Welcome to Year Three!
This is a busy and exciting year for the children as they move into Year Three and
become juniors at Bosham Primary School. During the summer holidays I have been
busily preparing alongside Mrs Mowbray and have become more and more excited as
we plan some really super learning experiences for the children which we are sure
they will thoroughly enjoy. We would like this year to be a very special and memorable
one for all the children, a year in which they become more responsible and passionate
about their learning.
Learning Experiences
Hopefully by now you will feel familiar with the way Learning Experiences work in school and the
positive impact they have had on children’s learning. The focus is on the children becoming more
aware about how they learn. Each learning experience kicks off with an exciting HOOK into
learning – the aim of these is to make the learning irresistible! From the outset we have a clear
learning outcome or BIG PICTURE that we are working towards and then we take steps that
prepare us for achieving this. This term we will be working alongside Year 4 for our Learning
Experiences, which makes life a lot of fun! Along the way, there will be opportunities for the
children to work collaboratively and independently while receiving feedback about how they are
getting on and guidance on their next steps for their personal learning journey!
Um mundo novo
Egg Drop
Festival
Dear Father
Christmas
Focusing upon the Paralympic Values of equality,
determination, courage and inspiration. Taking part in
their own Paralympic Games.
A Science based Learning Experience looking at forces.
Can they create a structure to protect egg in his flight
from the church tower?
Looking at Hinduism and a trip to the Vedic temple in
Southampton. Creating a shadow puppet show to retell
the story of Rama and Sita.
Preparing for Christmas with some letter writing and
cooking.
English
Most of our English will be embedded within our Learning Experiences. This means that the
reading and writing that we do is meaningful and has purpose. In addition, the children will spend
a Thursday afternoon doing ‘Book Talk’ which is an opportunity for all the children to work with
me in a guided reading session, enjoy their own independent reading and do several follow up
tasks. We will also be having ‘Spelling’ sessions on a Friday- the children may bring home activities
to support their spelling and we will be revisiting the spelling patterns throughout the week.
During this time, the children will also be focussed on handwriting.
French and Music
The children are very fortunate to have Mrs Lloyd-Williams who is our specialist French teacher
and they will be taught French each week on a Wednesday morning. They will also be taught music
by Mrs Daniels who is our specialist teacher in this area and will be learning to play the recorder
with her on a Friday morning.
Maths
Wherever possible, Maths will be placed into a real life context and the children will have
opportunities to engage in hands-on, exploration learning. The children will be supported in their
development into confident mathematicians who are unfazed by making mistakes and see this as
an important step of their personal learning journey! We will continue to build the children’s
mental maths skills, equipping them with strategies to solve problems mentally.
PE
The children will have Mr Ziegler on Wednesday morning for PE. On Thursday mornings, the
children will have swimming at the Westgate Leisure Centre; for Year Three this will be a new and
exciting experience. Please support the children in remembering the correct kit on Wednesday
and Thursdays!
Homework
Wherever possible, homework will be directly related to what we are doing in the classroom.
Homework will be set weekly, on a Tuesday, and will normally be handed in the following Monday
morning unless it is a longer term piece of work. Please do not hesitate to let me know if your
child is experiencing problems with their homework and encourage them to take responsibility for
coming to have a chat about it! We would really appreciate it if you could sign finished pieces
of homework – this shows that you value their homework and are happy with the standard of
work they have produced at home.
In addition to the homework that is set each week, the children will have a times table that they
are focussing on. Please check their homework book for this and support them in practising it (we
have attached a helpful article with ideas about how best to support your child!)
A few details
A couple of things to help school run smoothly:
*We would like all the children to transport their homework books and reading books to
school in a BOOK BAG to keep them in good condition.
*Pencil cases must fit in the children’s tray with ease – otherwise we ask the children to
keep their pencil cases at home.
What can you do to help?
☺ Enjoy reading regularly at home, making it a pleasurable experience by sharing your
thoughts and opinions about the story. Newspapers, magazines and comics are also a
valuable tool for encouraging more reluctant readers. Do feel free to write a message in
the children’s reading diaries when they bring them home. There are a number of activities
you could do with your child if you choose to, these are listed in the front of the children’s
reading diaries.
