Friday 12th April 2024

Dear Parents, 

We cannot believe that we have reached the end of our Spring term and will be heading into Summer term after the holidays! It has been a wonderful term with so many different activities and occasions for the children to participate in, all of which they have thoroughly enjoyed! 

This week, the children participated in their extremely joyous seder, singing along to all the songs, eating matzah, drinking grape juice and eating the marror and charoset. They had a wonderful time and loved every second!

Year 3 have also been very busy this week completing their English and maths assessments. They worked very hard on these assessments and demonstrated many Kerem Characteristics, including persistence, resilience and reflectiveness. Well done Year 3!

In maths, the children continued their topic on Fractions. The children were finding unit and non-unit fractions of amounts. They learnt how to find unit fractions of a set of objects, and connect this to what they already know about dividing quantities into equal parts using known division facts. For example, 20 ÷ 4 = 5, so ¼ of 20 = 5.

We hope you all have a lovely holiday and wish you a wonderful Pesach!

Chag Sameach, 

The Year 3 Team

Friday 5th April 2024

We hope you all enjoyed the Bank Holiday long weekend! It is hard to believe that we have only one more week until the Pesach holidays, even though this has been rather a long term.

This has been an unexpectedly exciting week in Year 3 as we welcomed back Mrs Praise at the start of her phased return! The children were naturally very pleased to see her and were excited to show her all that they have learned since they saw her last.

This week in English, Year 3 wrote their final draft of their recount of our outing to Celtic Harmony. They produced some incredible work and used their touch typing skills to type up their final copy. 

In maths the children revisited the fractions unit, recapping and then moving on from their learning in the autumn term. They learned how to add and subtract fractions with the same denominator, using bar models to show this visually. Their homework this week reinforces this learning. 

In the spelling lesson, the children learned about words with the prefix ‘mis’, which means ‘not’ or ‘the opposite of’, similar to ‘dis’ and ‘un’. 

• misbehave 
• mislead 
• misplace 
• misread 
• misspell 
• mistake 
• misunderstand 
• miscalculate 
• misinterpret 
• misunderstood

Common exception words: breathe, busy, build 

Some of the children's siddurim need some TLC. We have sent some of them home so that they can be repaired over the weekend. Please ensure that these are back at school on Monday. If you feel that the siddur is beyond repair, it might be time to buy a new one, though it must be the same siddur. Thank you!

Shabbat Shalom,

The Year 3 team

Thursday 28th March

This week in Year 3 we had an exciting week! 

On Monday we celebrated Purim. The children looked incredible in their costumes and we all had a fantastic day. With whole-school tefilah, hamantaschen making, Zumba in aid of Jewish Care, mask designing and the school’s Purim parade, it was a day of non-stop fun.

This week we learnt about Boudicca and her rebellion to get ready for our outing to Celtic Harmony on Wednesday. The children understood that there was a major uprising against Roman rule in Britain. They learnt how Boudicca was the queen of the Celtic Iceni tribe and how/where they fought in the battle.

We had a brilliant time at Celtic Harmony on Wednesday. The children thoroughly enjoyed immersing themselves into Celtic life. We participated in many activities, including archery, face-painting with traditional woad patterns, making headbands and re-enacted some of the ancient battles. 

In English we started to learn about writing a recount, including the features and the structure. We based the recount on our trip to Celtic Harmony. This will continue next week.

Have a lovely bank holiday weekend. 

Shabbat Shalom,

The Year 3 team

Friday 22nd March 2024

On Monday the children listened to a talk about neurodiversity, which they really enjoyed.

In English this week the children used their brilliant plans from last week to write their newspaper reports. They made sure that they included more detail, as well as the features that we learned about and spotted in the model text. 

This week in maths lessons the children worked hard to learn about perimeter, using all of their learning about measurement so far, such as units of measure, converting and comparing lengths and adding lengths. They looked at what perimeter is and what it is not- perimeter is the distance around the outside of a closed 2-D shape. The children explored this by deciding whether they can find the perimeter of a group of open and closed 2-D shapes. They began to learn how to calculate perimeter when side lengths are given, and where there are missing lengths.

In spelling we continued with the spelling rule from last week, as more time was needed to work on these.  These were words with the suffix -ture. Please practise these so that the children can use them in their writing, spelled correctly.

picture 

feature 

adventure 

miniature 

temperature 

capture 

creature

future 

mixture 

nature 

On Thursday we all came together at the end of the day to say the Shema as a school. In doing this, we joined with people all around the world, all saying the Shema at the same time on the fast of Esther in order to give our prayers the most meaning. We had all of Israel in mind as we prayed for peace as a community.

Next week promises to be busy and exciting- we are celebrating Purim on Monday, have our final swimming lesson on Tuesday and our trip to Celtic Harmony on Wednesday. On Friday we will be off school for Bank Holiday so the children will be able to have a rest! 

Shabbat Shalom,

The Year 3 team

Friday 15th March 2024

This week in English lessons, the children learned about the structure of a newspaper report and worked hard on making their own plans. These included features such as an introductory paragraph, a quote from an eye-witness, details of the event in chronological order, and a concluding paragraph. 

In maths the children have worked hard as their learning about measure continues. They learned about equivalent lengths in centimetres and millimetres, using the fact that 1cm is equal to 10mm. As the children have not yet formally explored multiplying and dividing by 10 (this is taught in Year 4), they were encouraged to partition measurements into centimetres and millimetres when converting lengths that are not multiples of 10, for example 34 mm = 3 cm and 4 mm. We moved on to learn about adding lengths, starting off with lengths that are measured in the same unit of measurement, before adding lengths that have different units. We then used a number of written and mental strategies to subtract lengths that are measured in the same unit of measurement, before subtracting millimetres from a whole number of centimetres as well as centimetres from a whole number of metres using simple conversions, for example 1 m − 35 cm and 4 cm − 3 mm. The children found this work challenging, so they have been told to leave out any questions that are tricky in the homework and we can go over them next week in class.

In spelling the children learned about words with the suffix -ture. It is important to note that root words ending in the (t)ch will have the suffix ‘er’ rather than ‘ture’. For example, teacher, catcher, richer, stretcher.

picture 

feature 

adventure 

miniature 

temperature 

capture 

creature

future 

mixture 

nature 

The common exception words are favourite, February and forward.

We will continue to work on these next week.

Shabbat Shalom,

The Year 3 team

Friday 8th March 2024

Year 3 have had an amazing time celebrating Book Week! Shared reads with different teachers, reading in Kerem houses, and a visit by author Nikki Sheehan are just some of the fun and engaging activities the children have taken part in this week. Not only that, it was wonderful to see the children all dressed up as characters from non-fiction texts on Wednesday, it was amazing to see such creative and enthusiastic costumes- they all looked brilliant. We loved the research that the students had found about their character. Both children and staff particularly enjoyed the daily ‘masked reader’ videos. We know that book week is always exciting and we are very grateful to Ms Rose for organising such an amazing one. 

This week in English, Year 3 started book week with a video clip of the first Apollo 11 landing on the moon. The children watched and made notes summarising the key information. The children then learnt all about newspaper articles, they analysed and annotated a variety of different articles, looking at the key features in a newspaper report. Next week the children will take all their facts from the Apollo video and write a newspaper article on it. 

The children were given the incredible opportunity to meet author Nikki Sheehan. Nikki spoke to the class about being an author and designed an activity for them to learn different techniques on writing a nonfiction next. The children really enjoyed this experience and were inspired to learn about being an author.

