We have been busy writers this week, finishing short stories linked to our work on Journey to Jo'burg by Beverley Naidoo. This creativity has extended to designing book covers using vector graphics in computing, which will adorn their completed stories in booklet format. We can't wait to see the final results!

In maths, we are completing short units of work on converting units of measure and also volume and capacity before the end of term, whilst in History we have considered disruptions to schooling due to events such as WWII and the COVID-19 pandemic. 

As the academic year draws to a close, we have enjoyed welcoming Y4 into our classes to share and celebrate this year's learning and to give them a taste of what is to come. We have also all enjoyed watching Y6 perform the dress rehearsal of their fabulous end-of-year production. Y5 made sure to take notes for next year's performance - when it will be their turn!

Sun, sea and sand were the perfect backdrop for our visit to the Isle of Wight. Active learning opportunities were abundant - from fossil hunting at Compton beach to coastal features and erosion in action at the Needles and Alum Bay. The many months spent in captivity by Charles I were evident at Carisbrooke Castle and everyone was fascinated by the history of the HMS Victory and Mary Rose.  Perhaps most of all, it was wonderful to see the children develop their independence and resilience: organising and preparing themselves for each day's activities, braving themselves to take on new challenges, supporting their peers, and celebrating mutual successes. Whether it was riding on a chairlift for the first time, conquering the 4m jump at Tapnell water-park, travelling upside down on the terrifying/exhilarating Extinction ride at Blackgang Chine or enduring being away from home, every child embraced something new and achieved something to be proud of.

Now that we've returned to school, the learning hasn't stopped! We've started a new topic in History - a post 1066 thematic study about schools and school life. In DT we've been investigating pulleys and mechanical systems. Decimals continue to be our focus in maths, and we are writing letters in English as part of our unit of work relating to the book Journey to Jo'burg. Careers week activities have also kept us engaged and very busy this week. A huge thank you to all of our parents who have supported this.

We've welcomed back the sunshine by spending some time alfresco - making the most of our brilliant surroundings. In art, the children have been thinking about perspective and sketching views of Christ Church from the Orchard, in preparation for producing watercolours next week. This has been accompanied by outdoor exertion in PE, where “indoor” PE has become outdoor PE as pupils engage in orienteering activities around the school. 

In English, we continue to develop our non-chronological report writing skills using the text Journey to Jo’burg, by Beverley Naidoo, to understand what life under apartheid was like.  We have also investigated metamorphosis and incomplete metamorphosis, using secondary sources, in insects and reptiles ranging from salamanders to dung beetles!

The spring term culminated with pupils producing fantastic puppets based on characters from Macbeth. There were disquieting witches, ill-fated Banquos, deranged Lady Macbeths and some magnificent - if malevolent - Macbeths. This week the children have enjoyed the fruits-of-their-labours and performed scenes from the play with their puppets, concluding this unit of work. We now move onto poetry and are looking at the fabulous book Lost Words, by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris.

We've been cartwheeling in PE and identifying different types of angles in maths - as well as learning how to measure, estimate and calculate them.   Grid references have been the order of the day in geography and in science, we have dissected flowers in order to better understand their different parts and functions. A cracking start to the summer term!

Year 5 celebrated Sheen Mount's platinum anniversary day in true sixties style. We went retro - finding out all about the space race, the world's first electronic mouse, what school children in the sixties thought their futures would hold and whether they were right or not; all washed down with lashings of Pop Art and accompanied by the Beatles. What a fabulous and 'far-out' day!

Back in the 2020s, we have been busy compiling soliloquies fashioned on Macbeth's ruinous ruminations as well as designing puppets based on characters from the very same play. Watch out for some spine-chillingly sinister witches and menacing Macbeths.  

Global trade has been on the agenda in geography. We've been impressed by pupils' insights into where the food they eat is produced and how it reaches us, alongside their developing understanding of the implications of this at a local, national and international level.