PLEASE SCROLL DOWN BELOW CLASS INFORMATION TO SEE PHOTOS OF WHAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING

Welcome to Sycamore’s Class' information and blog page.  Here you will find general class information and see what we have been up to in our learning. 

We look forward to working together in Sycamore class this year and I am sure we will have lots of fun learning together. 

World Book Day

As one of the activities for World Book Day the children drew their favourite book front cover.

Well done to Aairah who won the competition for Sycamore. 

Parent’s reading session

Thank you to all the parents and families that were able to join us to read. The children always love having you in to read with them. 

Value's Day

Today we had a value's day where we focused on our new school values.

These are:

Growth

Standards

Attitude

Pride

We talked about what we wanted to do when we grow up, if we reach for the highest standards. 

We talked about an "I Can" attitude and how we need this to achieve.

We talked about what the children were proud of in their lives. 

Finally we invited the parents in to learn about growth with us. The children planted cress seeds and made plant labels as well as thinking how they have grown, not just in size but in what they have learnt and attributes such as kindness and patience.

Design and Technology

This week we have made our vegetable soup.

The children all got the chance to chop the vegetables to prepare the soup, we cooked them in vegetable stock and then tasted the soup. 

Some of us liked it, some of us didn't!

Sycamore Family Reading Morning

It was lovely to have so many parents join us for reading with the children in class this morning. 

The children really enjoyed it.

Italy Day

Today we had lots of fun because it was Italy Day!

We came to school dressed in green, red and white (the colours of the Italy flag), we learnt some Italian dancing and tasted pizza. Sycamore class also wrote a tourist leaflet to tempt people to visit Italy.

History

We have been learning about significant people in history and today we put those people on a timeline. 

The children had to decide whether the significant people were alive before the children were born, before their parents were born and even if they were alive before or after the Great Fire of London. 

Great historical skills.

Christmas Party Day! 

Today we had a visit from Father Christmas and all received a gift. 

We also had lots of fun and ate party food!

Biffa Road Safety Workshop

Today we had a visit from Mark and Emily who work for Biffa-the waste management company. 

They spoke to the children about road safety, safety around bin wagons and the dangers of bin wagons. 

The children all learnt a lot and enjoyed taking part in the quizzes. 

Children in Need

Today we celebrated Children in Need Day by dressing in our PJs.

Reading Champions

These children were superstars and helped Mrs Waddell at the RWI coffee morning this morning. 

They were brilliant at showing the parents what a RWI lesson looked like. 

Mrs Waddell was proud of you.

Homework heroes

Well done to the children who have done their homework this week. 

Champion Mathemeticians

Well done to the children who have been spending time on their times tables on times table rock stars.

Odd socks day!

Today we wore odd socks as part of anti-bullying week.

It shows we are all unique and we can celebrate this without fear of being bullied.

It was fun! 

Reading for pleasure in Sycamore

Everyday after our lunch, Sycamore class read for pleasure.

The children read books and enjoy the books we have in school. 

These children brought in their own books to read :)

Which book will you bring in from home to read?

Family Reading Morning. 
Thank you to everyone who joined us for reading. 
The children love having you in to read with them. 

Pumpkin Competition

Well done to everyone in Sycamore who carved a pumpkin at home and brought it in for our competition. 

They are fantastic!

Geography-The UK

We have started our geography learning this week. 
The children learnt that the UK stands for the United Kingdom. 
We learnt villages are small, towns are bigger and cities are the biggest. 
We used atlases to find the 4 countries in the UK- England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. 
The children also identified the 4 capital cities of the countries. 
Then it was fun using play dough to make the countries. 

Key Stage 1 Family Celebration-The Great Fire of London

Today we invited our families into school to share our history learning about The Great Fire of London.

The children sang a song first about the fire and told the adults information they had learnt. 
Then all the adults went to their child’s class to look at the children’s learning in both history and art. 
Thank you to everyone who came. The children loved showing off their knowledge and skills. 

Art

The children have enjoyed building up their art skills to create a final painted piece based on the Great Fire of London.

English

We have been learning about poetry. 
We have been learning to perform the poem: The Little Turtle. 
Listen to our performance. 

Music-Daisy Bell

This week in music Sycamore class have been learning to sing the song Daisy Bell (a bicycle made for two).

We learnt what the song was about and also learnt the first verse. 

Have a look and listen to our fantastic singing!

Rock Steady

We had an assembly by Rock Steady music school.

We had a great time!

Some of us got to play instruments, we all sang, clapped and generally had a great time!

If you want to join a rock band have a look at the letter you took home and it is on these photos.

Art

In Art this week the children have learnt to use different brushes to create different techniques. 

The children used good skills and care to practice.

Perfect sitting

May and Zunairah have shown perfect sitting when they were starting their writing.

Good job girls!

This will help you to do perfect writing! 

Sycamore's first week

Sycamore class have had a great first week settling in and getting to know each other and working as a team. 

Look at our happy smiling faces as we get on in our new class. 

Sycamore trip to Eureka

We had a great day visiting Eureka. 

We went on coaches and had great fun singing and chatting on the way. 

