Spring Term 2024
Our Spring Term topic is...
All Creatures Great and Small
Spring 1 Curriculum Newsletter
Spring 2 Curriculum Newsletter
A large focus will be learning about animals, habitats and the world. We will use non-fiction texts and research to learn facts about real animals and how they are suited to their habitats.
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 during spring term in Year 2.
English
We received a letter from Ms Allin (our Forest School Teacher) who asked us to investigate what might have happened in the allotment. The clues (a basket, paw prints, a blue jacket, some dug up vegetables and some fur) led us to make predictions about what might've happened and we found out that it was... Peter Rabbit! Our key text for this half-term will be 'The Tale of Peter Rabbit'. We will be learning about what Peter Rabbit is like as a character in order to write a character description. We will also learn the features of a diary entry and then write our own entries in the role of Peter Rabbit.
Click on an image below and use the left or right arrow keys to scroll through the photos.
During our second half of spring we have been reading the text 'The Hodgeheg' by Dick King-Smith. This text taught us alot about hedgehogs as well as road safety! We decided to create our own fact pages (non-chronological reports). We undertook our own research of hedgehogs using a range of sources (non-fiction books, fact pages and the Internet). We identified and used the features of a fact page - title, real information, sub headings, photographs and captions.
To read the fact pages from Oak class please scroll through these documents:
Hedgehog Fact Pages - Landscape
Hedgehog Fact Pages - Portrait
Geography
In geography we have been naming and locating the seven continents and five oceans on a world map. We have also located different habitats (physical features) and landmarks (human features) in different areas of the world. The children really enjoy singing some songs about the continents and oceans - I'm sure some of you have heard them by now! Here are the links to them:
We also enjoy doing this interactive quiz: Interactive Continents and Oceans Quiz
Science
In science we've been learning about different habitats: ocean, woodland, rainforest, desert and polar. The children have enjoyed learning this song: Habitats Song
History
In history (and during World Book Week) we have been learning about the famous author Dick King-Smith. We carried out research, using a range of different sources (non-fiction books, fact pages and the Internet). He is a children's author who has written over 100 books. He loved animals and was a farmer when he was younger so most of his books are based on animals. We learnt about what his school life was like when he was in school in the past (1929) and then compared it to what school life is like now in the present (2024).
Computing
We linked our computing with our history learning this half-term. We created PowerPoint Presentations on Dick King-Smith, typing out our written facts about him. The children practised their typing skills from Autumn and then learnt how to insert a new slide, insert images and change the way the font looks. They also explored with changing the design and background of their slides.
Take a look at our finished PowerPoint Presentations!
Art
Collage
In Art we have been learning about the artist ‘Deborah Shapiro’ and how she uses magazines and paper to create collage images. We have been inspired to create our own collage of an animal, thinking carefully about the way in which we use shape, colour and layering to create a desired effect.
Sculpture
We have also been inspired by the sculpture artist 'Anthony Gormley' to create our own sculptures out of clay. We created hedgehog sculptures to link with our English learning. We designed our sculptures by drawing them, focusing on the shape and size and then thought about what tools we would need. We then used our design to create our sculptures, using our hands to mould and shape the clay and tools to create texture and detail.
Design and Technology
In DT we have designed, made and evaluated fruit muffins this term as part of developing our understanding of food technology. The design element was for children to create and follow their muffin recipe. Children learnt how to measure ingredients using weighing scales and measuring jugs. They also learnt how to cut fruit safely using the bridge hold and the claw grip.