In maths lessons we continued to learn about measurement of length, consolidating the children’s understanding of millimetres, centimetres and metres and their relative sizes. One thing that we noticed is that the spelling of these units of measure needs some practice, along with mathematical words such as stretch, challenge and correct. Please practise these at home to help the children learn these.

In spelling, the children learned about words which end in ‘sure’. 

measure 

treasure 

pleasure 

composure 

closure 

disclosure 

leisure 

pressure 

exposure 

reassure

Common exception words: experiment, extreme, famous

In history, the children began to look at the invasion of the Romans. Using a map and a timeline, they looked at the different countries that they invaded and when the invasions took place. The class had interesting discussions about why there were large or small gaps in time between different invasions and why the Romans might have chosen which order to invade the countries in. 

It was lovely to see many parents at the showcase this week, and how proud the children are of their work.

Shabbat Shalom, have a wonderful weekend,

The Year 3 team

Friday 1st March 2024

It was lovely to see Year 3 back after half term. It was amazing to see them settle right back into their learning. 

This week in English the children finalised their diary entries and typed them up to practise their touch typing skills, which they have been working on during their computing lessons. Typing up these diary entries gave them the opportunity to learn to review and edit their work. The children then read chapter 3 of the Iron Man and discussed the key events of the chapter and answered some comprehension questions. These questions ranged from inference to literal questions, making the children go back to the text to extract the facts needed to support their answers. 

The spelling rule the children learned about this week was words with the suffix- ous, when there is no obvious root word.  

tremendous 

enormous 

jealous 

fabulous 

generous 

ominous

obvious 

serious

anonymous

Common exception words: enough, exercise and experience. 

In maths the children began their unit on measurement. They looked at how to accurately use their ruler to measure different objects and lines in the classroom. They also started converting mm to cm and cm to mm. Please go over this with your children, so that they can secure this knowledge. It also helps for the children to see how measurement is relevant to every-day life, see if they can identify any examples of this over the weekend.

In history the children learnt about Celtic Art and had a go at drawing Celtic patterns. They followed an instructional video and did an amazing job. Here are some photos of their work.

In science the children learnt about the 5 different food groups and the importance of eating a balanced diet. Over the next week, we would like the children to keep a food diary. They should bring it to school next Friday so that next week the children can put the different foods they have eaten into the different food groups.

Next week is Book Week and we are looking forward to sharing a number of engaging activities with the children, including the non-fiction themed dress-up day on Wednesday. Please refer to the email sent on 16th February for more details. 

Shabbat Shalom,

The Year 3 team

Friday 16th February 2024

This week in Year 3 the children have continued to put their best effort into their work, and have been honing their collaboration skills to win lots of table points.

This week was Faces of Israel week at school, and this year we learned about Russian Israeli Jews and the parts of their culture that they brought with them to Israel. On Tuesday the children cooked some Russian foods with Morah Neta, Morah Sharon and Morah Sari. They made kneidlach, blintzes and lokshen pudding, these were delicious! On Wednesday the children had a guided reading lesson on a story about the journey of migration and how it might feel to move to a new place. They also learned about the origins of the Faberge egg. In English lessons they researched some facts about Russia.

In maths we continued to work on division skills, using place value counters and a place value grid as well as part-whole models to reinforce the concept and ensure accurate answers. After lots of practice, the children moved on to learn about dividing with remainders, before tackling problems involving scaling. To demonstrate this, we looked at two pieces of string, one which was 50cm, and another which was ‘twice as long’, drawing a bar model to show this. 

Although there will not be any formal homework set over half term, the children can keep using Doodle Maths (as well as the other Doodles) to work on their key skills, and in particular they should keep working on their times tables.

In addition to their Faces of Israel research, the children wrote a piece of creative writing with the title ‘Lost’. They ensured to include descriptive writing such as similes, expanded noun phrases and rhetorical questions.

In history, the children learned about the beaker culture in the Bronze Age, and they made their own beakers out of clay! They finished their posters with information about Bronze Age Britain. 

In art lessons this half term, the children have made incredible pieces of art using the pointilism technique. They have even worked on a digital version on their iPads.

The spelling rule the children learned about this week was words with  the suffix –ous.

The words in this list have obvious/ clear root words and the usual rules apply for adding suffixes beginning with vowel letters- ‘e’ at the end of the root word is removed, and where the root word ends with a consonant, the suffix is simply added.

• poisonous 
• dangerous 
• famous 
• marvellous 
• adventurous 
• nervous 
• ridiculous 
• miraculous 
• mischievous

Common exception words: early, earth, eight, eighth.

We hope you all have a wonderful half term and are looking forward to seeing the children on Monday 26th.

Shabbat Shalom,

The Year 3 team

Friday 9th February 2024

It has been another great week in Year 3 with positive learning behaviours being applied in all lessons. 

This week in English the children continued reading the Iron Man. Focusing on chapter 2, we dived into Hogarth and how he saw the Iron Man present himself. The children wrote a diary entry from the perspective of Hogarth and we analysed what features needed to be added in order for it to be a diary entry. These features included first person, writing in the past tense and making sure the events were written in chronological order. We will continue these diary entries next week. 

In maths the children continued learning about multiplication, focusing on 2 digit numbers multiplied by a 1 digit number with an exchange. They also began learning about division and the relationship between multiplication and division. We will continue learning about division next week. 

Please note that there will be no swimming next week as Poolside Manor is on half term. 

The spelling rule we learned about in class is words with  suffix –ly. When the root word ends with –le, this is changed to –ly.

• gently 
• simply 
• humbly 
• nobly
• comfortably
• possibly 
• horribly

The common exception words we learned were different, difficult, disappear.

In history the children worked really hard to finish their posters about The Bronze Age. Not only were they learning facts about this period of time in history but they were developing the skills to draft their ideas into a finished product that they were happy with as well as collaborating with someone else to complete the work. Both of these are tricky and nuanced skills and we were really proud of how well everyone did. 

Shabbat Shalom,

The Year 3 team

Friday 2nd February 2024

This week in English lessons the children began learning about similes. We used chapter 1 from our class reader, The Iron Man, to find and discuss the key vocabulary and features in a simile. They then wrote their own similes describing The Iron Man. 

Please read some of the examples the students came up with below. 

His head was shaped like a cube and as wide as a table.

His eyes were like boulders stuck in a giant head. 

His orange- brown rickety arm was as flexible as a noodle.

His head was as clean as a shiny diamond. 

The Iron Man’s fingers were fidgeting as quickly as a jellyfish's tentacles. 

The Iron Man’s head was as big as a boulder but as shiny as a firework. 

The Iron Man’s hands were as big as a climbing frame. 

His torso was as big as a double decker bus.     

In maths this week we moved on to multiplication and division. The children explored multiples of 10, recognising that all of these have a ‘0’ in the ones column, and using this fact to solve multiplication and division problems beyond the 10 times-table. We then moved on to learn about related number facts, exploring scaling facts by 10, for example using 3 × 4 = 12 to derive 3 × 40 = 120 and 30 × 4 = 120. Towards the end of the week, the children applied their understanding of partitioning to represent and solve calculations using the expanded method.

In addition to this, we have begun working with the children on an individual basis to find out where they are with their timetables proficiency. This will help us ensure that the work that we are giving the children is targeted directly to them. Due to the nature of this work, it is not a quick process, so if your child has not sat with an adult to do this this week, do not worry, they will get their turn! Please encourage the children to keep practising their times tables and division facts at home - little and often, for example 15 minutes every day, will help them make fantastic progress.

