To end Book Week, Year 3 participated in one of Scholastic’s Book Club events with author and illustrator, David O’Connell. Having been introduced to O’Connell’s work earlier in the week, children heard all about how to plan a story, followed along with a draw-along of a treasure map and one of the main characters from his new book, Captain Slugbeard. They also listened to David O’Connell answering questions about his journey to becoming an author and where he gets his inspiration from.
This week, Year 3 have been exploring how mirrors work as part of their science topic on light.
They had 2 challenges using mirrors: to crack secret messages written backwards using a mirror and to follow a line on the ground while only looking up!
Year 3 have just begun their new writing unit where they are looking at scripts. This week, they have explored what scripts are and how scripts differ from narrative writing. As part of their lessons, they have learned about stage directions and how they are used by actors and actresses to bring scripts to life on stage and screen.
On Thursday, Year 3 learned all about using stage directions to reading with expression. They listened to some examples and then practised using expression when reading to bring scripts to life and add meaning. There are some great voice actors among Year 3!
This half term, Year 3 have been learning all about the Ancient Egyptians in their History lessons. As well as a trip to Norwich Castle, they also learned all about what life was like, how important the River Nile was, religious beliefs around gods and the afterlife and about the significance of the pyramids. With all that amazing knowledge, in writing lessons, children then wrote their own non-chronological reports to share their learning!
Here are just a few, but you can spot them all outside the Year 3 classrooms – see if you can learn something new!
This half term, Year 3 have been exploring the work of mixed-media artists Alice Kettle and Hannah Rae.
They began by making visual notes about the two artists in their sketchbooks and considered their inspirations: the land and the sea.
Children then had the opportunity to create their own land and seascapes on canvases. They started by painting the canvases, focusing on their colour mixing skills.
Once they were dry, the children learnt some embroidery skills to add texture and detail to their pieces.
We think their final pieces are excellent!
This week, children in year 3 had the fantastic opportunity to go to the newly refurbished Norwich Castle to learn more about the Ancient Egyptians. During the day, children learnt about the different Egyptian gods and spotted their trademarks on real artefacts, many of which were over 3000 years old! They also learnt what everyday life was like and were introduced to some of the foods they would have regularly eaten, such as pomegranates, dates, olives, figs and cinnamon. During the day, they also heard about ancient Egyptian beliefs around the afterlife and explored the discoveries of Ankh-Hor’s tomb, housed in the Egyptian display at the Castle. As a take-home, all of the children made their own Egyptian collar, carefully considering the different colours they used and what they would represent in ancient Egyptian jewellery. A truly wonderful day was had by all with lots of new learning and experiences.
This week, Year 3 have been continuing their exploration of Ancient Egypt by considering who built the ancient pyramids in Egypt. They had to hunt for different historical evidence around the classroom and decide whether it supported or opposed the common idea of slaves being the pyramid builders. As a class, these ideas were discussed and debated.
Children also learnt all about the purpose of pyramids and why they were built. As a challenge at the end of the lesson, children worked in pairs to build their own pyramid structures using marshmallows and spaghetti. Some children even chose to make tombs and chambers inside their pyramids!
Today, children in Year 3 visited Norwich Cathedral to learn about Advent and the Christmas Story.
They talked about Advent meaning ‘getting ready’ and all the things we do to get ready for Christmas.
Children also heard about the prophet, Isaiah, foretelling the birth of Jesus before decorating their own matchbox manger and ‘Bethlehem’ sign.
They heard different parts of the Christmas story from some of the characters and had the opportunity to dress up and get involved – from finding lost sheep to following the star and taking gifts to the manger.
A great time was had by all. Thank you to the Cathedral team for a fantastic day!
On Monday afternoon, Year 3 were paid a visit by some members of the Rotary Club of Norwich. The Rotary Club are a group of men and women who seek to ‘make a difference’ in their community and around the world. As part of their work, they donated dictionaries to every child in Year 3.
Back in class, children had an opportunity to explore their new dictionaries, learning how to use them to support them with their learning. The dictionaries have been greatly appreciated and children have been keen to use them throughout the school day. Thank you Rotary Club of Norwich!
Last week, Year 3 were investigating friction as a force. Using toy trains and different surfaces and materials, they explored which surfaces the trains travelled across easily, and which ones made it more difficult for the trains to move.
They gave each surface a ‘star rating’ to record their results. They found out that the surfaces which were bumpy had more friction, which made it difficult for the trains to move across them. The surfaces which were smooth had less friction and made it easy for the trains to travel.
