Climate Zones and Temperatures – Comparing the UK and Polar regions

Class Work, Geography

Year 2 are busy becoming experts in the Polar Regions this week. They have learnt about the different climate zones of the world. They discovered the hottest countries are nearest to the Equator, whilst the Polar regions are furthest away. Toucans have been busy using the Met Office website to compare UK temperatures to the Arctic (North Pole) regions. They also found out that Antarctica (South Pole) is the coldest place on Earth. Here is the follow up task that Toucans completed after they had taken part in their “Live Lesson” – Well done Isla – this is a fantastic piece of work – very accurate and neat!

Year 2 Recommended Reads

Class Work

At the end of today’s live lesson, Toucans had a quick chat about the books they had been reading besides using Bug Club. It’s great to hear of a really enjoyable book that has been recommended by a friend!

Alex Sneddon recommends “On The Way Home” which is a new book Alex received at Christmas. The author is Jill Murphy. Since seeing the cover, Mrs Parry thinks we may have a copy of this in the Y2 book collection so we can all share it, once we are back in school together. Thank you for recommending it Alex!

Elias has been enjoying reading “Mr Stink” by David Walliams. This is an amusing book so if children enjoy reading this one, they might wish to try the other stories that David Walliams has written. Mrs Parry mentioned she had bought her nephew the latest book called “Code Name Bananas!”

Shriya is working her way through her collection of Roald Dahl books. Her Mum said she has become really hooked on them and is whizzing through the stories now! There are lots of Roald Dahl books in school.

Reva has read a collection of The Rainbow Fairy Book stories and really loved them. There are loads of these in school too!

Remember to keep reading everyone – let Mrs Parry know about your favourite lockdown reads so we can tell each other which ones are good to read for enjoyment and pleasure – Reading is fun!

Paul Cezanne

Art, Class Work

Toucans found out all about the French artist Paul Cezanne this afternoon. They realised he was alive during the Victorian time period, which meant he was alive at the same time as Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole!

Toucans thought his work was a bit dull and boring at first but once he began to paint nature, his work became more colourful, warm and cheerful. Karly said he was inspired by nature. The children studied a variety of pictures he had painted with acrylics and watercolours. Did you know he painted 1,300 paintings?!

A Special Delivery

Class Work, English

During ERIC today, Miss Williams suddenly appeared, carrying a large, brown box. Excitedly, Toucans watched in amazement as they were shown some beautiful, new books – especially for them to read in class. There really was something for everyone!

Mrs Parry spotted “Journey” from her days in Year 3 and was eager to look at the other two books in the series, realising she would be able to tick off a category on the latest reading challenge!

Toucans thoroughly enjoyed listening to Mrs Parry read “The Book With No Pictures,” It really made them laugh… read the book and find out why!

Understanding cyber bullying, self image and self identity

Class Work, Computing, PSHE

Toucans discussed their understanding of cyber bullying and what to do if it ever happens.

Karly – If you receive a nasty text message you should always tell your parents.
You should block them as a contact too.

Corban – You should keep the the text as proof for evidence.

Ryan – You need to tell your parents.

Elias – You can tell the teachers at school.

The class watched an interactive film and used thumbs up/down to decide whether an action was right or wrong, related to cyber bullying. Afterwards, Mrs Parry described three photos of people and the children had to draw a quick sketch from her description. Afterwards, the class discussed who their trusted adults were, should they ever need support with cyber bullying issues. Finally, Toucans had some examples of online comments and had to decide how these would make them feel.

Investigating the United Kingdom

Class Work, Geography

Toucans have been enjoying looking at atlases and learning how to use them efficiently, by referring to the contents page. They also looked at a globe and discovered we are quite a small country!

They found out the names of the countries using an atlas and were successful in labelling a blank map. Afterwards, the children located the capital cities of each country for an extra challenge. Quite a few children already knew the capital city of England (and the UK) is London. They recognised some London landmarks such as Big Ben, The Houses of Parliament and Buckingham Palace whilst looking at some photos. Great work Toucans!

Reviewing books!

Class Work, English

In ERIC this week, some children have chosen to write book reviews, recommending good reads to other children.

Shriya – We are learning about Florence in class too! I like the part where the soldiers get better.
Karly – I like the Snow Queen. I have this book at home too.
Maya – I like the Twelve Dogs of Christmas. It is a happy story.
Daniel – I like The Lazy Ladybird is really funny!