Welcome to Chestnut Class

Welcome to Chestnut Class, hopefully this information will be helpful in the coming year and will explain some of what will be happening as we start a new school year. 

Staff in Chestnut Class

This year the children will be taught by myself, Miss Morton and we will be fortunate enough to be supported by  Mrs Dott.  Interventions, for those who need them, will be put in place as quickly as possible and reviewed regularly. On a Monday afternoon, Mrs Armshaw will be delivering either RE or French, This will be followed by PE/Games with Mr Paul Ward. On Thursdays the class will be taken by Mrs Armshaw. Every other half term Mrs Ward will take the children swimming on Tuesday afternoons.

PE kit, bags and equipment

Rather than going back to changing in school we will be carrying on with the children coming in PE kit on the days they have PE. This will mean on Mondays the children will be expected to come in wearing their PE kit as well as on Tuesdays when we have swimming. the children will need their swimming gear in a bag on these days. On the half terms we do not swim, there will be a PE session on Wednesdays, which the children will need to come in PE kit for.

All stationary equipment will be provided in class so there will be no need for children to bring in their own, nor will they be able to bring in fidget toys unless it has been cleared already by myself. We only have a small area for coats in Chestnut class, so unless it is a swimming day please can we not bring in bags as we do not have the space. If your child is moving between households or there is another unavoidable reason for them to have a bag this is fine, but otherwise a coat, water bottle and lunch box is all they need. 

Drop off and pick up

Whilst some measures have been dropped, we will still be asking parents to drop off their children at the classroom and enter through the same gate as last year. You do not have a set time, but the children will be expected from 8:40 to 8:50. We will start the day at 8:50. Pick-up will be the same at 3:15.

Class Dojo

Class Dojo is a valuable way of keeping you up to date with events in the classroom. We use it

widely to send reminders and notices out so that you are kept in the picture as much as possible.

It is also a quick and easy way for you to communicate with us at any time of the day. The

messages you send us cannot be seen by other parents and so the communication is private. We

would urge you to check Class Dojo on a daily basis, if you do not get instant alerts and

notifications.

Homework, Reading at home and Knowledge Organisers

Homework will continue much the same as last year, with a weekly task given out on Friday to be marked by the children in class on the following Thursday. There will also be an open ended project to complete every half term.

Children should be reading at home regularly, however most of the children in Chestnut class should be beginning to read more independently. The reading records that were given out last year should mostly be filled in by the children, however if you would like to comment there is space. These will be collected on Thursday and given out on Friday.  We will also share a class novel every half term.

I will share this term’s knowledge organisers online as we move through the subjects covered. I will share the KO’s in the class story on Dojo. 

Multiplication Tables

It is expected that by the end of Year 4 all children will know their times tables up to 12 x 12 and

the related division facts. This will be a big ask of some children but it is something we will be

working on throughout the year, and the children will be expected to take the government’ s Multiplication check in the summer term. At any opportunity, with any available resources, please encourage and support your child to become as fluent with them as possible. The children will all have login details for Times Table Rockstars and we encourage and reward regular use of this.

Trips and Year 4 Horstead Trip

This year we will be heading to Norwich Castle for the ancient civilisations workshop in our first term as well as our Horstead residential trip in the second half of the winter term. Last year, we took a trip to Blakeney Point to develop our understanding of coastal ecosystems, we will look to do a similar trip this year, but in the summer term.  We will also be looking for an opportunity for a trip in the spring term. Details for all the trips will be provided nearer the time, but if you have any questions or ideas please let me know.

Kind regards

Miss Morton