We’re loving reading Julius Caesar and last week we did lots of drama. By the end of the week we were even acting out short scenes straight from Shakespeare’s play although we all wanted to play Caesar.

We did some fantastic home learning including writing awesome newspaper articles, making information leaflets and lots of shields. We’re quite scary lined up although we need to practice marching a bit more!

Thanks for supporting home learning.

Today we focused on learning and applying the 9 times table. We learnt some amazing ‘magic’ tricks that we can use to remember our 9’s, make sure children you are showing these off at home! Particularly the hand trick! We had a carousel of activities which we used to apply our learning, including Bingo, multiplication races, fortune tellers and even a 9 times table board game. We also used the iPads to play ‘hit the button’ which is a fantastic way to practice times tables….. All children proudly passed through 9 times table boot camp! 

In our Theme lesson, Year 4 turned into Celtic villagers. We researched the different jobs there were and worked in groups to make a poster for each one. There were fantastic weavers, basket makers, blacksmiths, hunters, farmers and children! 

We have been investigating melting. We planned an experiment to see if different coloured ice cubes melted at the same speed. Then we drew cartoons to record how fast the different cubes melted.

The sun was out so Year 4 took the opportunity to practice some measurement in the playground. We’ll let the rest of the school figure out what was going on at lunchtime.

Year 4 had a fantastic musical experience with a trip to the Worcester Arena to play alongside schools from across the county at the Worcestershire Youth Music FAME Festival. In the morning, 4RF took their cornets along to perform with over 600 clarinet and brass instruments including a professional brass band. It was 4RJ’s turn in the afternoon with a string concert in which they played their ukuleles. Everyone enjoyed this amazing opportunity and it was a brilliant way to finish off our year of music lessons.

Today, 4RF ttravelled back to the year 1516 and held an Aztec market selling all sorts of produce familiar to the Aztecs but as yet unknown to Europeans. How could they not know what a potato or tomato was?

We practiced lots of maths, learnt about Aztec life and really got into our roles of market traders – there are some budding Del Boys out there…

Year 4 had a fantastic time investigating habitats at Lower Smite Farm! We left the rain behind and enjoyed a brilliant day in the sun doing lots of science investigations.

Pond dipping revealed a wealth of water animals from water boatmen to mayfly nymph, from newts to dragonfly nymph and much more.

A hunt through the woodland and edge of the meadow revealed bush crickets, centipedes, woodlice, frogs and newts, slugs and snails, frog hoppers and a range of beetles. One beetle was of particular scientific interest and as yet unidentified! Year 4 wait excitedly for the experts to report back!

A big thank you to everyone at Worcestershire Wildlife Trust and our parent helpers who helped the day run smoothly.

Just in time before the rain came (and before the grass was cut!) 4RF spent an afternoon surveying the school field, recording their observations of the plants growing there.

But surely it’s all grass right?

Well we identified daisy, dandelion, both white and red clover, shamrock, thistle, speedwell, greater plantain, narrow leaf plantain, buttercup, dove’s foot cranesbill, chickweed and broad-leaved dock…

…And we haven’t even started on the hedgerow yet.

We also spotted something unusual on the surface of some tree leaves – strange reddish cones growing out of the leaf. After some research they turned out to be lime nail galls. They’re formed by microscopic mites that feed on the leaves of lime trees. The mites feed by sucking sap but while doing so produce chemicals that cause the leaves to produce the brightly coloured galls.