Dear parents/carers,

Following the decision to close schools today and with the forecast of more snow tomorrow here are some ideas you might like to do at home to keep your children busy and learning through fun!

Snowball throwing addition

Make a target by creating a bright circle in the snow with coloured water in a squirt bottle (just add a few drops of food colouring), make the target worth an amount e.g. 5 points.  Then aim at the target and throw, count up all your points.  You could use different coloured rings for different amounts on the target.

Create a bird feeder for our feathered friends using an orange or a pine cone filled with peanut butter/fat  and pieces of seeds, nuts or fruit…

        

 

Ice sculpture

Look at this enormous caterpillar and rocket!

       

Play noughts and crosses using sticks and cones.

Write a snow poem

Follow this link for examples:

https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/snow-and-ice-2/

Great Big Snowman I’m a great big snowman, Tall and fat Here’s my tummy Here’s my hat Coal for my eyes And a carrot nose I’m all snow from Head to toes

Snowflakes Snowflakes, snowflakes Twirl around Snowflakes, snowflakes Touch the ground Snowflakes, snowflakes Land on my nose Snowflakes, snowflakes Freeze my toes Snowflakes, snowflakes In the air Snowflakes, snowflakes Everywhere!   More Fun Ideas

* Create a maze – Put on your hiking boots and stamp out a path for your chidlren to follow.
* Plan a scavenger hunt – Hide an apple in a mound of snow so that a little bit peeks out. Give the children silly directions to follow as they search for it.
* Play freeze tag – Can you think of a more appropriate game for a chilly day? Once someone’s tagged by the person who’s “It,” he/she has to stay frozen until another player tags him again.
* Make faces – Use handfuls of packed snow to create funny characters on a tree trunk.

* Walk this way – Have your children follow your lead as you move like different animals: Waddle like a penguin, stomp like a bear, and wiggle like a fish

* Have a snowball fight – Divide your family into teams, then start throwing. Save this one for last so you can go inside, dry off, and have some hot chocolate.

 

Have fun!

We hope to see you soon

The Year 2 Team

Today the author David Lucas came to visit us as part of Book Week.

He read the story of ‘Grendel – A Cautionary Tale about Chocolate’ and then taught the children how to draw Grendel using simple shapes. The children thought about what they might wish for if they were given three wishes like Grendel in the story.

David then showed the children how they can create their own imaginative story characters using combinations of words e.g. an ice and fire dragon, a robot tiger or a class princess.

The children have brought their drawings and ideas home with them and David has challenged them to continue working on these. If they develop their characters further or use their ideas to write a story it would be great to share these in class.

Just a reminder that on Friday it is dressing up day and we will be holding our second hand book sale. Any book donations will be gratefully received tomorrow or Friday and books will be on sale for 50p each.

2.2.18

Dear Parents/Carers,

Maths
Our work in maths next week will be looking at symmetry and telling the time to the quarter hour. We shall also be moving on to looking at how times to the quarter hour are represented on a digital clock. To help your child prepare for this you may like to help them look at different clocks (digital and analogue) that you may have around your home. You could also encourage them to look for symmetrical things in the world around us (e.g. road signs, household objects, toys).

Homework
Please see the planet research homework (that your child should have brought home today) that your child will need to complete by Wednesday 7th February please. This homework will greatly help your child to write their report in class.

Bring and Buy Book Sale
As part of our Book Week celebrations this year we will be holding a ‘Bring and Buy a Book’ sale on Friday 10th February. The children are invited to bring to school any unwanted books from home which are still in good condition and could be loved by another child. All the books will be sold for 50p and the money raised will be used to buy new books for the school. The sale will take place during school time in the main hall. If your child would like to buy a book(s) in the sale then please can they bring 50p coins with them on Friday. They will be allowed to buy 2 books when visiting with their class. Any extra books will then be available to purchase at lunch time.

Author Visit
We are very lucky to have the author and illustrator David Lucas visiting us on Wednesday to talk to the children about his books.

Book Day
On Friday 9th February, the children are invited to come to school dressed as a character from a chosen book. The children will have time to talk about their chosen book character and the story from which they are from.

Thank you for your continued support
Mrs Ash, Mrs Ashworth/Mrs Le Prevost and Mrs Page

A child in Mrs Ashworth’s class has lost a pair of bright pink trainers. We would be very grateful if you could check that they have not been picked up by accident with your child’s kit.

Many thanks

 

Mrs C Mason St Martin’s Primary School

Headteacher Route des Coutures

St Martin

GUERNSEY

Telephone: (01481) 756060 GY4 6HN

Email: office@stmartins.sch.gg

Website: www.stmartins-sch.gg

Dear Parent/Carer,

You will probably be aware of recent concerns around physical inactivity and childhood obesity. As they go through primary school, many children put on weight and, across the UK, around 35% of pupils in their final year of primary are categorised as overweight or obese.

Experts have described this as an epidemic and a crisis that must be tackled before it is too late.

However, there is an initiative called The Daily Mile which started in February 2012 by Elaine Wyllie, who was then a headteacher in Scotland. She was concerned by children’s lack of fitness and went on to prove The Daily Mile to be both sustainable and effective in improving activity levels and obesity in school.

The Daily Mile is very simple to start in schools. Without wasting time to change into kit, children go out into the fresh air to run, jog or walk for 15 minutes. It is not competitive: most children will average a mile in that time, with some doing more and some doing less. It is not PE, sport or cross-country but a physical activity which is aimed at improving children’s physical, social, emotional and mental health and well being. It can also help children to focus and concentrate in the classroom and raise their attainment.

Since 2015, The Daily Mile has been adopted by over 1,600 schools in the UK and interest from Belgium and the Netherlands has been expressed.

