Reception have had such a fantastic summer term. We have been getting ready to move to year one and fully involving ourselves in big school life- attending whole school assemblies and visiting the playground at breaktime!

In English, we have been working really hard at writing simple sentences all by ourselves! We have learnt about using capital letters to start our sentences and full stops to end our sentences. We worked really hard to write sentences to describe minibeasts: This says ‘the snail has a brown and pink shell. The spider is grey.’ How fantastic! 

In Maths, we have been focusing on the numbers to 10. We have been using different manipulatives including double sided counters and dice frames to find ways to make the number 10. We have also been exploring odd and even numbers- sharing different amounts and determining whether we can share these fairly or not and therefore whether they are an even number or not.

We have been learning all about plants and growing. We learnt about the different parts of a plant and why they are important. Otters did some fantastic observational drawings of plants, thinking very carefully about the shapes and colours they needed to use. 

Year 1 have had a wonderful summer term and should feel incredibly proud of all they have accomplished.

In maths, we explored the topic of money, learning to recognise and understand the value of coins including 1p, 2p, 5p, and 10p. The children also practised making different amounts using these coins. We then moved on to position and direction. Although distinguishing left from right was initially a challenge, the children showed great perseverance and quickly developed confidence in using directional language.

In English, our Talk for Writing focus was Little Red Riding Hood. We concentrated on crafting engaging story openings and endings. The class particularly enjoyed creating story maps to help retell the tale and, as a proud culmination of their efforts, published their very own storybooks—an impressive showcase of everything they’ve learned throughout Year 1.

We’ve had a great deal of fun exploring science through stories this term. The children enjoyed comparing animal footprints, investigating the properties of different materials by designing and testing animal shelters, and revisiting the five main animal groups.

In Geography, we’ve put our observational skills to good use by comparing the UK with Shanghai. The children have learnt about the countries that make up the United Kingdom, explored the seven continents, and developed their ability to identify both physical and human features of different locations.

In Design and Technology, we’ve enjoyed designing and making a range of models while learning about wheels and axles. The children explored how wheels work, experimented with ways to improve them, and discovered the function of an axle. To finish the unit, they applied their knowledge by creating their own moving pull-along toy, thoughtfully designed to meet a specific customer brief.

Year 2 have blown me away this term with their enthusiasm and focus in every lesson. We have had such an amazing term and all the children should be very proud of themselves.

In English, our writing was focused around the text, ‘The Tunnel’ by Anthony Browne. We used powerful adjectives, thought about the setting and how to describe it using different techniques. However, the main focus this term was on using correct punctuation and the children have started to proofread and correct their own writing – ready for Year 3.

In Maths we learnt about fractions, time and positional language. It has been a wonderful practical term where we could take the learning outside at Forest School and use manipulatives to consolidate their learning.

In Science we have been exploring eco-friendly materials and the impact on non eco-friendly materials have on our planet and focussed on the three ‘R’s’ –Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

In Geography we have been exploring what it is like to live by the coast and in particular leaning about the features of the coast.

In Music we have been learning how to play the recorder and the children’s resilience was outstanding as we practiced and practiced until they were able to achieve the notes.

The children particularly enjoyed their DT lessons, where they created a Ferris Wheel and a moving monster puppet.

Well done Year 2 for a fantastic term. I am so proud of you all for your hard work and attitude to your learning. Have an amazing summer.

Birch Y3 - Summer Newsletter

Year 3 have worked incredibly hard this term and have done some fantastic learning!

As mathematicians we’ve explored fractions by building fraction walls, adding and subtracting fractions, and finding fractions of amounts and shapes. The children also got creative designing their ultimate back garden using polygons, while learning to identify and draw shapes with parallel lines and perpendicular sides. We also looked at time, focusing on minutes past the hour. One of the highlights was making our own clocks and using them to quiz our friends!

In English, our fiction writing has been centred around portal stories. The children produced some wonderful pieces full of rich language features, including similes, personification, expanded noun phrases, and fronted adverbials. In our non-fiction unit, we’ve been exploring discussion texts, and the children have really enjoyed taking part in mini-debates, learning to express arguments for and against with confidence. They’ve worked hard on using generalisers, modal verbs, and transition words to structure their ideas clearly.

Our geography topic this term has been all about settlements. The children used both historic and current OS maps to investigate our local area, identifying physical and human features that have remained, disappeared or are newly developed. We also took a virtual journey to New Delhi, using Google Maps to explore the Indian capital and compare it with our own surroundings.

Science has been full of excitement, especially during our “Grip Strength Championship,” where children tested the enquiry question: Does handspan affect grip strength? They really enjoyed going head-to-head in a pattern-seeking investigation to find out.

In Design and Technology, the children were incredibly proud of their electric posters, which combined creativity with practical skills. This has been a real favourite for many! In computing, we’ve been learning how to format text and pictures using Word. The children applied these skills confidently to design posters and magazine covers.

There have also been some fantastic highlights outside the classroom. The VR workshop on Ancient Egyptians gave the children a unique opportunity to step into the past and experience history in an immersive and engaging way. Another standout moment was the Singing Picnic, where we enjoyed games in the sun and proudly performed a song we had prepared to other schools.

Year 4’s Curriculum Newsletter: Summer 2025

English

This term’s writing has included persuasive texts about endangered animals (linked to our previous Science unit), writing our own portal-style stories set in the Ancient Maya civilisation and exploring explanation texts linked to our Geography work on rivers. We have continued to develop our knowledge and understanding of spelling, punctuation and grammar and have strived to improve the overall presentation and impact of our writing in terms of its organisation and style, whilst also focusing on handwriting.

Maths

Our Maths learning this term has included lots of work on fractions. Comparing and ordering, adding and subtracting fractions and learning about improper fractions and mixed numbers has featured.

