Class Blogs
Class-Blogs-24/25 (ID 1109)
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St Cecilia (Nursery)
St Cecilia (Nursery)
World Poetry Day - Zimbolé: A Global Celebration
On World Poetry Day, the children learned a fun song called "Zimbolé." It's a happy, bouncy song that we think started in South Africa. The words talk about feeling good, being together, having peace, and celebrating. "Zimbolé" showed us that music can make everyone feel happy and connected, no matter where they're from.//www.youtube.com/embed/aNDos8e4n4E#t=0.5
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St Rose (Reception)
St Rose (Reception)
The children created this song using AI technology.
Growing up!
//www.youtube.com/embed/llt8s5aB3yM#t=0.5
//www.youtube.com/embed/IUwuCiCsu4Y#t=0.5
//www.youtube.com/embed/Vb8LInUzGyY#t=0.5
//www.youtube.com/embed/wd5fLctJW5E#t=0.5
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St Anne (Year 1)
St Anne (Year 1)
Recently our school celebrated World Book Day. We brought in our favourite books and a prop for the story. We shared these with our class, talking about our favourite parts of the story.
We also spent some time with the children in Year 4- St Joan class. We split up and spent time with our reading buddies, sharing our books and listening to year 4 read their books to us.
Our favourite part of World Book Day was the reading relay! We got to hear ALL the teachers read to us before they ran off to another class! It was very exciting and we LOVED it!
In our art topic we learned about pointillism. An artist called Georges Seurat invented this style of art. It is tiny dots painted close together to create a picture. We used cotton buds and earth colours to paint an Australian animal. What do you think of our work?
Year 1 was very lucky to have a special visitor. His name is Dougal and he was very happy to visit us. We were very excited to meet him too! We had been learning about how to look after a pet in our science topic. We had some great questions ready for Adam and he explained how he takes care of Dougal each day. Everyone was able to pet Dougal. We can’t wait to see him again.
Year 1 learnt about healthy eating in our DT topic. We made tzatziki dip and crudites. Each group followed the recipe to make the dip and we practised using a knife safely. Ms Brennan had to help us cut up some of the vegetables as they were a bit tricky! We absolutely loved this activity… but we enjoyed eating the final product more!
Just before the Christmas holidays, Year 1 went on an adventure to the Horniman Museum. We went to a workshop to learn all about animals and their habitats. We were able to touch and explore animals from the ocean, the Arctic and woodlands.
The whole school celebrated International Day. We enjoyed hearing about Ireland from Mrs Dwyer and Poland from Ms Paulina. Some of the children came to school in traditional dress or wearing colours to represent their country. In the afternoon we all tried food that some of the children brought to school. We all had such a great day and we loved learning about and sharing information about our different
After our workshop we were able to go and look at the aquarium. Our favourite part was the beautiful jellyfish!
St Anne class have been very busy since starting Year 1 in September! Take a look at what we’ve been doing…
Art
We have been learning about colour. In our first lesson we learnt about primary and secondary colours and then painted a colour wheel. We learnt that you make secondary colours by mixing primary colours.
Once we knew about primary colours, we created a painting inspired by the Dutch artist Piet Mondrian. We used black paper to create squares and rectangles and then painted them using only red, blue and yellow.
PE
Mr Belgrave has been teaching us ball skills. We have been learning kicking and passing skills to help us play football and now we have moved on to different types of throws. We love our sessions with Mr Belgrave each Wednesday.
Numeracy
During our numeracy lessons we have been learning a lot about number. We have been using the part- part whole model to find different ways to add 2 numbers to make any number up to 10.
Black History Month
As part of Black History Month and National Poetry Day, we learnt the poem Don’t Call Alligator Long- Mouth Till You Cross River by John Agard. It took us while to stop giggling when we heard one of the lines… Do you think you know which one it could be?
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St Blaise (Year 2)
St Blaise (Year 2)
Year Two looked at ‘Three Houses’, a painting by Paul Klee which uses 2D geometric shapes with tints and shades of blue. We had a go at producing our own versions, drawing light, fluid lines without a ruler. Then, we used watercolours to paint our pictures. Some children chose to use tints and shades of blue like Klee. Others decided to try tints and shades of different colours. Here are some of the results!
We have been partitioning numbers to 100! First, we used the ten sticks and one cubes to partition a number into tens and ones. Then, we started moving the ten sticks over to the group with the one cubes. By doing this, we could see different ways of grouping and partitioning the number.
