Year 4 – Spring Term: Anglo-Saxons

Welcome back! What a great Autumn term we had exploring Ancient Civilisations. We really enjoyed learning about some of the world’s earliest and most fascinating societies, including ancient Sumer, ancient Egypt and the Indus Valley.

This Spring Term, we will be learning all about the Anglo Saxons! We look forward to exploring the effects of the Roman withdrawal and the chronology and geography of subsequent invasions. We will look at the Anglo-Saxons and Vikings in detail, examining their reasons for invading, their settlements and their everyday life.

English

Our English work will be inspired by a range of rich and thought-provoking texts. We’ll begin with Winter's Child by Angela McAllister, and write our very own sequel. Our second unit will be focused around ‘Selfish Giant’ by Oscar Wilde. For our outcome, we will write a detailed story about kindness.

In reading, we continue with Destination Reader, where children take part in whole-class sessions focusing on comprehension skills. This half-term, we’ll enjoy Monster Slayer -Brian Patten and Beowulf – Michael Morpurgo (extracts).

Maths

In Maths, we will be:

• using formal and informal written methods for both multiplication and division.

• learning about length and perimeter.

There will also be a big focus on times tables, as we prepare for the multiplication tables check later this year.

Science – Food and The Digestive System

We will:

• revisit the meaning of scientific vocabulary, including producer, consumer, carnivore, herbivore, omnivore, predator and prey.

• learn about two scientific diagrams, a food chain and a food web, finding out what these diagrams are and what they show. 

• learn about the digestive system of humans, naming the digestive organs, describing their functions and finding out what happens to the food they eat.

Other Subjects

• History – Anglo Saxons

• R.E. – Freedom and how it relates to Judaism

• P.E. – Gymnastics indoors; Rugby outdoors (led by Chelsea Football Foundation)

• DT– Nightlights

• Music – Exploring the song Doot Doot

• French – French stories and fairy tales.  

• Computing – Logo programming, focusing on developing their understanding of basic commands and programming concepts.

A Great Start Ahead!

We are looking forward to a term full of curiosity, creativity and new challenges. Thank you for supporting your child’s learning at home – whether it’s reading together, practising times tables, or simply sharing conversations about what we are exploring in class.

Miss Howard