Bethany

Welcome to Bethany Class!

Class Teacher: Miss Koutsoumanis

Tuesday French (PPA Cover): Mrs Hudson

Wednesday PE (PPA Cover): Mrs Burnell

Wednesday Music (PPA Cover): Mrs O’Sullivan

TA: Mrs White (Monday/ Tuesday AM) & Mrs Shamim (Thursday/ Friday AM)

SEN TA: Mrs Longo and Mrs Knight

Hello and welcome to Year 4! I am very much looking forward to an exciting year of great learning with your child! On this page I give an overview of what to expect in Year 4. If you ever have any questions or concerns regarding your child then please contact me as soon as possible and I will be happy to help!

Year 4 is an important year which focuses on growing your child’s independence and confidence in what they can achieve at school. Your child will be encouraged to start to think about their own learning and take responsibility to complete and hand in their homework on time. I will encourage them to think for themselves and tackle problems in order to prepare them for Year 5 and onwards!

What should your child bring to school each day?

• Reading book and their reading record.
• Labelled water bottle.
• Fruit snack.
• Lunch.
• Small pencil case containing pencils and a sharpener. Your child may also want to bring in a ruler, eraser, glue, highlighters, whiteboard pens and colouring pencils (max 12).
• Weather appropriate clothing: Your child should bring a waterproof coat with a hood to school every day. They may also bring in Wellington boots (labelled). If it is hot and sunny then children should bring a sun hat and wear sun cream.   
• Homework book on Thursdays.
• PE Days (Tuesday and Wednesday): On these days your child should wear their PE kit and trainers instead of their uniform. Earring must be removed on these days.

Uniform Reminder:

• All clothing should be clearly labelled.
• Long hair should be tied back every day.
• Your child could wear a simple inexpensive watch (preferably analogue).

Important Days to Remember:

• Tuesday: Hand in reading record/ Outdoor PE day.
• Wednesday: Hand in homework/ Indoor PE day.
• Thursday: New homework is set.
• Birthdays: On your child’s birthday, we ask that they do not bring sweets for their friends, but if they would like to donate a book to the class for the book corner instead, then it would be greatly appreciated.  They can also come to school in their own clothes on their birthday, or on the nearest school day if their birthday falls at the weekend.

Homework Expectations

Go to the Bethany Homework Tab to see the expectations of homework in Year 4 as well as the latest weekly homework.

This term our topic is …. The Romans!

Questions you could ask your child about their topic this term:

• Week 1: What was life like in the Iron Age and how do we know?
• Week 2: Who are the Romans? Where did they come from?
• Week 3: How were the Romans able to keep control over such a vast empire?
• Week 4: What do you know about the Roman Army?
• Week 5: Should the Celts take on the Romans? Why did the invasion attempts by Julius Caesar fail?
• Week 6: Why did the Roman Emperor Claudius leave hit, sunny Italy to invade cold, wet Britain? Why was his invasion successful?

Topic Vocabulary we will learn this term:

Roman Shields

As part of our topic this term, the children will be making their own Roman Shields! I am trying to source cardboard for this so if you are able to donate any cardboard that would be greatly appreciated. Ideally the piece of cardboard needs to be the length of your child from their shoulder to their knee and the same width as your child (however we can cut larger pieces of cardboard to these sizes).

Ways You Can Support Your Child’s Learning at Home

Continuous Cursive Handwriting

The children are taught to use the continuous cursive handwriting style. They will learn the correct formation of each letter in class. This link shows animations for each letter, as taught in class: https://www.teachhandwriting.co.uk/continuous-cursive-beginners-choice-3.html

English: Reading and Book Discussion

For English, the single most important thing that you can do is to hear your child read. Good readers make good writers because they are exposed to a greater variety of vocabulary, syntax, grammar and style.

When you listen to your child read, there are a number of things to remember:

1. Make it fun! Use different voices and take it in turns read to each other. Children should try to read every day for 15 minutes and ideally 3 times a week with an adult.
2. Ask questions about the text, the characters, the plot, the setting, the style of writing, and the words. Anything to get them to think about what they are reading and to consider the deeper messages hidden in the subtext – use the questions on their reading bookmark to help you. There are also some questions on the Bethany homework tab which may help.
3. Read a wide range of writing – from comics to newspapers, poetry to plays, novels to Pokémon cards, and even just menus and signs when you are out and about!
4. Look up individual words in a dictionary together to find out what they mean.
5. Be a good role model for reading. This is the perfect excuse to curl up on the sofa, forget the chores, and read a good book yourself!

Recommended Reading List for Year 4:

https://www.booksfortopics.com/year-4

https://schoolreadinglist.co.uk/reading-lists-for-ks2-school-pupils/suggested-reading-list-for-year-4-pupils-ks2-age-8-9/

Times Tables

By the end of Year 4 the expectation is that all children should know their times tables up to 12 x 12. There is a statutory Year 4 multiplication tables check in June, when children will be expected to recall their times tables from 1 to 12 in a timed test online. They are given six seconds per question, with three seconds rest between each question.

We focus on our times tables during our maths lessons but additional practice at home is essential. Times Tables Rock Stars is a fantastic website as it tests the children on their times tables ensuring the facts are secure and can be recalled quickly. I highly recommend daily practice on Times Table Rock Stars (TTRS) as I have seen the progress children have made in both their knowledge of their times table facts and their recall speed by regularly playing on the site. The end of year goal is to be a Headliner on TTRS (6 seconds or less per question) or even better, a Rock Star (3 seconds or less per question).

I hope this has given you an insight into Year 4 but if you have any other questions or concerns please get in touch.

Thank you for your continued support,

Miss Koutsoumanis