Summer Term - Emperors and Empires

In the Emperors and Empires project, your child will learn about the growth and decline of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. They will discover the absolute power of the Roman emperors and study the hierarchies of Roman society and the Roman army. They will study the first invasions of Britain in 55 and 54 BC and the Roman conquest of Britain in AD 43. They will learn about Boudicca’s rebellion, Hadrian’s Wall and the Romanisation of Britain, including how Christianity came to Britain and investigate the legacy of Roman Britain in their local area.

Spring Term in Year 3!

I hope that you’ve had an amazing festive break. I'm excited for the children to experience our new class topic: Rocks, Relics and Rumbles! Miss Leng and I have lots of fun and engaging activities planned, so don’t forget to ask your child questions about their school day. 

Spring Term - Rocks, Relics and Rumbles: This project teaches children about the features and characteristics of Earth's layers, including a detailed exploration of volcanic, tectonic and seismic activity. They will investigate tectonic plate boundaries and get active with volcanoes.  Class 3 will understand the cause and consequence of earthquakes. 

Spelling and Times Tables Homework is set every Friday! Also,  please keep reading journals up-to–date. We aim for a minimum of 3 reads each week. Finally, don’t forget our PE days are Tuesdays and Fridays!

I thoroughly look forward to the Spring term.

Thank you,

Mr Turner

Miss Leng

Year 3 Curriculum Information …

Maths: This year we will be continuing with the ABACUS programme of Mathematics to build on the children’s knowledge. Also each lesson will contain a reasoning challenge to encourage deeper mathematical understanding.   

English: We will become immersed in our class text during our Reciprocal Reading lessons.  St Thomas follows the Write Stuff scheme as a stimuli to become creative, independent writers. 

Reading 

Texts will be used as a stimulus to build on their reading skills. In class, our Reciprocal Reading activities will focus on different skills: from group/ paired discussions to independent Cracking Comprehension activities. We will be looking at strategies on how to answer a range of questions.  Also, we will be clarifying unfamiliar words to build on the children’s evolving vocabularies. 

Spelling & SPAG 

We will follow the Year 3 Read Write Inc Spelling Programme to focus on a fortnightly spelling pattern and Year 3 & 4 National Curriculum Spellings. Additionally, children will have exposure to the Rising Stars Skills Builders scheme of work which will revise, consolidate and build on their Spelling, punctuation and grammar knowledge. 

Physical Education  

Class 3’s PE days are Tuesdays and Fridays.

St Thomas will encourage lots of opportunities for children to exercise and adopt a healthy lifestyle.  

Learning Coverage for this term: 

• Dance
• Gymnastic
• Basketball

Science 

Class 3 will be taught to apply scientific methods, skills and lead practicals through the Cornerstones programme of study. 

Science Learning Coverage for this term: 

• Plant Nutrition and Reproduction
• Light & Shadows 

History   

History Learning is the basis for our Summer topic Emperors & Empires.

Geography    

Geography Learning Coverage for this term will focus on revision and retrieval practice of learning objectives which have already been delivered.

Art and Design  

Class 3 will use their sketchbooks to record their observations and use them to review and revisit ideas. They will have opportunities to get creative with a range of different medias. 

Art and Design Learning Coverage for this term: 

• Beautiful Botanicals
• Mosaic Masters

Design and Technology   

Design and Technology Learning Coverage for this term: 

• Greenhouse

Religious Education  

Class 3 will follow the Rotherham agreed syllabus supported by the Discovery RE syllabus. Together these will reinforce the children’s understanding of Hinduism and Christianity.  

PSHE & RSE 

PSHE will complement our RE work. The JIGSAW programme of study and The Discovery RE work simultaneously and instil a deeper connection. St Thomas core values and British Values will give each child a well-rounded insight into understanding society. 

Music 

St Thomas follows the Charanga scheme of work which is an active and upbeat scheme that delivers fun and engaging music lessons.  

ICT

St Thomas follows the Purple mash scheme of work which is interactive and develops the children's ITC skills. The scheme covers, coding, Internet Safety, digital literacy, websites and can be used as a cross-curricular tool to support other subjects.

Spanish MFL  

The children will have frequent practise to listen, comprehend, speak, read and write in Spanish. The I Languages scheme of work is interactive, fun and engaging.