Our Changing Planet

We are geography-led this term, comparing the mountainscapes, capital cities and natural habitats of the UK and Nepal, as a non-European focus chosen by the children.

Science takes us into the study of living things and their habitats as we look at how we know something is alive or whether it has ever been alive. The children will explore and compare different habitats whilst considering how those habitats provide for the plants and animals living there, and the adaptations that have been made and continue to be made to survive, linked to the inter-dependencies across food chains.

We develop our interest in Nepal further through our Design and Technology focus on healthy food this term, exploring the flavours and influences of Nepalese cuisine and working toward an irresistible menu for our Cookathon challenge at the end of this term.

Whilst in English, we are enjoying fables and are working toward writing one of our own to explain how a Nepal-based animal of each child’s choice, came to have its features or behaviours.

Our outcome this term is a charity fundraiser and we will be looking to run/walk the equivalent number of steps as the height of Mount Everest (8,849m), in support of the amazing Mountain Rescue England and Wales (www.mountain.rescue.org.uk) and linking to our topic learning more about our mountain ranges. More details to follow by email with a fundraising link!  

Gazelle Birdwatch! 

We learnt about Mya-Rose Craig as our celebrated scientist this term. At 11 years old she had already seen over 3,000 different bird species all around the world and was interviewed on TV. Now at 22 years old, she is known as 'Bird Girl' and is globally respected as a birder and twitcher who champions climate change and its impacts on our birds and ecosystems. 

We tried out birding in the area outside our classroom and saw more birds than we expected! We spotted sparrows, blue tits, blackbirds and pigeons in just a short time. The children were completely hooked. Many have taken home an identification sheet to carry on in the holidays. 

Grandma Rap

Gazelle Class have been working on the different durations of notes this term using chanting, instruments, clapping and actions to explore a range of rhythms. Then they applied their knowledge to compose 4-beat patterns to create a new rhythmic accompaniment. This video shows them singing this term's song, 'Grandma Rap', along to a 4 beat rhythm they created to match the music and play on a loop. 

We climbed Mount Everest 10 and a half times today! 

Gazelle Class met their challenge of running or walking the height of Mount Everest (5.5 miles) and some today! They were amazing school ambassadors as they did their laps around the rugby field, keeping an eye on their own success, whilst most completed their personal 9 laps target and many completed laps to help every team succeed at their target distance. Many rose above and beyond expectation and all were super proud of achieving our class target. Lots of extra fruit consumed after the event, restocking energy levels and superb cheering of the last runner to finish. Well done Gazelle Class, what amazing teamwork! 

To date (14th Feb - end of term), we have raised £175! Thank you so much for your generosity. If you still want to donate, there is still time for this worthy cause, raising money for the Mountain Rescue England and Wales teams. https://www.justgiving.com/page/gazelle-class Thank you! 

Working together

Gazelle Class have been focusing on working together to learn in our PHSE this term. Here you can see us teaching each other something new – counting in fours, dancing, counting in French or Spanish, doing the crab or split positions – so many talents! The children were very adventurous and amazing supporters when each pair/group showed off what they learned in a short time.

This week, we took another step, using co-operative working to create and make a dream bird. Next week we design the dream garden for it to live in. I’m sure you’ll agree the outcomes are beautiful and the teamwork was even better! 

Habitats day

Gazelle Class were treated to a visit from ZooLab today, bringing a variety of amazing animals to help us understand more about different habitats; what the animals and plants need from them in order to survive and thrive; and how the animals are adapted to their microhabitats. The children then went outside with the iPads to observe and collect evidence of the creatures in microhabitats near our classroom, before working in groups to design and create habitats and creatures of their own. They had lots of great knowledge and questions, and were applying their ideas and science knowledge to their own creations, including ensuring there were elements of the necessary food chains present in their models. Amazing! I'm sure they came home buzzing!

Getting ready for our Nepalese menu

The children have been learning about the traditional food of Nepal and where the ingredients come from. As part of their journey, they tasted a variety of foods, including spices, to evaluate them against our specification and start creating our menu for the big cook. They were very courageous in trying new foods, and had strong preferences and reasoning as to what should now get into our cooking plan!

Tennis anyone?

The children had an amazing tennis session with Simon and Josh today, visiting from Benson Tennis Club where they have just taken over. The children practiced moving around in a space, throwing and catching and then some relays, some achieving an impressive score of successive passes!