Jupiter

JUPITER CLASS 2020.2021

We are all looking forward to all children returning to school for the Autumn Term.  We will be starting the term with a whole school project, all children will complete work based on 'Here We Are' by Oliver Jeffers.

In Jupiter class Miss Smith will be the class teacher with Mrs Tickle remaining as the class TA and Mrs Wiseman will be joining Jupiter in the afternoons as an additional TA.

For this term, Jupiter has been set up differently (following government guidelines).  Expectations and procedures will be shared with the children on the first day of school. 

We understand that some learners have not been in school for quite some time, so we are approaching the first few weeks slightly differently to a 'normal' return to school.

We hope that you have all had a restful break over the summer and are looking forward to returning to learning within your classrooms.

Week Ending 11th September

We have had such a lovely start to the term in Jupiter class! We have spent lots of time talking about being back at school, and how we are feeling. We have also been fabulous artists this week and we have created self portraits which will be displayed in our cloakroom.

Its been so lovely to finally meet you all, and thank you for being so welcoming

Jupiter Class 2019/2020!

Miss Connor is the lead teacher in Jupiter Class this year. 
Mrs Tickle is our teaching assistant, she works every morning and completes her forest school learning with each class every afternoon. Mrs Passan is the lead teacher on a Monday morning or afternoon. 

Jupiter Class Update
W.C. 09.03.20
Another busy week this week as we celebrated British Science Week and Sport Relief. As we spent every afternoon completing science activities and our mile for Sport Relief, our mornings were filled with our normal Maths and English lessons.
 

In English, we continued to explore our class text ‘Oliver and the Seawigs’ this week. The children were very excited when we discovered a couple new characters including the albatross, Mr Culpeper and mermaid, Iris. They wrote character descriptions using computer software and stepped into role as Oliver and wrote a diary entry about his experiences so far.
 

In Maths, we learnt about statistics this week and how we input this data onto tally charts, bar graphs and pictograms. We spent a lot of time recapping the language of ‘what’s the difference’ and what this means as this was something that caught lots of us out during assessment week last week. It would be great if you could continue to ask your children to ‘find the difference’ between numbers at home to reinforce learning completed in class.
 

In Science this week we have had lots of fun completing activities related to the British Science Week theme ‘Our Diverse Planet’. In class we explored what it meant to be diverse people and discussed the differences between us. We completed experiments using blindfolds to reinforce what it might feel like to have visual impairment. We also carried out an investigation to measure the number of taste bumps we have and how this may be different to our friends. PLEASE NOTE - we were all super hygienic and washed our hands thoroughly before and after the experiment! We even removed the cotton buds and card by placing into sealy bags!

As it was SAW (Science, Art and Writing) day on Friday the children drew their own reflected self-portraits and wrote auto-biographies about their lives. Thank you to all the parents who came and looked around the exhibition after school! I know the children loved showing off their learning.
 

I hope you’re all having a wonderful weekend,
 

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class Update
W.C. 02.03.20
Although it was assessment week this week, that didn't stop Jupiter class going out of school on two separate occasions for a trip to St Neots Museum and to Kimbolton for our weekly swimming lesson. We can't forget that we also got to celebrate World Book Day! 

I hope everyone is ready for another busy week as we celebrate British Science Week and Sports Relief!

Jupiter Class Update
Week Ending 28/02/20
Jupiter class had a great week back after half term. In English we started a new fiction text called ‘Oliver and the seawigs’ and the children were very excited! They made predictions about what they thought the text might be about before the front cover was revealed, considered how it might feel to be an explorer like Oliver and created their own lists of items they would take with them with appropriate reasons to support.

In Maths, the children practised their operations for multiplication, division, addition and subtraction in preparation for assessment week next week.  

In Science this week both Year 2 and Year 3 carried out experiments to answer scientific questions. While Year 2 identified the ways in which everyday materials can be changed, Year 3 carried out different investigations to identify which magnet is the strongest or whether magnets are stronger in water or through the air.

In Topic this week, the children used their computing skills to research the Hindu temple ‘Angkor Wat’ located in Cambodia. They were fascinated by some of the facts they found out and some children managed to begin creating their own power point presentation about it.