We partitioned 95 into: 90+5, 80+15, 70+25, 60+35 and more! Some of us noticed a pattern and started doing it without the manipulatives. Well done, Year Two!
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St Martin de Porres (Year 3)
St Martin de Porres (Year 3)
This week, Beckenham Place Park became our classroom for an exciting day of outdoor learning! We were fortunate to meet Alex, an expert in Trees and Plants, who guided us through a morning and afternoon filled with activities. We gained skills in tree identification by observing their features, compared the birth measurements of various tree species, and learned the surprising "look-between-your-legs" technique for measuring canopy size!
As part of our DT project ‘Pop Up Books’ we have been experimenting with different types of mechanisms. So far, we have explored parallel and reverse mechanisms and last week, we made a bar slot.
During Science Week we had fun learning about how flowers have adapted to attract pollinators. We then shared our work during the school Science Fair. We set many challenges for the children to experience. These included, sequencing the pollination steps and labelling the parts of a flower and identifying their roles. There was an opportunity to learn about how some petals have conical cells to help the bees stay on and not slide off! We even provided a jar of honey for everyone to try. YUMMY!
Science has been particularly fun this month. We have been learning about FORCES. The photographs show us carrying out two investigations. The first was to find out how much force was needed to move the shoe on different types of surfaces like ice and gravel. We used a Newton Meter to measure the force. The second investigation looked at friction. We used a toy car, a ramp and a variety of different materials like bubble wrap and lino to see how far or fast the car would travel down. We recorded our results and then discussed our findings.
Next week we are learning about Magnetism!
As part of our Geography topic on ‘Settlements’ we wanted to compare Sydenham (where we live) to the village Downe in Kent. We began by visiting Sydenham High street. We recorded the number of shops we saw and the types of shops on offer. We then conducted a traffic and footfall survey.
The following week, we travelled to Downe by bus. This area was so different from our local area. There were few shops and hardly any vehicles! We loved visiting the farm and walking across the muddy fields. We particularly enjoyed visiting the playground in the park. There was time to visit the home of Charles Dawin and to use our compasses to locate different features within the village. We loved sketching interesting spots like the village church, the hall and one of the pubs.
After returning to school, we decided to create a model village of Downe. We used clay to construct the buildings. We used our stretches and photographs to help us recreate the detail. The model village looks amazing in the classroom. We think you would be impressed by our work!
Our school celebrated International day, and what a great day it turned out to be!
We enjoyed listening to some of our parent volunteers talk about their cultures. We travelled around the globe learning about Columbia, France and Nigeria.
We discussed typical foods, famous landmarks and practiced counting to 10 in different languages. One of our favourite moments was listening to the different types of music played around the world and learning traditional dances like Salsa.
Some of us dressed up in traditional clothes and many families brought in food for us to try.
What a special day we had!
We even had a go at dancing to Colombian tunes.
St Martin’s class have had a busy start to the new academic year.
We began with our Geography topic, ‘Spatial Awareness’. We learned the points on a compass and how to use it. We located features in our local area. We practised our skills at Mayow Park. The topic then led us to learn about physical and human geographical features. We used a range of maps to identify and compare San Francisco to London.
In Gymnastics we studied ‘Arching, Curling and Stretching’. We have learnt different types of shapes and how to perform them with strength and accuracy. After practising them on the floor, we moved onto the apparatus. One of our activities was to perform a matching shape and then a contrasting shape with a partner. We really had to trust our partners!
In Art, we focused on ‘Line’ and explored the different lines we can create with our pencil. We looked at how we can create different effects with lines showing movement and 3d images. Our end task was to produce a print from a polystyrene tile. We produced some impressive pieces of work.
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St Christopher (Year 4)
St Christopher (Year 4)
As part of our Topic on Vikings and our current class reading book entitled Viking boy, St Christopher have successfully constructed their own Viking ships.
Year 4 have been working hard creating their miniature playgrounds with moving gear mechanisms as part of their design and technology lessons.
Before making the moving playgrounds you see here, they first needed to learn about gears, research their applications, and explore how to use them effectively. Only then did they design their own unique, interactive playgrounds with moving parts.
Using the trumpet, cornet, trombone and glockenspiel, the class listened to the pitch of each instrument being played before placing them in order from lowest to highest.
Year 4 (St Christopher and St Joan) were able to fuel their imagination and immerse themselves in a world of wonder at the Wonderlab gallery in the Science Museum.