At Eureka there were different zones where we could discover, learn and play.

Have a look at the photos-they show happy children having a great time!

Key Stage 1 Sports Day

The sun shone and we had a great time at Sports Day. 
We all took part in some activities then we finished with some races. 
Have a look at the fun we had!😁🏃‍♂️
 

Rainbow Day

Today was Rainbow Day. 
We dressed in rainbow colours or as many different colours as we could. 
We read The Worst Princess and also talked about Different Families Same Love. 

Art

In art we have been using clay. 
The children have imprinted natural objects into the clay. 
Have a look at the imprints the children made. 

Attendance Reward

Sycamore class we’re proud to receive the attendance reward for Key Stage 1. 
They were the highest attending class for the Summer 1 term with 97.2%. 
We were able to choose our reward. The class chose extra playtime with the toys out. 
As you can see from the photos they really enjoyed their reward! 

Performing poetry

Sycamore class have been learning about the poem “Please Mrs Butler” by Alan Ahlberg.

They have identified the features of the poem, including rhyme, repetition and alliteration, have written their own version of the poem and finally performed the poem. 
Watch our video of the children performing the first verse.

P.S.H.E.

As part of our learning in P.S.H.E. we looked at understanding the importance of and the routines for brushing teeth.

To start with we knew that we brushed our teeth to:

-get germs out of our mouths

-if we don't brush our teeth they will fall out

-we would also get cavaties and toothache

-we needed to brush our teeth for 2 minutes twice every day

We talked about food that had more sugar in and less sugar in and sorted the foods out. 

We decided that to keep our teeth healthy we should eat fruit and vegetables, visit the dentist and don't eat too many sweets.

Science- Herbivore, Carnivore or Omnivore?

Today we felt inside boxes and pulled out what each of the animals ate.

We then decided on how to classify what they ate.

A herbivore eats just plants. 

A carnivore eats just meat. 

An omnivore eats plants and meat. 
 

Do we take medicines even when we aren't sick?

Lilly said you might get poorly by taking the medicine.

Jason thought that if the medicine was not for you, you could die.

If you take medicine when you don't need it, when you do need it, it might not work Fletcher said.

Elizabeth has her inhaler twice a day because she has asthma. She isn't poorly but the inhaler helps to keep her healthy. 

Keeping our community tidy

Olivia is a member of our Eco Team in school and is always keen to help out. 

She has also been helping in the community by collecting rubbish and putting it in the bin. 

Well done Olivia. We are proud of you.

P.E.

For the past few weeks Sycamore have been really enjoying fast warm up relays in P.E.

This week as well they applied all their ball skills that they have been practicing to a game where they had to try and stop their opposition rolling the ball across their goal line.

The children really enjoyed this and used great skill as well as concentration to try to be skillful.

New Moston Mental Health Week

This morning we learnt about Big Emotions. 

Big emotions can include:

anxiety, fear, anger, excitement and joy.

We did a freeze frame of each emotion and what it would look like. 

We also talked about how the emotion might feel for us and how we could cope with it. 

Yoga

Following on from learning about Big Emotions, we learnt that yoga helps us to connect our body, breath and mind. This can help us to calm down and deal with some Big Emotions.

We did yoga to the story of The Hungry Caterpillar.

Exercise

Exercise can help us to feel better.  When we exercise our brains get a ‘drink’ of serotonin which makes it happier!

Today we danced to Gummy Bear and Shake it up!

We really enjoyed it and felt better after!

Spring Walk

This afternoon we went on a walk to the park to look at the seasonal changes from winter to spring.

We saw:

-blossom on the trees

-leaves starting to grow on the branches

-daffodils and bluebells flowering 

-lots of puddles from the showers

We heard birds chirping in the trees.

The weather was cool but sunny.

Easter Egg decorating competition winner

Well done to Melissa who won the competition for decorating an Easter Egg. 
She used lots of different materials to make this a great entry. 
Well done Melissa! 👍😁

Easter Disco

We all had a great time having fun with our friends at the Easter disco. 

World Maths Day

Today we used rulers as a maths skill to help us produce a piece of art. 
Some children showed great skills. 

The chicks 🐣 

Today the chicks that have hatched in EYFS came to visit Sycamore class. 
We were able to hold them if we wanted. 

Family Reading Afternoon

It was lovely to have our families join us to read this afternoon. 
The children love sharing books with them. 
Thank you for joining us. 

Design and Technology

This week the children have been looking at butt joints using wood. 
They have also experienced using a hack saw to cut wood. 
 

World Book Day

We had a "Break the Rules" day for World Book Day!

The children had great fun! 

The teachers will be glad to be back to normality tomorrow! 

Where would you rather be-Blackpool or Rio?

We have a focus on Geography this half term and are learning about two places Rio de Janeiro in South America and Blackpool which is in Europe and in the country we live in.

We will learn lots of facts about these places, compare them and ultimately decide where we would rather be! 

The knowledge organiser below will tell you more about our learning.

Certificate Winners this week! 

Well done to this week's certificate winners.

Teacher's award: well done to Ellie who was spotted this week using fantastic manners to an adult in school 

and well done to Zach who has made big improvements in the effort he is putting into all of his learning.