Of course I cannot forget that on Friday we had our first session swimming. Jupiter class were a joy to take and I’m very much looking forward to the next 7 weeks!

I hope you’ve all had a good weekend, see you tomorrow!

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class Update
W.C. 10.02.20
We had a super busy last week in Jupiter Class before the half term holiday. In English we finished the text ‘Suki’s Kimono’. We explored persuasive writing first and once we had learnt the skills of persuasion, we wrote our own letters to Suki’s headteacher. The children had to think about the reasons why Suki should be allowed to wear her kimono and include these points of view in their letter. It was great to hear and read the children recognising diversity and encouraging different cultures.
 

In Maths we spent the week recapping and learning about 2D and 3D shapes. The children explored the properties and discussed the vertices, edges and faces of different shapes. Once they were more confident with the names and properties, the children used their problem solving and reasoning skills to answer trickier questions.
 

In Science, Year 2 made their boats and carried out their investigation to see whether theirs would float or sink. Once they had the results, they discussed and evaluated the different outcomes with reasons including the materials properties. Year 3, also carried out an investigation this week. They identified and classified which materials are magnetic and why. They carried out research to back up their findings and by the end of the lesson they had some further questions they wished to answer. This learning will be continued after half term.
 

In Topic we worked in pairs to research a country in Asia. The children used fact files from the internet and their own research to answer questions on their countries population, religion, currency and language(s) spoken.

Unfortunately, we had our last dance session with Mrs Litchfield this week. The children have thoroughly enjoyed these sessions on a Tuesday and this week we managed to finish our class dance on machines. The children worked independently, in pairs and in small groups to create a representation of a machine and they have learnt so much in such a short space of time. We were sad to say goodbye to Mrs Litchfield from HSSP but I’m sure she’ll be back again sometime soon!
 

On Tuesday 11^th February, it was Safer Internet Day and this year’s theme was ‘together for a better internet’. The children completed work on their identity, both online and offline and created their own poems in pairs about how to stay safe online. The children all knew how important it is to stay safe online and it was a great opportunity to share ways of making sure this happens all the time.
 

I hope you all have a great and restful week off.
 

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class Update
W.C. 03.02.20

This week in English we have learnt about instructional writing. The children first identified the features of instructions and where they might find them, before writing their own set of instructions for tying an obi (a belt for a kimono). They made sure to include imperative (bossy) verbs and careful step by step instructions clear enough for anyone to follow.

In Maths Year 3 continued to work with fractions this week. They answered addition and subtraction style questions and completed several problem and reasoning style questions. Whilst the majority of the Year 3 worked with fractions with the same denominator, some had a go at finding equivalent fractions first before adding and subtracting, which is very tricky! Year 2 spent the week recapping learning from this half term. They worked with money, practised methods for multiplication/division and reminded themselves of the strategies for addition/subtraction.
 

In Science Year 2 put their understanding of ‘suitability’ to the test by designing a boat ‘suitable’ for carrying a Lego figure across water. We discussed what the word ‘absorbent’ means and the children designed their boats based on what they thought would be the most waterproof and practical material. These boats will be created next week and the children will carry out their investigation to see if their ideas were right! This week Year 3 discussed the materials that they thought might be magnetic and why. They identified a list of the materials they would like to test ready for next week.
 

In Topic the children worked hard to understand the difference between urban and rural living. We compared our small village of Great Staughton to the enormous city of Shanghai. The children were amazed to see how other children and families live and they had great fun identifying the similarities and differences between the two. At the end of the lesson we shared where we would rather live and it was interesting to hear their responses. Some children liked the quieter rural environment whereas others wanted to go the busier urban cities to visit more shops etc.

I hope you're all having a great weekend,

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class Update
W.C. 27.01.20
This week we have continued to work with fractions in Maths. The children have found fractions of quantities, focussing mainly on non-unit fractions where the numerator is larger than 1, ordered fractions and they have worked hard to find equivalent fractions. Next week Year 2 will complete tasks that recap addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, whilst Year 3 continue to work with adding and subtracting fractions.
 

In English this week the children identified why Suki’s kimono is so special to her. They came up with some great reasons including “it was a special gift from her grandmother, it represents her culture and it makes her unique”.  Later on in the week, the children were encouraged to bring in something that they cherish. We discussed as a class why our items are special to us and independently the children wrote their own description of their most important object. They all worked hard to include adventurous vocabulary to create the best description.

