Year 4
Notices & Reminders
World Book Day
On Thursday 4th March 2021 we will celebrate World Book Day. This is a global event where children of all ages come together to share the joy of reading for pleasure. Spending just 10 minutes a day reading and sharing stories with children can make a crucial difference to their future success and it’s fun for all involved. That is why World Book Day continues to encourage children and young people to read for pleasure through its work with authors, illustrators, publishers, bookshops and libraries.
On Thursday, the children will be working on one or more book related activities. Due to remote learning this will be slightly different to how we normally celebrate the event, but we will still be able to share, explore and enjoy books together.
Below is a link to the World Book Day website which has lots of good activities and resources that you might like to do at home. The audio and video books are a fun way of sharing a text with your child.
There is a particularly good resource that you may like to use which gives ideas for recommended texts under different topics and themes. It doesn’t give you the actual book, but it gives you an idea of books that are available that can be purchased for birthdays etc or borrowed from libraries when they reopen again.
Reading Recommendations (worldbookday.com)
The children will receive their book voucher as usual when they return to school on the 8th March 2021. These vouchers can be exchanged for world book day books which have been written by well known authors, or they can be used towards purchasing a text of your choice. You can exchange the vouchers in most supermarkets when you go to do your essential shopping, or you can hold onto them until book shops open once more. Most book shops are willing to extend the use by date on the voucher to accommodate this.
I hope you will join us in celebrating this event with your children.
Happy reading!
Mrs Nicholson
___
Hello All,
Well done on a fantastic week of learning - you have all done a great job of getting back in to the swing of things with home learning.
Please note that tomorrow afternoon, Friday 26 February, there will be no live learning. Work will be posted on SeeSaw within the daily presentation.
There will also be no live learning on Monday 1 March in the morning. There will be registration at 08.30 and then Maths and English will be independent. I will talk the children through their tasks in registration.
On Tuesday 2 March, lessons in the afternoon will also be independent due to Parent/ Teacher consultations taking place.
Thank you.
Mrs W
Thank you.
Mrs W
___
It's half term!
What a strange five weeks of learning this has been and well done to all of the children, and of course, you all supporting them. I have shared some ideas below of some different activities and things to do over the break that might be fun - I know a lock down half term may pose its challenges! Please note the timetable for after half term has changed. A new version is now on the 'timetable' section of our class page.
Audio books
talkingtales.org has some beautifully narrated stories and ideas of activities to do together. As long as schools stay closed, stories.audible.com will let you stream a huge number of audiobooks for free from Beatrix Potter to sing-along songs!
Virtual trips
You can go on a journey through Africa, Japan and Ancient Egypt at britishmuseum.org. There are also some behind-the-scenes podcasts and virtual tours.
At annefrank.org you can take a look round the secret annexe where Anne wrote her famous diary.
If you scroll to the bottom of tate.org.uk and click on Tate Kids, you will find a dedicated hub offering arty activities such as make your own Olafur Eliasson inspire kaleidoscope or create a soap model!
Chester Zoo you can join a virtual tour and watch the elephants in the poo or the giraffes eat their breakfast! chesterzoo.org Longleat are also offering a virtual safari at longleat.co.uk and have lots of different factfiles and resources on meerkats to rhinos.
Get outdoors and exploring
Wildlife Watch - wildlifewatch.org.uk - has a fantastic selection of things to do, from building a hedgehog house to bug hunts. I have posted some of these on SeeSaw but there are lots more on the website. There’s also a learning hub where children can look up different minibeasts and mammals and find out more about the wildlife that lives near them. The National Trust also have a wealth of different ideas on their website, including ’50 things to do in your garden’ https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/lists/50-things-activities-to-do-in-your-back-garden .
Drama
Shakespeare's Globe have lots of onlne activities, workshops and storytelling sessions exploring Shakespeare on their website [https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/discover/blogs-and-features/2021/01/15/online-events-for-all-the-family-to-enjoy-during-lockdown/] from puppet shows to puzzles.
Cooking and baking
BBC Good Food has some great ideas for kids to get creative in the kitchen, from making pastry shapes to a fruit memory game. https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/10-kids-cooking-projects-you-should-be-doing-half-term
Whatever you do please make sure you all rest and enjoy the break. Your children have worked very hard and they all deserve a nice break!