This week’s spelling rule focused on in class was words with the suffix -ly, where the root word ends with a ‘y’ with a consonant letter before it. In this case the y is changed to i, but only if the root word has more than one syllable. See the word list below which illustrates this:

angrily 

clumsily 

easily 

happily 

heavily 

lazily 

luckily 

noisily 

readily

speedily

Common exception words: hungrily, different, difficult, disappear

On Thursday the children enjoyed a performance from a visiting theatre group from Israel. The work that they had done in class really paid off with them both enjoying and understanding the experience. 

Arrival at school

Our school day is really busy, trying to fit lots into the day to give the children the most from their time in school. Soft start begins at 8.30am and ends at 8.40am. It is during this time that they get out their water bottles, snacks, reading books, and catch up with their teacher and friends before heading into the first session of the day. If they arrive at the tail end of this time or even after it, then they miss out on this important part of the day. 

To help your child get ready for the morning in a calm rather than rushed manner, it would be great if they could arrive at school closer to 8.30am than 8.40am.

Your support with this would be greatly appreciated. 

Shabbat Shalom,

The Year 3 team

26.1.24 Jewish Studies – Parashat Beshalach.

We have had a wonderful week learning and celebrating Tu Bishvat.

It was amazing seeing all the children’s wonderful fruit accessories and hair styles. They all brought incredible fruits and information which the children thoroughly enjoyed sharing and learning.

We participated in a Tu Bishvat fruit party, with 15 different fruits – including some of the Shivat Haminim.

Songs for Tu Bishvat

Let’s Plant a Tree for Tu B’Shvat –

Chorus:   Trees are blowing in the wind, they’re blowing

                Trees are blowing in the wind (whoooshhh!)

                Trees are blowing in the wind, they’re blowing

                Trees are blowing in the wind (whoosh!)

Let’s dig a hole, let’s dig a hole and plant a seed

Let’s water it, oh let’s water it ‘cause it is Tu B’Shvat (chorus)

Look at the leaves, look at the leaves, they’re growing now

Let’s water them, oh let’s water them ‘cause it is Tu B’Shvat (chorus)

Look at the tree, the tree is so much taller now

Let’s water it, oh let’s water it ‘cause it is Tu B’Shvat (chorus)

Just look at me, just look at me, I’m taller now

Don’t water me, please don’t water me, ‘cause it is Tu B’Shvat.

Fruit salad song - tune of supercalifragilistic.

When Tu Bishvat was near I thought my parents I'd surprise
And make a special fruit salad with 15 fruits inside
To save a little of my pocket money I would try
and then go to the green grocers to see what I could buy.

CHORUS Oh orange, grapefruit, kiwi, mango, lychee, tangerine,
pomegranate nuts and almonds wash them till they're clean
grapes and apples, pears and peaches, apricots and dates
and don't forget the cherry when you put it on the plate.

On erev Tu Bishvat I bought the fruit and cut it small
And sprinkled on some sugar, to enhance it all
I garnished it with chocolate flakes and just a dash of wine
and put it in the fridge to chill till we sat down to dine.

CHORUS

Oh supper was delicious we had sausages and veal
and then I brought the fruit salad to finish off the meal
they looked at it and stared at it and shouted with a squeal
we can't eat this, don't you see, you forgot to peel.

CHORUS

Friday 26th January 2024

The children had a wonderful Tu’Bishvat and it was great to see the effort that had been put into their hair. Thank you to parents for your support with that. They enjoyed both tasting fruit and telling their friends about the unusual fruits that they had found. 

This week in English lessons the students began reading their new class reader called “The Iron Man.” They predicted what they think the book will be about, the setting of the book and the theme/genre of the book. We then read chapter 1 together and discussed the key language that the author used and how the author described the Iron man falling into pieces. 

In maths we continued to develop the children’s addition skills, with a focus on adding across 100. Then we moved onto subtraction focusing on subtracting a 2 digit number from a 3 digit number. We also revised bonds of 100 (also known as ‘complements to 100’) using partitioning or a number line. 

In computing we continued our touch typing unit focusing on capital letters and using the shift key. 

This week’s spelling rule focused on in class was words with the suffix –ly. It is added to an adjective to form an adverb. As the suffix –ly starts with a consonant letter, it is added straight on to most root words, without any changes made.

wisely 

bravely 

kindly 

lively 

lonely 

loudly 

proudly 

sadly 

shyly 

slowly 

suddenly 

sweetly 

anxiously 

nervously

The common exception words looked at this week were: circle, complete, consider.

In history, the children began researching life in the Bronze Age. They made notes about the different aspects of life and will be working in small groups to present this work to the rest of the class. The presentation not only allows them to consolidate their history knowledge but also gives them public speaking experience in an environment that they are familiar with. 

Shabbat Shalom.

The Year 3 team

Friday 19th January 2024

Dear Parents,

Year 3 have had another great week and have begun learning about a number of new topics in class.

This week in English the students began planning their instructional writing piece on “How to wash a woolly mammoth.” They will finish this work next week. 

They also learnt a new spelling rule using the prefix “re.” 

In maths lessons they began learning about subtracting with exchanging across the 10s and 100s place value columns. They will continue developing this skill, including making a double exchange across both the 10s and 100s next week. 

In computing the children started our touch-typing curriculum, and students were introduced to where particular keys are placed and which fingers they need to use. 

In science the students continued learning about different rocks and created a PicCollage to present their research and what they learned in the lesson. 

In history the children have moved on from the Stone Age and started learning about the Bronze Age. They conducted their own research on food, homes, weather and clothing from this period of time. 

Wishing you all a Shabbat Shalom,

The Year 3 Team

Friday 12th January 2024

Dear Parents,

The children have had a fantastic start back to school. Over the past week and a half it has been wonderful to hear all about the different activities they have done over the holidays. We know that they have missed Mrs Prais but have got straight on with their learning and shown great resilience. 

In English the children have started a new text. ‘How to Wash a Woolly Mammoth’. The children enjoyed reading each step, and have learned about the features of instructional writing. They have been introduced to imperative verbs and created a woolly mammoth ‘care kit’ using prepositions. 

In maths the children have been introduced to a formal method for addition. They have used hundreds, tens and ones counters to understand how column addition works and have begun using this method. They have also been introduced to exchanging using the column method and have attempted some tricky missing number problems. A key element of this work is the importance of how the children set out the work. 

In history the children have continued learning about the Stone Age. This week they have looked at how the styles of houses changed over the three different periods of the Stone Age.  

Last week in science the children started a new topic about rocks. They have spent the last two lessons fact finding about different types of rocks and what they are most commonly used for. 

In spelling we have looked at the prefix ‘dis’ and how it usually changes the meaning of a word to make it the opposite. 

In art the children started a new topic on Pointillism and learnt that it is a technique that uses tiny dots to create an image. They researched the artist George Seurat and compared his work to those of other artists who used the technique. Finally, they chose their favourite painting and completed a small sketch in their art books. 

The children had their first swimming lesson at Poolside Manor this week. They were sorted quickly into groups and had their first lesson. It was lovely to see how much the children enjoyed themselves. Please ensure that every item of your child’s clothing is labelled. We spoke to the children about ensuring that they put every item of clothing back into their bags when they change in order to avoid losing anything and about the importance of  giving others privacy when changing; these may be messages you would like to reinforce at home. 

Shabbat Shalom

The Year 3 team

Friday 8th December 2023 

Dear Parents, 

Happy Chanukah! It has been wonderful seeing how excited the children are about lighting the Chanukah candles and singing the Chanukah songs. Well done to Year 3 for performing a fantastic show today! It was amazing to see how you collaborated together to put on an excellent show together!