Spread across seven dazzling zones, the children were able to explore and get the opportunity to experience hands-on scientific exhibits in Electricity, Light, Sound, Matter, Forces, Space and Maths.
The children were also able to touch clouds, travel around the solar system, play with forces and friction, explore electricity as it cracked, crackled and sparked and marvel at the way liquids behave when in close contact with magnetic fields.
We went all out for International Day celebrations in St. Christopher’s class! Many of us arrived in traditional outfits, while others wore beautifully hand-tailored attire showcasing the colors and flags of our heritage.
In the morning, we had the pleasure of hosting visitors from Colombia and France. We shared plenty of laughs and even learned a lively dance from the Caribbean island of St. Lucia.
After lunch, we listened to folktales from around the world while sampling delicious snacks brought in by our classmates.
It was a memorable day, enjoyed by everyone!
We even had a go at Colombian dancing
//www.youtube.com/embed/8eNYmOgfIbQ#t=0.5
In preparation for our next Topic in History after the half term, Year 4 went to the British Museum in Tottenham Court Road to find out about the Ancient Greeks to help them begin to discover the culture and civilisation.
Year 4 miming to show how the Israelites felt as they managed to escape across the Red Sea.
St Christopher's class created drama with a technique called chiaroscuro, which is an Italian word that means "light-dark”. Chiaroscuro is when an artist uses strong light and dark areas to make shapes stand out and add a dramatic effect. This was achieved with the use of paints, chalks and charcoal.
St Christopher class was busily investigating the most suitable materials to replace the broken basket which was being carried by Isatou in our class book The Plastic Bag. Afterwards the children tested each item to see if it was fit for purpose.
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St Joan (Year 4)
St Joan (Year 4)
Playing recorders with Mrs Ewens
Roof Garden
Our Trip to the Natural History Museum
Year 4 (St Christopher and St Joan) were able to fuel their imagination and immerse themselves in a world of wonder at the Wonderlab gallery in the Science Museum.
Spread across seven dazzling zones, the children were able to explore and get the opportunity to experience hands-on scientific exhibits in Electricity, Light, Sound, Matter, Forces, Space and Maths.
The children were also able to touch clouds, travel around the solar system, play with forces and friction, explore electricity as it cracked, crackled and sparked and marvel at the way liquids behave when in close contact with magnetic fields.
St Joan participated in the whole school cross country event. Well done to the children who won their races!
We have been working on area in Maths.
We had an Odd Sock Day to acknowledge Anti-Bullying Week.
We have been taking part in Science webinars, including one with the CEO of Octopus Energy.
On International Day St Joan celebrated by sharing food and doing some soca dancing.
For Bonfire Night we created firework artwork.
Science workshop
We have been working on our shoulder balance. Some of us were even able to make shapes with our legs.
In music we have been creating our own compositions.
In PE we are looking at balance. In this lesson we were developing our skills to balance upside down.
In science we have been learning about Classification Keys, we had a go at creating our own.
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St Bernadette (Year 5)
St Bernadette (Year 5)
St Bernadette class has been learning about Forces this term. They enjoyed conducting an experiment to measure how quickly a newspaper fell to the ground. We practised important scientific skills such as using a stopwatch, taking repeated readings and reducing the area of our newspaper by folding it over and over again so that we could determine whether it made a difference to the speed of the fall.
St Bernadette class tested the force of friction by pushing newton metres against different shoes on the same surface. They recorded their readings to the nearest tenth in line with our current topic - Decimals in maths.
In St Bernadette class we have been learning to find fractions of amounts. The children used manipulatives to form an array and then divide this into equal parts thereby making links with multiplication and division.
For Design and Technology this term, St Bernadette class has enjoyed putting together their very own cam toys. They’ve learned about axles, rotation and followers and we have linked this to our current topic in Literacy and History: Ancient Egyptians with the children completing their design using a god to move up and down.
Science Workshop
The National Physical Laboratory visited us on October 3rd to carry out workshops.
St Bernadette class enjoyed taking part in an active session on pattern seeking. The children worked as teams to measure how fast their dominant hand was at catching. They repeated this technique with their non-dominant hand and compared results before evaluating together and looking at results nationally from other schools. They were impressed to find out their results were similar!
The children in St Bernadette class worked in groups to recreate the story of Anansi and the Two dinners through drama, movement and dance during their English lessons.
//www.youtube.com/embed/dFmV55TDsrI#t=0.5
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St Thomas Aquinas (Year 6)