Mrs Webb
__
Hello All,
A reminder that tomorrow I will not be on Zoom.
There will be a short video to watch at the beginning of the day, and after that there will be the daily presentation and worksheets to work through.
Mrs Abbott will be doing registration and I have put her Zoom details on the 'homework' page. They are also on SeeSaw.
Have a great day,
Mrs Webb
___
Hello All,
We are nearly at the end of the first half term of the year and I am so impressed with how hard your children have worked. It’s been a very different few weeks but they have all logged on every day with a smile on their face.
Please note that next Thursday (11 February) there will be no live Zoom lessons. Instead I will be sharing pre-recorded sessions on SeeSaw for the children to follow. I will send a reminder via SeeSaw next week and inform the children on Zoom too. My apologies for any disruption this may cause.
I will be posting some suggestions for activities over half term on here. I know it’s difficult to do anything at the moment (!) but there are some lovely resources and activities which have come my way which I will share with you in case you would like some ideas!
Have a great weekend,
Mrs Webb
___
Y4 Lexia Competition
We would like to let you know about an exciting competition we are running in Y4!
Starting from Monday 25th January 2021 until half term, the children will have the chance to win a £5 voucher each week until half term.
One voucher will be awarded each Friday to the person who has the most usage on Lexia for that week and also another voucher will be awarded to the person who has made the most progress.
We are keen to promote the use of Lexia as it enables children to develop and strengthen key reading skills which they will need to use when accessing all areas of the curriculum.
We hope you will encourage and motivate your child to take part in this competition. However please do keep an eye on the amount of screen time they are having; short but frequent sessions work better rather than long lengths of time staring at a screen. We obviously want the children to be up and moving, so it is much better to do little and often.
If you have any questions, please do email the class teacher or alternatively you can email me using the address year2@fawbert-barnards.essex.sch.uk
Happy reading!
Nancy Nicolson
English Lead
22 January 2021
Please use the following link for celebration assembly:
If you have a spare five minutes, please could you complete the following history survey:
https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/RJVRPZF
Miss Howes would just like to find out a little about your history learning! It shouldn't take too long.
___
Reading Support
During this period of remote learning it is important that you continue supporting your child with their reading.
In Reception, Year 1, 2 and 3 this can be sitting with your child and listening to them read. Ideally you should try and do this every day even if it is just for 5-10 minutes. It will help you all to keep structure and routines going which we know is good for our mental health.
With the older children it may not be necessary to hear them read as frequently, and so just catching up with them every few days about what they are reading would be a great idea. You can either listen to them read or get them to tell you what they have been reading and ask them questions. You could ask them:-
Are they enjoying the book? Why?
What do they think might happen next?
What has been the most/least favourite part so far?
Who are the characters? Tell me about them/him/her/it?
Have they read any other books by this author?
Which one of their friends would enjoy this book? Why?
Talking about a book is a great way to see how much your child has understood and engaged with the text.
We know that you may not have reading books at home that your child can access but there are several online sites that you can look at.
The Oxford Owl website has an online library of e-books that your child can read. We used this website during the first lockdown and you should be able to register for free and access appropriate books for your child.
Oxford Owl for Home: help your child learn at home | Oxford Owl
You can select age appropriate books by either selecting the age of your child or if you use the Levels drop down bar you can select the book band that your child is on. If you are unsure check with your child as they should know, but if they have forgotten then email the class teacher and they will let you know.
Children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 still have access to Reading Eggs until the end of February. Your child can use this resource independently, but I think it would be good to listen to them read where you can. As the children become more confident with their reading, they should be accessing the Reading Eggspress site which gives them books they can read and quizzes once they have read the book. You should be able to find it on the home screen.
Each child should have their login but if you are unable to find it please email the class teacher.
Children in Year 4 and some children in Year 5 have access to Lexia which is an online reading site which supports the reading curriculum. Your child should have their own login. Please contact the class teacher if they do not know it.
There are many other online reading sites that you can access and it is good to explore them with your child. The Book Trust provides books that children can read along with
Stories for kids online and fun games to play | BookTrust
If you find any useful ones please share them with each other and let us know.
We will continue to update you where we can when we find helpful resources that will support children with reading at home.
The homework for this time of remote learning is just focused on reading so please make sure your child reads as frequently as they can. Reading is a key skill and is so crucial; it is more important than ever that we encourage our children to read and love books. Try and make the reading experience as positive as possible and please do let the class teacher know if you are having any difficulties engaging your child or accessing texts and resources.
