Welcome to Turtles

Teacher Claire Carnall
Photo of Claire Carnall

Turtles class has 10 fantastic children who are all in Key Stage 2. Each day we have a teacher and four adults who support us with our learning.

Our focus in Turtles Class is independence. We are learning to do things for ourselves and by ourselves including personal care skills, cooking, and jobs as well as reading and writing. We are also learning to identify and communicate our emotions and begin to find appropriate strategies to deal with those which affect us . We have wonderful friendships and are always welcoming to new people who visit us.

Turtles widgit timetable – Autumn Term 2 – 23/24

Term: Autumn Term 2 23/24Curriculum Info for parents
SubjectSchool learningIdeas for home learning
Phonics and ReadingTurtles class will have daily Phonics. Will use Twinkl Phonics to help us read and write new sounds and words. We will read books matched to our Phonics levels each week. We will visit the Library each week to read books that interest us and have the opportunity to check books out and bring them home. Sounds and words taught each week will be sent home for pupils to practice at home. Please return library books each Friday to be changed at school Friday afternoon.
English In English this term we will be learning about fiction genres – specifically Ghosts and Ghouls. We will link this with Halloween at the start of the term and then go on to read some spooky stories and poems. We will explore fiction texts identifying descriptive vocabulary and the audience and purpose of texts. We will read the poem ‘In the Dark, Dark Wood’ and use this as a stimulus to create our own fiction story. We will continue to practise our writing skills around handwriting, capital letters and full stops and structuring sentences in order. The first week of term is Halloween – why don’t you try and find a spooky story to read with your family at home? You could visit a library and explore their fiction texts to find out what theme of books you like best. Do you prefer scary, funny, informative or fantasy stories?
Maths In Maths we will be starting our new scheme of ‘White Rose Maths’. Our learning this term will be on addition and subtraction. We will begin to add and subtract with numbers within 20, 30 and beyond. We will use different strategies to support our addition and subtraction skills such as part whole models. Once we are secure with the basics of addition and subtraction we will learn about fact families and seeing the patterns between number bonds and number facts. Our Maths lessons will be very practical with lots of opportunity for concrete and pictorial learning. At home you can continue to incorporate maths into your daily routines. See if you can count and add up all your toys, clothes or even your books! You can also play shops and add amounts together to make a total amount – just like you would if you were going shopping. To practice subtraction you could take away one or two of the items and re-count your total amount. If you have any paper or a whiteboard at home, ask a family member to write you a maths challenge down such as 10 + 8 = ___ / 20 – 3 = __.
PSHEThis half term in PSHE we will be learning how to stay safe when out and about in our community. We will learn about important safety measures when out in our local community such as how to cross the road. We will talk about and role play the green cross code, making sure we understand why and how we stay safe when crossing the road. Throughout this block of learning we will discuss stranger danger and how to stay safe when trick or treating and walking with friends/adults. We will also learn about we show respect to our community such as putting rubbish in bins and not littering. In our lessons we will also learn about important people who help us within the community such as lollipop people, bin men, police and role play some of their tasks. Make sure you show your family and grownups at home how safely you can cross the road with them. See how many pedestrian crossings you can see on your days out. When you are in your local area, can you spot any of the people who help us? Can you find out any more about their jobs and what they do to help us?
Science In Science this half term we will learn about changes as humans develop into old age. We will talk about, observe and learn about changes humans go through as they develop into old age. We will continue on from our life cycles learning from last half term and learn about the human life cycle. We will be looking at photos of ourselves from when we were younger to identify differences in ourselves. We will use role-play to support our understanding of young and old as well as watching educational videos about the changes within people from being babies to elderly. We will match photos, match clothes and facts to different life stages within a humans life. As we are talking about human life cycles and stages in life, it would be good to talk to different people in your family about their life. See if you can speak to older relatives about their life and how they have changed. If you have any younger family members, note down some of the things they cannot do yet but you can. Can you help them complete something? If you have any photos of yourself when you were younger please bring them in so you can show your class!