☺ Having fun with maths and making it real- use it in telling the time, baking and shopping!
☺ Supporting the children in completing their homework, taking time to look through it with
them and signing it each week to show that you value what they have done.
☺ Continue to practise times tables with your child (see notes below)
Please remember…
We have an open door policy at Bosham School and are always pleased to book a time to see you
should you have any concerns or would just like to find out about your child’s progress. We are
also really grateful if you can become involved, for example in our GLO activities – all skills
welcome!
Alternatively, you can contact me by email at:
[email protected]
I am really looking forward to working alongside your child this year !
Practising multiplication tables
One of the most helpful and worthwhile things you can focus on helping your child achieve is a
good knowledge of their multiplication tables. This is because they underpin so many of the
mathematical skills they will be introduced to in the junior school and beyond. Being able to
rapidly recall multiplication facts gives the children a great head start into becoming competent
and confident mathematicians.
Make it real
Use real-life situations to help your child understand what the tables are all about and why they
are useful. For example, if you're cooking, look at the pattern of moulds on the muffin tin. They
are usually in four rows of three. How many cakes will this make altogether? Try putting two
chocolate drops on each cake and ask, "If we made 10 cakes, how many chocolate drops do we
need?" "What if we put three on each one?"
Counting up and back
Your child eventually needs to be able to know a single times table answer without having to go
through the whole table (eg 7 x 8). But being able to count up through the table is a good starting
point and helps children feel secure.
Try saying them aloud in a rhythm as you walk or drive to school, perhaps beginning with taking it
in turns to count up in a particular table, eg you say three, your child says six and so on.
Vary whether you say '2 x 2 is 4' or just count up the multiples. Both are helpful, as children
need to know the number facts, but also recognise the multiples themselves, as it helps later on
with fractions and division.
Look for patterns
Times tables are full of interesting patterns, which your child may enjoy spotting and showing
you. Use a multiplication square to help reinforce this.
If your child can identify tables with a strong recognisable pattern, they can begin to work out if
a number is in a particular times table, eg knowing that all numbers in the five times table end in a
5 or a 0. Encourage your child to talk about the patterns they see, using language associated with
maths and explaining what they know is an important part of numeracy in schools.
Identify the tricky ones
Most children have particular times tables they find harder to remember. Often the higher
tables, such as 7 x 8 and 6 x 7, can be tricky. Get your child to devise silly rhymes to help them
remember, eg 'For 7 x 8 I need some tricks, to remember it is 56'.
If your child seems to be more of a visual learner, try making some picture cards with the tricky
fact on, eg put 56 inside a picture of a goal with balls showing a 7 and an 8 heading for the goal.
Get them to picture it in their mind before they answer.
Games to practise times tables
Build your child's confidence with times tables by playing games rather than sitting them down to
test them. Many can be played to pass the time on long car journeys, and when waiting in
restaurants, airports etc.
*Try using dice to generate times tables questions by throwing twice and multiplying the two
numbers. (Many mobile phones have a 'dice throwing function' which saves carrying dice around
with you.)
*Car number plate tables is a good game for long car journeys. Look at the two digits on car
number plates. Does your child know a times tables fact linked to them? Eg 24 is 6 x 4. Can
anyone else in the car think of another one for the same number?
*Guess my number - someone thinks of a number and the others must guess the number by asking
questions. Eg 'Is it in the three times table?' 'Is it odd?' etc. A limit of 10 questions is probably
enough clues for children to guess. Whoever guesses correctly thinks of the next number.
*Rainy day tables games: provide your child with the craft materials to make their own game to
practise their tables, perhaps making a board or special cards, and inventing rule for how points
will be scored. They can be as creative as they like and link it to their favourite hobbies or TV
programmes.
How to practise times tables
When your child has been practising a particular times table, help them to recall it by exploring
different questions. How many questions can they answer on a particular times table in a minute?
If they are competitive, get them to try and beat their own personal best each time they try.
Try giving them the answer and they have to give you the relevant tables fact, eg for 64, they
would say '8 x 8'. Help them to explore all the different ways the same tables fact could be
asked.