In English, the children finished their fantastic Stone Age recounts. They also focused on editing their work, looking for any missing punctuation and seeing where they could uplevel their work. 

In maths, the children counted forwards and backwards in fractions on a number line, using visual representations to help them. They also learnt about equivalent fractions, understanding that this is when two or more fractions are all equal even though they have different numerators and denominators, for example, ½ and 3/6. They looked at a range of fractions that are in line with each other (equal in value) on a number line.

In history, the children learnt about the Neolithic Era of the Stone Age, which is the final era in the Stone Age. They learnt about how the gradual development of agriculture and the domestication of animals meant that people could live in settled communities. They also learnt about how the development of farming meant that more crops could be grown and there was more of a supply of meat, milk, wool, leather and bone. Lastly, they studied Stonehenge, discussing why and how it was built.   

Our spelling rule for this week is words that begin with the prefix ‘un’, for example, unwell, unkind, uncover, undo, unfair, unhappy, unable, unbeaten, unfit, unlucky and unpack.

In D&T, the children finished their brilliant Chanukiah models, which they cannot wait to light at home. They also evaluated their work, thinking about how successful they were when building their Chanukiah and if they would do anything differently. 

In our last Forest School session for this term, the children loved being creative and had the opportunity to use the bow saw and hand drills today to cut wood cookies. Many children chose to turn these into snowmen, linking the wood cookies together and decorating them. Others used their knot skills, tying pieces of blue and white fabric onto a string and attaching a wooden disc at the bottom, which they decorated with a chanukiah, to create a Chanukah decoration. The children also love exploring in the woods. They enjoyed building dens and tents, building a catapult, creating a swing and relaxing in the hammocks. 

Important information:

• Next term, Year 3 start their swimming lessons. Please read the email that was sent today which explains what the children need to bring in.  

Chanukah Sameach and Shabbat shalom. 

Mrs Prais 

1.12.23 Jewish Studies – Parashat Vayishlach.

Parashah - Yaakov prepares himself to meet Esav. Yaakov tried many different ways to prevent a quarrel. First he divides his family into two separate camps in case Esav starts a fight (because he is still angry about Yaakov taking away his berachah). Then he prays to Hashem to save him and all his family (his four wives, eleven sons and daughter) and then he sends Esav presents. Yaakov and Esav meet and make peace. Binyamin is born and Rachel dies and is buried in Bet Lechem. Hashem changes Yaakov’s name to Yisrael. The Jewish people are his children. We are called Bnei Yisrael.

Middah – making peace & doing our Hishtadlut.

Hebrew Reading – kamatz yood vav at the end of a word. Please review the reading rule sheet and sign each time.

Chagim – we have been reviewing the Chanukah story, sequencing it and starting to create our own comic strip!

Looking forward to seeing you all on Tuesday morning for our Chanukah learning session!
 

Shabbat Shalom & have a super weekend!

Ms Rose

Friday 1st December 2023

Dear Parents, 

It has been a busy week in Year 3! Thank you very much for donating all gifts for the Chanukah Gift Project. The children really enjoyed decorating their bags to give to children in Israel. 

This week in English, the children imagined that they had travelled back to the Stone Age and envisioned the fantastic experiences they had, the people they met, the food they ate and the things they did. They went on to write terrific recounts of their time and experiences in the Stone Age and included adverbs and expanded noun phrases, which we have also been learning about in English. 

In maths, the children continued learning about fractions. They used diagrams to develop their understanding that when the numerator of a fraction is equal to its denominator, then the fraction is equivalent to 1 whole. They also compared and ordered non-unit fractions. They recognised that if the denominator is the same, then the greater the numerator, the greater the fraction or the smaller the numerator, the smaller the fraction. They also learnt how fractions can be represented on a number line with intervals and that each interval represents the equal parts of a fraction. They then went on to label each interval with a fraction. For example, on a number line split into five equal parts, each interval is worth one fifth. The children understood that they can label the end point of a number line in two ways: as 1 or as a fraction where the numerator is equal to the denominator. 

In history, the children learnt about the Starr Carr which is a very important Mesolithic archaeological site in Yorkshire. Artefacts discovered there show that the tools from this period were not just made of flint but also from bone, deer antler, amber and even tightly rolled pieces of bark. The children drew a picture to show what Star Carr might have looked like in the Mesolithic period based on information they had learnt. 

Our spelling rule this week is words where the apostrophe is placed after the plural form of the word; –s is not added if the plural already ends in –s. For example, boys’, girls’, babies’, children’s, people’s, teachers’, women’s, men’s, lions’, dogs’ and countries’.

In science, the children took part in a quiz to see how much they have learnt from our topic on light and shadows. 

In D&T, the children started creating their model chanukiahs using clay. They thought carefully about how they were going to bring their design to life. They focused specifically on creating their base first, making sure it was sturdy enough to support the rest of their structure. 

In Forest school, the children were really excited to be back in the woods. They grabbed ropes, mallets, tarps and trowels and headed under the trees. Swings, dens and digging amongst the leaves and spotting fungus were popular activities. The children were also enjoying the movement and containment of being in the hammocks again. To keep ourselves warm, the activities focused on moving and getting our bodies working. The children were also told a story linked to the exceptionally cold weather. 

Reminders:

• Please can children bring in 50p to replace any stationery they need in their pencil pot. 

Please let me know if you have any questions. 

Shabbat shalom, 

Mrs Prais

Friday 24th November 2023

Dear Parents, 

In English, we started reading a new book - Stone Age Boy, which is about a young boy who visits the Stone Age period and discovers what life was like during this time. First, the children explored how this book has elements of both a fiction and non-fiction text. They then went on to discuss the young boy’s thoughts and feelings whilst he was visiting the Stone Age. The children also focused on using the five senses to write a detailed setting description of a Stone Age village.  Lastly, they learnt what an adverb is and how we use adverbs in our writing. 

In maths, the children started a new topic, fractions. They learnt that a fraction is a part of a whole and that the denominator is the bottom number of a fraction and the numerator is the top number. They also learnt that the denominator tells us how many equal parts the whole is split up into. A non-unit fraction is when the numerator is greater than 1, for example, ¾. The children understood that a non-unit fraction is made up of a quantity of unit fractions, for example ¾ is the same as three single quarters or ¼ + ¼ + ¼. A range of representations, including shaded shapes, number lines and bar models, were used to help the children identify fractions. The children compared and ordered unit fractions, using bar models to represent the fractions. When the denominator is smaller, the fraction is bigger, because it has been split into less equal parts, for example, ½ is bigger than ¼. 

Our spelling rule for this week is words that have the /ay/ sound, but are spelt ‘eigh’. These words include eight, weigh, neighbour, sleigh, neigh and weight. 

In science, the children learnt how light is reflected from surfaces. Some objects are designed to reflect a lot of light so that they can be seen clearly when a light shines on them in the dark. These objects all have reflectors which makes them easy for drivers to see when their headlights shine on them in the dark.

In history, the children learnt about the Mesolithic era of the Stone Age, which occurred after the Palaeolithic era. They compared the two time periods, looking at the differences in shelter, food, clothes and tools. The Mesolithic or middle Stone Age saw the development of finer, smaller stone tools such as arrow or spear heads. The first evidence for homes in Britain comes from this period and the first canoes were made, meaning that men could fish as well as hunt. 