Champion mathematicians: Jason, Joshua and Finn have all been practicing their times tables on Times Table Rock Stars. 

Reading Champion: Abisola won this as she brings her reading folder every week-a committed reader! 

Handwriting Award: This went to Lilly who uses joined up handwriting in all of her learning. 

I wonder who will receive the postcard home?

PSHE-Money

Today in Sycamore the children have learnt about money.

First of all the children decided where people got money from-those ideas are on the purse below.

Then the children decided on the safest way to look after their money. They ordered from the least safe (in your pocket!) to the safest (in the bank).

We had fun thinking about why a piggy bank was safer than a drawer and bank cards safer than cash.

These are all good skills for life. 

P.E.

Today in PE the children were balancing on the beams and practicing different movements. The children have really improved their skills. Some children could jump, turn and even walk backwards!

P.E.

Today everyone in Sycamore class brought their P.E. kit in! Well done everyone.

We had a great P.E. lesson practicing balancing on the beams and then trying to do this while a partner tried to pull us off.

Then we played a great game where we had an area to play in and we had to use our balancing skills to dodge and weave while our partner tried to score points by touching our knees. 

We had great fun!

Art

In art this week the children experimented with mixing play dough to think about colour mixing. 
they had the primary colours of red, yellow and blue and mixed these to make the secondary colours. 
The children then experimenting with adding white and black to create tints, tones and shades. 
The children really enjoyed the lesson and are developing their skills. 

Science walk in the park

As part of our science learning about the seasons we have walked to the Nuthurst park. 
we were focusing on what the trees and park look like in winter. 
we talked about evergreen trees that don’t lose their leaves and deciduous trees whose leaves turn red, orange and yellow then turn brown and fall off the trees. 
We saw berries for the birds to feed on in winter. 
Then we had fun playing in the snow and saw birds footprints in the snow. 
 

What do we know about our school?
We have a focus on History this half term and are learning about the history of our school-the buildings, what it was like to be a pupil here in the past and how things have changed compared to today.
The knowledge organiser below will tell you more about our learning.

Father Christmas

We we’re so lucky on party day to have Father Christmas come to visit. 
The children all got to speak to him and he brought a present for everyone. 😁🎄🎅🏼

Design and Technology- making sandwiches

The children have used their cutting, mixing and tasting skills to make a mixed filling for a sandwich. 
They have learnt about hygiene, safe use of knives and made their sandwich either using bread, pitta bread or a wrap,a mixed filling and added some salad. 
There were mixed tasting results! 😁🥪🥙

Family reading morning

Thank you to all of our families who joined us this morning to read. 
It was lovely to see you all. 
The children love you to come and share in our learning. 

Children in Need day! 

Maths

The children had a challenge to make different shapes using art straws. 
Can you see the shape with the greatest number of sides?

Science-the senses

We learnt about the senses this week. 

The children felt in a feely bag and had to say how the item felt using their skin (touch).

Then we cooked the popcorn and the children said what they smelt and heard-lots of popping!

Then they said what they saw with their eyes (sight)

Finally they got to taste the popcorn and come up with words to describe the taste.

What do we know about our school?

We have a focus on Geography this half term and are learning about our school-it's location, where things are in our school and using maps, compasses and other sources. 

The knowledge organiser will tell you more about our learning.

R.E.

This week we learnt about the miracle that Christians believe in: The Feeding of the Five Thousand.

The children watched the video of the story where Jesus turned 5 loaves and 2 fish into enough food to feed 5 thousand of his followers, and more. 

Then they acted out the story in groups. 

Geography-around our school.

This week we went on a walk around our school.

There were lots of areas of the school that some of us had not visited before. 

We will be building on our knowledge of the school through our Geography learning.

Poetry

This week Sycamore have been learning about poetry.

We have been reading the poem Cats Sleep Anywhere by Eleanor Farjeon. 

The poem is on the slides below as well as the new poem Sycamore class created in the same style. 

There is also a video of Sycamore performing the poem.

They did a fabulous performance for Mrs Maynard.

Art and family celebration in Sycamore

Today we invited our families into class to celebrate our learning in Art. 
The children have been learning about self portraits and the families were able to see the children.s first self portrait and the final one. 
Then the children had a go at drawing their parents and the parents drew their children. 
Finally we took our pencils for a walk on the page and enjoyed colouring in the patterns we made. 
There were some great artists in the room today and it was lovely to have our families join in our learning with us. 

Role Play in Sycamore

The children have been playing in the doctor's surgery role play this week. 

They had great fun!

Certificates

Here are this week's certificate winners. 

Maths-Fletcher

Handwriting-Eralba

Teacher's certificate-Andrew

Reading-Halle

Well done everyone.

Who will get the postcard home this week?

Seeds

In Science we have been doing an experiment about growing seeds in different conditions. 

They were growing:

in the cupboard

on the window ledge with water

on the window ledge without water

in the fridge

on a paper towel

Look how they have grown each day.

R.E.-Who is my neighbour

At the start of the lesson, all the children told me the name of the person who lived next door to them when they were asked: "Who is your neighbour?"

