Year 4
Welcome to Year 4
The year 4 team for 2022/23 consists of Mr Letts (4I) and Mr Chadaway (4J) and our teaching assistants are Mrs Billa-Patel (4I) and Mrs Grimstead and Miss Gospel (4J).
Year 4 PE days are Tuesday and Friday. Please familiarise yourself with our uniform policy in relation to PE, including health and safety requirements linked to jewellery. Please note: 4J will be taking part in swimming lessons on a Tuesday afternoon from 10th January - 21st March 2023, and therefore will require their swimming kit on these days. 4I took part in this opportunity in the autumn term.
Please ensure that your child brings in a water bottle and their reading book/record, as well as their link book, every day. Homework is set on a Friday, and is due in the following Thursday. Children should be reading to an adult at least three times per week for at least 15/20 minutes each time. This must be recorded in your child's reading record.
Could we please ask that any belongings are labelled - it makes it easier to return when left around school!
The learning in year 4 is crammed with fascinating opportunities to discover more about the history of our incredible planet. During the spring term, the children will be delving into the fascinating topic of the Anglo-Saxons, Picts and Scots, known for its wonderful warriors and wild weapons. They will also explore the geography of our own magnificent continent. Coming up before Easter, this topic allows the children to discover more about the countries, trade, features and food of Europe. We are eagerly anticipating the next few months in year 4, as we have a number of exciting experiences to share with the children.
Show off your knowledge of the Anglo-Saxons, Picts and Scots to the adults in your classroom by checking out this page: Anglo-Saxon history
You can get ahead of the game for the second spring term by finding out about the geography of Europe! Follow the link: European geography
Updates about our current learning in school will be made available on this page, so do check back regularly.
Curriculum summary
Knowledge organiser
Home learning
Homework tasks for year 4 are set through a homework sheet sent home with the children each week, and also via Education City. Please follow the link below and use your child's login information to access the site.
In addition to this, the children can develop their skills with a range of websites and apps the school has subscribed to. The children should be regularly practising their times tables knowledge. You can take advantage of a number of sites and apps to support your child in practising these key skills. Here are a selection of maths games to enjoy:
Maths Frame
Times Tables Rockstars
White Rose - 1 Minute Maths (app)
To support our pupils with their spelling abilities, all children have been given login information for EdShed. Online books (with a range of opportunities to develop reading and inference skills) can be accessed through Bug Club (also used in KS1). Both links are included below for your convenience.
Bug Club (part of ActiveLearnPrimary)
EdShed (“How to” guide for parents and carers)
If you have any queries about the work your child can be doing at home, please speak to their class teacher.
This week's homework (10.02.23 - 16.02.23)
Handwriting
Learning showcase
Exciting moments from year 4 will appear in this space, including any pictures or videos we take. Please keep checking in, in order to see what the children have been up to!
Disgusting digestion (March 2023)
The children in year 4 have begun a brand new science topic this week, called 'Teeth and Eating'. To start with, they have learned about the digestive system and the organs involved in this important process. Great fun was had as the children predicted the arrangements of some major organs in our bodies. Meanwhile, some educational yet slightly gross videos capped off a lovely lesson by showing how food travels through the body from start to finish. We've wondered where our breakfasts might currently be!
World Book Day (March 2023)
Year 4 displayed some absolutely fantastic costumes to celebrate World Book Day 2023. We were very impressed at the variety of characters who turned up for a fun day at school! The children were digging their talons into some learning about dragons, designing dragon eggs and the fire-breathing beasts to go with them. Creativity was overflowing and it was lovely to hear from so many children how much they enjoyed it. Take a look at the children in their costumes below.
Clay Anglo-Saxon brooches (February 2023)
Over the last fortnight, the children in year 4 had the chance to take part in an art afternoon, where they were designing, making and evaluating Anglo-Saxon brooches. These brooches were crafted out of clay, and the children needed to develop their skills with a clay knife to produce the all-important patterns and symbols. To add a little Saxon sparkle to their finished piece, they introduced gemstones to their jewellery. 4I had a fabulous afternoon on 3rd February and 4J took part in the fun on 10th February. Mrs Whopples, our resident art supremo, was very impressed with everybody who took part.