In D&T, the children evaluated the chanukiahs that they built using ‘junk’ materials. They reflected on the size of their chanukiah, the structure and the ability to move it. They thought about what they are going to change or keep the same when they come to build their model chanukiah. 

In guided reading, we continued to read an extract from ‘The Magic Faraway Tree’. We discussed the meaning of the word choices the author used and how the characters feel, as well as what their enchanted forest looked like. 

In Forest School, the children listened to a story which focused on being kind and caring towards others and helping others when they need it. They also had the opportunity to create small pouches, similar to those used in the Stone Age, use clay or water colours to make birds and made zip lines using rope and pulleys.

Reminders:

• Please can children bring in 50p to replace any stationery they need in their pencil pot. 
• Next week, the children will be voting for two children to represent their year group on the Kerem Cares committees. The three committees are Kehillah council, Tzedakah council and Tikkun Olam. If your child would like to run in the election, please can they prepare a short presentation/ speech explaining why they should be voted onto the committee. Each child can only run for one committee. 

Please can we remind you about the Chanukah gift project. The aim is to send Chanukah gifts to children in Israel that have been displaced due to the atrocities of October 7th.

On Monday 27th November, all of the children at school will receive a gift bag that they will decorate during an assigned lesson. We will explain to the children that the gifts are for children in Israel who are less fortunate than themselves. The information will be explained in an age appropriate way. The class teachers will not be going into more detail than that as we know the children know different things about the situation. 

We are hoping that each child will be able to fill the bag with the following new gifts:

• A plastic water bottle
• An A5 plain papered drawing pad/notepad
• A pack of colours/a new pencil case with colours and pencils in
• A small cuddly toy
• A small gift such as a yoyo, bubbles, hair accessories, toy car, balls.

Gifts need to be received at school on Tuesday 28th November.

Wishing you a Shabbat shalom,

Mrs Prais 

17.11.2023 Jewish Studies – Parashat Toldot.

We have had a wonderful week in our JS lessons each day this week.

Hebrew reading – reading rule of the week – when there are two sh’va in the middle of the word, the first is silent and the second is sounded.

Please support your child with the reading sheet sent home and return it for Monday each week.

Parasha – Yitzchak and Rivkah have twin boys - Yaakov and Esav. Esav is born with a full head of thick red hair. The twins grow up to be quite different both in appearance, character and behaviour. Even though they were different in appearance, they both did the Mitzvah of respecting their parents in the best possible way. Esav, when asked by Yitzchak to prepare some tasty food for him does so immediately. Yaakov does exactly what his mother tells him to do even though he does not understand why he should dress up as Esav and go to his father for a blessing.

When Yaakov speaks to Yitzchak pretending to be Esav he is naturally polite and uses the word ‘na’-please. Yaakov’s naturally polite way of speaking is recognised by Yitzchak as being different from the way that Esav speaks.

Middah of the week – speaking politely.

GK – We learnt about Lechem Mishne, the two Challot we have on Shabbat. The children all made their own Challah for Shabbat!

Tefillah -  we have been learning the Tefillah of Baruch She’amar. The children learnt some interesting facts about it and why the boys hold Tzitzit in this prayer.

Wishing you all a Shabbat Shalom and a lovely weekend ahead!
 

Ms Rose

Friday 17th November 2023

Dear Parents, 

This week has been very busy for Year 3. All the children took part in the football match against King Alfred School on Wednesday. They played a fantastic game and showed excellent sportsmanship, perseverance and resilience, whilst collaborating very well as a team. A great win Kerem, well done!

This week was anti-bullying week. The theme for anti-bullying week this year was Let’s Make a Noise about Bullying. As a class, we discussed how people can be different but we treat everyone with the same respect and show kindness to everyone. We also spoke about the importance of being inclusive in all our activities. The children also learnt about being an upstander, not a bystander and took part in a workshop, where they discussed different social scenarios and the most appropriate way to react in those situations. 

In maths, the children continued learning their 4 times tables, and were introduced to the 8 times tables. They learnt that when multiplying by 8, they can use their 2 and 4 times tables knowledge to help them. They also noticed that all the numbers in the 8 times table are even. Throughout the week, the children have regularly practised counting in 3s, 4s and 8s. Please encourage your child to practise this at home as well. This will increase their fluency, which in turn will help when learning the times tables.  

In history, the children learnt about the Palaeolithic period in the Stone Age. They learnt about where the people in this period lived, the clothes they wore and the food they ate. They also researched their own facts about this time period.

Our spelling rule for this week is words that are spelt with an ‘ei’ but sound like they are spelt with the ‘ay’ sound. These words include vein, abseil, beige, rein, reign, surveillance, and veil. 

In science this week, the children investigated how shadows behave. They created their own puppet show with their shoeboxes and silhouettes, in order to investigate what happens to the shadow when the light is held near the object and further away from the object.  

In guided reading, the children read an extract from ‘The Magic Faraway Tree’. We discussed how the children in the extract felt, using evidence from the text to justify their answer. We are going to continue discussing this extract next week. 

In Forest School, the children participated in different activities that focused on tool work.  They had the opportunity to use the peelers to whittle some hazel and a palm drill to drill an acorn cap. They also used the palm drills to drill conkers and acorns, which they threaded onto cord to make necklaces. Some children enjoyed working together to construct tripod dens using the hazel sticks. 

Mitzvah Day ( held on 19th November), a global Jewish-led initiative, champions the ethos of "Tikkun Olam" or "repairing the world." Annually celebrated, it calls people to unite through acts of kindness, emphasising our shared responsibility to make the world a better place. This year at Kerem, our contribution was to create a joke/puzzle book for children that will be sent to one of the Great Ormond Street Hospital children's wards. Children from Years 1-6 have contributed jokes, riddles, and puzzles to entertain the children during what must be a very difficult time. We are also planning to translate the book into Ivrit, over the coming weeks and send it to a hospital or hospitals in Israel. Please do ask your child about what they contributed.

Reminder:

• Children should bring in 50p to replace any stationery they need. 

Wishing you all a Shabbat shalom. 

Mrs Prais

10.11.2023 Jewish Studies – Parashat Chayei Sarah

Parashah - Avraham and Sarah have a son. They name him Yitzchak. Sarah dies at the age of 127.

Avraham insists on buying, not only Mearat Hamachpelah, but also the field in which it stands, to bury his wife. Avraham eventually pays for it over and above its true value.

When Yitzchak grows up, Avraham sends Eliezer to find a wife for him. Eliezer prays to Hashem to help him to find the right wife for Yitzchak. He meets Rivkah at the well where she gives water not only to him but to all his camels. Eliezer sees that Rivka is kind to animals as well as to people. Eliezer is taken to Rivkah’s house where he asks for permission to take Rivkah to meet Yitzchak and marry him.

Middah of the week: Kindness to others.

Hebrew reading – this week we learnt the ‘patach genuvah’ reading rule. The children have all brought home their reading sheet. Please support your child to complete this sheet each week, in addition to their Aleph Champ reading. Please sign and return it on a Monday.

GK – We learnt about the custom of ‘birkat habanim’, when parents bless their children on a Shabbat. Ask your child to share an interesting fact about what they learnt!

Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom and a lovely weekend.

Ms Rose

Friday 10th November 2023

Dear Parents,

In English, the children completed their fantastic and informative non-fiction owl reports. They created very detailed booklets, sharing all the information and facts they have learnt about owls. During the children’s creative writing lesson they wrote a piece called ‘My Special World’, using the five senses to describe their special place. 

