Kandinsky Year 2

To the amazing children, parents and carers- Kandinsky Crew 2017-2018...

Thank you for a truly wonderful year. I feel extremely privileged to have had the opportunity to get to know you all over our time together. I will miss you!

Have a wonderful summer break and I hope to see you in the new term.

Take care and very best wishes.

Mrs. Michie xx

Wednesday 4th July

Today, as part of our science topic work, we worked as science investigators. First we watched a video of 'The Little Mole Who Knew That It Was None Of His Business' (adults- I thoroughly recommend you watch it too! :-)

After that and a discussion on safety regarding not touching real poop,we examined 'animal droppings' which had expertly been recreated by Mrs. Gunn.

From our observations we then had to decide whether the droppings had been made by a herbivore, carnivore or an ommnivore, giving reasons to justify our thinking. Who would have guessed so much information about an animal and its lifestyle would be revealed by its 'business'!

The little mole should have listened in his science lessons and then perhaps he would have found the culprit himself, sooner!

ENABLING ENTERPRISE- 'DOING GOOD'

What a busy week Kandinsky Crew have had! 

We have been challenged this week to use our challenge skills, in particular:

1. Listening Carefully

2. Sharing Ideas

3. Problem Solving

In groups the children have learnt about what CHARITY means. We have discussed well known charities and the work that they do. After that, we had team meetings to decide on a charity that we want to raise funds for and ideas on how to raise the money in a fun way. Once initial ideas were generated, the teams refined their ideas, discussed them with the class and we finally voted for the most popular ideas. Teams were awarded points as they worked for using the three focus skills well. It is not always easy to work with different people or to compromise, but the children really tried hard improving these life skills.

George Parrett said, " I have really enjoyed making the charity posters and I have tried very hard with my EE skills."

Aimee Clark commented, "It is better to work in a team than on your own!"

Chloe Marsh remarked " I have learnt that Mrs. Peden is very close to our chosen charity..."

The photos below are of the team posters advertising our fund raising ideas...

Charity: Cystic Fibrosis Trust

Fund Raising Event: Soak the teacher

Time and Venue tbc

Please ask your children to explain why we have chosen this very special charity!

9.05.18

                        Trip To The Tower Of London

The weather was marvellous! The children were brilliant! The parents and carers were fabulous... so this added up to a really successful out-of-the classroom learning experience, which has helped to enrich our topic work and bring history to life for the children.

KS1 had a tiring but, I'm sure those who went on the trip would agree, an amazing visit to  the Tower of London. There was so much to see and so little time to see the sights, I would thoroughly recommend a return visit!

We saw the Crown Jewels (worth over £20 billion pounds!); the resident ravens; the White Tower with exhibits ranging from swords to amour( and a lot of steps! and so much more... the list could go on and on!

A huge thank you to the children and adults who made this trip such a rewarding experience. Even the train journey and the walking was enjoyable????

Kind regards

Mrs. Michie

Dear Parents and Carers,

A tip to help encourage reading...

TURN THE SUBTITLES ON WHEN YOUR CHILD IS WATCHING THEIR FAVOURITE TV SHOW!

16.04.18

A sincere thank you to all of Kandinsky Crew and your fabulous parents/carers, for the stunning carnival floats that have been created over the Easter break.

The time, effort and attention to detail has truly overwhelmed me! An amazing celebration of carnival with a Brazilian twist!

The judging will take place later this week and of course photos and details of the winning float will be announced in due course.

Thank you again from a very proud Mrs. Michie!

Dear kandinsky Crew,

As well as asking the children to do lots of lovely reading over the Easter break, I am sending some OPTIONAL spelling and maths for the children to complete. Whilst mindful that the children need to recharge their batteries, I do want to keep their brains ticking over!

Many thanks in advance...

Mrs. Michie

ENABLING ENTERPRISE CHALLENGE DAY- 28.03.18

Wow- what an exciting challenge has been presented to Longlands School today!

Over the course of the day, students work in teams to research, design, build and test a new form of transport for the future. They use and apply their numeracy skills in a series of challenges, and decide how to spend their budget whilst analysing the 2D shapes that they have used in their design.

At the end of the day, Kandinsky Crew will test each design and present their findings to the rest of the class.

Ask your child what the 8 Enabling Enterprise skills are that they have been using today! Important life and learning skills, I'm sure that you will agree!

NEWS FLASH...

Our upcoming topic for next half term is....

Towers, Tunnels and Turrets

See a castle ahead? Get ready to invade its mighty walls! Shoot a projectile with an archer's aim ! Head across the drawbridge, over the moat and up to the top of the tower...

Meet Rapunzel who lives in a tall, tall tower. Let's build a brand new one... Whose is the tallest? Can you measure it?