Combining artwork with English 🖼️ (January 2023)
The children have loved the chance to show their artistic sides this week in their English lessons, as they illustrate our new text driver 'The Selfish Giant'. They were provided with a descriptive passage about the giant's garden and sketched this setting before adding watercolour to create a beautiful piece of work. We were very impressed with the quality of the learning on show. Well done!
Multiplication Tables Check - Parent Information Meeting 🔢 (January 2023)
On Tuesday 31st January 2023, year 4 teachers Mr Letts and Mr Chadaway hosted a parent information meeting in the West Hall at 15:30 for all year 4 parents. They were joined by Miss Horsfall as our school’s mathematics co-ordinator.
Information was shared in relation to the upcoming MTC in summer 2023, including how we are supporting the children in school and how additional support can be offered at home.
Please feel free to have a look through our information powerpoint below.
French games 🇫🇷 (January 2023)
Today, the children have been playing some games in their French lesson to practise key vocabulary about rooms around the house. Children in 4I took their learning outside the classroom by playing ‘Marches de crocodile’ or ‘Crocodile footsteps’. They were very convincing crocodiles! Bon travail!
Badmin-fun 🏸 (January 2023)
Since the children returned to school in January, their PE lessons on a Friday and a Tuesday (4I) have been focused on the fast-paced and competitive sport of badminton. The children have shown real enthusiasm for rallying with their friends and learning new shots. 4I have watched some crazy badminton rallies to see how the professionals play and even had the chance to play a point against Mr Letts (who really loves badminton!). 4J have been trying out their shots over the net and have been putting in lots of effort. It’s clear to see how popular these sessions have been, with a number of children commenting in celebration assemblies how much they have been enjoying their PE lessons. Keep up the hard work, year 4.
Merry Christmas 🎅🏼🎄 (December 2022)
‘Tis the season to be jolly! The children were lucky enough to have lots of fun activities planned for the festive period. In particular, the creativity shown when making calendars, designing Christmas cards and jumpers, and also during our Friends of Milby craft afternoon, was a pleasure to see.
We would like to wish every member of our school community a very merry Christmas and a prosperous 2023. Thank you for your continued support this year. We look forward to seeing the children back in school on Wednesday 4th January 2023.
Children in Need 🟡 (November 2022)
It has been absolutely fantastic to see so many children wearing spots of all shapes, colours and sizes today, as well as many Pudsey Bear-inspired outfits. Today was jam-packed with Children in Need activities. Pupils learned about the inspirational work that the charity undertakes as well as trying some Pudsey artwork, which was completed in the style of Pointillism, Mondrian or triangular artwork.
Thank you to all of our families for your generosity in donating to our coin trails, which the children arranged with real enthusiasm! We are pleased to announce:
4I’s coin trail measured 58 metres long
4J’s coin trail measured 34 metres long
To reach almost 100 metres as a year group is an incredible feat - well done to everyone in year 4.
Sensational science: experiments with solids, liquids and gases 🌡️ (November 2022)
States of matter has been year 4’s science topic this half-term and the children have now begun a series of three science experiments which investigate changing states. To begin with, the children were finding out which liquids freeze by utilising their skills in working scientifically. They had to make a prediction, conduct the experiment, write out the method, investigate the results and conclude their findings - a lot to think about! A lot of fun was had all round as the children discovered that washing up liquid, tomato ketchup and saltwater do not freeze easily, whereas both cold and warm water freeze quickly. Could you try freezing different liquids at home?!
Storyteller’s Challenge 📝 (November 2022)
Class 4I were bringing out their inner storytellers this week, as they had the chance to write short stories based on stimuli. After being given a card with either a setting, trigger or plot idea, the children were tasked with penning a piece of creative writing, and they certainly rose to the challenge! We had a number of spooky stories and thrilling tales with stimuli including a dark alleyway, a door creaking open on its own and a journey to the mountains. Mr Letts and Mrs Billa-Patel were very impressed by the creativity and innovation shown. Great job, 4I!
