English
We all need to be able to read, write and listen to others. Every day we read things, such as a newspaper, signs or instructions. Knowing how to read is vital if we are to lead a full life. Writing can also play an important part in our day: we write shopping lists, fill in forms, and send e-mails. Stories, drama and poetry are also part of our rich culture.
At Key Stages 1 and 2, children take part in a variety of English-based activities, learning to speak with confidence and develop their listening skills. They are encouraged to write on their own and be creative, with the spoken and written word. They are also taught to explore their own experiences and imaginations.
When children reach Key Stage 3, their work includes speaking confidently in public, writing in a variety of different forms and reading a wide range of different materials. This is developed further in Key Stage 4 as pupils prepare for the outside world.
English is divided into:
• speaking and listening
• reading
• writing
Listening and speaking;
It is very important that children develop their listening skills. However they should also have the chance to talk themselves. Children often have their own opinions and views and, as adults, we should spend time listening to what they have to say.
The Literacy Hour
Every primary school child now takes part in a daily, hour-long English lesson known as the Literacy Hour. It is intended to develop your child's ability in reading and writing and improve standards in written and spoken English. Children in Key Stage 1 spend about 180 hours during a 36-week year working on literacy in this way. Schools decide for themselves when the Literacy Hour will be and what kind of books they will use. Some schools hold meetings for parents about how the hour will be spent. It is important to remember that your child will also be doing lots of other literacy-related activities during the day.
KS1 ...... 5-7
• taking part in drama activities
• reading stories and other pieces of writing and saying what they like or dislike about them
• recognising words from common spelling patterns
• using capital letters, full stops and question marks
KS2 ......... 7-11
• listening to different points of view and taking an active part in discussions
• reading a wide range of books, including traditional stories, good quality modern and classic poetry and titles by important children's authors
• planning, drafting, revising, proofreading and presenting work
• using different forms of handwriting for different purposes- these will include labelling and presenting finished work
KS3 ......... 11-14
• recalling the main points of a talk, radio or television programme
• taking into account other people's views and adapting their own
• talking about and considering dramatic productions that they have watched or have taken part in
• considering how meaning might be changed when books and plays are adapted for television or film
• analysing and criticising their own and other people's work
• using a variety of ways to present their ideas, including pictures, film and video
KS4 ....... 14-16
• recalling the main points of a talk, radio or television programme
• taking into account other people's views and adapting their own
• talking about and considering dramatic productions that they have watched or have taken part in
• considering how meaning might be changed when books and plays are adapted for television or film
• analysing and criticising their own and other people's work
• using a variety of ways to present their ideas, including pictures, film and video
MATHS ~ NUMERACY
Numeracy, together with literacy, has been targeted because of its importance in our lives. We are faced with mathematical problems every day, whether it be working out how much change we are owed or how much wallpaper we need to buy. Mathematical skills give children confidence with numbers and the ability to solve problems.
At Key Stage 1, children explore Mathematics through practical activities and discussion. They learn about shape and start to solve problems. Later on, they begin to use the number system and extend their work in subtracting, multiplying and dividing. They also begin to work on diagrams and charts. At Key Stage 3, they extend their work on percentages and fractions and investigate subjects such as algebra and probability. Once they reach Key Stage 4, they spend more time applying what they know to everyday and workplace situations.
Mental maths
Children need to be able to add, subtract, multiply and divide in their heads. This is called mental maths and receives a lot of emphasis in schools. It is something you can help your child with at home.
The daily numeracy lesson
Every primary school child now has a daily numeracy lesson. This is slightly different to literacy in that it lasts approximately 45 minutes at Key Stage 1 and 50-60 minutes at Key Stage 2.The lesson is not combined with other subjects, but children do take part in mathematical activities at other times. Reception children cover Mathematics in a different way, with songs, rhymes and finger and board games. By the end of Reception, they should be ready for a 45-minute lesson.
WHAT CAN I DO.....?
Try some of the following activities at home to encourage the development of your child's mathematical skills.
• Ask your child to find out the time of the next bus or train.
• Let your child work out the change at the supermarket check-out.
• Investigate some of the weights and measures on packets, tins and bottles.
• Get your child to tell you the time and also keep a diary of his or her day.
• Play a variety of number games, such as dominoes, board games and mathematically-related computer games.
• When you cook, let your child help you weigh out the ingredients, set the oven and monitor the cooking time.
WHAT WILL MY CHILD BE LEARNING
KS1
• reading and writing numbers up to 100
• knowing mental facts with totals up to 20
• using plus, minus, multiply and divide signs correctly
• handling and describing common 2D and 3D shapes, e.g. squares, circles, cubes and cones
KS2
• counting on and back in tens or hundreds from any two- or three-digit number
• recognising right angles and knowing that the sum of the angles of a triangle add up to 180 degrees
• in mental maths, adding and subtracting any pair of two-digit numbers and remembering multiplication tables up to 10 x 10
• organising and handling different types of data using graphs and diagrams
KS3
• understanding more complex types of fractions
• working on simple algebra
• using a protractor to draw a variety of 2D shapes
• gathering and analysing data gathered from computer sources
KS4
• working out VAT, inflation and income tax
• understanding a range of mathematical formulae
• exploring the geometry of cuboids
• designing and using data collection sheets
SCIENCE
Whether we are at home, school or work, we are constantly involved in science. If we cook an egg or water a plant, we are carrying out a scientific activity. Children enjoy discovering new things, and Science can provide them with the chance to explore, make predictions and test out their theories.
Children at Key Stage 1 make simple, fair tests and begin to ask questions about the world they live in. Their activities include making comparisons using shoe sizes and learning the names of different parts of animals.
At Key Stage 2, they carry out a wide range of scientific investigations, talk about their work and start to explain things. Key Stage 3 pupils begin to make connections between the different branches of science and carry out more investigations. At Key Stage 4, students also look at the industrial, ethical and environmental issues that surround science.
Science is divided up into:
• scientific enquiry
• life processes and living things
• materials and their properties
• physical processes.
Science all around us
There are many things you can do as a family to stimulate your child's curiosity about science. These range from investigating a local science centre, to going on a walk to look for different trees and plants, to boiling an egg!
Asking questions such as "How?", "Why?" and "What if...?" is the starting point for your child to learn about the world around them and to develop scientific thinking.
WHAT CAN I DO
• Watch science television programmes with your child and talk about them afterwards.
• Go on a minibeast hunt with them (being careful not to remove creatures from the places in which you find them).
• Make a record of local plants and animals.
• Grow a variety of plants.
• Look out for fun science books or packs in book and toy shops.
• With older children, discuss the rights and wrongs of issues such as cloning and genetic engineering.
KS1
• learning about plants
• finding out that there are lots of different sounds and where they come from
• sorting objects according to roughness, hardness, whether they float or whether they are magnetic
• exploring what happens when you heat or cool things, e.g. water or chocolate
KS2
• looking at the human life cycle
• exploring evaporation and condensation
• constructing different types of circuits
• studying reflection using mirrors and polished surfaces
• investigating filtration
KS3
• looking at the importance of a balanced diet
• examining distillation and chromatography
• discussing the possible effects on the environment of burning fossil fuels
• investigating the effect of colour filters on light
• studying the human body and looking at the purpose of the skeleton
KS4
looking at the composition and function of the blood
• investigating inheritance and understanding how some diseases are inherited
• examining how current varies with voltage
• looking at the uses of X-rays and gamma rays in medicine
• learning about the relative positions of the planets and the stars
