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05 June 2015

This week’s homework is practice makes perfect.  Please make sure it is handed in by Wednesday 10 June; there are a few children forgetting to hand their books in. 

I know the days of week, months of the year and seasons in order.

Well done, Mr Owen and Year 6

Today, we have a visit from someone who wanted to check that our assessments of Year 6 writing are accurate.  This is important because there is no formal SAT-style test which assesses writing – the Department for Education, Ofsted and the Local Authority rely on teachers’ assessments.  Whilst teachers assess according to criteria, this can be quite subjective – some teachers might be generous whilst others may be very cautious.  To be useful, the data from writing assessment needs to be as reliable as possible.

Over the course of the afternoon, the moderator looked at the writing and Mr Owen’s assessments of a sample of pupils.  Here is the feedback given to Mr Owen…

Thank you for your time and for letting me look through your children’s work. I was hugely impressed by the writing produced this year in your class. This is in no small part due to your hard work and diligent, effective approach to marking and feedback. The books were full of signs which told the children what to do next and what had worked well. Progress was evident throughout. Children seemed to really engage in the self-assessment/redrafting process and this again will have impacted positively on their writing. Congratulations on a very productive and successful year.

We briefly discussed the range of tasks and genres available to the children. Perhaps you could extend this a little and incorporate some further work on poetry which may help with their stylistic choices.

…And here is the feedback to me…

Thanks you for making me feel so welcome and the organisation and preparation which has gone into today. I was very impressed by the professionalism of your Year 6 teacher and the books speak for themselves in terms of his dedication to the teaching of writing at Moortown. Congratulations!

I would strongly recommend your Year 6 teacher offering his skills in the teaching of writing in a wider capacity.

Well done, Mr Owen.  Well done, Year 6.

The report also contains notes the writing of the various children.  A set of notes for one child are as follows:

Composition & Effect: Clear purpose and seeks to engage reader. Genre appropriate features maintained throughout. Vocabulary a little unaspirational and imprecise and use of stylistic features limited. Safe writing.

Text structure & Organisation: Clear organisation and sequencing of events, paragraphs linked (sometimes in a basic manner), chronological links used effectively.

Sentence Structure & Punctuation: Good variety of sentences used with some excellent complex sentences attempted (usually successfully) for effect. Subordinating connectives used appropriately. Verb tenses show occasional disagreement but this is rare. Punctuation nearly always accurate and a wider range evident, particularly towards the end of the collection.

Next steps: After a good discussion, we felt that the writer showed enough consistency of level 5 criteria to merit awarding a level 5. The writer lacked ‘flair’ and it was evident that he was not an avid reader. Wide reading would certainly bring this child on quickly as technically he is very competent.

The moderator’s notes and ‘next steps’ suggestions for all the children looked at were useful and interesting.  This one is especially important for all parents / carers as it shows the importance reading has for someone’s ability to write.

Getting green-fingered

We kicked off our Green Fingers topic this week by planting some seeds. It was really interesting to see how the seeds were different shapes and sizes and it helped us to understand where they came from. Grace liked how different the Marigold seeds were (long and thin) and Farai really wanted to try eating a sunflower seed.

Hopefully, we’re green fingered enough to keep our seeds warm, watered and with plenty of sunlight to help them grow.

Attendance matters

Sadly, our attendance figures fell slightly last half-term.  96.8% is the whole-school average – it would be great to get this back above 97% by the end of the year.  For the five half-terms of the year so far, attendance figures are as follows:

• Reception: 96.1%
• Year One: 96.9%
• Year Two: 96.4%
• Year Three: 98.3%
• Year Four: 97.0%
• Year Five: 95.7%
• Year Six: 96.9%

Getting more skillful

Today we began our six weekly coaching sessions with Leeds United.  Developing skills that can be applied to any game, we started by throwing towards a target.

Some tips were to put your opposite leg in front aiming towards the target and swinging your arm all the way through and also pointing towards the target – this helped a lot.  There were lots of accurate aiming.

Fire Safety

This afternoon, Rob and Steve from Moortown Fire Station talked to us about how we can ensure we stay safe if we encounter a fire.

Well done, Moortown…

Here’s a message from Roundhay School, which has organised lots of sporting events and physical activities for its neighbouring primary schools over the year:

Over the past year, we have thoroughly enjoyed working alongside Moortown Primary as part of Roundhay School’s PE & Sport Partnership. Moortown has played a prominent part in nearly all inter-primary competitions, fixtures and tournaments over the 2014-15 academic year. Regularly performing well during such events as Indoor Football, Basketball and High5 Netball, Moortown has also been committed to attending termly ‘Come & Try’ sessions. These sessions have been a highlight so far, with staff selecting a variety pupils who they believe will receive the most out of each event.

Working closely alongside dedicated staff, they go over and beyond their ambition to offer their pupils a range of sporting opportunities for all pupils to experience. The enthusiasm Mr O. Catherall and Mrs C. Taylor have shown throughout the year has clearly been passed onto their pupils. Pupils have similarly been a credit to their school, exhibiting exemplary behaviour and enjoyment for playing sport on both a competitive and recreational level. This positive behaviour has been reflected throughout each age group that has taken part so far this year.

To all staff, pupils, parents and guardians at Moortown Primary, well done for this year and we look forward to working together in the near future.

 

What’s going on this week?

Welcome back to our final term of Year 2!

This week sees the beginning of our new topic, Green Fingers. We’ll be exploring the world of plants, hoping to understand what plants need to grow and be able to name common flowers and trees. While you’re walking around, notice the plants you pass and discuss how they are different or similar to each other. We’ll be getting our hands dirty by planting lots of different seeds for us to look after until the end of the year.

Maths

As usual for the beginning of a half term, we revisit basic understanding of number. Are numbers odd or even? How many tens and how many units? Can we count confidently in 2s, 5s, and 10s? Practise at home by counting as you walk up the stairs and using tables to solve related division facts (if 4 x 5 = 20 then 20 / 5 = 4).

English

We’re getting bossy as we explore instructions in English. Can we follow instructions to create our own cress heads? Do we know the main features of instructions (title, what you will need, numbers, sequence of inst, diagram/picture)? Can we use these features to write own clear instructions? At home, see where we use instructions in everyday life. Do you have any recipes or Lego model guides lying around that you could discuss together?

Well done, Reception

Well done to Reception who had the most journeys to school on foot during Walk to School Week.  Hope you enjoyed the martial arts session today as your reward.  Thanks to John, from White Rose Martial Arts, for providing the session.

SEAL Changes and manners

As we enter our final half term, the next SEAL theme looks at Changes, starting from next week.

This week, we begin with a focus on manners and  I cover my mouth (when I cough, sneeze or yawn) is our weekly statement.

The ‘Vampire method’ can help to prevent germs spreading. By coughing or sneezing into our elbow, germs are not spread into the air or on our hands which may contaminate other things.

Here is how it’s done.

Don’t forget to ‘use your sleeve to cough and sneeze’.