In maths, the children began learning the 3 and 4 times tables. They used counters to show how multiples of 3 can be divided into 3 equal groups and multiples of 4 can be split into 4 equal groups. They also continued to understand the difference between ‘sharing’ and ‘grouping’. When learning the 4 times tables they looked at what other times tables can help them, for example, the 2 times table as a multiple of 4 is double its equivalent multiple of 2. If you would like your child to do extra times table practice at home, Doodle Times Tables is a great way for them to practise. 

In science, the children learnt about shadows, including what they are and how they are formed. They learnt that shadows are formed when the light is blocked by an object. They learnt the definitions for opaque, transparent and translucent and then discovered how shadows are formed when objects are opaque. They also discussed how shadows move throughout the day, depending on where the sun is in the sky.

Our spelling rule for this week is words that have the /s/ sound but are spelt with an ‘sc’. These words include scenario, scene, scenery, science, scientist, scissors, discipline, fascinate and ascend.

In guided reading, we read a poem called ‘My Shadow’, which the children recognised was a rhyming poem. We discussed how the author uses personification to enhance the poem and how the language used contributes to the meaning of the poem. 

In History, we recapped the timeline from the Stone Age period to life today, looking at how long each time period lasted for. We then went on to learn about who archeologists are and what they do. The children explored the different areas that archeologists research and how they discover objects from the past. 

In DT, the children created their fantastic Chanukiahs using ‘junk’ material. Thank you for sending in lots of different materials! They thought carefully about how they were going to build their structure to make it balanced and strong enough to move from place to place. Well done Year 3 for being so creative.  

The children had their first Forest School session this week. They played a game which focused on developing their collaborative skills, and had to work as a team to get an acorn across the playground, without being caught by the other team. They then had the opportunity to use sticks to make dens, in addition to making necklaces and using water colours to create different paintings. 

Reminders:

• A number of children need new equipment for their pencil pots, including pens, whiteboard pens and rulers. Please will you send in 50p with your child so they can purchase new equipment at the office.  
• Monday is Odd Socks Day. The children can come into school wearing odd socks that day.  
• Comic Relief has launched a fantastic November initiative called 'Unlock a Smile.' This exciting competition invites children to unleash their creativity by drawing their most imaginative and joy-filled ideas that bring a smile to their faces. Please find a poster attached with more information. 
• Please will you send your child in with the lid of a shoe box by Thursday as they will need this for next week’s science lesson.

Wishing you all a Shabbat shalom.

Mrs Prais

Friday 3rd November 2023

Dear Parents, 

The children had a fantastic day out at Legoland. They took part in two workshops. The first workshop focused on travelling back in time to the Stone Age, and the children had the opportunity to use lego to create their own Stone Age village. In the second workshop, the children built their own rollercoaster with lego, which they connected to the iPad in order to make the rollercoaster spin around. The children also loved exploring Miniland, seeing all the different landmarks around the world made out of lego. 

In English, the children wrote a creative writing piece called ‘The Toy that Came to Life’. The children focused on setting the scene, writing a character description, as well as writing a detailed description of the adventure their characters went on. The children also started their non-fiction reports on owls. They took all the information they had learnt from their own research and began writing it in their own words in their report. 

In maths this week, the children started a new topic - Multiplication and Division. They learnt how to make equal groups using concrete resources, and what these equal groups represent. For example, 2 equal groups of 6 is the same as 2 x 6, which is also the same as 6 + 6. They also learnt how to use arrays to enhance their knowledge of the link between repeated addition and multiplication and to explore commutativity. For example, they recognise that 3 lots of 5 is equal to 5 lots of 3. Lastly, they recapped and practised their 2, 5 and 10 times tables.  

This week in History we moved on to our new topic ‘Stone Age Britain’. The children had a fantastic time travelling back to the Stone Age. They entered into a Stone Age cave, to experience what it was like for those living during that time.  The children were introduced to the terms BCE and CE and how they are used. They looked at a timeline of prehistoric Britain and created their own timeline highlighting the different time periods, including the Paleolithic period (earliest), the Mesolithic period (middle), Neolithic (the ‘new’ Stone Age), the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. 

In science, the children learnt about the difference between night and day. They learnt that the sun dictates whether it is night or day, depending on where in the world it is shining. They learnt that the sun rises at dawn and sets at dusk. 

The children started their new DT topic this week, learning how to build a Chanukiah structure. They designed their own Chanukiah in their books, thinking about what materials they are going to use, how tall it is going to be and how they are going to make sure it is strong enough to move around. 

Or spelling rule for this week is words that sound like they are spelt with the ‘k’ sound but are spelt with a ‘que’. These words include technique, cheque, unique, critique, antique, plaque, physique, opaque and boutique. 

In guided reading this week, the children read an extract from Stuart Little. They discussed the personality of the characters and the meaning behind what the characters said, as well as why the author used certain words to describe the characters. 

Important reminders:

• A number of children need new equipment for their pencil pots, including friction pens, whiteboard pens and rulers. Please will you send in 50p with your child so they can purchase new equipment at the office. 
• Please remember to send in some ‘junk’ material with your child for Wednesday, so they have materials to build their model Chanukiah. 

Wishing you a Shabbat shalom, 

Mrs Prais

20.10.2023 Jewish Studies – Parashat Noach

We have had an amazing week this week in JS and have been working particularly hard on our special Shabbat project.

We have begun our topic learning about Shabbat candles, focusing on why we light 2 candles and who lights them.

Hebrew reading – This week we learnt the Kamatz katan reading rule. Please review the additional reading sheet with your child over the course of the week, returning the folder signed and completed by the following Monday. Please note, the homework sheet increases in difficulty and your child should read as far as they can. The reading sheet should be read at least twice over the week.

Parashat Noach - Storyline: Noach is a good man. The people around him behave very badly but Noach does not follow their bad ways, so the Torah calls him a Tzaddik –a very good person. Hashem wants to punish the bad people by bringing a flood. He tells Noach to build a Tevah (ark) so that he, his family, and the animals will be saved. It takes Noach 120 years to build the Tevah, to give the wicked people the opportunity to repent their bad ways.

The flood comes and Noach puts into the Tevah 7 of every Kosher animal and 2 of every non-kosher animal. Noach, his wife, his three sons; Shem, Cham and Yafet, and their wives joined Noach in the Tevah.

Hashem promises Noach that He will never destroy the world again through a flood and that a rainbow is the sign of this. We learnt that we say a special Bracha when we see a rainbow and created beautiful rainbow clouds with the Bracha.

Middah of the week: Doing what is right.

Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom and a lovely half term.

Ms Rose

Friday 20th September 2023

Dear Parents, 

The children have worked incredibly hard during assessment week and need to be commended for their efforts. Well done Year 3!

In English, the children created their booklet which they are going to write their non-fiction report in. They also learnt a key skill of reading the notes that they have written on owls and turning this into a full paragraph. 

In maths, the children solidified their knowledge of subtracting a 2-digit number from a 3-digit number, using counters to represent the exchange. We focused on which place value columns changed and which remained the same, as well as discussing how they didn’t have enough tens to take away from their tens column, so they had to exchange a 1 hundred for 10 tens. We also focused on developing number sense through exploring the connections between calculations. For example, if children know 5 + 7 = 12, then they also know that 12 – 5 = 7, 120 – 50 = 70 and 50 + 70 = 120.

In science, the children started a new topic ‘Light and Shadow’. They learnt that light enables us to see things and darkness is what happens when there is no light. The children discussed different light sources, and whether they were natural or man made. They also learnt that light travels in waves. The light travels from the source, reflects off the object and goes into our eyes. Our eyes then send a message to our brain and this is how we see things.