Performance poetry 🎬 (November 2022)
Coming back from the half term break, the children have focused on fireworks and Bonfire Night in English and art lessons. Year 4 have produced some fantastic poetry with beautiful details and illustrations. They rounded off the week with performance poetry, in which they had to show off their ability to use expression, gestures and changes in volume. All children enthusiastically rehearsed the poem 'The Fifth of November' by John Milton with a partner, and some were even willing to stand in front of the whole class to present their hard work. We have included a selection of videos below and hope that you enjoy seeing what the children have been up to recently.
Black History Month - The Obamas (October 2022)
To celebrate Black History Month in year 4, the children have been researching the life and work of Barack and Michelle Obama. After completing some artwork on Monday afternoon, year 4 pupils were enthused to have the chance to use the computers in the ICT Suite to gather some interesting facts about these influential Black role models. We are looking forward to seeing the whole school display, created by Mrs Nagra, which will eventually feature some of this work from the children in year 4.
Times Tables Rock Stars 🧮 (October 2022)
Great excitement has been building in year 4 over the last week, as 4I and 4J went head to head in a ‘battle of the bands’ competition on Times Tables Rock Stars. Every correct answer counted towards the class total and the children impressed Mr Chadaway and Mr Letts with their dedication to supporting their class team. Thank you goes also to the parents who supported their children in accessing TTRS at home, as many in the year group did. Although 4J took the crown this time, we know that 4I will be eager to even the score! Keep up the hard work everyone.
We are scientists! 🧪 (October 2022)
We had a lot of busy children in year 4 this week, as they put their team working skills to the test in order to conduct a scientific experiment into soundproofing. The children were investigating 5 different materials (fabric, paper, cardboard, bubblewrap and Lego) to discover which was the best at blocking sound. They also had the chance to use a decibel meter, and showed a fantastic understanding of how to ensure that their investigation was a fair test.
Watercolour experimentation 🎨 (October 2022)
Our art topic this half term is the artwork of Claude Monet, and the children have been honing their artistic skills in preparation for a watercolour painting of his famous ‘Water Lilies’ artwork. This week, year 4 pupils experimented with watercolour paints to consolidate their understanding of blending colours. Great fun was had all round as the children predicted their results in advance.
Roman artefacts exploration 🏺 (September 2022)
Our history topic has continued at full speed this week, as children in both classes had the opportunity to handle both replica and real artefacts from Roman Britain. There was an audible gasp as Roman shields, gladiator helmets and a 2000-year-old Roman plate were revealed to the children and passed around for the children to look at. Everyone was very responsible and respectful of the artefacts, some of which have been temporarily loaned to our school from Warwickshire Education Services and museums, an incredible opportunity which has broadened our children’s understanding of the era as well as piquing their interest in the daily lives of Roman soldiers, nobles and gladiators. The children were thrilled to brush their fingers through the horse hair on top of a Roman soldier’s helmet and inspect the pottery of a Roman oil lamp - they even had the chance to examine a Roman ear scoop!
Making Roman roads 🛣 (September 2022)
This afternoon, the children were thrilled to have the opportunity to create their own edible Roman roads! Linking with our history focus of Roman Britain, it offered year 4 pupils the chance to consolidate their understanding of how the Romans built roads from stones, pebbles, sand, broken tiles and cement. Using their culinary creations, the children were able to explain the different layers of the roads, some of which have remained in use for over two thousand years. Most of all, the children showed a lot of restraint in not tucking into their roads until they reached the playground!
Settling into year 4 (September 2022)
We have been incredibly proud of the way that the new year 4 children have settled into school life once again. The children have enjoyed kickstarting their new topics, meeting the staff members they will be working with, and spending time with their friends following their long summer break. All adults working with year 4 have commented on the excellent learning attitudes and behaviours that have been displayed so far. Keep up the hard work, year 4!