Nancy Nicolson
English Lead
____
Wednesday 13 January
Well done for another fantastic day of learning, I am so proud of you all and how hard you are working - you should be too!
I have a couple of messages today:
On Friday, Mr Worton-Geer will be taking you for English through to PE in the afternoon. I will be posting the Zoom link for his session on the website, to be used after first break. Don't worry, I will remind you on Friday!
For Monday next week, you will need your Language Nut log in. I am giving you some warning, as I know some of you may need to contact me to find out what this is. If you do not know your log in, please ask your grown up to send me an email and I can share it with them.
Have a great evening and see you bright and early tomorrow morning!
___
Wednesday 6 January
What a day! Year four you have so impressed me with your mature approach to getting back to learning, you should all be very proud of yourselves. Great work today and I will see you all tomorrow! Please use the same Zoom link to log on.
___
Tuesday 5 January
Zoom details for home learning will be posted on the 'Y4 Homework' page.
I hope you have all had a wonderful Christmas break, and I am so looking forward to getting back to learning with Year Four!
Please email year4@fawbert-barnards.essex.sch.uk if you have any questions.
___
Reporting COVID cases to the school over the holiday period should be addressed to covid@fawbert-barnards.essex.sch.uk . This e-mail address will be monitored between 10:00 - 12:00 noon until 24 December 2020. Please see letter for more details.
___
Friday 18 December
Please note, I have posted the link to our Christingle service on the 'Homework' page.
What a fantastic term we have had in year four! There have been lots of wonderful moments, and the whole class has worked so hard - I am very proud of them. Despite all that is going on in the world around them, they have come into school every single day upbeat and eager to learn - it is such a tonic.
Thank you ever so much for my presents, they are tucked away at home waiting until Christmas Day! It is very kind of you. Thank you also for your kind messages and best wishes for the festive period, I really appreciate it.
I wish you all a very Merry Christmas, full of joy and happiness and all the best for the New Year.
___
Wednesday 16 December
What a great day we had yesterday celebrating what was for some of you, the last day in school before Christmas.
If you are at home, I hope you are working hard on your blended learning packs.
Please watch the carol service at some point today, I am sure that it will make you feel very festive! https://youtu.be/gIOCB7ob8OM
___
Monday 7 December
Reminder - please ensure that your child has enough layers on! The weather has turned and as we have to keep the classroom ventilated, it's not all that warm inside at the moment. Please ensure that your child brings extra jumpers/ layers to put on during the day.
Thank you to those parents and carers who have informed me of their choice of Option A or Option B for next week. If you haven't yet done so, please let me know by tomorrow so that I can make the necessary arrangements. School remains open until 18th December and I will be in class with the children, but I hope that our class bubble does not have to isolate any time after 15th, as this would mean all of us, pupils and staff, isolating over Christmas.
___
Friday 4 December
On Tuesday 8th December the children will be taking part in a short video as part of our Christmas celebrations. If possible we would like them to bring in a Christmas Jumper on that day so that they can wear it for their part of the video. The children must come to school in their normal school uniform and bring their jumper with them in a small bag. They will then put on their jumper for the session. If you have any questions please send them to the usual class email address.
___
Monday 30 November
What a busy half term it has been! We have been having such a wonderful time in class learning about our topic, the Rainforest, and the children have such wonderful ideas about how we can do more to look after our planet.
Today we had our Christmas craft morning, and we made a lovely Christmas window as well as a card. We have also made some hanging decorations but these are drying in school!
This Friday is the school pantomime and so please remember that your child will need a packed lunch to eat.
The countdown to Christmas has begun!
___
Thursday 12 November
Hello all - just a reminder that children should arrive in class by 08.45. Any time after this and your child will be marked as late. Please let me know if you have any problems with this.
___
Monday 9 November
What a busy start back to the half term! Your children were all absolute superstars last week and adapted to Zoom teaching so well - I am really proud of them. This Friday is children in need and we will all be dressing up in bright colours. Please be aware that whilst we are not going swimming on Friday, we will still have PE and so the children will need to get changed out of/ back in to their costumes. I am looking forward to seeing their outfits! As ever, I know it is difficult to communicate at the school gates now, so please contact me on the class email if you would like to discuss anything - year4@fawbert-barnards.essex.sch.uk
___
Friday 23 October
I am sure that your children have told you about Jeff, the hedgehog we rescued. I have put some pictures below of when we found Jeff, and when we put him in a box to keep him safe to travel to the vet. Jeff has now gone to hospital as he has a poorly leg. I have asked them to keep me updated but they may be too busy! If I hear anything, I will post it on here. Have a great half term!