Our spelling rule for this week is words that sound like they are spelt with the ‘g’ sound but are spelt with a ‘gue’. These words include analogue, league, catalogue, dialogue, plague,  fatigue, intrigue and synagogue. 

In geography, the children explored different time zones across the world and compared the time around the world to the time in the UK, seeing how many hours ahead or behind other countries are. The children will learn that countries have different time zones because the sun shines on different countries throughout the 24 hour day. 

In art, the children used the skills they have learnt about creating texture in their artwork and using shading to make their drawings look more realistic, to create excellent drawings of different animals. They also used charcoal to help create depth to their sketches. 

In guided reading, we read an extract from Charlotte’s Web. We discussed how the characters’ feelings differed and why they were different, as well as talking about how the first line in the story had an impact on the reader, and made them want to read more. 

Reminders:

• Please can children have 50p in their bag in case they need to replace any stationery during the school day. 
• Year 3 will be starting Forest School on the 9th November.
• There is no homework set this week as it is half term. If you would like your child to still do English and maths practice, the Doodle Learning platforms are a great tool. In particular, on Doodle Spell I have set a few assignments for the children to complete, which practise the spelling rules they have learnt. 
• Children should be practising their times tables regularly at home. Doodle Times Tables and Hit the Button are great tools for them to practise their times tables. 

I hope you all have a wonderful half term. 

Shabbat shalom, 

Mrs Prais

Friday 13th October 2023

Dear Parents, 

In English this week, the children started researching information about owls, in order to write their own non-fiction report. They looked up what owls eat, where they live, what sounds they make and any special features they have. The children recorded all the information they read in a mind map or bullet points and next week they will start transferring that information into paragraphs. 

In maths, the children added and subtracted a 1-digit number or a 2-digit number from a 3-digit number, where an exchange is required. They used partitioning and a number line to help them. For example, 560 + 60 = ?. They partitioned 60 into 40 and 20, so they could add 560 + 40, to get to the nearest 100, then added the remaining 20. They also used place value counters and charts to visualise the calculation they were doing. For example, 353 - 8 = ? When using their place value counters, they first needed to look at the ones column and saw that they only had 3 ones to takeaway, therefore they needed to do an exchange from the tens column.

In science, the children explored the different uses for magnets, including everyday uses, for example, for fridges and to separate recycling items from non-recycling items. They also learn that magnets are used in MRI machines and for maglev trains. 

In geography, the children learnt about the Prime Meridian, which is located at longitude 0 degrees and runs from the North pole to the South pole. They learnt that the Prime Meridian is the imaginary line that divides the Earth into two equal parts: the Eastern Hemisphere and the Western Hemisphere. They researched different countries which lie on the Prime Meridian, learning about the countries’ language, population and climate. 

Our spelling rule for this week was words that sound like they are spelt with a ‘sh’ but are spelt with a ‘ch’, for example, chalet, chef, chaise, moustache, parachute and cached.

In guided reading, we read the poem ‘The Dentist and the Crocodile’, written by Roahl Dahl. The children thought about the dentist's feelings and how they knew he was feeling scared, as well as the personality of the crocodile, using evidence from the text to justify their answer.

Next week is assessment week for English and maths. The papers will be split over the week in order to allow the children time to complete the papers. We will explain that these assessments are to help us see what areas the children need further teaching and support, therefore they should not feel any pressure. 

Reminder:

• Children should bring in 50p to replace any stationery they need. 

Wishing you a Shabbat shalom, 

Mrs Prais

Friday 6th October 2023

Dear Parents, 

This week has been very busy for Year 3. The children loved having the opportunity to visit different Sukkahs of children in their class. Thank you to those who hosted Year 3 in their Sukkah, the children had a great time. 

In English, the children learnt about the features of non-fiction texts. They looked at a range of different non-fiction texts and discovered what they all had in common, including contents page, sub-headings, the use of factual language, a glossary and writing reports in the present tense. The children are going to go on to write their own non-fiction report about owls and will research facts about owls, for example, what they eat, where they live, what sounds they make and any special features they have. 

In maths, the children started a new topic, ‘Addition and Subtraction’. First, they used their number bonds knowledge and applied it to a variety of contexts. For example, 2 + 3 = 5, so 20 + 30 = 50. They then went on to add and subtract 1s, 10s and 100s to a 3-digit number, where no exchange is required, meaning it did not cross the tens or hundreds boundary. For example, 324 + 5 = ? and 276 - 30 = ?. The children discussed that when adding either 1s, 10s or 100s, which column they need to look at and which columns changed. For example, when adding 190 + 300, only the hundreds column changed. 

In geography, the children learnt about the Tropic of Cancer, which is the northern tropic, and the Tropic of Capricorn, which is the southern tropic. They learnt that between these tropics, the weather is hot all year round and that rainfall will vary in tropical locations. They researched different habitats within the tropics, including the tropical rainforests and tropical coniferous rainforests.

In science, the children continued learning about magnets. They learnt that metals such as iron, nickel and cobalt are attracted to magnets, but other metals, such as copper, silver, gold, magnesium, platinum, aluminium are not. They then explored which items in the classroom are magnetic and which are not. 

Our spelling rule for this week is words that are spelt with a ‘ch’ but sound like they are spelt with a ‘k’. The words the children learnt include: scheme, chorus, chemist, echo, character, stomach ache, schedule, mechanic, chaos, choir.

Important information:

• A number of children need new equipment for their pencil pots, including a pen, whiteboard pens and rulers. Please will you send in 50p with your child so they can purchase new equipment at the office. 
• On Monday, the children are going to Legoland. Children should arrive at school at 8.20am. They should bring a morning and afternoon fruit snack and a water bottle and lunch will be provided for them. 

Wishing you all a chag sameach. 

Mrs Prais

Friday 29th September 2023 

Dear Parents, 

This week in English the children were introduced to speech marks - why we use them and how we use them. They learnt the rules that come along with using speech marks. See if your child can tell you all the rules they learnt when using speech marks. We then read chapter 5 of ‘The Owl who is Afraid of the Dark’, which discusses different nocturnal animals. The children went on to create their own fantastic fact file about a nocturnal animal, including a badger, fox, owl or hedgehog. 

In maths, the children compared and ordered numbers to 1000, using the terms greater than, less than and equal to. We discussed how they know which number is greater by looking at the place value of each digit, starting with the digit in the hundreds column. The children then learnt how to count in 50s, using their knowledge of counting in 5s to help them. 

In geography, the children learnt that the Arctic Circle is found at the very north of the Earth and Antarctica is found at the very south of the Earth. They compared the differences between the animals and plants that live in both places, as well as the difference in temperatures and the climate. The children created excellent and informative posters, showing all the information they have learnt. 

In science, the children learnt about magnets. They learnt that magnets are metals that attract other metals and they have a north and south pole. They also learnt that the north pole of a magnet is attracted to the south pole of a magnet, and that when two north poles or south poles of a magnet go near each other, they will repel each other. The children had the opportunity to explore which items in the classroom were magnetic and non-magnetic. 

As it was a shorter week this week the children did not learn a new spelling rule. Please continue to recap the spelling rules and words they have learnt so far. 

In art, the children drew and decorated their own owl, which links to our book we are reading in English, ‘The Owl Who is Afraid of the Dark’.

Please find a poster and a link attached for a BBC writing competition. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/500-words/about-500-words/zctk7v4#zbx4jfr0 

Wishing you all a wonderful Sukkot. 