Then dig deep,deep down making burrows and tunnels, just like the animals who live underground.

What's the sound? I hear little hooves going trip, trap,trip, trap over the rickety bridge. Watch out for the angry troll beneath... make sure your bridge is sturdy enough to take the weight and get us safely to the other side.

And finally...meet the three little pigs who need your help to build  a strong fortress. Inside its strong walls they'll be safe from the big, bad wolf!

No huffing and puffing will blow your fortress down!

22.03.18

Dear Kandinsky Crew,

Please can I ask that you continue your hard work with regards to your reading. Make sure that you bring your reading record and book in every day.

YOU can write comments about new words, likes , dislikes, good features of the sentences that you are picking up etc whilst you enjoy your fabulous book!

Thank s Crew 

KANDINSKY CREW-WORLD BOOK DAY 2018

The children (and some adults!) looked truly amazing today. The costumes and attention to detail was truly inspiritational to see, Many thanks to children, parents and carers for your superb support and helping to make World Book Day 2018 one to remember!

The children escaped into a picture book called 'Journey' by Aaron Becker. They were asked to continue the story from when the lonely character opened a magical door and stepped through into a totally new world.

After writing their stories, these budding authors of the future, illustrated their creative writing. The finished work will then be collated for a whole school book.

Well done Kandinsky Crew!

Kandinsky Crew have been extremely busy making their 'carnival crowns'. Photographs will follow soon, after the finishing touches have been applied!

Please can I say a huge thank you to the kindness and generosity of the lovely ladies and gentlemen of the PA, and a some of the parents/carers when donating sparkles, glitter, feathers and so much more. You certainly have allowed the children to add the wow factor to their creations.

THANK YOU from us all! 

Mrs. Michie x

Dear Kandinsky Crew,

Due to popular request, Topic/English homework has been extended so that the children have another week to complete their research and record their findings. It will therefore be handed in next Monday, 5th March

Many thanks Mrs. Michie

Our next topic is…

Rio de Vida

‘There is no point to samba if it doesn’t make you smile.’ Alma Guillermoprieto

Oi! Hot, hot, hot! Dancing feet, step to the samba beat! Shake it, shimmy, hands in the air, wave your flags in the cool night air. Come join the party down in Rio, keeping the rhythm with your party shaker! Bright colours, patterns and feathers… Meet magical creatures from Brazil’s myths and legends and create your own too… Be as fancy as you like! Let’s get down to Rio where football is king, and practise our skills on golden beaches.

Bem-vindo ao Brasil os meus amigos!

If you would like to do some reading over half term, here are some suggested books:

• Rio de Janeiro: A three dimensional expanding city guide by Trisha Krauss
• Rainforests by Lucy Beckett-Bowman
• Amazon (DK Eyewitness) by DK
• The Frog Olympics by Brian Moses
• A Day and Night in Rainforest by Caroline Arnold
• Brazil (Fact Cat) by Alice Harman
• Brazil Unpacked by Susie Brooks
• Two can Toucan by David McKee
• We’re Roaming in the Rainforest by Laurie Krebs

MATHS AND SCIENCE WEEK

Week Commencing 29.01.18

Friday 2nd February 2018

Kandinsky have had a lovely end to Maths and Science Week. We had a special number day assembly with Mr King, who read us 'How many Jelly Beans?' which was about children who wanted one million jelly beans. 

We then went and completed a scavenger hunt. The children had maths based questions, had to solve the problem and subsequently had to hunt for the teacher who was wearing that number. The children started off independently and we came together as a class to share our answers and discuss problem solving strategies. 

In the afternoon, KS1 were very lucky to have a special visitor. We have been discussing STEM this week and how it all links to science and maths. Mrs Suèr is a STEM ambassador and she came to speak to the children about how she got into science and why she enjoys her job. The children asked some fantastic questions and were truly inspired by her talk. She ended with 'The Elephant's Toothpaste' experiment, where yeast, water, washing up liquid and hydrogen peroxide were mixed in bottles and it created rivers of foam! The children loved it, especially when Mrs Suèr used more yeast to create an even bigger reaction. A huge thank you from us all for your time and expertise Mrs Suèr!

The costumes for number day have been brilliant! Thank you all for making such a big effort to support the NSPCC. I hope the children have enjoyed the week! 

After our exciting trip yesterday, we were straight back into working hard today. This morning the children played a game to investigate odd and even numbers.They were able to predict whether numbers such as 51 and 82 would be odd or even due to patterns they had spotted. They used the experience of playing this game to stimulate their creative juices and also to rehearse giving clear instructions to players, in order that the game can be completed successfully.

