In English we will be learning about how to write a narrative using first and third person. We will be including the main features of a narrative: the opening, rising action, climax, Resolution and the ending. The children will then use prior knowledge about how to include speech in a narrative to apply thoughts and feelings of the characters to add deeper description. Also in English this term, the children will learn how to write a letter. They will explore the main features of a letter such as: greeting, opening, main body of the letter, conclusion and a farewell. Elm will also learn about how to write letters using both the informal and formal style of writing.

We will start our Maths learning by recapping adding and subtracting with multistep problems and money. We will then move onto using times tables and multiplication to help us learn division facts and solve problems. The children will also learn how to compare fractions; work with unit fractions and small denominators and solve problems using fractions. We will be focusing on using our multiplication skills to help us calculate with money, before moving on to converting pence to pounds.

In our Science unit we will be learning about sound and that sound is caused by a fast back and forth movement: a vibration. The children will learn that a vibrating object will make the particles of air around it vibrate causing air particles to be pushed one way and then bounce back, so the vibration spreads outwards. They will learn that vibration spreading outwards is what we call sound and that how far away you can hear a sound depends on its volume.  the children will work scientifically by investigating the different sounds made by vibrations using a range of objects including musical instruments. 

in Geography we will be learning about the major physical and human geographical features of Northern Ireland. The children will learn that Northern Ireland is located on the island of Ireland but is politically separate from the Republic of Ireland in the south. They will learn that Northern Ireland is part of the UK, but has some independence to make its own laws. The children will study Loch Neagh, The Giant’s Causeway and the Marble Arch Caves, learning how physical processes have shaped landscapes in different ways, including how stalactites and stalagmites are formed. They will discover that these interesting physical geographical features are protected by organisations such as UNESCO.

In History, the children will move on to looking in more depth at the Roman Empire, how it expanded and ultimately fell. The children will explore and understand how power and influence was important to the success of the Roman Empire, but how the struggle for power led to the fall of the Empire. They will explore concepts such as empire, civilisation, conflict and religion. The children will learn about the Punic Wars, three major wars fought over 118 years between the Romans and the Carthaginians. They will find out about the historical figure, Hannibal, and that he is thought to have taken elephants across the Alps to attack Rome. Elm will learn about Julius Caesar, his life and his assassination. They will learn the phrase ‘crossing the Rubicon’ and will understand that Julius Caesar led his armies across the Rubicon River, making a decision to attack Rome and committing a crime that he could never undo.

In Art, the children will start by studying various emperors and the monuments they built, looking at three monuments in detail: the Pantheon, the Colosseum and Trajan’s Column. The children will explore the features of each monument, their construction and how they displayed the power of the emperor who had them built, or who they were in memory of. Over the course of six lessons, the children will create their own model of the Pantheon in groups. They will be required to interpret and follow instructions, explore how to use different materials, think creatively, find solutions and work successfully with their peers.

In RE, we will be learning about when Jesus was to put to death on a cross and that this was a sacrifice for the whole world so everyone has the chance to live in heaven after they die. The children will learn that ‘sacrifice’ means the offering of food, objects or the lives of animals to a higher purpose, usually a divine being, as an act of propitiation or worship. They will also learn that the word ‘sacrifice’ also means doing good deeds such as: sacrificing time, money or energy to help others; people talk about ‘giving something up’ or ‘going without’. We will then move onto learning about dying to save someone in biblical reference and stories and learn that sometimes there is a necessary evil for the common good of people or a community.