Better brains with more sleep
‘Your brain needs lots of sleep to repair itself and to organise and sort everything you have learnt’… One of the messages in the Good-night guide for children, published by The Sleep Council, sent home today, at the end of Brain Box week.
Research carried out by The Sleep Council revealed that lack of sleep among primary school children was having a devastating effect in schools with nine out of 10 teachers (92%) complaining that pupils were so tired they were unable to pay attention in class. More than a third (38%) said lack of sleep among youngsters is a daily problem for them.
This week, classes have been looking at The Sleep Council’s Better Brains with More Sleep initiative where children are encouraged to learn tips on getting their full sleep quota and the factors that can affect it.
Our Big Topics begin…
We’ve had a busy few weeks with mini-topics and our themed week but our Big Topics will begin next week!
Our topics for this school year are:
Year 1 and 2
- Roll up! Roll up! Learning about the origins of the circus and how they have changed over time
- Treasure A new topic for 2012-2013, ‘Treasure’ will include lots of map-reading and adventure
- Ee Ie Ee Ie O! Learning about different types of farms and animals
Year 3 and 4
- All aboard! Learning about transport through the ages
- To infinity and beyond! A popular topic delving deep into space
- Food, glorious food! Another new topic for 2012-2013, ‘Food, glorious food’ will look at popular food in different cultures
Year 5 and 6
- Rich and poor Thinking about differences in lifestyle between rich and poor over time
- Theme parks Another new topic for this school year, ‘Theme parks’ is a roller-coaster ride which links all the key literacy learning the children have done in the past, from reports to recounts
- Chocolate A popular topic looking at aspects such as fair trade and how chocolate is made
Water Aid Assembly
We’ve a sponsored walk on Friday – Gary from Water Aid tells the school about what happens with our donations.
Our amazing brains – Brain Box week!
This week is dedicated to developing an awareness of learning and how the brain works.
The importance of exercise, healthy food, sleep, hydration and emotional health, for a healthy brain, will be covered throughout the week alongside a main focus for each day:
Monday
Understanding your brain, brain cells and how to help your brain to learn.
Tuesday
How your brain learns best and learning styles.
Key Stage 2 classes will also have a visit from d:Side. As part of our drug education in school, representatives from d:Side, a drug and health programme, will be looking, in particular, at the effects of various drugs on the brain.
Staff from d:Side will be available after school, in the dining room, for parents / carers to ask any questions about these sessions.
Wednesday
Developing the understanding of multiple intelligences and that everyone has gifts and talents.
Dr Dave Lewis, Senior Lecturer of Neuroscience, from the University of Leeds will be visiting Key Stage 2 classes.
Thursday
Thinking about thinking and problem solving.
Friday
A day to remember – exploring a range of memory strategies.
The whole school Water Aid sponsored walk will take place during Friday.
Please check the website for further information and links to websites throughout the week.
Forces
We’ve started the year with a mini-topic on forces. We went to the playground to think about pushes and pulls that we use. Here’s a pupil using a pull force to lift himself up (he loves climbing from what I read in his homework)! Gravity and friction are two new words that we’ve learnt this week.
Maths
This half-term, the children will learn to develop their number skills. So far, we’ve learnt about multiples of numbers, partitioning numbers, odd and even numbers and we’ve been mentally adding numbers, too.
We’ll soon be focusing on using other methods to add and subtract. To help your child at home, you could encourage them to count on and back from random numbers in 1s, 2s, 5s and 10s.
We’ll learn our 2, 5 and 10 times table this year so practising them will help, too.
Roll Up! Roll Up!
Our big topic ‘Roll Up! Roll Up!’ will start in October – we’ll learn all about the circus.
We’re looking forward to learning some circus skills too!
You might be interested to know that the Netherlands National Circus are performing in Harrogate on The Stray between the 18 and 23September.(Check out Groupon for some discounted prices!)
SEAL
The SEAL topic for this half term is ‘New Beginnings’. As a class, we have decided what rules we should all follow and have created a learning contract that we have all signed. The children will develop their speaking, listening and thinking skills through circle time. It is also a good opportunity for children to reflect on their week and help others with their problems.
Well done to Grace and Mia for making Jorja feel welcome in her new beginning at Moortown Primary.
SEAL statement 07 September
This week we begin our new SEAL theme, New Beginnings, and the weekly statement is ‘I can make someone feel welcome.‘
Over this half term, as the children are experiencing new beginnings, each class will be looking at how they can all contribute to establishing a welcoming and safe environment for learning.
PE
PE will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Please ensure that your child has pumps for indoor PE and suitable outdoor footwear.
This half-term, we’ll focus on dance in our indoor PE sessions and throwing and catching skills in our outdoor PE sessions.
