2S Mrs Salt
Class 2S (2018-2019)
Welcome to 2S.
Class Teacher: Mrs Sarah Salt
Teaching Assistant: Mrs Lucy Fraser
Teaching Assistant: Mrs Marie Steadman
Teaching Assistant: Mrs Cassie Caddick
A very warm welcome to Year 2. If you are ever unable to catch me for a chat at the end of the day, please do get in touch and I will get back to you as soon as I can:
Class Dojo: please do leave me a message - as well as you receiving snippets about your children's day and class messages, it is good for us to hear how the children are getting on at home.
Reading Diaries: It is lovely for us to see how well your children are doing with their reading at home, so please do record this in your child's diary whenever you hear them read.
Please remember that the school gates will open at 8:30am and the register will be taken promptly at 8:40am.
We are so proud of our Learning Stars and Value Stars. Well done!
This week, they are...
Learning Star
Jayden for being a reflective author and using ambitious vocabulary in his writing.
Values Star
Alyssa for showing love to a hurt friend by showing constant support when running a long distance race.
Scroll down to see our previous stars. We are so proud of them all!
Useful Information
- Timings:The school gates are open each morning at 8.20am, so that children can enter the classrooms from 8.30am. The register will be taken at 8.40am and the learning day starts, so children need to be settled in class by this time. The end of the school day for Y2 children is 3.20pm.
- PE: Our class PE sessions will usually be every Monday and Wednesday. Please ensure however that your child has their full PE kit (with name labels) in school all week in case of any changes. All children at St Matthew's are asked to wear their school PE kits to school every Friday instead of school uniform - we will send PE kits home on a Thursday to accommodate this.
- Home-learning: Home Learning currently consists of spellings set on each school night. These are routinely given out on a Friday to enable children to get a head start with practising if they wish. Each set of spellings will usually be tested on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Please encourage your child to try their best and take pride in the work that they do in their home learning books. Daily regarding and mental maths contribute to the rest of the home learning activities. Times tables can be practised on ttrockstars and other mental maths foci will be their mental maths targets found in their home learning books and reading records.
- Reading: We will read with your child during our whole class/guided reading sessions and also individually as often as possible. We will routinely provide some time daily for the children to read to themselves or others and to change their books as and when required. The more reading practice the children have the better, so supporting your child's reading at home is essential. Where possible, as well as listening to your child read each day, please also ask questions about the text . These might be questions that ask them to think about what has happened, what might happen next or what they believe about an event or fact in their book. Please refer to the VIPERS question examples sent home. Children now have a VIPERS bookmark to make these questions more accessible for you, which needs to be kept in their reading books. Enjoy!
- Times Tables: By the end of year 2, children are expected to know the 2,3, 5, and 10 times tables. Please practise this vital skill at home however you like, by saying them aloud, writing them down or learning them using times tables games available online. Ttrockstars is a fabulous resource. Usernames and passwords are in home learning books and reading records.
- Spelling and mental maths quizzes: We will have 4 spelling tests in class each week, which the children would have practised for in the previous night's home learning. Ttrockstars supports times tables and other mental maths can be practised with a variety of games. Please ask if you would like some ideas.
We are learning to... (a focus for this year.)
Please find below some additional information on National Curriculum Assessments.
STOP Bullying
We define bullying using 'STOP Bullying' . 'Several Times on Purpose'
We define bullying as a persistent, deliberate attempt to hurt or humiliate someone, physically or psychologically, over a period of time.
We do everything we can to prevent and STOP bullying.
HOOK DAY SUMMER 2019 - we went flying!
Fresh Air and a Spot of Skipping








WORLD BOOK DAY 2019 in 2S









Magic Maths in 2S
























In Class Worship, we discussed a man looking back at footprints in the sand. Whose footprints were they? Why was there only one set, when he looked back at the difficult times he had experienced?
A Bug Safari - ask the children what a pooter is!








Parents' Maths Open Afternoon - we loved the parents visiting, so that we could share our learning with them in maths. We made lots of different numbers, using different manipulatives.




