Community links
This week is Community Week. In one lesson, we talked about the different communities that we belong to. We talked about how other children in the class might belong to the same community. At the end of the lesson, we talked about how we can make links between the communities. One child held a ball of wool and threw it to a person who was in the same community as them whilst keeping hold of the start of the ball of wool. This person then said the name of another community they belong to and threw it to someone else who belongs to that community. Soon enough, everyone was holding the wool and we’d created a spiders web of linked communities and children.
Professional footballer visits Moortown!
On Monday, we were privileged to welcome an actual, real life professional footballer into our classroom! Carla Cantrell currently plays for Lincoln and has previously played for Leeds United. She has even played for England! Carla talked to us about what it is like being a professional footballer and the challenges and sacrifices she has to make.
It was really interesting to find out how different it is being a female professional footballer compared to a male professional footballer. For example, Carla has to work all day and then go to training for three hours after work! Wayne Rooney doesn’t know how lucky he is!
Water Aid
This morning, we had a visit from Gary who works for one of our school charities, Water Aid. We learnt that Water Aid is an international charity which helps people from many different countries who don’t have easy access to clean, fresh drinking water. We also learnt about how we have been helping Water Aid help our global community.
Water Aid
This morning, we had a visit from Gary who works for one of our school charities, Water Aid. We learnt that Water Aid is an international charity which helps people from many different countries who don’t have easy access to clean, fresh drinking water. We also learnt about how we have been helping Water Aid help our global community.
Fair Trade and Healthy Eating
Yesterday afternoon, we were lucky enough to have two speakers come into the class to discuss Fair Trade and Healthy Eating. Barry talked to us about what Fair Trade foods are, how we can spot them, and why we should buy them. Siobhan, a dietician, who works with lots of schools in Leeds, talked to us about the many ways we could improve our diet.
Masterchef hummus
Last week, children were told that they would be making hummus and were given a basic hummus recipe. They had to decide what they were going to add to their hummus to make it more exciting or interesting. We went to Marks and Spencers to do a bit of research about what flavours of hummus are popular. Once back, the groups finalised their recipes. On Monday, they made their hummus with the extra ingredients they had brought from home. There were some interesting combinations: raspberry ice-cream, rhubarb and chocolate sprinkles were some of the more unusual ingredients which were added.
As it was a competition, the children had to not only make a tasty hummus but had to think about presentation too. Masterchef judges, Mr Wilks and Isabella Deyes, tasted the hummus and judged the presentation. The winner was a sweet chilli flavoured hummus made by Pavan, Ahmed and Roshan.
Yogabugs
Last week, Yogabugs helped us to exercise our bodies and minds. The session was great and was linked to our food topic. During the session, we even tasted some fruit and thought carefully about how it tasted.
Tennis competition
Well done to the Year 3/4 tennis team who fought off all the local opposition and got through to the Leeds City Finals.
The finals took place last Wednesday, at John Charles Sports Centre, where the Moortown team did us proud and took fourth place overall.
Well done to the whole team – you played some fabulous tennis!
Goodbye, Year 3 (from Miss Hewson)
Just a little message to say goodbye to another lovely class that I was lucky enough to teach. I hope you all keep up the good learning. My favourite thing about your class is how different you all are. I love that you all have individual personalities and opinions. Thank you to the girls who have spent time making up leaving dances for me in the last few weeks – they were brilliant! (However, I think you had a pretty good Wake Up Shake Up teacher didn’t you?!) I think you’re a class full of talent, especially when it comes to sport. Best of luck for the future and don’t forget me when you’re famous!
New SEAL theme – Changes
This SEAL theme tackles the issue of change and aims to equip children with an understanding of different types of change, positive and negative, and common responses to it.
The key ideas and concepts behind this theme are:
- Change can be uncomfortable, because it can threaten our basic needs to feel safe and to belong
- Change can also be stimulating and welcome
- Both adults and children can experience a range of powerful and conflicting emotions as a result of change – for example, excitement, anxiety, uncertainty, loss, anger, resentment
- Worries about change can be made worse by uncertainty, lack of information, or misinformation and lack of support from others
- People’s responses to and ability to cope with change are very variable, and might be influenced by individual temperament, previous experience of change, and the nature of the change – chosen or imposed, expected or unexpected, within our control or out of our control.
Some children may welcome most forms of change and dislike routine and predictability. Other children may find even small changes very difficult.
Within school, children, who are coping with or have undergone significant change, are supported in a variety of ways:
- Our positive ethos within school
- Support systems, from staff and peers, for children who have undergone change or who maybe new to the school
- SEAL and circle time sessions where children feel safe to talk about their feelings
- Class SEAL boxes for children to record any concerns
- Preparing children wherever possible for planned changes for example, a change of class teacher, Key Stage or even school
We begin this half term with a focus on manners: I don’t talk with my mouth full.
Subsequently, I can get better at my learning is the first SEAL statement to launch the theme of Changes.