Hello and welcome to Outstanding Owls!
My name is Mr Ireland and I am the teacher. Miss Keates also works in the classroom as a teaching assistant and she will always be there to support children with kindness and a smile. We are both looking forward to the new challenges and learning that the children will experience.
In Owl class, the children will be encouraged to become the very best version of themselves and to lead their own learning through challenges and continuous provision. They will be in a safe and supportive environment and will be encouraged to put their all into every lesson whilst having fun along the way. My aim for the year is to enrich children’s education and to make sure they well-rounded, confident and possess a positive attitude towards their work.
We have many different exciting learning experiences throughout the year. We will be visiting Arundel Castle, designing delicious ice lollies, sewing puppets, watching the life cycle of butterflies and so much more. Both Mrs Richards and I have high expectations of behaviour and expect the children to take responsibility for the classroom environment and, most importantly, the way they treat others.
We look forward to sharing learning, fun and smiles throughout Year 2.
Maths Challenge - 1
Create your own shop at home. Come up with different items that you could sell and a price less than £1.
Once you’ve done that, can you think of different ways to use coins to make the different values?
For example – 25p could be 20p + 2p + 2p + 1p but it could also be 10p + 10p + 5p.
Take a photograph or keep a record of the prices and how you could use coins to make them and then bring it in to share.
Maths Challenge - 2
Make up your own maths game, to practise your counting in 2s, 5s and 10s or telling the time (in Year 2 we learn the time to the nearest 5 minutes).
Could it be a board game, matching card game, or a game where you need to be a little bit more active?
Once you made your game/created your game, share it with us in school.
Art Challenge
Look at the nature-styled artwork of the Sculptor Andy Goldsworthy.
Talk and discuss what you like about his artwork and why people might enjoy seeing it.
Once you’ve done that, try to create your own nature sculpture, inspired by the style of Andy Goldsworthy.
Take a picture of this or bring it into school to share with us.
English Challenge - Fiction
Write a story about a polar animal.
Plan your story carefully by thinking about the main events that are going to happen.
Then, write it out focusing on the beginning, middle and end.
Don’t forget to use the correct and use your phonic knowledge when spelling unfamiliar words.
How creative can you be?
Can you include some powerful and interesting adjectives which will amaze your teacher?
History Challenge
Research The Great Fire of London and the houses that people lived in at that time.
What did they look like?
What were they made of?
Why do you think the fire spread so quickly?
What differences are there between the houses we have today?
What is the most interesting Great Fire of London fact you can find out to amaze your friends and teacher.
Suggested Reading
English Challenge – Non-fiction
Video yourself making a short documentary about a polar animal in the style of David Attenborough.
Start by watching a few of his videos where he looks at animals in detail.
Then, select a polar animal of your choice and discover interesting facts about them.
For example, did you know an Emperor Penguin is the biggest species of penguin which is alive today?
Show off your knowledge and factual information. You could also use pictures, graphs or other information to really bring your documentary to life.
Once you’ve produced your video, it could be emailed to your teacher so it can be shared with the class.
Science Challenge
Keep a food diary for a week to help you think about the different foods that you eat.
Can you group the foods you eat?
What do you eat the most of?
What is the strangest food you ate throughout the week?
Do you think you have a healthy and balanced diet?
Is there anything you should eat more or less of?
Geography Challenge
Use a globe or world map to locate the equator and North and South Pole.
Look at countries that are near the equator and countries that are near the North Pole.
What differences can you see between them?
Do they have the same types of animals?
Why might they be different?
Explain whether you would rather live by the equator or the North Pole.
Bring your findings into school to share.