In Science, Year 3 investigated what friction is and how it changes based on different surfaces. To study this further the children measured how far a toy car travelled when pushed off of a ramp onto different surfaces. By the end of the lesson (and investigation), they learnt that the more friction between an object and surface, the less distance it will travel. Year 2 used their knowledge of everyday materials this week to discuss the best material for a transporting a Lego figure across water. Next week, they will design their own method of transport, before creating their design and carrying out their investigation.
 

In Topic the children learnt about Chinese New Year. They used their research from last week’s homework and information from our visitor on Wednesday to answer questions on this special, annual event.

Hope you’re all having a good weekend,

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class Update
W.C. 13.01.20
This week in English we have enjoyed sharing and exploring the beginning of ‘Suki’s Kimono’. The children have worked hard to write their own predictions and inferences, compare and contrast main characters and work in pairs to create a description of a setting within the story. They worked collaboratively to edit their writing to find ways to improve and many children managed to include some fantastic, adventurous vocabulary and similes.
 

In Maths we have continued to practise measuring length. The children have compared and ordered lengths, found equivalent lengths between mm, cm and m, solved problems involving length and we finished the week by measuring the sides of simple 2D shapes. With this final task, Year 3 learnt about perimeter and all of them had calculating the perimeter once each side had been measured correctly. Some of the Year 2’s were even up for the challenge!
 

To begin their Science learning of ‘Everyday Materials’, Year 2 investigated where to find them around school. They recognised many objects that were made from the different materials and used their properties to describe their purpose. Many children identified how the windows were made from glass in order to be transparent and firm. To move our learning on the children explained verbally what other objects the everyday materials could be used for. Year 3, on the other hand, were learning about the forces of push and pull. They worked in pairs to decide what physical activities involved which force, before debating whether all forces need physical contact.
 

The children absolutely loved their first PE dance session with Hunts coach Mrs Litchfield. This linked fantastically to Year 3’s current Science topic as the children had to create a dance sequence using the three forces: push, pull and twist. The children worked in pairs to decide how to perform each move before working with Mrs Litchfield to practise and perform a whole class machine dance. These sessions with Mrs Litchfield will take part every Tuesday until February half term.
 

In Topic this week the children brought their cherry blossom sketches to life using paint. Although, many of us haven’t finished just yet, I was very impressed with the care and control the children had. We discussed using different shades and tones of pink to make the blossom look as realistic as possible.
 

Have a great weekend!
 

Miss Connor

W.C. 16.12.19
Jupiter Class Update:
Jupiter class had a fantastic final three days of term. We finished our DT embroidery, completed lots of Christmas activities, had a yummy Christmas lunch and had a brilliant reward day. A massive well done to the children for a fantastic Autumn Term!
 

I also would like to say a big thank you to everyone for all the lovely gifts. I’m always blown away by how generous everyone is. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and I look forward to seeing you all in 2020.
 

Miss Connor

W.C 09.12.19
Jupiter class update:

The last full week before the Christmas holidays has been a busy one.
In English we completed our two week, Christmas inspired scheme of work on the 2014 John Lewis Christmas advent ‘Monty the penguin’. This week we focused on non-fiction writing and the children spent the beginning of the week researching facts about Adelie penguins, before going on to write their own information text. While some chose to write fact files, others decided to write a non-chronological report. By the end of the week, the children knew many facts about Adelie penguins including their diet, habitat and physical appearance. This also tied nicely into Year 2’s science learning of living things and their habitats.
 

In maths we spent this week learning how to tell the time. The children used their understanding of the 5 times table to read and record time on an analogue clock. Whilst year 2 focused on reading and recording the time in 15 minute increments (o’clock, quarter past, half past and quarter to), year 3 practised reading and recording the time in 5 minute increments. It was great to see the children understanding when to read the minutes ‘past’ the hour or ‘to’ the next hour and understanding when AM and PM is used. Parents, it would be wonderful if the children could continue practising this over the Christmas holidays and into the New Year!
 