We have also learnt how to use coordinates and to describe position and direction.

Recently, we have been practising methods for multiplication and division and working on our reasoning skills in order to apply these methods in a range of contexts.

The children worked hard to improve their learning of the times tables up to 12x12 off by heart and, while this remains a target for some as they move into Year 5, pleasing progress has been made by all children with this. TTRS really is a brilliant resource for practising at home as well as in school.

Science

This term, Year 4 have been learning all about Electricity in Science. They have explored how electrical circuits work and learned to identify and name different components such as bulbs, switches, wires, and batteries. Through a range of exciting experiments and practical lessons, the children built their own simple circuits, tested which materials are conductors or insulators, and investigated how switches control the flow of electricity. These hands-on activities helped deepen their understanding of how electricity powers everyday devices, while encouraging teamwork, problem-solving, and safe handling of electrical components.

Geography

This term in Geography, Year 4 have been learning about Rivers. They studied the journey of a river from its source to its mouth, exploring the features of the upper, middle, and lower courses. The children learned key vocabulary such as meander, waterfall, tributary, and estuary, and discovered how rivers shape the land over time. As part of their practical work, the class created models of the three different river courses, helping them to visualise how rivers change as they flow. This creative activity supported their understanding and made learning about rivers both engaging and memorable.

Other curriculum areas have touched on how Sikhs live and worship according to their beliefs, learning vocabulary relating to animals and vehicles in French, listening to and appraising many different styles of songs and musical compositions and learning more about the body’s changes and how to look after ourselves in PSHE. Our visit to The British Wildlife Centre was an informative and fun-packed day and the Virtual Reality workshop proved to be a real hit as we travelled back in time to support our work on the Ancient Maya! Forest Skills with Mr Ward has been a recent highlight for the children, too.

Year 5 have worked incredibly hard this term, finishing their final term in year 5!

Although decimals and fractions can be a trickier topics, year 5 have really persevered in Maths. We have been multiplying and dividing by 10, 100 and 1000, using place value tables to help shift the digits to the left or right. They have also learnt how to multiply decimals, using their excellent knowledge of times tables to support this. We’ve also done a lot of work with fractions, looking at how best to multiply fractions by whole numbers and what representation can best aid out understanding.

Year 5’s writing started by focussing on getting action into their fiction writing. We looked at various examples of action sequences, both in writing and film to best understand how to get pace and movement onto the page. They’ve worked hard at choosing the right language and reading back through their work to edit for improvements. We ended the year by looking at narrative poetry, focussing on the famous poem ‘The Highway Man’ by Alfred Noyes. The class enjoyed decoding the language in each stanza and seeing the story unfold each day.

In science, year 5 have explored the world of forces, looking at where forces are seen in everyday life. We went outside with a parachute to see how surface area can affect the amount of air resistance on an object and linked that relationship to water resistance. We have also worked on our scientific skills, working on how best we could investigate whether the weight of an object affected the amount of friction created when braking. Finally, we combined our previous knowledge of space, and what we have learnt in our guided reading text ‘Cosmic’ to learn more about how gravity affects us.

History had us exploring life in Ancient Maya, looking at things like the importance of chocolate and the tales behind the cacao bean, what beliefs the Mayans held, and what their ancient cities looked like. This was supported by out VR workshop, getting to see first-hand what the temples and ruins that are left in Tikal look like. In geography, year 5 have learnt about deserts around the world, about their locations in the globe and combating the misconceptions about what a desert looks like. We looked in depth at the Mojave Desert, writing some excellent postcards as if we had visited the barren landscape.

Within other areas of the curriculum, Year 5 have also been working on their computing skills, creating drawings using different tools on Microsoft; building their understanding around Islamic beliefs and culture and finally understanding more about their own bodies within PSHE.

They’ve worked very hard this year, right up until the end and should all be very proud of the progress they’ve made this year. Well done Year 5!

Year 6 have had a jam-packed summer term and such a wonderful end to their time at Bletchingley School. The children have worked incredibly hard to put on their show-stopping performances of The Pirates of the Curry Bean; the hard work, dedication and growth that they have shown has been such a pleasure to watch and I feel very grateful to have been a part of it. Their SATs results are also a huge testament to the hard work that all the children have shown towards their learning – I am beyond proud of them and every single child should be incredibly proud of what they have achieved.

In English, the children have been using different stimulus to create short burst pieces of writing, with the children having control, as a writer, on the elements they use within their writing. They have also created wonderful non-chronological reports in science, to display the information they have learned about the circulatory system.

In history, the children looked at different historical figures and how they get selected to go on banknotes – which has been very apt with the discussions on Newsround about what should be selected in the future. We looked at the features of a banknote and the selection process in deciding who will be on which note. They also had an immersive experience of life during WWII through a VR workshop; they got to see London during the Blitz, where bombs were made, a US military base, the view from inside a spitfire, and sat in the room where they planned their attacks.

In science, the children have learnt about electricity and the different elements of a circuit; they looked at the symbols that are used to represents parts of the circuit and how the brightness can be affected by adding more batteries and by adding more bulbs into the circuit. They also explored the different types of batteries, the volts they have and what they are used for. Finally, the children created a product using a circuit and a motor to spin something around. They also learnt about the circulatory system and what factors can affect our health. They looked at the function of the heart and blood, as well as all the different things that make up our blood. They also investigated the heart rate and how exercise can affect it.

The Year 6s have had a fantastic year and they should all be incredibly proud of everything that they have achieved. It has been such a pleasure to get to know them and teach them, and I am so grateful for having the opportunity to be part of their final journey in Primary School. I am going to miss the wit, banter and enthusiasm that they all show, but I really do wish them all the best in their next chapter.