Shabbat shalom and Chag Sameach. 

Mrs Prais 

Friday 22nd September 2023

Dear Parents, 

This week in English the children read chapter 2 from ‘The Owl Who is Afraid of the Dark’. We discussed the difference between the perspective of the old lady character and the young boy from the previous chapter. The children also shared their predictions on what they thought the chapter would be about and how the characters felt meeting each other. 

In maths, the children learnt how to use part-whole models to partition 3-digit numbers. They then built on this knowledge to use a place value chart and counters to create 3-digit numbers, thinking about how many hundreds, tens and ones there are. They also learnt how to find 1, 10 and 100 more and less than any given number. For example: What is 10 more than 432? What is 100 more than 432? They learnt which column they needed to focus on when adding 1, 10 and 100, for example, do they need to look at the ones column, tens column or hundreds column? They then moved onto learning about number lines to 1000. Children read and interpreted exact values positioned along the number line. They were exposed to a variety of number lines, both to and within 1,000 and with different start and end point values. 

The spelling rule for this week are words that have the ‘u’ sound but are spelt with ‘ou’. Please see the words the children will be learning: young, touch, double, trouble, country, enough, couple, cousin, rough, tough, southern, courage. The more they practise these spelling words, the more they will learn the rule. 

In geography, the children recapped what they had learnt about the Northern hemisphere and Southern hemisphere. The children then developed their understanding about lines of longitude and latitude and how we can use coordinates to locate different countries and towns on the map. They learnt that lines of latitude circle the Earth from east to west and lines of longitude run from north to south. 

In science, the children learnt that a force meter (or Newton meter) measures forces. They investigated the level of forces needed to pull toy cars differs according to the surface it is on, for example, a smooth or bumpy surface. They learnt that when two objects move over each other there is friction. Friction is a type of resistance and some surfaces will create more friction than others. 

In art, the children learnt how to lightly draw with their pencil to sketch a range of feathers whilst focusing on different techniques, including shading and creating different textures, for example, soft, flowy feathers, or hard and structured feathers. They are going to build on this knowledge to sketch their own owls, linking to the book we are reading in English. 

Wishing you all a meaningful and easy fast. 

Shabbat shalom, 

Mrs Prais 

22.9.23 Jewish Studies

This week we learnt about the Hebrew dates of the Tishrei Chagim (until Yom Kippur). We also learnt about the fast of Gedaliyah, one of the 4 minor fasts, which is the day after Rosh Hashana.

We learnt in detail about the things forbidden on Yom Kippur, as well as the ways we can prepare for Yom Kippur on Erev Yom Kippur.

Song of the week:

Let’s be friends, make amends,

Now is the time to say I’m sorry,

Let’s be friends make amends,

Please say you’ll forgive me.

Shake my hand and ill shake yours x3

And we’ll be friends forever.

Wishing you all a G’mar Chatimah Tovah, Shabbat Shalom and well over the fast,

Ms Rose

15.9.23 Jewish Studies – Rosh Hashana

We had a fantastic week completing our Rosh Hashana learning about the Rosh hashana Simanim, the special foods we eat on Rosh Hashana. We learnt the extra Tefillah said before each of the items and the children completed stunning placemats with these on.

We also learnt about the custom of Tashlich, when we go to a body of water to “throw away” our Aveirot, bad deeds.

I hope you enjoy discussing your children’s beautiful craft with them over the Chag and encourage them to say the extra prayers when having their Simanim at the Rosh Hashana meal.

It was lovely seeing you all this week at the curriculum evening. I look forward to another lovely year ahead with your children.

Song of the week:

Let's take a machzor and let's take a walk

To a river or lake today x2

On Rosh Hashana we go to Tashlich (3x)

To throw our aveirot away.

Shana Tovah, Shabbat Shalom & have a wonderful Chag,

Ms Rose

Friday 15th September 2023

Dear Parents, 

This week in English we started reading a new book, called ‘The Owl Who Was Afraid of the Dark’, by Jill Tomlinson. The children studied the illustrations on the front cover along with the title and predicted what they thought was going to happen in the story. After exploring the pictures and thinking about what colours were used, they came up with very imaginative predictions. They also learnt about alliteration, when the initial sound of words in a phrase is repeated, and wrote their own sentences describing Plop using some examples of this, such as ‘fluffy feathers’. 

In maths, the children learnt to partition 2-digit numbers into tens and ones, using part-whole models to support them. They also explored a variety of number lines, including number lines that do not start from zero and number lines with increments other than 1 or 10. They identified or estimated the position of a given number on a number line. The children then went on to learn how to count in hundreds and represent hundreds using Base 10. They learnt what each digit represents in a three-digit number, exploring how many hundreds, tens and ones there are. 

In science, the children started their new topic, Forces and Magnets. They learnt that a force is a push or a pull on an object and that a force needs two objects where one pushes or pulls the other to make it move.

The children had their first spelling lesson this week. They learnt the spelling rule for words with the ‘i’ sound but are spelt with a ‘y’. The words the children learnt include, gym, Egypt, pyramid, mystery, lyric, oxygen, physics, symbol, system, symptom, syrup. 

In guided reading, the children read an extract from ‘Bill’s New Frock’, written by Anne Fine. They discussed the feelings of different characters and their personalities, using evidence from the text to explain their answers. 

Please can your child bring in a toy car for their science investigation on Thursday. 

Wishing you a Shabbat shalom and Shana Tova. We hope you have a wonderful Yom Tov and a happy and sweet new year!

The Year 3 Team

8.9.23 Jewish Studies – Parashat Nitzavim Vayelech.

We have had a lovely few days in our Jewish studies lessons, reacquainting ourselves with the class rules and routines and hearing about the lovely things your children got up to over the summer break.

We spent time reviewing our Rosh Hashana learning, focusing on the Hebrew date of Rosh Hashana and that we have special Brachot to say on Rosh Hashana.

Song of the week: Dip the apple in the honey.

Dip the apple in the honey make a bracha loud and clear.

L’shana tovah u’metukah may we have a sweet new year,

Mummy, Daddy, sister, brother gather round the table now,

Dip the apple in the honey, watch me and I’ll show you how.

Wishing you all a Shabbat Shalom and a lovely weekend ahead,

Ms Rose

Friday 8th September 2023

Dear Parents, 

Welcome back! 

Wow, what a fantastic start to the term! Year 3 have settled into school really well this week and have had a very exciting first week back. The children were extremely happy to see each other after the holidays and could not wait to share their wonderful holiday news. 

As a class we discussed Kerem’s behaviour expectations in order to achieve success and build an excellent learning environment, as well as continuing to build lovely friendships. We also discussed how Year 3 are the oldest of the lower school and what this means in terms of their responsibilities to the younger years.

In English, the children wrote what their personal goals are for Year 3 and what they would like to achieve throughout the year. 

In geography we started our new topic, ‘All around the World’. We learnt about the Northern & Southern Hemispheres, as well as the equator. The children also shared all the knowledge they already knew about the Earth, which was wonderful to hear. 

In Maths, the children learnt to represent numbers up to 100 using Base 10. They then drew these representations in their books, focusing on presenting this neatly in their books. 

Year 3 were given their iPads this week and we explained the expectations and responsibilities which accompany this. They had the opportunity to explore their iPads and they learnt how to create posters and access Google Classroom. 

We have really enjoyed our first few days with the children, getting to know them and setting off with them on their learning journey. We look forward to a fantastic year ahead. 

Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom. 

The Year 3 Team