We have also completed our Tudor embroidery stitching this week. The children worked so hard following the lines to create their finished Tudor rose or Fleur de Lys and they look fantastic! Finished photos of these to come next week! We also designed and created our own party hats for the Christmas lunch on Monday.
 

Have a lovely weekend,
 

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class update
W.C. 02.12.19
Wow, this week has flown by! In english we started and completed one half of our two week, Christmas inspired scheme of work on the 2014 John Lewis Christmas advent ‘Monty the penguin’. The children were asked to ask and answer questions based on the story in the fictional video and write in role as the young boy to complete a diary entry and a persuasive letter. We teased the children by only showing them half of the clip and they were excited to finally see what happened and whether their predictions were correct. Next week we will be focusing on non-fiction texts and writing reports and information texts.

In maths we have continued to focus on multiplication and division this week but with an emphasis on reasoning and problem solving. While Year 2 used their understanding of the 2, 5 and 10 times tables to solve problems, year 3 used their knowledge of the 3, 4 and 8 times tables. Next week we will be learning to tell the time in 15, 10 and 5 minute increments.

In science year 3 have explored how shadows are formed from light being blocked. On Thursday they set up their own investigation in small groups to recognise patterns between the distance of the light source and the size of the shadow. By the end of the lesson, all of the groups had concluded that the closer the light source was to the object, the larger the shadow.  This week year 2 explored how all living things depend on one in another within their habitat to stay alive. They created their own world habitat with the different living things and explained how each of them have an important role to play in their habitat.

On Friday some of us started our Tudor embroidery with Mrs Tickle. The children carefully stitched over the outline to create their own Tudor rose or Fleur de Lys. We will continue these now until the end of term, ready for the children to bring home with them before the Christmas holidays.

Have a great weekend, hopefully I’ll see lots of you at the Christmas Fayre on Saturday for lots of wonderful Christmas celebrations!

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class update
W.C. 25.11.19 – The last week before the Christmas festivities begin and December is well and truly upon us!
 

This week it has been Assessment Week and the children have all managed the week extremely well. They have completed assessments in Maths, Reading and SPAG (Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar) and it was wonderful to see them show off what they had learnt in class. Like always, the assessments were completed in a relaxed manner and we reiterated lots that these assessments simply tell us as teachers what to plan and teach next!
 

Fortunately, we still managed to fit some DT sessions, our normal science lesson and we even learnt about medieval music in the Tudor times. In DT we have been designing and creating our own Christmas decorations for the school tree, our own front cover for the Christmas show and we worked with Mrs Passan on Monday to design our own Tudor embroidery which the children will stitch before the end of term. In Science, Year 2 continued their learning of habitats by exploring world habitats. They identified how deserts, oceans, rainforests and the Arctic are different to local habitats and had to explain how different animals are suited to their individual habitat. Year 3 continued their learning of light and explored how to stay safe in the sun. They worked with Mrs Tickle to explore what UV light is and the dangers it has. In our Music lesson on Thursday the class listened to the medieval music before using different instruments to try and recreate the sounds and melody.
 

I hope you have a lovely weekend,
 

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class Update: Week Ending 22^nd November

This week we finished our English text ‘Lailah’s Lunchbox’ which highlighted cultural practices of Muslims.  We explored the stories structure by identifying the beginning, middle, problem, resolution and ending and wrote our own retelling of the story. Whilst most of us stuck to the original story, a few of us included our own alternative ending.
 

In Maths both Year 2 and Year 3 continued their learning of multiplication and division this week. The children wrote mathematical statements using the appropriate symbols, practised their understanding of division by sharing equally between groups and links have also been made between doubling and halving. This week both years have also completed one Maths assessment - starting our assessment period (next week is the main assessment week for the Autumn Term).
 

In Science Year 3 have identified and learnt that light is reflected from a surface. The children have understood and explained what reflection is, investigated which materials reflect light and considered how all reflective materials are similar. They demonstrated their understanding of this by designing their own school bag which is suitable when walking to and from school in the darker months. Year 2 have continued their learning of habitats by identifying and naming a variety of animals in their habitat, including microhabitats. They followed on from their learning last week by drawing their local habitat and identified the specific animals that live there.
 

