Twas the week before Xmas....

Maple

This week in Maple class the children have been busy practising for their nativity. We also had a very cheeky elf come and visit us in school, and as well as searching for him everyday, the children have made wanted posters, written him letters and even wrapped him presents.

Rowan

Marvellous musical morning!

Rowan class had their Listen2Me ukulele concert on Thursday and did such an amazing job. They performed twelve songs to their adults and impressed everyone in the hall. They have been learning for eleven weeks now and have made such fantastic progress. I know that the audience was impressed by their performance. Thank you to everyone who came and watched and I can say that we are very proud of them.

Birch

Birch class practised their culinary skills this week by cooking ratatouille, Parmentier potatoes and a vegetable taco in DT.

The results were delicious!

Sycamore

Minstead Residential!

The children have all had an amazing time on their residential this week, despite the rain. They went on a long, wet walk and even saw some New Forest Ponies. The children have loved taking part in the activities such as den building and it has been wonderful to see the team work and enthusiasm of everyone there.

Aspen

This week, we have been learning how to locate specific features on a map. 

With a range of Ordnance survey maps, we learnt how to read and locate  a six-figure grid reference, identify human and physical features and explain how the contour lines look different across a locations. We even began to look at main roads, and how varying transport links connected us to the local area.

Year 6

Year 6 have had a busy week completing their culinary DT projects by making bread and pasta sauce. They also presented the culmination of their work on Frozen Kingdoms to the children of Maple Class.

The beginning of Christmas.

Christmas Fair

A huge thank you to everyone who supported the school at our Christmas fair this week, The FOS did an amazing job at transforming the school and Mrs Jones made a very fetching elf. It was wonderful to see so many faces, old and new and the children’s painted faces looked really festive. Well done to everyone involved.

Maple

The children in Maple have been braving the cold and enjoying our fantastic outdoor learning. We have used positional language such as under, over, above and have also created masterpieces with mud painting and den building. The children have been able to be creative in a safe environment and extend their vocabulary and problem solving skills.

Rowan

We adapt and survive! This week Rowan class have been exploring animal adaptations in science. We explored what camouflage is and how some animals use it to survive in the wild. We investigated our local environment and researched what colours and textures were in our woodland. We then went back to class and created two moths each. One camouflaged, that would ideally remain hidden from the predators, and one bright and colourful, that would draw predators attention. We then hid these moths in the woodland and unleased some Year 3 moths predators to try and find as many as they could! They only managed to find 31/56, so our camouflage must have worked! 

Birch

Children in Birch Class performed beautifully at the Beyond the Beat Concert on Thursday afternoon. They showed off their skills on the violin and cello, including plucking and using the bow. In addition, they were a respectful audience to the rest of the performers in the concert. Well done, everyone!

Sycamore

Sycamore class have been learning about the ear and how we hear. We conducted an experiment to muffle sounds (make them quieter). The thicker the material to cover the sound, the quieter it became. 

Aspen

Aspen class had an incredible school trip this week! We visited the Winchester Science Centre to learn about all things space. On our visit, we had plenty of time to explore both floors, which were full of hands on exhibitions. We even had the chance to wear an astronaut suit. 

As part of the trip, we had a session in the classroom where we looked at how the  James Webb telescope works and tested why it was covered in gold with the use of an infra-red lamp.

In the afternoon, we headed for the planetarium where we immersed ourselves in an out of this world show! We looked  at all of the constellations in our night sky and had a close up view of the eight planets in our solar system.  

Year 6

In year 6, the children have taken to the headlines, whilst taking on the persona of a newspaper journalist writing superb articles for the paper, based on their rich English text-Pig Heart Boy. They then analysed their report and from that developed ideas further in the form of a balanced argument, in preparation for writing a letter to the Prime Minister, as their main learning outcome. 

Year 5 and 6 Musicians

Year 5 and 6 were fantastic this week and showed how far our musicians have come since they started. All the practise at home and school was evident for all to see and hear. Well done.

House competition

The House Captains challenged the pupils to design Heron, Buzzard, Kingfisher and Lark  emblems for each house. The entries were of a very high standard. Well done to Georgina, Tiana Rose , Jamil and Dexter for drawing the winning designs.

Hard at work at Stanmore Primary School

Maple

Maple class have had a busy week exploring the four countries in the United Kingdom. The children labelled maps using a key, created their own flags and even painted the four national flowers. In RE the children have been learning about Harvest festival and have drawn their favourite meals and thanked the farmers.

Rowan

Rowan class practised their sketching skills by drawing a still life composition of a selection of fruit. They used hatching and cross hatching to shade their still life drawings.

