mysterious visitors to Year 2!

This week, some mysterious visitor came to our classrooms. We saw tiny footprints on the floor and someone left a mini chair and tiny paper furniture on the table. There are leaves, petals, and twigs carefully arranged as if a tiny creature has been here. We learnt that maybe it was a Minpin! Our English writing this half term will be all about Minpins, so hopefully we can learn a bit more about them over the next few weeks!

Spring 1 concludes!

It was a busy end to Spring 1 in Year 2. The children  finished writing their instruction texts on how to make a cork boat and were able to use time adverbs, adverbs of manner and present tense action verbs in order to write their own list of commands for the reader. Their instructions were clear and concise and they did a fabulous job with their writing! In Maths, the children were learning about multiplication and division. Division is a very tricky topic to wrap one’s head around but they are taking to it incredibly well, understanding that division is just sharing, using diagrams to assist them with answering problems. In Art, the children made their own expressive paintings using a range of utensils. It was wonderful to see their creativity on show and they did a wonderful job.
In History, the children continued learning about significant explorers and last week, learnt about Matthew Henson, the first man to reach the North Pole from the western world! They were shocked to see how he had been forgotten for a great deal of time, purely due to the colour of his skin, and then considered whose achievements were more impressive – Henson or Christopher Columbus – just like real historians! Finally, Mr Newham spoke to Year 2 this last week all about Passover and why it is an important date in the calendar for Jewish people. Following this, the children made Matzah bread in their cooking session this half term. Year 2 were certainly deserving of a break!
 

January blues? no chance!

Year 2 have had a fantastic start to the Spring term and have settled back into learning brilliantly over the past two weeks. In Maths, the children have been working on money, developing their ability to count coins and notes, recognise pounds and pence, and make the same amounts in different ways. They have also begun to compare amounts of money and solve simple calculations, using practical resources to support their understanding. In English, the children have started a fiction unit based on The Proudest Blue. They have explored the features of a story, built their sentence skills by using conjunctions, commas in lists and prepositions, and have begun planning and writing parts of a narrative retold from a character’s perspective. Alongside this, they have enjoyed lots of oral rehearsal and discussion to help develop their ideas. In History, the children have been introduced to our new unit on exploration. They have learned what an explorer is, discussed why explorers are important, and begun to look at the Age of Exploration, which has sparked lots of thoughtful questions and curiosity about the wider world. In Geography, the children have been learning about our world, naming and locating the seven continents and five oceans using maps, globes and atlases. They have started to explore where hot and cold places are located in relation to the Equator and the North and South Poles. In Art, the children have been studying expressive painting. First, they looked at some different artists and made visual notes on how they felt about those artists’ work, how it made them feel and how the artists use paint to create their work. They have also had a go at creating their own expressive painting by experimenting with different tools and colour patterns to craft their work. Finally, in PSHE, the children have focused on valuing differences, thinking about what makes them special, recognising their achievements, and reflecting on how their actions can make others feel. They have shown great maturity when discussing kindness and inclusion within the classroom.

Festival of lights: Diwali!

On Monday, Year 2 learnt all about the Hindu festival of Diwali for their Festival of Lights day. They got to sample some tasty snacks that some generous staff were kind enough to bring in, they made diya lamps from salt dough before decorating them and they also learnt about the reason why Diwali is celebrated, which is the story of Rama and Sita. Scan below for some examples of pictures from the day!

Puppeteers!

Year 2 have finished making their puppets! See some example pictures below:

Victoria sponge fairy cakes!

Year 2 have been doing some cooking this week, making some Victoria Sponge style fairy cakes linking to our history learning. Apparently, they were delicious!
See below for some photos:

Sew it begins...

This week, Year 2, with the help of some angelic adults, did some sewing as part of their D&T unit, as they were tasked with completing their own hand puppet. They did a superb job and showed huge amounts of resilience (and that's just the adults!).
See below for some photos of our sewing afternoon:

multicultural week!

Year 2 have been busy celebrating Multicultural Week, diving into the sights, sounds and stories of Nigeria! The children explored the country’s climate, wildlife and cities before completing their own information text, showing real curiosity and care in their work. In Art, they created stunning batik-style patterns on fabric using glue resist, inspired by traditional Nigerian designs. Everyone also had the chance to become chefs, making Chin Chin, a delicious sweet Nigerian snack that filled The Nest with wonderful smells!

To bring Nigerian culture to life even further, the children learnt about Nigerian tradition and listened to and retold The Tale of the Tortoise and the Birds, creating beautiful storyboards to show the story in pictures. Finally, they learned some traditional Nigerian dance, showing brilliant rhythm, teamwork and enthusiasm.

It’s been a joyful and creative week — well done, Year 2!

Ally Pally!

Year 2 visited Alexandra Palace and Park last week as part of their geography fieldwork, where they sketched a view of the London skyline, attempting to identify the famous landmarks on a misty autumnal London day!
See some pictures from our visit below:

 

Upcoming trip to ally pally

On Tuesday 14th October, Year 2 will be visiting Alexandra Park and Palace to sketch the London skyline and complete their Geography fieldwork, comparing physical and human features of our city. 
Click the Google Form to give permission and volunteer support for this trip: 
https://forms.gle/GtLYwHovgoAYi3Li9

Bombs away!

In Science this week, Year 2 tested the suitability of different materials to help protect a water balloon! We put our water balloons in zip-lock bags and then surrounded them in cardboard, sponge, plastic cubes, cotton wool and fabric before dropping them out of a Maple Building window. Let's just say there were mixed results! Scan the QR code to see how we got on.

Year 2 visit the mosque!

On Thursday, the Year 2 children, with the help of many willing parents, visited Palmers Green Mosque to learn all about Islam. The children sat and listened, showing our values of respect, resilience (they were sat for a while!) and appreciation and understanding, displaying their enthusiasm through asking many questions! See below for some photos of our trip!

Year 2 back in action!

Year 2 have had a fantastic start back at school and have completed so much absolutely fabulous learning already! In English, the children have read the book, The Secret Sky Garden, which is about a girl who decides that there is too much grey in her local community and takes it upon herself to transform a derelict car park into a beautiful garden high in the sky, which can even be seen by planes! The children are enjoying the story and are developing their understanding of the features of a setting description, which they’ll be writing next week. In Maths, the children have been developing their understanding of place value and applying their understanding of partitioning, what it is and how it works, with some of the children using manipulatives to aid their understanding. Elsewhere, in Science, the children have begun to learn about different properties of materials. They have learnt the difference between an object and a material and categorised different objects based on what they were made of, as well as why we may make different objects out of different materials. In Geography, the children have looked at London boroughs and the neighbouring boroughs of Enfield, as well as furthering their knowledge of human and physical features in our city, identifying that Alexandra Park is a physical feature, whilst Alexandra Palace is a human feature. Finally, the children have begun their learning of the Victorian period in History, studying the difference between upper class, middle class and working class women through ‘day in the life’ stories, as well as the things they had in common.

Reminder: Our trip to the Palmers Green Mosque is this coming Thursday. 
Please click here Google Form to give permission for your child to attend and/or to volunteer your support.