In Topic lesson this week we have explored what Christmas was like in the Tudor times and compared it with our own celebrations. The children were amazed to learn that the Tudors celebrated Christmas similar to how we do today. A big difference we noted was that it was compulsory for everyone to finish work for the twelve days during Christmas and New Year. However, we know not everyone is as fortunate to do that nowadays.
 

I hope everyone is having great weekend.

Miss Connor

W.C. 11.11.19
Jupiter Class Update:
This week it has been Inter Faith Week in school and in Jupiter Class we have explored cultural practices of Muslims and compared them to our own. Through our new text ‘Lailah’s lunchbox’, the children have developed an understanding of what Ramadan is and how Muslims celebrate. Within the story, Lailah’s parents have decided she is now old enough to fast. In class, we’ve had some great discussions about what this means and the different beliefs we may have. Based on what we have read so far, the children have created their own questions for Lailah this week, written non chronological reports about Ramadan, created character descriptions of Lailah and written predictions about what they think will happen next. We are all looking forward to finding out more about Lailah next week!
 

In Maths we have started to build on our prior knowledge of multiplication. We started the week by recapping how multiplication is just repeated addition, before moving onto multiplication questions in the 2, 5 and 10 times tables of the 3, 4, 8 times tables. We discussed ways of working out the answer by first identifying the amount of groups we have. The children created arrays and all of them practised grouping on a number Iine first. We looked at the different strategies and discussed how simple it is to use our known multiplication facts to help solve timetables we don’t know yet. For example using the 2 times table to work out the 4 or the 4 times tables to work out the 8’s.
 

In Science this week year 3 have continued to learn about their new topic of light and dark. The children recapped the sources of light before witnessing first-hand how dark it is when there is no light. The children were shocked to realise that we do in fact need light in order to see and what better way to experiment this but standing in the pitch black cupboard? They all loved standing in the dark with a friend and it really proved that point that without a source of light, we cannot see.In year 2’s science lesson this week, they started to explore a local habitat by going for a walk around the school fields. Next week, they will draw their local habitat and identify the specific animals that live there.

On Wednesday, while year 2 practised for their Christmas show, year 3 completed an art lesson based on Pablo Picasso. As we have looked at abstract work previously, I thought it would be good opportunity to show the children another style of his painting. We looked closely at Picasso’s painting during his blue period and the class worked hard to create a monochrome painting using just blue and white or black to change the shade and tint. These masterpieces are not quiet finished yet but we will finish these off next week!
 

Phew! What another busy week. Have a great weekend.
 

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class Update
W.C. 04.11.19
Jupiter Class have had a fantastic week focusing on careers, ambitions and aspirations. We started the week by first discussing the meaning of careers, ambitions and aspirations as some of these words were new to some of us. Once we all understood what the week was going to be about, the children shared their own personal goals, along with the career they may choose in the future. These included archaeologists, dentists, charity workers, plumbers, firefighters, teachers and many more. By the end of the week, some children had even more ideas about what career they may choose and others were amazed by how many choices they have!
 

We have been doing lots of writing and discussion about our strengths, skills, and hopes for the future. The real important message shared this week was that the children could pursue any job they choose just as long as they believe in themselves, be prepared to work hard and choose something that they enjoy. Mrs Tickle and I were so impressed with how maturely the children spoke about their ambitions and aspirations and from the responses in class the children thoroughly enjoyed themselves! Hopefully there will be some interesting conversations at home too!
 

Have a great weekend,
 

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class Update
W.C. 28.10.19
The first week back after the half term holiday has been a busy one! In Maths the children have continued to develop their knowledge of addition and subtraction. They have spent time using and practising the methods learnt previously to help them solve word problems. The children now have a fantastic understanding of the methods that work best for them and it’s been great to see them apply their new skills.
 

In English this week we have been exploring poetry. We started the week by talking, discussing and interpreting different poems. The children worked in pairs or small groups to first understand what their particular poem was about, before highlighting the words they liked and why. Some children discussed the poem in greater depth to identify what it meant to them and they worked hard to describe how the poet has used language to create an effect. Some children showed a great understanding of new vocabulary learnt including onomatopoeia and personification and this was reflected in their own poems later on in the week. Taking our learning outside, the children planned and wrote their own senses poem. We walked around the school field to collect our ideas first, before they edited their initial ideas to include descriptive language suitable for their poem.
 