Birch

Birch Class have been learning about the validity of historical evidence and the true facts or assumptions that we can gather from it. We used these skills to discuss evidence about the Amesbury Archer, a Bronze Age man, recorded the facts and explained our views on what we might assume about him. 

Sycamore

Sycamore class have been studying Angels in RE. They acted out the annunciation and performed to the rest of the class. They have also been looking at using speech marks accurately so that they can include speech when they create their own Viking Saga. 

Aspen

This week, to finish off our inspirational writing journey, we wrote a biography based on one of the four ladies who made up Hidden Figures.

With the use of fronted adverbials, cohesive facts and a range of technical  ( tier 3) words, we were able to portray these remarkable women brilliantly. 

Year 6

Y6 learnt all about how a virus can spread through a population and the impact of vaccination in stopping the spread of disease through an immunisation game in PHSE.

Exploring our world through our curriculum

Maple

This week we have been exploring the world through our topic - It's a wonderful world. They used positional language in Forest School re-enacting the bear hunt and used words such as over, under, behind, in front of and next to. They also explored what the equator was and how countries that were closer to the equator where hotter than those far away.

Rowan

Rowan class made pinch pots in art. They handled the clay with great care and used a variety of tools to pattern the pots.

Rowan class have also been practicing their ukulele skills for the past few weeks. Every Thursday the Hampshire music service provide the children with some expert tuition. They have been thriving on this opportunity. Their teacher taught them a technique today where they had to switch chords during the song. She said that she rarely does this with year 2 classes this early in the year, so we were both amazed at their skill! They are practicing for the Listen 2 Me concert on the 7th December at 9.15 in the hall. If you can make it, please come along, and support them and enjoy an amazing performance. 

Birch

In PE this week, children in Birch Class have been using their gymnastic skills to create a short routine including mirroring. They have been working hard to ensure that they show extended hands and pointed toes too!

Sycamore

Year 4 have been looking at the skills that you need to solve problems in maths as well as all of the jottings and visual representations that you might need in order to help you to solve a problem. 

Aspen

In art, Aspen class are learning how Taoties were created during the Shang Dynasty. First, we explored the process of bronze casting, and how that has developed throughout time.  To practise casting, we have been using a different method each week, so we can reflect on the processes, difficulties and successes. Last week, we used silicone moulds with a skin-safe casting plaster called Alginate. 

This week, we used clay to create our own moulds. With plastic animals, Lego and 2d shapes, we pressed images into the clay and poured the Alginate into the clay. Once they are dry, we are going to carefully remove them from the clay and paint them.

Year 6

In year 6, the children have been measuring their heart rates using different techniques in science, which led to their key investigation ‘Do children with lower resting heart rates, have faster 100m sprint times?’ The children enjoyed ‘running’ their experiment and drew scatter graphs and made conclusions from their results.

Our amazing school choir

This week our fantastic choir sang at Winchester Cathedral in honour of the latest graduates. They sounded beautiful and were an absolute credit to the school.

Lorraine Lee Workshop -routines for children

Don’t forget - the Lorraine Lee workshop on routines will take place in the hall from 3:30pm - 5pm with a childcare facility in Ready to Learn. 

Marvellous Maths and Science

Maple

In Y1 the children have been learning the names of the seven continents and exploring where in the world they sit. The children have explored google earth as well as making the continents out of playdough and labelling them. In Maths YR have been focussed on circles and triangles and have been using great mathematical vocabulary to explain the difference.

Rowan

Rowan class have been working so hard in their addition and subtraction maths journey these past few weeks. We have been looking at adding two, 2 digit numbers together where we might need to do an exchange. They have been using the base 10 cubes, place value charts, and their own whiteboard jottings to figure out these tricky questions. Amazing work! 

Birch

In Birch Class, we have been investigating to see if all seven year olds have the same sized skeleton. We carried out our data collection, collated the results and used this information to answer and explain our question.

Sycamore

In Sycamore Class, we have been focusing on using jottings rather than doing the calculations in our head. Although it can be impressive to solve something mentally, generally using jottings (such as pictures, bar models, noting down multiples, etc.) is a helpful technique so that you don't need to hold as much information in your head. 

Aspen

Aspen class were exploring the world of engineering this week when they learnt how pneumatics used compressed air to create motion. They were tasked with using pneumatics to make a 'talking box'

In art, we were learning how Taoties were created during the Shang Dynasty. First, we explored the process of bronze casting, and how that has developed throughout time.  To practise casting, we are going to be using a different method each week, so we can reflect on the processes, difficulties and successes. This week, we used silicone moulds with a skin-safe casting plaster called Alginate. 

