Autumn 2024

Our Autumn Term topic is...

Great People who Changed the World!

Autumn Term 1 Curriculum Newsletter

Autumn Term 2 Curriculum Newsletter

A focus for this topic is to learn about significant people from the past that have made important changes to society. Please take a look at our curriculum page for more information on what key knowledge is taught in each subject.

Keep your eyes peeled for more information on our learning and photographs of the exciting times we have in Year 2.

History - Significant Individuals

We began our history topic by learning a range of key vocabulary to help our understanding.

We have learnt about some key significant figures from the past. We learnt about the impact of what they did and the lasting legacy they've left behind. Here are a few of the people we've learnt about and a few key facts. I'm sure your child can tell you lots more about each one!

Karl Benz - Invented the first motor car in 1886.

Lugwig Guttmann - Invented the Paralympic games in 1960, so that disabled people had the opportunity to compete in sport.

Charles Macintosh - Invented the first waterproof coat in 1823.

Rosa Parks - Fought for her rights for white and black people to be treated equally. Started the Bus Boycott in 1955 which led to laws being changed.

William Booth - Founded a charity called 'The Salvation Army' in 1865. This Christian charity helps homeless people.

Art - Drawing

In our Art lessons during the first half of Autumn term, we have been inspired by an artist called Kei Meguro who draws realistic self-portraits.

Kei Meguro

Kei's Artwork

Children have been exploring the use of texture, tone, line and shape to create realistic drawings. We have had the opportunity to practise some drawing techniques using different graded pencils which allowed us to compare the tone. We then had a go at using line and shape to draw different facial features before creating our own self-portraits! I'm sure you'll agree, they are amazing! Take a look at some of our portraits below...

During our second half-term we learnt about the artist, 'George Seurat'. We noticed that he created his paintings using lots of little dots (stippling). He invented the technique 'pointillism'.

George Seurat

George's Artwork

We were inspired by this to create our own artwork using this technique. We created our own poppy pictures (linked to Remembrance day) in the style of George Seurat.

Science - Materials

In our science lessons we have been learning about materials. We have explored the properties of each material and also their suitability. In the first half-term we carried out an investigation into how solid materials can be changed. We enjoyed making our predictions before testing the different materials by twisting, stretching, bending and squashing. We had lots of fun!

During the second half-term we were inspired by the scientist 'Charles Macintosh', who invented the first waterproof coat in 1823. We decided to carry out an investigation, to test to see whether different materials were waterproof, not waterproof, water resistant or absorbent. The children became scientists for the afternoon and thoroughly enjoyed exploring, observing and recording their findings.

Design & Technology - Mechanisms

Wheels and Axles

In DT this half-term we've been exploring how the mechanism 'wheels and axles' work. We've learnt how the axle holds the wheels in place, allows the wheels to rotate and also holds the weight of the load. Children used this knowledge to design and make a model car. They even got the opportunity to saw their wooden axles to the correct size! They then tested their cars down a ramp and evaluated them, thinking about how they made their model car and what they might do differently next time.

Lever Mechanism

During the second half of Autumn term we learnt how a 'lever mechanism' works. We learnt that we need a load, fulcrum and effort in order to make the lever mechanism move in the correct way. We used this knowledge to help us create moving parts on our Christmas cards, using split pins as the fulcrum.

Computing - Word Document

In computing this term, we've been learning how to open and save on the Microsoft Word Programme. We've been practising our typing skills, including using the shift key, backspace, enter, space bar and the full stop key. We also learnt how to change the appearance of our font. We typed out messages for the insides of our Christmas cards. We hope you enjoyed reading them! Here are a few examples:

February 2025

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