences and answered the enquiry question, 'Why is identity and diversity so important?'

In French, we learnt vocabulary to describe items of clothing, along with the different forms of the indefinite article. We incorporated previous learning about colour into our descriptions of clothing and expressed our opinions about outfits in French.

What did we learn in Autumn 1? 

In our first half term, our Geographical enquiry question was:

'How would living in Italy compare with living in England?'

In our Geography lessons, we compared the climate, crops, physical geography, settlements, landmarks and capital cities of England and Italy. 

In English, we completed a Place Value of Punctuation and Grammar unit concentrating on different nouns, verbs and clauses to create accurate sentence structure.

In Maths, we learnt about the Place Value of numbers up to 10,000, which includes rounding, ordering, comparing and representing numbers in different ways and began our Addition and Subtraction Unit. 

In Science, we explored, 'States of Matter' by answering the enquiry question, 'Can a material change from being a solid, a liquid or a gas?'

In Art, we completed a 'Monochrome' unit where we learnt how artists create perspective, how they use line, shape, and value to create a sense of form, and about different shading techniques.

In PE, we began weekly swimming lessons on a Wednesday and learnt how to play as part of a team during Tag Rugby lessons every Friday.  

In Music, we used a mixture of body percussion and tuned percussion instruments to create our own rhythms of the rainforest. 

In PSHE/RHE, we explored the question, 'How can we make and maintain a good friendship?'

In RE, we completed a unit called, 'How do ancient stories influence modern celebrations?' We then explored the religions Christianity, Hindu and Paganism.

In French, we learnt adjectives for describing people’s physical appearance and their personality. We then created simple sentences ensuring that the adjectives agreed with the gender of the noun.

In Computing, we learnt how to stay safe online as well as building basic computer skills using a touchtyping programme. 

Meet the staff...

Miss Blanchard (Class Teacher)

Miss Bury (HLTA)

Mrs Adams (Support Assistant)

Welcome to our Library...

Below are the some of texts and literature we will be using in Year 4 to support the delivery of our curriculum. 

Below are the some of texts and literature we will be using in Year 4 to support the delivery of our PSHE and RHE curriculum. 

Throughout the year, we add the books we read as a class to our beautiful Class Reading tree on the wall outside our classroom.