Most of us were able to see a casted shape, however, we also found that the plaster and water ratio wasn't always consistent so some shapes did not set.

Year 6

This week the children have been learning about a variety of ceremonial dance in PE, they then practised the Haka in groups, before performing their compositions in front of the rest of the year 6 cohort. 

R2L

In R2L this week, we have considered whether it is ok to make a mistake. We decided that EVERYONE makes a mistake sometimes, but the important thing is to learn from our mistakes so that we know how to be successful next time.

We all had to learn patience, kindness and resilience this week as we created a variety of images to commemorate Remembrance Day. You may have seen our Poppy sun catchers on our window! The week ended with Poppy Jam tarts which Mandy kindly cooked for us in her kitchen. Thank you Mandy!

Guinea Pigs

Our Enriching Curriculum

Maple

This week the children have been exploring different materials and have used the story of the three little pigs to support this. They have also been exploring self portraits and have used mirrors to try and accurately draw their faces.

Birch

We are close to concluding our unit on Animals including Humans in science. This week, we have been learning about animals with different types of skeletons. We examined examples of creatures found in the school grounds with different skeleton types. 

Sycamore

This week Sycamore Class have been reading 'The Saga of Erik the Viking' by Terry Jones. 

We created a Conscience Alley to help Erik to decide whether or not to go on his next quest. We also wrote some brilliant pieces of writing about what qualities you need in order to become a hero in a story. 

Aspen

To kick off our new Science learning,  we created a model of the Solar System to show its scale, movement and features. With the model, we were able to understand the movements of the planets in our Solar System, including planet Earth in relation to the sun and the moon.

Year 6

Year 6 have applied their knowledge of Tints, Tone and Shade to paint these beautiful  landscapes.

Enrichment

Enrichment afternoon at Stanmore school with choir rehearsals, Spanish club and aiming for check mate in chess club. Thanks to Winchester College and Pilgrims school for their support

Final week fun

Maple

Maple class read a book about disgusting sandwiches and then made their own DISGUSTING sandwiches with slime cream, slugs and mud for Onion's birthday tea!

Sycamore

Sycamore Class have written explanation texts on 'How to care for a...'

We studied the book 'How to care for a dragon' and then chose a different mythical creature, concentrating on grooming, feeding and habitats. They have written really high quality pieces of writing and have published them too. Don't they look amazing? 

Aspen

This week in Science, we have been exploring how levers and pulleys give us a mechanical advantage when lifting loads.  We used a glue stick as a fulcrum, along with a ruler as a lever arm to investigate how when  the distance between the fulcrum and the effort increases, the effort needed to lift a load decreases.

Moving on to pulleys: we built our own with plastic bottles, card, string and a wooden skewer. We learnt that as the number of wheels, and the number of pieces of rope supporting the pulleys, increases, the effort needed to lift an object decreases, but the distance the rope has to be pulled increases.

Year 6

Year 6 have been learning all about the components and their functions in blood. To consolidate their knowledge , they produced some amazing posters.

A busy week at Stanmore Primary School

Maple Class

A tall beanstalk and giant footprints appeared in Maple class this week. It is rumoured that Jack has stolen a bag of gold and the giant is very angry. The children made wanted posters to try and catch Jack and offered some great rewards. maple class have also been busy looking at maps and how places change over time.

Rowan

Rowan class have been learning about Apollo 13 and the woman who saved the mission, Katherine Johnson. They have written diary entries from her perspective, writing about how they felt when they found out about the explosion and what they had to do to save the day! What an amazing bunch of writers they are! 

Birch

In science this week, children in Birch Class have been learning about the bones in the human body. They labelled their own bones, which was great fun, and explored the functions of the skeleton. We wanted to find out if human and animal skeletons have any similarities too, and what would happen if you didn't have a skeleton. 

Sycamore

In Year 4 we have been rehearsing our rhythmic patterns in music. We have had to improve our listening skills, as well as being able to keep in time with a partner. 

Aspen

This week in maths, we have been exploring what multiples and factors are. By building arrays, we could identify the factor pairs for varying multiples. Quickly, we noticed that there were numbers that only had two factors ( prime numbers)- we then investigated how many of these multiples we could find. 

Year 6

Year 6 turned into  phlebotomists this week when they investigated the components of blood by making their own in the classroom!

They also drew some amazing skylines of London prior to their visit to the British museum. Whilst at the Museum the children sketched some Benin bronzes and learnt about all the different symbolism of the pictures.