The children then used their knowledge of tallying and imperative verbs and went on to plan an exciting game that they are going to make tomorrow. Some groups chose a top trumps style game, while others thought about creating their own version of snakes and ladders. I am looking forward to seeing the finished games tomorrow! 

For science, the children were investigating floating and sinking, linking the key question to Noah's Ark, which we have used as a stimulus for our activities this week. The question was 'Which shape boat would be the best one for Noah's Ark?' The children had to make a boat using a piece of paper and paper clips. The children then tried to float them in a bowl of water and balanced paper clips to see if they floated or sunk! The children realised that the boats needed to be 3D with sides and that size and shape matters. They then evaluated their designs and models, offering a way to make them even better next time. Super STEM work Kandinsky! 

On the 30th January 2018, we were fortunate enough to visit Eagle Heights. The weather was really kind to us and the superb behaviour of the children (which was commented on by the Eagle Heights staff) helped the visit to be one of the most informative and enjoyable yet! Well done Kandinsky Crew and KS1

We had the opportunity to learn about so many different animals and this helped bring our 'Paws, Claws and Whiskers topic to life. What a memorable experience! The children had the chance to get up close to a variety of:

Eagles

Vultures

Falcons and Hawks

Owls and Carcara

Mammals- African Serval, Meerkats

Farm Animals-pigs and a PygmyGoat

Sled Dogs- Siberian Husky and Alaskan Malamute

Reptiles - crocodiles, snakes

We talked about the special features of each animal and how they had adapted over time to suit their habitats.

A huge thank you to all the adults who accompanied us today and of course the staff at Eagle Heights. Kandinsky Crew salute you!

Dear Kandinsky Crew,

Please find an attached copy of future topics and reading material which we intend to use to enrich our teaching and learning experience.

Regards,

Mrs. Michie

On Friday, as part of our 'Paws, Claws and Whiskers' topic, I had the pleasure of bringing in my tortoise- a Horsfield- called Colonel Mustard. 

The children thought of some very probing questions to test my 'expert' knowledge! My daughter Erin helped wrangle Colonel Mustard because, as he warmed up, he moved more quickily, and would have quite happily made a bid for freedom!

We spoke about how long a tortoise might live for; size; male and female features; the unique pattern on every tortoise's plastron amongst other facts... and ask your child where a tortoise can take in water...you might be very surprised.

9.01.17

A huge thank you and a really well done to all of the children in EYFS and KS1 who took part in the performance of 'Christmas Counts'. After battling with initial nerves, the children were truly amazing. Voices were louder, the dancing more 'Strictly'and the timing more precise-fabulous! 

After three performances, it is safe to say everyone was exhausted!

EYFS and KS1 would like to thank you for all your continued support and we wish you a very happy Christmas.

Enabling Enterprise came to a magnificent conclusion on Friday 13th November, which saw the grand opening of KS1's Awesome Art Gallery. Miss Owen and a party of VIPs were invited to be part of the opening ceremony.The excitement mounted as Miss Owen cut the red ribbon with some special scissors, and then KS1 was ready to  welcome all of their honoured guests.

Children from Picasso, Lichtenstein and Kandinsky were primed and raring to guide, with their special Tour Guide ID badges clearly visible. The children did a fantastic job of talking about their paintings- the title of each masterpiece; materials used; a little about the artist and also when each was created.

The compliments from visiting children and adults was particularly rewarding to hear after all of the children's hard work in this fabulous Enabling Enterprise Week. The children progressed with their: PROBLEM SOLVING, AIMING HIGH, LEADING, WORKING IN A TEAM, SHARING IDEAS, LISTENING CAREFULLY, and STAYING POSITIVE- the challenge skills- which the children will transfer into all aspects of their studies to enhance their learning and progression.

Well done KS1!

On Wednesday 18^th of October, the children in KS1 took part in a Superhero Parade. They were celebrating a very successful start to the academic year. Parents and carers were invited in to meet a fabulous cohort of new superheroes. The children had designed and made a mask as part of their art and design technology lessons. To complete their outfit they were offered the opportunity to dress up as their favourite superhero. All staff in KS1 would like to thank parents and carers for their support and encouragement this term.​

Dear Kandinsky Crew 2017...

Teacher: Mrs. Michie

Teaching Assistants:

Mrs Gunn

Mrs Steel

We hope that you have had an absolutely fabulous summer break and will be returning to school refreshed, ready to work hard and to face the exciting challenges ahead.

The Year 2 team are so looking forward to working with you and getting to know you and your grown ups this coming year!

See you very soon...

Mrs.Michie 

Dear Kandinsky Crew- PHONICS

• A useful set of videos to help secure knowledge of those very important sounds can be found using a set of videos called 'Mr Thorne does phonics'   I have included an example below. Enjoy!

Practising a little every day will really help confidence, improve reading fluency and spelling ability.