After we watched the story of The Good Samaritan, the children learnt that a neighbour is someone who is kind and helpful and cares for you. 

In the pictures below you can see freeze frames of helping someone find their way and helping someone who doesn't know what to do. 

Handwriting awards

We have just started our new handwriting awards scheme. 

There is bronze, silver and gold. 

Everyone has started on working towards bronze level and has the standard stuck in their English book. 

When the children have achieved all of the points in the award they will get a sticker of that colour on the front of their book and start working towards the next level. 

Please read the levels and support your child at home. 

This week we are particularly focusing on the correct sitting position. 

Have a look at the photos below for how to sit correctly and try your best every time you write. 

Hopefully you will achieve gold in no time!

Certificates

This week's certificates have been given to Abisola and Oscar, Eva and Youseff. 

Well done to you all! :)

Partitioning numbers in maths

This week we have been partitioning numbers into tens and ones and have partitioned the numbers in different wats using our equipment to help us. 

The children have done a great job! :)

Music in Sycamore class

This week we really enjoyed our first music lesson. 

We learnt about pulse and tried to move with the pulse and learnt to sing Rhythm in the Way we Walk.

This week's certificate winners

Well done to Lily, Jacob and Dollie for being awarded with a certificate this week. 

Also to Melissa who has re-joined New Moston Primary after some time away. Welcome back!

Certificates

Well done to Finn and Harper who both got a certificate this week for having a great first week in Sycamore class. 
There are two postcards in the post as well. Keep your eyes open in case one is delivered to your house!
Well done everyone on a great first week! 😁

Welcome back Sycamore!

We have had a fantastic first week back in Sycamore class. 
Everyone is happy to be back in school. 
We have drawn a self portrait as part of our art learning. 
Have a look because the children have tried really hard with their drawings. 
So much concentration! Well done everyone. 👍😁

Archive 2022-23

Design and Technology

Have a look at our finished bridges. 

We have tested and evaluated them this week.

Great job everyone!

Pride Month June 2023

The children have learnt about what the Pride flag represents and why we have pride month.

They then  discussed why Pride month is important and the importance of equality and tolerance in today's society.

Have a look at our flags.

D.T. Bridge building

The children have been working cooperatively to build bridges. 

They have studied the structures of bridges and worked how to make them strong enough to carry weight. 

Have a look at the photos of the children working together.

Science Habitats-our walk to Moston Brook

Today Sycamore class made a very hot walk to Moston Brook. 

We were looking at different habitats.

We saw woodland, water, grassland and urban habitats.

The children thought about the animals they might see in each of the habitats and we took photos of the habitats and any insects/birds/animals they saw.

Environment Day

Today it was environment day. 

We had a talk about endangered animals from Mark and we looked at animals' habitats. 

The children created an animals' habitat afterwards in class.

It was a great day.

Manchester Libraries Author Reading

Today we were able to watch a live link to the author Emma Reynolds who read her book to us: Amara and the Bats.

This is really good for this week as the book has won prizes for its links to empathy (and it is Empathy Day on Thursday) and it also links to the environment (it is Environment Day on Friday).

First Emma read the book to us, then she showed us how to draw bats. The children really enjoyed it and it was a great start to our day.

You can listen to the book using the You Tube link below, look at some of the photos of the live event and some of our drawings of bats.

Super Homework!

Erin has made her own book over the half term. 

As one of the homework tasks, the children were asked to write their own story based on a story they knew. 

Erin used The Three Billy Goats Gruff and changed it to The Three Red Pandas!

It is a fantastic story. 

Have a read yourself.

I am proud of you Erin and the class gave her a big round of applause after we had read it. 

Computing

We are learning about spreadsheets in computing.

The children created their own spreadsheet today using Purple Mash.

Yoyo even managed to make a magic square where all the rows and columns totalled the same amount.

What a superstar!

Music in Sycamore Class

The children really enjoyed singing today in our music lesson. 

We thought you would love to hear it too!

#Nationalnumeracyday

Today was National Numeracy Day. 

All the school took part in activities relating to numeracy and watched a video with Katya Jones (Strictly Come Dancing) and Bobby Seagull (a maths expert).

We joined in with dancing and a maths quiz. 

The children all enjoyed it. 

Mia enjoyed dancing with Katya.

Alma enjoyed the first 3 moves of the dance.

Emily enjoyed the true and false quiz.

Luna also enjoyed trying to get the right answers in the quiz. 

We learnt that whilst some people may be a little worried about maths, that's OK. Maths experts are not born as a maths expert, they learn and get the skills they need.

Homework Grid

This is your last homework grid for the year.

I hope you enjoy completing the activities. 

I look forward to seeing them.

Knowledge Organiser-Why is our capital city so special?

The knowledge organiser below will give you information on what your child will be learning about in their new Geography based learning about London. 

Meet the Weather Event with Caryl Hart & Bethan Woollvin

We signed up to a great event which was free through Manchester Libraries!

The children were able to watch an author and illustrator talk about their jobs and read their book. 

It was great fun and the children really enjoyed it. 

For the next 2 weeks you can re-watch the video of the event. 