___
Thursday 22 October
Your children have worked so hard this half term. Coming back to school has been a huge physical and emotional challenge for many of them, especially after such a long time off and they have all excelled themselves. They have worked hard, settled back in to the routine of school and really made me feel a part of their class.
I am not going to set any work over the half term, as I would like them all to have a well earned rest! However, I have listed below some ideas for fun things you could do at home, as well as some interesting days out and places that are open to visit.
Bake a loaf of bread
BBC Good Food have lots of different recipes perfect for children to learn how to bake some bread. With Bake Off in full swing, it’s the perfect time to try!
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/collection/kids-bread-recipes
RSPB wildlife survey
The RSPB are calling on young scientists to help them collect data about different birds, insects and animals. You can choose the survey you would like to do, and it can be done in any garden or green space.
Learn about British Hedgehogs
British Hedgehogs are really at risk at the moment, and this lovely story explains how we can help them. Get your child to make a poster to raise awareness about supporting hedgehogs, or have them think about how they could make your garden more hedgehog friendly.
https://www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk/a-letter-from-spike/
Treasure Trails
Treasure Trails is a great way to learn more about an area near you. The activities provide an exciting challenge combining clues and stories around a range of routes and areas. There are lots of different routes to try locally, including in Ware and Much Hadham but you can enter any area you like to see what’s nearby.
Whatever you get up to, have a really great half term.
Mrs Webb
___
Friday 16 October
I have sent both an individual and family SeeSaw QR code home with the children this afternoon so please ask them to hand it to you. If you have any further problems with SeeSaw then please email me directly. I know some of you are having issues with Lexia too - if this is the case then please can you let me know.
Have a great weekend and I look forward to getting back to school on Monday - we have got some exciting things planned for the last week of half term!
___
Friday 9 October
We have had a lovely week this week and today the children designed their Christmas cards. These have been uploaded to SeeSaw for you to take a look at. Details of how to place an order will follow shortly.
I have extended the homework deadline to the 23 October 2020. For those of you that have already completed the homework, I will be adding a few more things to do. I am conscious that this is a long half term for your children, and a lot of them may be getting tired coming up to the half term so please ensure that homework stays fun and does not feel too onerous!
Have a great weekend.
_______
Wednesday 7 October
A few reminders!
Your child will be bringing home a 'home learning' book today, which is only to be used for work during quarantine or lock-down.
Tomorrow is school photograph day... just in case you'd like to make sure your child looks extra smart for the occasion!
Please could you ensure that if your child has a snack at break time, it is healthy. The school policy is that this should be a fruit or vegetable.
Friday is swimming - please make sure that your child has a coat to wear to and from the swimming pool. As the weather deteriorates for winter, it is essential that your child has a coat.
_______
Friday 2 October
The weather is starting to deteriorate for winter and so please can you ensure that your child comes to school with a coat every Friday for swimming - whatever the weather forecast. We will be checking that they have a coat before leaving on the coach. Thank you.
_______
Monday 28 September
This coming Friday (2 October) is school superhero day, in celebration of our topic for this half term. Children should come dressed as their ultimate superhero - I am really looking forward to seeing all the costumes! As it is also swimming, please can you ensure that your child also has school uniform packed to change in to before travelling to the Leisure Zone. I am conscious that children (and you!) put lots of time, care and effort in to costumes and so children will be putting their school uniform on at lunchtime to travel to and from swimming.
Please email me if you have any questions.
_______
Tuesday 15 September
Please see below the details for swimming sessions that will be starting later this week. You can find the swimming pool and coach risk assessment below for your information.
_______
Tuesday 8 September
Hi Year Four,
It's wonderful to have you all back in school and I want to say a big well done to you all for working so hard to get back in to the swing of things! You have all been superstars.
Please feel free to email me if you have any queries - the address is year4@fawbert-barnards.essex.sch.uk
Mrs Webb
_____
Our Routines
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PE | Swimming | |||