Learning in Autumn 2023

Reception have learnt about healthy eating. Pupils sorted food with high nutrition and foods with less nutrition. We talked about how we can all eat and enjoy different types of food, but some foods are better to have as occasional treats.

Year 1, have been learning about different materials. The pupils had to make a house for the Three Little Pigs and see if they could stop it being blown down by the wolf.

Year 5 have really enjoyed learning about space this term. As well as deepening their understanding of the planets in our solar system, they have also learnt about how we came to believe in a heliocentric model of the solar system and how day and night are formed across the globe.

Learning in Summer 2023

During the summer term the whole school took part in an investigation to find the best biscuit for Mr Barron to dunk in his cup of tea.  each class had two types of biscuits and carried out a fair test by dunking their biscuit in cold water and counting how many times it could be dunked before breaking.

In Friday sharing assembly a representative from each class dunked their winning biscuit to find the overall winner which Mr Barron tested in his morning cup of tea.

Year 2 investigated Malt biscuits and Oaties.

Year 6 Investigated  Custard Creams and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Night Owls

The children were very excited to meet the Night Owls team and learn about how owls fly and feed.  The particularly enjoyed the owls flying above their heads, demonstrating how they fly silently.

Learning in Spring 2023

Nursery - The pupils enjoyed learning about plants and grew their own flowers and beanstalks.  

Year 5- The pupils have been learning about reproduction of plants as well as the life cycle of different animals including insects and amphibians. 

Learning in Autumn 2022

Year 1 - The pupils had to find out which material was waterproof.  They went out into the school grounds to find things that showed signs of autumn.

Year 2 - This half term the pupils have been looking at Everyday Materials. They went on a hunt around the school grounds to find a range of different materials and establish what they were used for.

Year 5 - This half term the pupils have been learning about the Solar Systems and learning about different Scientists. They researched, gathered information about the Solar System & famous Scientists and produced posters that showcased all of their knowledge.

In Year 6, as part of their topic on light, the pupils designed and made ‘Festive Lights’. They created their own circuits and included simple switches to turn their creations on and off.

Learning in Spring

In Nursery, the pupils have been learning about things that grow.  We planted beans in a bag and watched them germinate and then the children planted their beans in pots.  During the Easter holiday, the pupils took their bean plants home to see how tall they would grow.

In Year 1, the pupils had to draw and label parts of the body.

In Year 4, the pupils learnt about different states of matter. One experiment they enjoyed was investigating how best to clean dirty water.

In Year 6, the pupils have been learning about microorganisms. They identified helpful and harmful effects of microorganisms and conducted an investigation about the conditions that cause mould to grow quickly or slowly on bread.

During Science Week, KS1 and KS2 took part in the STEM Paper Engineering Challenge.  This year the challenge was to create a plant.  The children work in pairs or on their own to create their own plant using only 4 sheets of A4 recycled paper and a pair of scissors.  The challenge was to think about how they could manipulate and join the paper together to create a 3D plant.

The children loved the challenge, they had some great ideas and showed amazing perseverance.

It was difficult to choose from all the amazing models however, our KS1 winner was Carter and our KS2 winning team was Amber and Oscar.  Congratulations and well done!

Learning in Autumn 2

During 'Active Learning' in Nursery, the children has been investigating objects that sink and float the water tray.

Year 4 have been learning about sound. They learnt how vibrations cause sound, how this sound can be changed and how it travels to our ear. The pupils had great fun creating their own Science of Sound programs.

Year 5 have been learning about different scientists and inventors. The class learned about the work of Eva Crane, David Attenborough, Margaret Hamilton and the work of the CSI.

Learning in Autumn 1

Year 1 have been looking at different materials.

We had to investigate which material would be the best to keep the bear dry. We predicted, carried out an experiment and evaluated what we had found out.

Year 2 have been finding out how animals change as they grow into adults. They created books about the life cycle of a duck.

Year 3, have been comparing and grouping together different kinds of rocks on the basis of their appearance and simple physical properties.

Year 4, have been learning about electricity.

They have carried out an experiment to create static electricity.  

They have made and tested different kinds of electrical circuits.

Year 5, have been learning about Space.

They have learned the order of the planets from the Sun, researched about the different planets, researched about astronauts, explored early ideas about whether the Earth is flat and learned about how we get night and day.

Year 6, have been learning about light.

They have been carrying out scientific enquiry about how light is refracted.

Year 2 - Minibeast habitats

The children started the topic by going on a bug hunt to investigate the different minibeasts living around our school environment.  They decided to make some mini east hotels for the Year 2 garden.  The children started by collecting logs, sticks and leaves from the woods and then put them into a plastic bottle.  When they had finished the children chose a suitable place to put their minibeast hotel.  

Years 1 - 6 took part in this years STEM Paper Engineering Challenge  - build an insect.  There were very strict rules once again, the children could only use 4 sheets of A4 paper and a pair of scissors (no glue, sellotape or staples).

The children worked in pairs and employed all their CHAMP skills during this very tricky challenge and created some amazing models.

Year 2, have been learning about everyday materials.  They explored whether paper was a good material to make a bridge and tested their designs.

Year 6 - We carried out lots experiments during or topic on Light.

Science Week 2020

This year Gade Valley took part in the SetPoint Paper Engineering Competition.

The children were challenged to create a 3D tree using only 4 sheets of A4 recycled paper and a pair of scissors.  They were not allowed to use glue, tape or staples.  The children showed great perseverance, motivation and confidence when experimenting with different ways to join the paper pieces.  

NIGHT OWLS

We were visited by the Night Owls – We learnt about different types of owls that live in our countryside and how we can look after them.  All owls are carnivores. We watched a display of different owls flying above our heads in the hall.