Met our Power Maths Friends

In Maths this year we will be exploring Power Maths to support our learning. Being successful in maths is not just about rote-learning procedures and methods, but is instead about problem solving, thinking and discussing.  Power Maths uses ‘Learning Power’ characters to prompt, encourage and question children. They spark curiosity, engage reasoning, secure understanding and deepen learning for all.

Meet our new friends!

Ash: is eager, interested and creative. He likes to imagine real life situations when solving problems and revise different areas of Maths so they are fresh in his mind. He is our curious friend.

Flo: During Maths lessons Flo likes to persevere and look for many different ways to solve problems. When planning her work, she likes to think carefully to ensure that she uses the most effective strategy to solve the problem. She is our flexible friend.

Astrid: Astrid’s favourite lesson is Maths. She is brave and likes to listen carefully to other people’s opinions. When she is given a challenge she becomes absorbed in it and perseveres until she succeeds. She is our brave friend.

Dexter: Dexter loves numbers. He likes to use questioning to deepen his understanding. He likes to collaborate with his peers as he doesn’t always choose the most efficient method. He is our determined friend.

Sparks: Sparks likes to give helpful tips and tricks to remind us of what we already know and what will help us.  Sparks also likes to challenge our thinking.

Welcome to Year 2!

Welcome to the Year 2 blog!

This year, we will update the blog regularly with information on what the children have been getting up to in school, alongside a wide selection of photos. Please share the blog with the pupils at home – and add some comments too! We’d love to make it as interactive as possible.

Our classes this year are…

2P with Miss Paget (Teacher and Year Group Lead) and Mrs Herd (Class TA)

2J with Mr Jones (Teacher), Mrs Amlani (Class TA, and cross- Year Group TA in the afternoons and Mrs Garside (1-1 TA)

2G with Miss Groves (Teacher) and Mrs Taylor (Class TA)

Below is a sample timetable; each class varies slightly but we ensure there is equity of offer across the classes. All three teachers work very closely together to plan and delivery lessons in line with curriculum objectives.

The main difference is PE timetables.

For Autumn 1…

2P have PE Tuesday morning and Wednesday afternoon

2G have PE Tuesday morning and have Forest School Thursday morning

2J have PE Wednesday afternoon and Friday morning

We have included our Meet the Teacher Powerpoint below

This term in Year 2, our 3D curriculum is based around the concept of Attack and Defense. This theme runs through the school, from EYFS up to Year 6. Our context will be the Great Fire of London; children will be introduced to life in 1666, find out about where it fits into the chronology of Britain, learn about the fire service, Samuel Pepys and a whole lot more! All this will be under the umbrella of ‘what makes a historian – what skills do we need’; the children will be considering the use of primary and secondary sources and asking sensible, reasoned historical inquiry questions. Children will make links between their previous and new learning and also with their own lives.

Within our science learning, we will be looking at materials. Children will handle and discuss a range of materials and consider their properties, before zoning in on specific materials. Pupils will carry out experiments with paper, folding, twisting and scrunching it; building structures and carrying out experiments to test its absorbency. They will then look at changing state, thinking about solids, liquids and gases. The development of vocabulary is absolutely key in securing their understanding, so this will be a real focus within science and across the Year 2 curriculum.

Our computing sessions will look at Information Technology around us – considering what is and what isn’t a computer and how IT supports modern life. Children will learn some basic skills by manipulating images using a mouse and will also think about staying safe online. This is supported by SuperCAT, the school e-safety mascot who offers up sage advice on being safe while using computers.

In PE, our focus throughout the year will be on developing core skills – the ABCs of Agility, Balance and Coordination. This term we look at movement and balance; working on footwork and travelling alongside gymnastic skills.

Our core subjects are English, Maths, Reading and Phonics/Spelling.

In English, we follow the Talk 4 Writing model where we follow the immerse, innovate, independent application technique. Children are introduced to a high quality model text; the learn the features and the structure before being guided to write their own versions. At the end of the unit they independently apply their skills to write their own version! To start the term, we are looking at The Little Red Hen as a journey story, before moving onto an Information Text. You will be able to read your child’s work when you come in to visit the classroom!

In daily maths sessions, we start by exploring place value, promoting the use of physical resources to aide understanding and reasoning within problem solving questions. We will then move on to other areas, including addition and subtraction. We will provide more details on each unit of work on this blog.

Our daily reading sessions run on a rotational basis; within week 1, we have a Book Club carousel – each day your child with either…

  • Explore a text with support from their class TA
  • Complete guided comprehension with their  class teacher
  • Carry out an activity based on that week’s phonics sound or spelling pattern
  • Enjoy a variety of independent activities based on books and stories that are familiar to them

During week 2, children ‘read for pleasure’, and are listened to, on a 1-1 basis, by their class teacher and TA.

It is extremely important that children read regularly at home – we would encourage you to read with your child every day. This does not always have to be them reading their school book to you – you can read to them, you can take lines in turn, you could explore other reading together (magazines, websites), and so much more. We will continually assess your child’s reading and move their reading band as appropriate – we will also provide levelled books for them to read at home. We ask that these are read twice (this assists children’s fluency and comprehension) and then returned to school on a Monday or Thursday, when they will be changed.

We start the year with a recap over some of the trickier phonics sounds your child has learnt in Year 1. As the term progresses, we will move into more spelling rules. Throughout the year we will keep you informed of our focus through the Year 2 blog and also by sending spelling lists home with you to practise. Spelling practise does not have to just be dry ‘look cover write check’ – children can also copy words in creative ways (colour, size etc), write out spellings in sand, soil, paint or water, play taboo or hangman, create wordsearches or crosswords, play spelling bingo, create spelling mazes and so, so many more! We will send ideas home alongside the spelling lists.

Alongside all of these subjects, we also find time for

  • Spanish
  •  RE
  • Music
  • PSHE
  • P4C (Philosophy for Children)
  • Handwriting
  • Maths fluency and basic skills
  • Assemblies
  • and of course, fun!

We welcome open communication with you, so if you ever have any questions please get in touch – either face to face at the end of the day, or by phone or email. We really look forward to working with you this year and giving your child the best Year 2 experience we can!

admin@bishopscleeve.gloucs.sch.uk

epaget@bishopscleeve.gloucs.sch.uk

kjones@bishopscleeve.gloucs.sch.uk

kgroves@bishopscleeve.gloucs.sch.uk

Let’s get ACTIVE!

For our first WHOLE YEAR GROUP PE session, we hit the field, and we hit it hard! Throwing, catching, running, jumping, relay, target practice, laughing, smiling and sunshine! Who could ask for more!

Materials – session 1!

This term, the mini-scientists in Year 2 will be exploring materials! We started off this exciting area by simply examing and discussing different objects, considering what they were made out of, mind-mapping some key adjectives to describe them and, most importantly, thinking about why they were made out of a particular material. Why are clothes made from farbic not cardboard? Why are buttons plastic or wooden and not rubber? We’ll continue our learning journey over the next month or two!

English WOW Starter

For our first English unit, we will be looking at ‘The Little Red Hen’ and exploring our description writing. To begin with, we ventured into Forest School to explore our sense and come up with adjectives to describe.