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LOVING LEARNING IN YEAR 1:
Growth Mindset in Year 1
In our class we always thrive to be the best we can be! To fulfill our full potential we need to be confident, resilient learners and we need to have a growth mindset. In our class we are not afraid of our mistakes but use our mistakes to learn from and help us to improve. Having a can do attitude, learning from setbacks and responding to constructive criticism is all about having a growth mindset. In our class we relish challenges, embrace mistakes and become critical of our own and others work.
The Royal Wedding!
Our own Illustration books!
Spring Term
Our World through Stories
On Fire!!!
This week, we have started our on fire award. To achieve this award you need to be spotted by either an adult or another child for doing something amazing! This week, we have had so many children on fire and for many different reasons! Well done to those children who have received the on fire award in the first week. Amazing
Our special visitor this week!!!!!!
This term, we have been learning about lots of different famous ships including the Titanic and the Mary Rose. We have really enjoyed the topic and have found out lots of amazing and interesting facts. This week in our topic lesson, we had the opportunity to meet someone from Navy! It was brilliant, we learnt all about the Navy and the different roles of the men and women who work for them. We also got the opportunity to try on some uniform and look at some photographs of naval ships. We hope you enjoy looking at our photos as much as we enjoyed our special visit! :)
Special Visitors!!!
This term, we have been learning all about ships and boats. During this time, we have been looking at how to keep safe on a boat and the important measures we need to take when in the water and at sea. This week, we were lucky enough to meet the RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution). They talked us about their role and how they keep people safe in water. We looked at how we can stay safe when swimming in the sea and on the beach. We were very good at spotting the different dangers!
Exciting News
On Friday, our role play area was mysteriously covered up. We were all so excited about what might be inside that we couldn't wait until Monday so decided do to it before. Before the big reveal, we guessed what we thought it might be. Some of us thought it might be a light house, the Mary Rose or even a submarine!!! Finally, when Miss Reburn unveiled it we realised it was the Titanic. Over the weekend, it would be brilliant if you could find out some interesting facts about this famous ship ready for our topic lesson on Monday!
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In science this week, we have been looking at different materials and explaining their properties. At the start of the lesson we watched an interesting video listing all the different materials and describing them using adjectives. Afterwards, we began identifying the different everyday materials we had in our classroom. We found that glass, plastic, metal and fabric were the most common. As a whole class, we found interesting facts about each and research what materials was used for. Finally, on our table we had the opportunities to handle each of the materials and described them and their properties in our own words.
Science
We looked at how different materials move on the same surface. At the start of the lesson we experimented with rolling play dough, glass marbles, plastic and foam across the table. Before we rolled the items we predicted which would move more quickly based on the surface of the material. Next we made predictions about which would travel the furthest when rolled down a ramp. We constructed our own ramps and tested to see if our predictions were correct and measured the distance that the cars had traveled. As a class we made a bar chart to show the results of our experiment.
Julia Donaldson
This week in English, we have started a new and exciting topic! On Monday we spent some time looking through different Julia Donaldson stories. We compared them focusing on their similarities and differences and put them into a table. The following day, we went on a treasure hunt to find different clues about the story we were focusing on. After collecting them all, we realised we were going to be learning about the Snail and the Whale!
Mosques
In RE we have been exploring Islam. We have been exploring how this religion is different to Christianity. In today's lesson, we looked at mosques observing their interior and exterior. We commented on what we found interesting and why!
Comparing numbers using different representations
This week in maths, we have been looking at the different ways we compare numbers. We have been using the inequality signs to help us identify which is smaller and bigger. We have been using different ways to show numbers this may include base ten, counters, numerals and words. Here are the numbers we created in our talk partners.
Our Nativity
This week, the children in Year 1 performed their nativity to the whole school and to their parents. The children had a wonderful time and really enjoyed their performance!The children have been able to link their performance to their study of the concept of ‘Incarnation’ in RE. The performance also shared the important message of Christmas, reminding us why this time of year is so special. The children have been sharing their thoughts and comments about the production.
Jodie "I have loved performing!"
Lois "We have been singing our hearts out!"
Cannon firing!!!

Crownhill Fort
This week, year 1 also visited Crownhill Fort. The children were extremely excited about the visit as they had been learning all about it’s history in class. The children had the opportunity to wander around the fort, visit the detention rooms and venture into the underground part of the fortress. We even had the opportunity to observe canons and rifles being fired. We absolutely loved our visit to the fort. Here are some photographs that capture some of our favourite moments on the trip!
Our mathematics working wall
In this term we have been exploring number. We have been looking at odd and even numbers and also how we represent different numbers using manipulatives. We have been practising counting in our 5s and 2s. Here is our learning wall with all our wonderful learning :)
Our English working wall
This week we have been learning how to write a set of instructions. First we revisited our photographs we took when we made our very own forts. We then put them into order and explained how we made our forts. Once we have looked at our steps in more detail we began to look at the features of a set of instructions. After that, we wrote our instructions remembering our main heading, subheadings, lists and our steps. We are extremely proud of our writing!
In RE this week, we have been looking at advent. In class, we learnt about how Christians prepare their homes and churches for advent. In a church the altar is decorated with a purple cloth because it represents waiting. Five candles are also lit every Sunday in the weeks leading up to Christmas. On Christmas day the fifth candle is lit.
We also discussed how Christian prepare their homes for Christmas this includes opening an advent calendar, decorating their homes and making a wreath. Interestingly, the wreath is a circular shape because it represents that God is eternal. We had a go at making our own wreath. It was a lot of fun!!!! :)
Using a ten frame
In class worship we have been writing our own messages to send in our Christmas shoes boxes. As a class we decided what we were sending a class shoe box and then placed our messages inside. Here is the picture we also sent in our shoe box so the child knows who it is from!
Position
Treasure Hunt
This term, the children have been exploring Pride in Plymouth. Throughout this topic, we have been looking at famous Plymothian people. Within our art lessons we began to research famous local artists this included Beryl Cook, Robert Lenkiewicz and Brian Pollard. We critiqued their work and discussed what we liked and disliked.
Looking at Brian Pollard’s work in more detail we started to look at his style, use of colour and images. Soon after, we had a go at drawing our very own seascape in the style of Brian Pollard. Here are some examples of our work below!!
Once we had created our seascapes we peer assessed our drawings looking critically at what we really liked giving reasons why and what we needed to improve on. After that, we created a second draft making the changes to our paintings that our friends had discussed with us.
Our Art Work
Our English Working Wall
The Wild Zoo
The Wild Zoo written by 1R

