Seeds

Penguin class got very messy exploring seeds during their science lesson. We learnt that all plants that have seeds are a fruit. Some fruits have internal seeds and others like strawberries have their seeds externally. We then planted some of these seeds. I wonder if any of them will grow in our country?

Multiplication and Division

We have been learning about groups to help us to understand multiplication and division. First we made groups using objects like pasta and lollypop sticks, then we went to make the groups using house point counters in rows and columns to create arrays.

For example, 3 groups of 2 are 6. 2 groups of 3 are 6.
10 divided by 2, how many groups of 2 in 10?

Art

The year 2’s were busy mixing colours to create different values; lighter colours were tints and darker ones were hues. We then shared our work and discussed it using our new art vocabulary! Fabulous work year 2’s!

Ice

Year 2 have spent a chilly lesson exploring ice. Things that we discovered and wanted answering were;

• Ice can melt and turns slippery when handled. The warmth from our hands make the ice melt which turns the ice into water. This is a reversible change.
• Ice shrinks when it melts.
• Some of the ice was opaque and other pieces were transparent. Why is this?
• Salt speeds up the melting process if put onto ice.
• Some ice is bumpy and rough but it can also be smooth.

Fire Dance

Penguin class have been busy creating a dance based upon fire. We came up with a variety of movements that represented a burning ember, to a roaring fire and then slowly the fire dying out. We have also listened to the classical piece of music titled ‘Ritual Fire Dance’by Manuel da Falla basing our movements upon the dynamics of the music. Finally we used paper flames to help us with our movements. We can’t wait to perform it to another class!

The children of Queen Emma remember

To honour all who lost their lives in WW1, every child in Queen Emma made a poppy to create a whole school art installation. Come to the top of the Atrium stairs and take a look.

Fairy Tale Maps

Penguin class have been exploring maps and will eventually make their own fairy tale map, relating to their topic of ‘Traditional Tales.’ The children looked at a variety of maps and discussed their similarities and differences. They also went on an epic journey on google maps, travelling all over the world and exploring far flung cities.

Story Telling Afternoon

Year 2 invited parents and carers to come in for a story telling afternoon. There were lots of fun activities enjoyed.

Florence Nightingale

September

This week Penguin class went back in time to the Victorian Era to learn a little more about the significant nurse, Florence Nightingale. They learnt that Florence had to persuade her mother and sister about her desire to help people, rather than get married and go to lavish parties. So the children worked in groups of 3’s, taking on each character and role playing what Florence may have said to her mother and sister. The children took their roles very seriously and there were some fantastic performances at the end.