Year 4

Meet the team:

Mr A Bang, Mrs C Dalziel, Mrs A Evans, Miss S Duncan

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Our Curriculum

Mayans 

In Year 4 we are learning to locate the Mayan civilisation on our timeline. We discover that the Mayan civilization existed at the same time as the Bronze/Iron age in Britain. We find out that the Mayans lived in Central America, built temples for worship, carried out human sacrifice and were the first people to grow chocolate. We also investigate the mystery of what happened to the Mayan civilization, which archaeologists do not agree about.  

Ancient Greece 

Our learning of ancient cultures continues with Ancient Greece, which existed c3000 – 1500 years ago. We learn how to locate Ancient Greek civilisation on our timeline. We find out about the variety of evidence of Ancient Greece that still exists today from buildings to ceramics and artwork in the form of frescoes. We find out about the Olympic games, which began in Ancient Greece and that women were not allowed to compete. We explore the concept of democracy looking at its origins in Ancient Greece and how it has evolved into how we know it today. 

Explorers – North & South America 

Our focus in this unit of learning will be ‘Explorers’ where we will learn about the northern and southern hemispheres. We will dive into the past, when Europeans explored and settled in the Americas. We will learn about how the equator affects the countries around it. As part of this learning, we will discover the highest peaks of the Rocky Mountains and the meanders of the Amazon River.  

Romans in Britain 

We will adventure to the far reaches of the Roman Empire, from the capital in Rome, Italy, all the way to Britain and Hadrian’s Wall. We can locate Romans in Britain on our timeline. We’ll find out why Boudica and the Iceni tribe revolted against Roman rule. We will discover that although Boudica’s army killed many Roman soldiers, they were eventually defeated by the organised and powerful Roman Army. This will link well with our Summer Geography topic: Italy.  

 

Maths  

We will be using a range of resources to teach maths this year. Throughout the year there will be a consistent push on learning our times tables in preparation for the Multiplication Times Tables Check (MTC) in the Summer term. We recommend that children play Times Tables Rock Stars (TTRS) regularly. Multiplication is central to maths learning in Year 4. 

We will improve children’s fluency in using all four operations: addition, subtraction, division and multiplication. We will use resources that guide children through their learning with challenging and fun activities including outdoor learning linked to time, decimals and fractions. 

Once we are secure in our calculation methods we will look at how to apply these to more challenging problem solving and reasoning activities.  

 

English  

In Year 4 our writing grows organically out of Real Writing. It is a heavily structured process-based format in which the children learn key skills and grammatical understanding alongside exploring their own personal sense of creativity.  It is a rigorous programme that allows children the space to express themselves and the skills through which to create something meaningful. Obtaining a firm grasp of sentence structure and basic punctuation continues to be a focus throughout Lower Key Stage two. Our published pieces are created to share and to allow children the opportunity to practise handwriting/presentation skills, which they have been learning in discrete lessons. Through Meadowfield Book Talk, Year 4 learn how to become analytical and critical readers and thinkers. We practise retrieval and read as authors, looking for ways in which the author has used their skills to make us feel or think something.  

 

Science 

Sound, Electricity, States of Matter, Human Systems, Living things and their habitats 

As scientists we will think about how and why things happen. We will make predictions and carry out fair tests. In our Sound topic we will learn about how sound travels. We will investigate working circuits in Electricity. We will find out about the three states of matter: solids, liquids and gases. In our Human Systems topic, we will learn about the importance of a healthy lifestyle and the role of the digestion. We will learn all about how to group plants and animals and the importance of human impact on the environment. 

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Links to online support for children in Y4