Therefore, we would like to introduce The Daily Mile, and it’s health and well being benefits, for the children in Year 2 at St Martin’s. We intend to run 3 mornings per week at 9.15 am. Children can come to school in their trainers and change into their school shoes after their run. They are able to run in normal shoes as well.

The days your child will run are as follows –

Mrs Ash’s Class – Monday, Tuesday and Friday

Mrs Ashworth’s Class – Monday, Wednesday and Friday

Mrs Page’s Class – Monday, Tuesday and Thursday

As a school we are really excited about this new initiative and we are looking forward to the benefits it will bring to your child/children. To find out more we strongly recommend you visit the website: www.thedailymile.co.uk.

We look forward to reaping the benefits of this initiative and please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions.

Kind regards,

The Year 2 team

12.1.18

Dear Parents/Carers,

Maths

Next week we shall be covering the following areas in maths:

•Creating number fact families using our knowledge of addition/subtraction and also multiplication/division i.e. if I know that 12 + 8 = 20 then I also know that 8+12= 20, 20-12= 8 and 20-8= 12.

•Finding the unknown number in a number calculation e.g. 20 = + 12

Library Days

Please note that there has been some disruption to our library days recently due to issues with the library computer system. For this reason your child may have come home without any books or with books on a day which may not have been their usual library day. We apologise for this but we hope things will be back to normal next week!

Space Topic- More junk modelling required!

The children have been really enjoying our Space topic so far. In order for the children to make their space rockets (which we are in the process of designing), we still need lots more of the following items before we can go ahead and start making them. If you have any then we would be very grateful if you could send them our way:

– Kitchen roll tubes or cardboard tubes

– Bottle lids

– Yoghurt pots

– 1 litre bottles (plastic)

– Tin foil (even if it’s just scraps)

– Actimel yoghurt drink pots or similar

– Pringle tubes

– Foil cake cases- from apple pies, jam tarts etc

Many thanks for your continued support,

Mrs Ashworth, Mrs Ash, Mrs Page

1.12.17

Dear Parents/Carers,

Maths
Next week we shall be naming 3d shapes and exploring their properties using mathematical language such as ‘faces’ ‘vertices’ ‘flat’ and ‘curved.’ To help your child with this, you could challenge your child to look for and describe 3d shapes in everyday objects which you may have around the home. We shall also be thinking about measuring weight, using weighing scales and introducing weight measurement terms such as ‘gram’ and ‘kilogram’ and finding objects that are heavier and lighter than these units of weight.

Christmas Fayre
The PTA Christmas Fayre is on Thursday 7th December from 1.30 – 4.00. You can collect your child from their class at 2.15 to take them to the fayre.
If possible, the PTA are asking Year 2 families to provide items of food with a use by date which is later than the 8th December to make up hampers which will then be used as raffle prizes.

Christmas Concert
Just a reminder that your child should have come home with two tickets for the Year 2 Christmas Concert (‘Christmas with the Aliens’) today. The rehearsals for the concert are going brilliantly and the children are doing a fantastic job. If your child has come home with lines to learn, please could they continue to practise saying them in a loud, clear voice. Thank you for all your help with this!

Colouring Books
We have had lots of wet playtimes recently and there are still some children without a colouring book to colour. Please could you ensure your child has a colouring book that they can keep in their tray for rainy days – thank you.

Nut Allergy- Mrs Page’s Class
Just a reminder that we have someone with a severe nut allergy in Mrs Page’s class. Please could you ensure that all packed lunches are nut-free. Many thanks.

Thank you for your continued support,
The Year 2 team

  Dear Parents/Carers

Swimming

Swimming lessons have now stopped until after Easter and will be replaced by PE or games lessons. PE kit will be needed on the following days;

Mrs Ashworth’s class – Thursday and Friday

Mrs Page’s class – Monday and Friday

Mrs Ash’s class – usually have PE on Wednesday and Friday however due to timetabling constraints they also occasionally have a lesson on a Tuesday. To make this easier to manage we are very happy for children in her class to bring their kit in on a Tuesday and leave it on their peg until Friday.

Sports Commission Fit Club

Starting next Wednesday lunchtime the Guernsey Sports Commission staff will be running a lunchtime Fit Club for Year 2 children. This club is free of charge and will be made up of a variety of active games and skills to ensure that physical activity is fun. The aims of the sessions are to support children in physical activity so that they can find an activity that they enjoy, as well allowing more opportunities for the children to reach the government recommendations of being active for a minimum of one hour a day. The first block of 5 sessions which begins next Wednesday 8th November is being offered to children in Mrs Ashworth’s class. The other classes will have the opportunity to attend in either the Spring or Summer term. If your child wishes to attend please can you return the form, which they have brought home today, to Mrs Ashworth by Tuesday 7th November.

Maths

Next week we will be focusing on finding 10/100 more or less than any 2 or 3 digit numbers. We shall also be working on everyday word problems where the children will have the opportunity to apply their understanding of place value to help them find solutions.

Dinosaurs

The children are thoroughly engrossed in our new literacy topic about dinosaurs and are producing some fantastic work.  We have been looking at non-fiction facts and focusing on the details of non-chronological reports (headings, technical vocabulary, describing words etc).  Next week we will be working together to write an information sheet about the Tyrannosaurus Rex. We would then like the children to choose a different dinosaur which they can research in preparation for some independent writing. We shall send home more details of this home task next week.

Pine Cones

If you have any large pine cones in your garden or find any whilst out and about we would be very pleased to receive them in school for an activity planned for later in the term

Wool

We shall soon be starting an art activity for which we need red, yellow and orange wool. If you have any spare wool in these colours we would be very pleased to receive it.

Many thanks for your continued support,

Sophie Ash, Jen Ashworth, Sarah Page