Wye
Year 3

Literacy and Topic

The children and I are continuing our learning journey through Britain’s history with the primitive three stages of the Stone Age (the Palaeolithic era: the earliest and most primitive stage), the Mesolithic era (final period of hunter-gatherer cultures in Europe and the Middle East), and the final stage – the Neolithic era (settlement in permanent villages, and the appearance of such crafts as pottery and weaving). We will also be learning about the Bronze and Iron age this term.

We will first be writing a non-chronological report upon the substantial era of the Stone Age. Next, we will be writing instructional text on how to ‘Wash a Woolly Mammoth’ and finishing with writing a biography of the life and achievements of Marie Curie, the first women to win two Noble Prizes for her work on radioactivity. We will learn how she discovered radium to help fight cancer and inspire future scientists.

Maths

We will be progressing with our skills in place value knowledge and learning more formal techniques for multiplication and division including our mental recall strategies. We will be focussing on remembering our facts for the x2, x10 and x5 times tables (from Year 2) and learning the x3, x4 and x8 times tables (Year 3).

The ‘Froggy Maths Club’ will still continue and I am amazed and delighted to see how much the children are enjoying and embracing working hard to leap to their next lily pad! The children are also working very hard on their multiplication challenges, so well done for all that extra practise they are having at home and once again – practise, practise makes perfect!

History

As you are already aware, we are continuing to learn about Britain’s history and are studying the Stone Age (when weapons and tools were made of stone or organic materials such as bone, wood, or horn), Bronze Age (when weapons and tools were made of bronze rather than stone) and Iron Age a prehistoric period that followed the Bronze Age (when weapons and tools came to be made of iron).

We will be learning about how the Stone Age was a prehistoric cultural stage, or level of human development (Homo sapiens), characterised by the creation and use of stone tools, the oldest known of which dates to some 3.3 million years ago! We will compare our own lives to those of the stone age.

Geography

After half term, we will be answering the question ‘Is the weather getting wilder’? We will be learning about how the Earth’s surface is made up of different pieces called tectonic plates. The movement of these plates can change landscapes to the destructive powers of nature, from volcanoes and earthquakes to tsunamis and tornadoes. Through discussion and practical tasks, the children will learn about how and why these natural phenomena occur and the ways in which they affect people and the environment.

Science

In Science this term we are looking at ‘Animals and Humans’. We will be learning about different food groups, healthy eating and also looking at teeth both in humans and animals. We will also be learning about the functions of the skeleton and muscles.

After half term we will be learning about Light and Shadows. We will be investigating how a shadow is formed, how shadows change shape and form during different times of the day and whether transparent, translucent or opaque materials allow light to travel through them.

Spellings will be given out on the weekly email to be tested on the following Friday. Please encourage your child to learn these at home. Homework will be given out termly and will be project based; this will need to be completed by the end of each half term.

Reading is still going to be focused on heavily this term and regular practise at home really helps your child to improve. I am asking each child to read five times a week, in their own time and make an entry in their reading journal. I would be most grateful for your help and encouragement with this.