You could also go to the author's website and download some activities to do with the book-have fun! :)

https://carylhart.com/activities

The King's Coronation Celebrations.

Today we celebrated King Charles' Coronation. 

Everyone dressed in red, white and blue or as royalty. 

We learnt about the Coronation and King Charles then had an afternoon tea. 

We had a flag competition. 

Well done Rosy in Sycamore for winning!

A great day was had by all!

This week's certificates

Well done to William who has been joining in with his learning much more this week. 

Well done Mia who has done fantastic Fractions learning. 

Well done to all the children who have done their homework or completed their Arithmetic Ninja at home.

Great effort!

Charlie Conlon

Today we had Charlie Conlon come to visit us. 

As we are having a lot of building works done at school for our new kitchen, we had an assembly about keeping safe on and near building sites.

The children watched a video about some children who weren't safe on a site and then looked at what safety equipment the builders need to wear and why. The children even got to try them on! Have a look at our photos.

Happy Eid

This week we have been learning about Eid. 

This is a festival for Muslims and it is all about being thankful and giving.

The children have made Eid cards and have written inside what they are grateful for. 

They are going to give the cards to Farah and Mumin on Monday as they have been at home celebrating Eid with their families today. 

Happy Eid!

Certificate Winner!

Well done to Kunle who won our maths superstar this week. 

He has mastered writing and reading all the numbers from 0-100. 

Well done Kunle! :)

This week's certificate winners

Well done to Gaurvi, Mia, Llewellyn, Erin, Isla, Yoyo, Emily and Rosy who are all homework heroes this week. 

Thank you for doing your homework. 

Our maths superstar this week was Elton. Great job Elton!

Yoyo, Llewellyn and Isla have worked hard on Reading Eggs this week!

Alana and Rosy have certificates for always trying their best.

Everyone in Sycamore always tries their best-it's so hard to choose each week. So well done everyone in Sycamore for a great week's learning. 

For our Science topic we have been focusing on how pets stay healthy. Ms Maynard brought Pippa into class so we could ask her questions on how she looks after Pippa and what Pippa needs.

Meeting the ducklings 🐣

Reception have had ducklings which have hatched from their eggs. 

We have been lucky and been to see them today. 

Some of us held them and some of us stroked them. 

Attendance Award Winners

These children have got 100% attendance for the Spring first half term. 

They are Emily, Esia, Ivy, Ella and Erin on the photo as well as David and Tyler. 

Well done to you all. 

It is so important that we are all HEROs ( Here Everyday Ready Ontime). 

Certificates!

Well done to this week’s certificate winners. 

Ivy for always making good choices, Mia for trying hard to improve her handwriting and Hannah for great use of standard measurements in maths this week. 

Farah, Erin and Hannah have also spent time improving their reading skills on Reading Eggs this week. 

World Book Day

All the children dressed as a character from a book for World Book Day. There were some fabulous outfits! 

Our parents/careers joined us at the end of the day and read books with us. 

Knowledge Organiser Spring 2

This knowledge organiser will give you information on what your child will be learning in their next History based block of learning which is titled: "How have Rosa Parks and Nelson Mandela helped to make the world a better place?"

You can also see the books they will be reading linked to this and may want to read these with your child at home.

Spring 2 Homework Grid

Below is the Homework Grid for Spring 2 for your child. 

All the instructions and expectations are on the grid.

I can't wait to see what everyone does :)

Hello Yellow Day

Today we could all wear yellow to school to think about Mental Health Awareness. 

As a class we thought about effective strategies to self soothe and self regulate.

We did some yoga together. 

We also enjoyed trying out some different breathing techniques and created a "Hand of Help" on which we wrote ideas that we could use to help ourselves to stay calm and regulated. 

Design and Technology-Polar Scenes

The children have been working really hard on their sewing skills. 

First they designed what their own polar scene would look like after studying what a polar landscape looks like.

They then had a background to which they added sky, water and animals mostly using running stitch. 

It wasn't easy and we needed all of our resilience skills and lots of patience!

The results are good though-have a look at our photos below. 

Weather reporters in Sycamore

We have been learning about the season s in Science. 

To help us remember facts about Summer, the children in Sycamore pretended they were weather reporters and reported about Summer. 

Have a look at our videos.

Music in Sycamore

The children have really mastered keeping in time with the rhythm using a variety of instruments. 

Have a listen! 

Reading Eggs Champions!

We have looked at the Reading Eggs App together in class this week and these children have all gone home and spent time improving their reading by using the app.

Good job!

Hopefully more of you will use it too. Have fun!

Be a Reading Egg Champion like Praise, Ella, YoYo, Ivy, Isla, Erin, Farah, Gaurvi, Marnie and Mumin.

This week's certificates

Well done to:

Esia who won the handwriting award this week.

Emily who won the teacher's award for hard work giving change.

Rosy for being a reading champion.

Tyler the champion mathematician for great money work.

Also to our homework heroes-Ivy, Erin, Praise, Isla, Rosy, Hannah and Gaurvi.

Are you taller or shorter than an Emperor Penguin?

We have been learning facts about Emperor penguins. 

