Summer Newsletter, Year 2   

Welcome back! We have a busy and exciting term ahead, including our visit to Kentwell Hall and Forest School sessions after half term.

English

We will be reading this term Lost and Found and The Way Back Home by Oliver Jeffries, Maisie’s Dragon by Philippa Danvers, Poems about birds, The Dragon Machine by Helen Ward and Fox by M Wild and R Brooks. Writing skills will continue to focus on basic punctuation (capital letters, full stops and question marks and commas in lists) as well as looking further at the use of the apostrophe, both for possession and contraction, and at the use of speech marks.  Spelling and handwriting also form an ongoing part of our learning in English.  All children should be showing increasing evidence of a neat and regular handwriting style by the end of Year 2, showing clear ‘ascenders’ and ‘descenders’ as well as accurate use of capital letters; we would be grateful if you could support this at home by making sure your child is forming their letters and numbers correctly – your 1:1 supervision is invaluable in this area.

Please also continue to listen to your child read, discussing their understanding of the texts they are reading.  As well as our group, guided reading sessions, we are introducing regular written comprehension activities to prepare the children for Key Stage 2; we encourage the children to find specific evidence and word choices from the texts they have read as well as to read between the lines to answer higher level questions.

Maths

The children will continue to build on their independence and presentation this term as well as developing their times tables knowledge introducing x 3 as well as continuing to practise x2, x5 and x10 (division facts as well as multiplication).  They will continue to practise multiplication and division using bead-lines and grouping, concentrating on understanding the connection between the two operations. The children will also continue to focus on place value, using this to help them add and subtract two-digit numbers and will use a number line and counting on to help them find the difference between two numbers as well as ordering and rounding 2-digit numbers to the nearest 10.  They will learn to recognise and know the value of all coins, using them to make amounts.  The children will continue to recognise and count in fractions as well as finding fractions of amounts. They will also continue learning to tell the time to the nearest 5-minutes as well as undertaking a range of number puzzles and maths investigations.  Their learning will be re-enforced with practical work as well as applying skills to reasoning activities.

Topic (History and Geography)

Our topic this term is the Tudors which will have a history focus; we will be learning about life for the rich and poor children in Tudor times. We will study the Tudor monarchs especially Henry VIII and Elizabeth I. We will develop the children’s understanding of chronology and will consider the impact that these significant figures have had on our lives today.  We will be bringing the Tudors topic to life with a visit to Kentwell Hall ( Friday 28^th June) where the children will experience different workshops and dress up as Tudor children. We will be looking at examples of Tudor buildings in the local area including Audley End and Tudor houses in the village.

Science

In the first half term, we will explore the world of seeds: learn why plants disperse their seeds and the various clever ways in which they do this. The children will plant seeds and grow a bean using hydroponics and then using their maths skills will watch and record what happens to them. In the second half term, the children will create a class allotment, grow and nurture their own plants by watering and introducing useful mini-beasts.  They will also learn how food chains work and understand that energy from the Sun is passed through each link in a food chain.

Computing

We will be using the school laptops to create PowerPoint presentations around an area of life in Tudor times. E-safety will continue to be re-enforced when using the internet for research.  Developing the children’s fluency in typing continues to be important and regular practise at home will be extremely beneficial.

Art and DT

In art this term we will developing our observational skills, sketching flowers and vegetables as part of our cross-curricular work on allotments and looking at perspective when painting.  We will also be looking at examples of portraits from the Tudor era and creating our own portraits in a similar style.

Our DT learning will link with our Science topics and we will be building minibeast shelters and bird feeders.   We will focus on methods of joining and quality of finish as well as the idea of evaluating and refining our designs.

RE and PSHE

In RE, our focus will be special places, considering how our environment affects our wellbeing and our spirituality in a range of cultures and religions. In PSHE will be examining our feelings and our relationships with others.  We will also be learning about healthy lifestyles and how to be healthy.

Music

In Music, the children will experiment with, create, select and combine sounds to create effects reflecting the seasons, especially Summer.  We will listen to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons to inspire our work.

PE

PE will now take place on a Thursday and Friday.  We will be improving our athletics skills and learning ball and striking skills in team games.  The children will need trainers, together with their school PE shorts and top (and a cap on sunny days), for use outdoors throughout the summer term.

Homework

As previously, in addition to hearing your child read whenever possible, the children will be set spellings to learn each week on Friday, ready for a test on the following Friday; please assist them with look, cover, write, check activities to consolidate their learning.  Maths, English or Topic homework will continue to be set on Fridays for return the following Wednesday.

If you have questions or concerns, please make an appointment to speak to me before or after school.

Best wishes

Mrs Hall