Class 3 Letters

Class 3 Parent Letter    4th September 2024

Dear Parents,

We are happy that the children are already settling into the new school year and we are looking forward to the year ahead. It is wonderful to see new faces coming up to Class 3 this year, as well welcoming back familiar ones. Thank you to Year 4 families for their kind gifts to us at the end of the summer term, they were much appreciated.

Our Topics – We are starting off with a History topic called ‘Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages’. We will be learning lots about ‘prehistory’ and how people have found out about it. We will discover how humans lived at different times and what caused life to change through the years. After half-term, we will move onto a Geography topic all about Land Use and Settlements.

This term in Science, we will be learning about Rocks and Soil. Then we’ll move onto the topic of Sound.

We are looking forward to some brilliant trips and having exciting visitors in school over the next few months. More information will follow when these are finalised.

PE will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays. In Class 3, we ask that children come to school wearing their PE kit on these days. Children will wear their PE kit for the whole day. This allows them to make the most of their time in PE lessons, rather than needing to get changed twice in school. We really appreciate your support with this. PE could be indoor or outdoor, so we ask that children come into school wearing trainers and suitable layers of clothing for either setting. Children should keep a labelled pair of pumps permanently in school for use, including for indoor PE.

Please ensure that your child’s PE kit still fits and is clearly labelled. To check what you need see https://www.crosscrake.cumbria.sch.uk/uniform-information/ (We will communicate when gum shields and shin pads should be brought into school when we come to work on sports where they are required).

HOMEWORK will be kept in your child's Yellow Homework Folder but there is will also be some helpful advice and a range of activities available on Google Classroom. Login details will be provided shortly.

Spelling Homework will be given out and tested weekly each Monday starting on the 9^th September. Their spellings will be kept in their Yellow folders. The weekly spellings will also be put on Google Classroom each week, so if your child was absent, you are not sure if they were given the correct sheet, or they can't find their sheet please check on Google Classroom.

Each week, we will also put a link to Spelling Training on Google Classroom, which will have games they can play using their weekly spellings words.

Furthermore, your child will be given a dictation sheet for the term. You read them a sentence and they are to then write it down, using the correct spellings.  All instructions will be in their Yellow Homework Folder and also on Google Classroom.

Please remember to do the spelling homework with your child to check that they are doing their best handwriting and to check regularly through the week how they are getting on with learning the words, so you can concentrate on the ones they are really struggling with.

Maths Homework: Log in to Times Tables Rock Stars out of school hours and complete at least 10 mins each week.

Since we started this, the children who have worked regularly on it have made incredible progress and enjoyed it too.

We will be able to see how the children are getting on with their times tables homework and how well they are progressing through our teacher log in and House Points will be given for their hard work. You will also be able to see this information, for your own child, through your child's log in.

National Curriculum Expectations for Times Tables by Year Group:

• Y3 children – x2, x5, x10, x3, x4, x8 & the inverse (÷) in random order up to x12. Answering rapidly without having to work them out
• Y4 children – All times tables up to x12, answering rapidly without having to work them out.

All Y4s throughout the country will be tested on their times tables in the summer term in the Multiplication Tables Check (MTC). This will be done online. One of the major issues is speed. They are given a maximum of 6 seconds to read the question, think of the answer and type in the number in the computer. So if your child is using their fingers to work out answers or generally the answer doesn't come into their head almost straight away, they will not be able to input the answer in time. Times Tables Rock Stars is perfect practice for recalling and typing the answers at speed.

Reading Homework: Children will be given a new book during the first week of the new school year. It is important that you try to get into a good routine straight away. All children need regular home reading, even if they are good readers. As they become more competent, they will come across more complex language and content which will need discussing with a parent to help comprehension. This will also give them an opportunity to learn and discuss new vocabulary. There is advice in your child's Yellow Homework Folder, as well as on Google Classroom. Please track children’s home reading in their Yellow Folder and make a note when they have finished a book.

Children can change their book at any convenient time, they just need to ask. They can choose one or two from the colour band that they have been asked to choose from plus they can also choose a book to read for interest which can be a much easier book to read or a more challenging one which they might like to share with you. If children aren’t enjoying a particular book, they don’t need to finish it – they can change it, rather than ploughing on to the end!

Other reminders

• Please could you check that your child's name is in their clothes, bags and shoes, so any lost items can be returned swiftly to the correct child. We find that simply writing in biro on the label works well and just needs going over occasionally.
• No pencil cases please.
• Please provide your child with a healthy snack for break time.
• Children are not to bring toys or similar items into school.
• Please keep Yellow Homework Folder in book bag and make sure book bag is in school every day.
• Your child will need to keep a pair of named black pumps in school to wear in class.
• To avoid overloading their book bags with keyrings, please keep to a maximum of 1 keyring please.

If you have any questions, please ask.

Yours sincerely,   

Mr Cunningham and Mrs Robinson

Please see  Homework & Extra Learning Activities Page