In Science, Year 3 have started to explore their new topic of ‘light’. The children discussed and shared what they already know about the subject and identified what they wish to learn over the next 7 weeks. The children had some fantastic questions and it will be great to see these answered over the coming weeks. Year 2 have also changed topics for Science this half term. Whilst still thinking about animals, including humans, they have started to explore the habitats living and non-living things live in. This week they learnt about the 7 life processes and used them to classify whether things were living, non –living, dead or never alive.
 

As Sunday marked Diwali – the Hindu festival of lights, the children have taken part in a variety of activities this week to help learn about this special, religious occasion. They designed and created their own diva lamps, sequenced and performed their own Bollywood dance and wrote about the story of Rama and Sita in our exciting writing lesson on Friday.
 

Have a great weekend,

Miss Connor

W.C. 14.10.19
Jupiter class update:

The last week before the half term holiday has been a busy one! In English, we have continued to explore traditional fairy tales. First, we recapped the essential features of these types of texts. Then, we used our plans that we created last week to carefully write our own twisted tale. We broke the sessions up this week into focusing on the beginning, middle and ending which meant the children had a clear structure to follow. I was very impressed with the imaginative ideas and the descriptive vocabulary the children used.
 

In Maths, both year 2 and year 3 have worked on their methods for addition and subtraction this week. They started the week by working out how to solve missing number problems before moving onto more formal written methods. Whilst year 3 learnt how to used the expanded column method for addition and subtraction, year 2 concentrated on using pictorial representations and their own number lines.
 

In Science this week year 2 learnt about the five basic needs for survival. They learnt that in order for the human body to function and grow, it needs oxygen, water, food, sleep and shelter. The children created their own posters advertising this and each of them wrote sentences explaining why each need was essential for the human body. Year 3’s learning this week was similar as they explored the circulatory system. We used red and blue card to represent the oxygenated and deoxygenated blood in our bodies and the children learnt how it is used to transport nutrients, oxygen and water around our bodies.
 

This week it was our last PE session with Mrs Wisbey from Hunts SSP and we applied all our skills learnt this half term by completing some team games. The children had to use their coordination, balance and aim to score points for their team and they thoroughly enjoyed competing against themselves to improve their own team score each time.
 

Have a wonderful week off and I look forward to seeing you all after the  half term holiday!
 

Miss Connor

Jupiter Class update:
W.C. 7/10/19

Another brilliant week in Jupiter class this week. After focusing on the adventure text ‘The Dish and the Spoon, this week in English we have explored traditional fairy tales. We started the week by exploring what the key features of a traditional fairy tale are, before sequencing a familiar tale and planning our own twisted version. While Year 2 created their own story map in preparation for writing and retelling their own next week, year 3 created a story mountain to carefully plan the beginning, problem, resolution and ending. The children loved planning their own version and it was as simple as changing the character or setting!
 

In Maths, we have continued to practise adding and subtracting. We started the week by adding 2-digit numbers to 2- or 3- digit numbers. We worked hard in class to explore a range of methods both in addition and subtraction to ensure everyone found a way that worked for them. The emphasis this week has been on using place value to partition the numbers we are adding or subtracting. The children have been able to apply what they have learnt in the previous weeks, which has been fantastic to see! Of course we used visual aids and pictorial representations to help us visualise the maths completed.
 

In Science this week year 2 and year 3 worked in pairs or small groups to create their own human body. Whilst year 2 drew, labelled and described the organs in the human body, year 3 included the human body’s muscles and joints and started to study the systems in our body like the digestive system. The children had lots of fun with this task and it was a great opportunity to see what they had learnt in previous lessons!

In our topic lesson this week we studied Mary Queen of Scots. The children listened carefully as we shared different sources of information. They were shocked to find out that she had fled Scotland and was kept prisoner by her cousin Queen Elizabeth I. In role as Mary, the children then had to write a letter persuading Elizabeth to let her out of the castle which research suggests she did try to do.
 

We also practised our computing skills this week. We used them to carry out research on Mary Queen of Scots and create files on different computer software such as Microsoft Word. By the end of the lesson, the children had so much more confidence creating their own documents and handling the computers in general.
 

Have a great weekend,

Miss Connor