A male penguin is 1.3 meters tall. 

We measured ourselves against the penguin and decided if we were taller or shorter.

RE-what it is like to worship in a Synagogue

Today we had a visitor in school to talk to us about worshipping in a Synagogue as part of our R.E. learning. 

We looked at items used to help Jewish people carry out their worship in a Synagogue. 

Bagel Girls!

Today we start having Bagels available for our children every morning. 

The kitchen staff are preparing them and they will be ready and waiting for the children in their classes as they arrive.

We hope the children will enjoy the new start to the day.

Happy Monday! :)

Computing

This week we have started our learning about E Books in Computing. 

We have logged onto Purple Mash and used the tool 2 Create a Story to draw a character and write about the character. 

Everyone did a great job and you can look at some pictures of them here. 

You could also practice this at home using your Purple Mash password in your Reading Record.

A BIG thanks to our Digital Leaders who helped to put out all the laptops and our passwords and put them away. It made our lesson run much more smoothly. 

Certificate Winners

Well done to Marnie for great handwriting, Yoyo for fantastic money learning, Gaurvi for a big improvement in her reading and Esther for brilliant homework about penguins. 

It's been a fantastic week all round in Sycamore. I am proud of you all!

Certificate Winners!

Well done to Mumin who earnt the Class Teacher certificate this week for joining in much more in lessons and getting involved in his learning. 

Also to Isla who is our champion mathematician and has shown great understanding in our shape learning this week. 

Well done everyone in Sycamore on a great first week back. 

Happy New Year everyone!

100% Attendance

WOW! These children have managed to come to school every day from the start of Year 2 in September up to Christmas holidays. 

Fantastic! Well done!

Tyler, Kunle and Marnie have also been 100% attenders. Well done everyone.

Christmas Jumper Day

Today we have all worn our Christmas Jumpers. 

We all looked great! Very festive and all ready for Christmas! 

Party time!

Today Father Christmas came to visit and made the children's day by giving them all a present!

It was a very special visit :)

Thank you Father Christmas. Sycamore class have been good all year!

The Inn-Spectors Nativity

This year our nativity was based on a story that centered around some inspectors who were inspecting inns to see if they could find one fit for a king. 

The children were all absolute stars and performed incredibly well over the 5 performances. 

Here are some of the performers in their roles.

Design and Technology-Designing a moving teddy

Over the past weeks, the children have been working really hard on their Design and Technology project. 

To link with our History learning on toys, they have made a moving teddy. 

First of all they looked at a variety of teddies so they knew what was needed.

Then they looked at how to create a moving part with levers and pulleys. 

Then the teddy was designed and finally the making began!

The children are really proud of their end product and were able to evaluate the process. 

Reading morning with parents and carers in Sycamore

It was a lovely start to the week to see so many adults supporting the children in Sycamore class with their reading. 

The children definitely enjoyed it and there were lots of happy adults too. 

Thank you for joining us in Sycamore! :)

Certificates

This week's certificate winners were William for improved handriting. 

Also Alana for reading, Mumin for maths and Lottie for always making good choices. 

Well done everyone!

I am proud of you.

Computing

This afternoon, Sycamore were searching the Internet in our Computing lesson. 

The children are great at logging on now and could successfully use Google to search for facts about dinosaurs. 

Great job Sycamore! :)

Parent's Reading Morning

What a great start to a Monday morning!

Today our parents came in to read with us. It was lovely to see so many parents enjoying reading with their child and others. 

Thank you for joining us. We look forward to the next time. :)

This week certificate winners

Well done to Rosy, Ella, Praise and Elton for being this week's certificate winners. 

Have a great half term everyone and see you in a week ready for more learning and fun together!

Show Racism the Red Card!

Today we all dressed in red to "Show racism the red card".

In Sycamore we talked through some situations that might happen and how we would react and try to make the situation better.

Tudor Houses

In design and technology we have made Tudor houses. First of all we looked at the designs of a variety of Tudor houses, we then designed our own house and made it out of clay. 

We left the clay to dry and we have been excited to paint them this week. The final stage in the process is to evaluate our design. 

We have really enjoyed making these and are very proud of them. 

They will be coming home soon!

Music in Sycamore

Today we looked at a picture of the Great Fire of London.

We used our bodies and musical instruments to show the tempo of the way the characters would move or to represent their feelings and emotions. 

Have a listen!

Instead of drawing a number line for her homework, Erin made gingerbread heart biscuits and wrote the numbers on in edible ink.

She gave them out to the children in the class and we made a number line form the biscuits. 

They tasted great too!

Ella made a model of the houses on fire in the Great Fire of London.

Erin made a picture of the Great Fire of London.

Super home learning! They both went in the proud book! 

Well done! 

This week's certificate winners

Well done to Llewellyn, Esia, Emily and Farah for being worthy of our certificates this week. 

This is what we want to know about the Great Fire of London.

I know we will learn lots of facts and have fun learning them!

This week's certificate winners.

This week we gave out our certificates for reading, maths, handwriting and a superstar. 

Today's winners were Elton, Marnie, Farah and Luna. 

Well done to you all. 