ComputingIn Computing this half-term we will be focusing on Photography. We will use a camera and special effects to modify photographs that we have taken. We will use different medias such as cameras and iPads to take photos of different objects and sceneries. We will then use editing software to edit the photos changing the brightness, contrast and sharpness of photos. We will be able to upload the photos onto computers to show people the changes we have made. We will also be using technology to research photography and changes we can make to images/photos. Have you got any technology at home? Have you got a camera or an iPad? If so, can you take some of your own pictures with them. When you have your photos, you might be able to get your photos developed from a photo shop. Ask your adults at home if they will take you. If you take any photos, try and edit them using the editing software on the device. You could then bring in your photographs to show the class.
History In History this half-term we will be learning about local history – specifically the UK floods of 1953. We will learn about History that has affected us on a national and local scale. We will discuss the events of a flood, seeing if we have any real life experience with witnessing any floods or disruption due to heavy rain. We will look at old newspaper articles, news reports, videos and photographs showing real life events. We will discuss what we would do in the situation of a flood, what items we would save and how we could prepare for it. To develop your knowledge even further, ask some older relatives or family friends about their experiences with floods or local history. Can you find out any information about local flooding and how your community have dealt with it? You could also try to make a miniature house out of natural resources, seeing which material is best suited to withholding the rain (water!)
P.E. This half term we will be doing multiskills. This means we get to do lots of games in P.E. We will work on our team work and embed the skills of sharing, taking turns and celebrating our friends successes as well as our own. We will do this through many games such as tag, bat and ball, ball catching and many more!Stay fit and healthy at home by doing some physical activity. Whether that is going for a walk, doing some arm exercise, yoga or anything that you enjoy! Make sure you are taking turns and working as a team if you are doing this with others.
Music In Music we will follow our Charanga scheme of learning. All the learning this term is focused around two songs: Rhythm In The Way We Walk (Reggae style) and Banana Rap (Hip Hop style). You will Listen & Appraise other styles of music and continue to embed the interrelated dimensions of music through games and singing. We will also be looking at home Music is used within TV and Film. We will watch scenes within films and recognise why and how music has been used to create effect for the audience. We will then have a go at creating our own music! Explore music on the TV channels, iPad or any other technology you might have. You may have some instruments at home to explore, could make some junk model instruments yourselves or share the music you all like in your household.
ArtIn Art this half-term we will be learning about patterns, texture and colour. Our work from last half term will help us within this topic. We will link our art work to our senses and use our sight, smell, touch, listening and taste to develop art. We will also be using food to help us create art e.g. by painting with coffee and seeing what it smells and looks like. We will pool our knowledge together to plan and make musical instruments such as a sound stick using dried pasta and rice. Can you create any art using patters, texture and colour using household items? Speak to a grown up about using foods to create an art piece, maybe by using sweets! See if you can make your own musical instruments using plastic bottles with items inside. We would recommend pasta, rice, seeds or even other objects such as buttons or stones!
R.E.In R.E. this term our focus will be around Christianity. In this half term we will learn about Christianity and how Christians worship God. We will learn about their beliefs in action in the world. We will look at churches and create our own stain glass window designs. As we get closer to December we will learn about the Christmas story. We will sequence the story and learn about how Christians celebrate Christmas. If you celebrate Christmas, can you create any Christmas decorations at home? Visit local garden centres or shops to look at their decorations related to Christmas. Can you retell the Christmas story to someone at home?
D.TIn D.T. this term we will be focusing on design. We will design and make a recipe for a new biscuit. We will do a taster session of different biscuits and complete a survey around school asking people what their favourite biscuits are. We will use this information to design a cereal bar biscuit. We will use our cooking time to practice making cereal bars before perfecting our final product. We will then design a brand and share this with people in school! This learning can be done at home too by trying out lots of different biscuits! You can have a look in the supermarket what designs and brands you like best and ask your grown up to try some of them! You could create a survey for your friends and family to find out what biscuits are their favourite.