The Big Bang!

This half term, Duckpuddle Class are learning about ‘mindfulness’, a practise that helps us to become more aware of what’s happening in each present moment. We began our ‘Big Bang’ by creating a mindful space in the great outdoors. Using tepees, cushions, bunting and natural objects, we worked together to make a serene and calming space. We then took part in a number of mindful exercises including; practising different breathing techniques to clear our minds, sharing positive affirmations, blowing thought bubbles, cloud watching, taking bare foot walks on the grass and using just our sense of touch to explore and appreciate natural objects and things in a different way. We then read our special story, ‘The Secret Sky Garden’ by Linda Sarah and planted seeds to create our own mindful gardens/spaces at home. Over the next few weeks, we will be using this experience as a stimulus for writing recounts.

English

Recount – to inform

The children sequenced their Big Bang using pictures. They moved on to plan and write a recount informing Mrs Hills of what happened. They used their learnt grammar skills and short bursts to complete the piece.

Narrative – to entertain

The children revisited the book they read during their Big Bang – The Secret Sky Garden by Linda Sarah. They explored new vocabulary and created a toolkit to show the features of this genre. Through short burst writing tasks, they looked at sentence structure and explored the character and themes of the story. The children sequenced the story using box grids, adding their own version, substituting the character and the setting. They used the box grid to write their new story.

Instructions – to inform

The children used their knowledge of instructions to plan and write a set of instructions for planting a seed. The children used their first hand experiences from their science lessons, including time and bossy verbs. 

Maths

The children looked in detail at fractions. They recognised equal and non-equal parts as well as finding half and quarters of shapes, objects and quantities. Year 2 recognised and found a third, and moved on to unit and non-unit fractions.

The children moved on to begin looking at time, they told the time to the hour and half hour. Year 2 moved on to quarter past, quarter to and 5 minute intervals.

Science - Plants

The children looked at and identified healthy and unhealthy plants. They suggested what they think a healthy plant needs and set up an investigation to find out what plants need to grow healthily. The investigation continued through the unit, with regular observing and recording.

The children looked at seeds and identified which parts grow into the plant. They learnt about germination and dissected a seed. The children discussed how plants are suited to their habitats. They made links to their Geography learning of hot and cold climates and thought about the adaptations the plants make to survive.