Maybe it will be you next week.

Vocabulary Role Play

The children were remembering the new vocabulary from our book Vlad by acting out the words.

Isla covered her mouth to remember that the plague was contagious and Esia ran quickly to remember the meaning of scampered.

Well done Mia, Yo Yo, Saif and Isla for getting our certificates this week. 

This week’s certificate winners

Well done to the four children who have really settled in well to Year 2. Erin, Elton, Hannah and Rebecca.

But it’s been a great first week back for everyone!

Well done Sycamore 👍😀

Archive 2021-2022

Making ice creams

To finish our topic about the seaside, we invited parents in to make ice creams with us. 

We got to choose our sprinkles and the sauce we wanted.

And we got to eat our ice creams! 

Yum 😋!

Disco!

The children had great fun at the disco. 
Dancing, hot dogs, tuck shop and fun with friends! 
 

Carnival Day

Today was a day to remember! 
Bouncy castles, inflatable slides, inflatable football darts. 

Popcorn, candy floss, ice cream and slush. 
Children’s entertainer and an airbrush tattoo. 

“The best day ever!” That was what the children thought. Have a look at the photos, I’m sure you’ll agree!

Spanish Day 🇪🇸

Today was Spanish Day. 

The children dressed in red and yellow. 

They did an art activity drawing a face in the style of Picasso- a Spanish artist. 

They also listened to a variety of music, then decided which of the Spanish music they preferred- Sin Rencor or Flamenco. 

They also learnt how to dance the Macarena this afternoon with Senora Craven. 

Picasso Artwork

Music appreciation

Dancing the Macarena 

The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee 🇬🇧🇬🇧🎉🎉🇬🇧🇬🇧

This week we have learning all about The Queen and what a Platinum Jubilee is. 

We made a card for the Queen, had a special lunch and then a tea party where we dressed as royalty or in red, white and blue. 

The children and staff worked hard to make the school look fantastic! 

It was a day to remember. 

Parent’s Celebration 😁

To finish our topic about dinosaurs, we invited our parents and carers in to help us paint the fossils we had made using salt dough. 

We enjoyed the topic and shared our learning by talking to our adults. 

Fossil Workshop

The children all got the chance to be paleontologists today when they learnt the careful skills needed to uncover fossils.

They worked together with the bigger fossils.

The day the dinosaurs visited!

Then we got to meet "real" dinosaurs! 

It was great fun!

Rainbow Day

Today we celebrated International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia. 

We dressed up in all the colours of the rainbow 

We also did some work around using the term gay in a derogatory way. 

In Sycamore we made rainbow bracelets, made a rainbow and wrote thinking about difference, being proud and what made us happy. 

This week's certificate winners

Well done these children:

Jackson-mathematician certificate

Deborah-reading certificate

Rebeca-class teacher's certificate

But everyone has worked well this week. So well done Sycamore!

I am proud of all of you :)

Mrs Waddell

Visiting the chicks!

This afternoon we went to Reception to see the chicks that have hatched. 

We were able to hold them. 

Look how excited the children are!

It was great!

This week’s Certificate Winners

This week’s proud certificate winners are:

Isla Brooke- reading

Rory- Maths

Phoebe- class certificate

Angela and Sarah- handwriting

Well done to you all!

I wonder who will get the postcard home?

Keep an watch on your post!  

Congratulations!

Well done to Rory who achieved his Yellow Belt in martial arts over the Easter holidays!

A great achievement Rory!

We are proud of you.

Parents reading in Sycamore

Thank you to all the parents who joined us to read this afternoon. 

The children love love having you in! 

Parent’s Reading Fairy Tales in Sycamore

We invited our parents in to our class to read Fairy Tales with us as a celebration of our topic: Who was afraid of the Big Bad Wolf. 

We loved reading the fairy tales. 

Harry, Isla Brooke and Lachlan are the certificate winners for this week. 

Will you be the lucky one to get the postcard in the post? 

Rock Kidz visited our school today. 

They focused on the theme of “Nobody Like Me” and YASBA- You’re Awesome So Be Awesome! 

There was lots of singing and dancing and a dance off between staff. 

A great time was had by all! 

World Maths Day activities in Sycamore

We had fun playing maths games, making shape pictures in the style of Paul Klee, playing “Play Your Cards Right”, going on Times Table Rock Stars in our school competition and writing our own stories in the style of The Hungry Caterpillar. 

It’s been a great day! 

World Maths Day 23/3/22

Today is World Maths Day. 

Below are some ideas of activities you can do at home with your child. 

We hope you enjoy doing some of them.

Inventor Day in Sycamore

As part of out Topic learning we are learning about famous inventors. 

Here are some of the inventors and what they did. 

Reading with parents.

This afternoon parents came into read with their children. 

It was lovely to have parents in and the children really enjoyed it. 

Thank you for coming in. 

World Book Day

Today we dressed as adjectives. 

Take a look at our photos. 

Can you guess which adjective we are?

Homework Grid Spring 2

Hi Sycamore,

I have attached your new homework grid below. 