The Wild Wood written by 1R

The Wild Zoo by 1R

Learning to count in 2s!!!

Freeze Frames
Our English Learning Wall
Ordering Numbers
Mark Making
This term, we are focusing drawing. In our art lesson this week, we explore and experimented with lots of different drawing materials and we even went to the art studio!!!! We use charcoal which was a little bit messy! We also used pencils, pens and crayons. We use different lines and shapes to capture different moods and emotions on our page. We had such a wonderful time!
Mark Making
The Beach

RE and Arts Week
Below are some of our wonderful learning memories from Foundation!!!!
Seeds
Where do seeds come from? We looked inside different fruit to find the seeds. There are lots of different types.
What should we do with the seeds that we find?
How can we help them to grow?
Cress!
We planted cress seeds in cotton wool. We waited, watered and watched it grow. Then we snipped and tasted it!
Olivia - Cress burns my tongue!
Archie - Too spicy!
Lois - It's good, I liked it.
Dylan - It's disgusting!
Jayden - Can I try some more?
Oliver - Can we have cress everyday?
Learning in the sun.
We have been enjoying the beautiful weather and taken our learning everywhere!














Easter Bonnets
For our Home Learning, we were tasked with making an Easter Bonnet - we have done an amazing job! Check out our creations below.
Congratulations to Lois, who came 1st out of the whole Foundation Unit!
In RM, we needed a new role play area. We decided to make a shop. Not just any shop - a
Space Shop!
We thought about what we would need:
moon cheese
moon rocks
space sweets
some money
some signs
price tags
space cookies
astronaut helmets
rockets









































We were thinking about what we know about Christianity. Here is our mindmap and some of our comments:
Maisie - God shared all the food and sprinkled it round to everyone.
Olivia - Jesus was born in a stable. They was riding a donkey to Bethlehem. It was a miracle. He grew up and got food and gave it to everyone.
Monty - Jesus came alive at Easter. When people come to Jesus they are not hurt and they can move again.
Ava - Mary was having a baby. The angel said to Mary she was having a special baby called Jesus. He was born in the animal food bowl.
Oliver - Jesus did miracles. He got some water and turned it into wine. He was a special baby. People cheered for him.
Luca - He is love and true spirit. Jesus is the son of God. God is the father of Jesus. He made you and us.
We made a Friendship Tree.
How do we show love at school?




Class RM story map of the Three Little Pigs
We have made a story map. Show your child and they can use it to retell the story of the Three Little Pigs. Can they remember the actions? Can you learn the actions? Can they do some writing at home using it? Show us through Tapestry if they really impress you!
Have fun!
Burger Prayer
A prayer begins "Dear God" and ends with "Amen" like the buns of a burger. Inside we say thank you, sorry and please for something. We think of these as the filling of a burger. We made a giant prayer burger, thinking of things to give thanks for, things we are sorry about, and kind things we would like God's help with.
Can you make a burger prayer with your family?
Making our prayer burger
Merry Christmas from us all!
The Foundation Team would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very 'Merry Christmas'.
We look forward to hearing all about the fun you will have had over the festive period when school starts up again on Wednesday 4th January 2017.
A sincere 'Thank you' for all of your continued support.
We are using clay to make Diwa Lamps for Diwali.
Shapes all around us!
We have been hunting for 2D shapes in the environment. When the children spotted one, they used the IPAD to take a photograph. Can you identify our shapes? What shapes can you find at home?





All aboard our rainbow bus!
We enjoyed creating our rainbow bus this week ready to transport us on fun and exciting imaginary journeys!





Mr Gumpy's outing!
We enjoyed retelling the story. Everyone had a part in the story and Maisie was a fantastic Mrs Gumpy!
Pirate storytelling adventures!