I really enjoy looking at the homework you do and send to me on Google Classroom. It always makes me smile :)

Thank you for all the hard work you do at home and thank you to your parents for supporting you with homework.

Remember, you choose what you would like to do from the homework grid. We ask that you complete at least 1 task per week, but you can do more if you want. 

I am looking forward to seeing some more fantastic homework!

Mrs Waddell

Year 2 maths knowledge organiser

Please have a look at the attached knowledge organiser for maths to help you with your child's maths learning. 

We will also be sending one of these home for you. 

Making Fruit Kebabs

We did some Design and Technology this week as a final part to our topic learning. 

We thought about fruits from Africa and the UK and decided which fruits we would want to use to make our kebabs. 

We planned our design and at the end evaluated the finished product. 

The children learnt how to use knives properly and the hygiene when using food.

Have a look at our photos. 

African Sunsets

This week we have worked patiently to weave paper in the colours of a sunset and put a silhouette of an African animal on it to create our own African sunset pictures. 

African Drums

Yesterday, Rome came to school to do an African drumming workshop with us.

He showed us different instruments and talked about what they were made off and where they what country they originated from.

We practised singing first and then used these songs to help us play the rhythms on the drums. 

It was a great day and we enjoyed doing “rumble” where we all played the drums loudly together and “rain” where we played the drums quietly.

Have a look at the photos and videos to see how great we were at African drumming.

Continents Coat Hangers

As part of our topic we have been learning about the continents, what the climate is like there and facts about the continents. 

The children loved doing doing this and were very proud of their finished result. 

This is a piece of fantastic homework done by Esmae this week. 

We always ask you to produce your best learning when you are doing your homework. 

This is definitely a quality piece of homework. 

Great facts about England, Manchester and New Moston linking to our topic learning.

Homework Grid Spring 1

Hi Sycamore,

I have attached your new homework grid below. 

I really enjoy looking at the homework you do and send to me on Google Classroom. It always makes me smile :)

Thank you for all the hard work you do at home and thank you to your parents for supporting you with homework.

Remember, you choose what you would like to do from the homework grid. We ask that you complete at least 1 task per week, but you can do more if you want. 

I am looking forward to seeing some more fantastic homework!

Mrs Waddell

Today we talked about the meanings of the different parts of a Christingle. 

We made one each and then we lit them, being very careful! 

Owls!

The owl man came in to show us some of his owls and to talk about how special owls are. 

The children loved watching them fly!

Carnivores, herbivores and omnivores.

This afternoon we were science investigators. 

We were studying animal poo!

We looked inside the poo to find out what the animals ate. 

A carnivore eats meat, other animals mainly. 

A herbivore eats just plants. 

An omnivore eats plants and meat\animals. 

Have a a look at our photos and what we found in the poo! We had great fun  😁

Reading with parents and carers. 

Today our parents/careers came in to read with us. 

It was so nice to have parents in. It’s been a long time!

we look forward to the next time you can join us. 

Mary Seacole

We have been learning about Mary Seacole.

Today we practiced making herbal remedies as a potion like she did. 

They smelt strange and we decided we wouldn’t want to drink them! 

Google Classroom

We are now putting homework on Google Classroom for the children to complete. 

There would also be learning put onto Google Classroom if the school had to shut due to unforeseen circumstances.

There has been an invitation sent for them to accept and join the classroom. 

Every child has their e mail address and password which they will need to access the classroom in their reading record book. 

I am also attaching a guide to using Google Classroom which will hopefully help you if you are new to this!

If you need any support with this, please contact your child's teacher or me (Mrs Waddell) and one of us can go through this with you. 

There are also useful Read, Write, Inc videos for the children to watch to support their learning in school. 

Remember: we are here to help! 

Mrs Waddell

Super hero mask

They used feathers so their superhero could fly.

They used eyeballs so their superhero could see everywhere. 

They used glitter so their superhero would sparkle.

They used stars so their superhero could reach the stars.

What a lovely piece of homework that I could share with you all :)

Real life heroes

This week we have had a visit from some real life heroes. 

They were: 

John and Lisa our PCSOs

Mrs Waddell our teacher

Sergeant Dickinson a police officer

Vicky and her guide dog Albie 

The children wrote questions to ask our heroes and we all really enjoyed having them in and finding out more about them. 

Super hero biscuits

We designed our Super hero logo and decorated a biscuit with our logo using icing. 

Then we evaluated it and decided what we liked about the design and whether there was anything we would change if we did it again. 

Have a look at our designs. 

Germs!

Today we did an experiment to show how germs are spread. 

We used glitter and touched each other’s hands. 

The glitter ( germs) spread very quickly! 

It taught us to wash our hands often. 

Welcome back Sycamore Class!

We have had a great first week getting to know each other and our new classroom. 

We have focused much of our learning around the book "Ruby's Worry".

Ruby had a worry that kept getting bigger until... she met a little boy who had a worry. He talked to Ruby about his worry and it got smaller!

We have talked about our worries and that we should always talk to someone if we are worried. 

Here is a link to the story on You Tube, in case you would like to watch it again. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IhhCq44ar8

I am looking forward to next week with you and getting to know you even more!

Mrs Waddell :)