Year 4

Preparation for Upper Key Stage Two

Year 4 is the place to be for all the times tables fans! This year is another key step in a child’s journey through primary school and it is full of great opportunities to capture their imagination and develop their ability. By Year 4, the children have already learnt so much and we continue this. This year is about the children growing in independence and being able to select their own resources for their lessons.

In English, the children explore a range of texts, both fiction and non-fiction and produce narratives, diary entries and persuasive leaflets to name just a few. We focus on key grammatical skills and ensuring that children move into Year 5 with a secure understanding of them.

In Year 4, the children get the wonderful opportunity to complete a Times Tables Test. This is the first major landmark in Key Stage 2. At the end of the year, they should leave fully equipped with 12 times tables learnt and an appetite to use them in their Upper Key Stage 2 maths lessons!

The children also complete our wider curriculum lessons, take a look below at some of the exciting activities we have for History, Geography, Science and P.E!

Supporting your child

Please see the resources that we think might support your Year 4 child excel with their learning at home.

Reading

It is incredibly important for the children to continue their learning outside of the classroom, often being the place, they put it all into practice. We expect your child to be able to read, independently or with an adult if possible, for 30 minutes every day. The children will at this stage most likely bring home two books to be able to choose their reading for the evening. Reading at home is vital and makes such a difference to a child’s reading age and fluency.

Spelling

In Year 4, we need to consolidate the learning from KS1 as well as discover new language from the Year 3 and 4 statutory spelling list. Spelling is taught through the Rising Stars programme and weekly patterns will be taught in class. Please see the documents attached to revise the new spellings.

Spelling

Tackling Tables

With this being such a key year for times tables, the children are expected to be learning them at home, aiming to increase their recall across the year. We use Tackling Tables to support the teaching of times tables both in school and at home. This website or app allows the children to move through their next set of times tables and tests them against the clock, a very exciting feature! The children can also access other superb websites such as hit the button and times tables checker which gives a good idea of how they are getting on!

History

Rivers are one of the most important parts of our world. This study links together our learning around rivers with their importance amongst other tools in the development of the earliest civilisations. Children will learn about what a civilisation is and where they all began around the world. The study will teach about civilisations such as the Sumer and Shang Dynasty, linking them with what they had in common and their importance in what we have today. A surprising and enthralling start to the year for our Year 4 historians!

The title of this study is enough to bring out words such as the pyramids, mummies and the River Nile. This study teaches the children many things they did not know about the Egyptians and builds on their learning within the earliest civilisations. Children will learn some of the incredible achievements of the Egyptians very often overlooked, they will learn about their amazing skills. Building on our river work it will open the children’s eyes to the incredible ingenuity of the Ancient Egyptians. The study will also explore the importance of this period on the following years and current life within Egypt.

Most of us probably think of one thing with the Ancient Maya and that is chocolate! One of the links made to this civilisation but they were much more than that. This study will allow the children to learn about one of the most fascinating civilisations there has ever been. Very much like our Ancient Egypt study they will learn about their achievements and how they have impacted on current life. Learning about this particular study on top of our Ancient Egypt work and Earliest Civilisations the children will continue to piece together a historical view on how times have changed.

Geography

Water is something we drink every day … but do we know where it comes from and why we can always turn a tap and get water? This study is all about how we get this water and where it comes from. An engrossing study, it investigates firstly our rivers that run throughout our country. The children will learn about the flow of the river, identifying features and the landscape that we see around rivers. Where possible this includes some fieldwork out of the class looking at a local river and how it travels. The end of the study teaches the children about the water cycle, through song, real life experiences and research the children learn about how important water is to our survival and how important every aspect of it is.

Let’s take a trip on Route 66! This study is all about North America and takes the children on a journey across the United States of America. The children will start by identifying the different countries within North America and then the states that the USA is split into. We then begin to learn about the famous Route 66, taking a tour of one of the main areas, Chicago. Comparing what life is like here in Cannock with that of Chicago. The children will also learn about the different landscapes along Route 66, comparing the mountainous areas with those quieter towns, such as Flagstaff. A real journey of discovery which twins wonderfully with our art study!

Most weeks we will buy something. Whether it be a new piece of clothing, food, drink or even a new toy however do we ever look at where that item has come from? This study investigates the trade links we share with our countries and where our favourite belongings come from! The children will learn about which countries export the most to us and how that process works from the beginning to end of the work line. Also explored in this study, is how we export to other countries and we will look through the history of how this has changed over time. Finally, the children will learn about the importance of trade and debate why they believe we should either continue or stop trading with other countries. A very interesting end to geography in Year 4!

Science

Many household devices and appliances run on electricity. Some plug in to the mains and others run on batteries. An electrical circuit consists of a cell or battery connected to a component using wires. If there is a break in the circuit, a loose connection or a short circuit, the component will not work. A switch can be added to the circuit to turn the component on and off. Metals are good conductors so they can be used as wires in a circuit. Non-metallic solids are insulators except for graphite (pencil lead). Water, if not completely pure, also conducts electricity.

A solid keeps its shape and has a fixed volume. A liquid has a fixed volume but changes in shape to fit the container. A liquid can be poured and keeps a level, horizontal surface. A gas fills all available space; it has no fixed shape or volume. Granular and powdery solids like sand can be confused with liquids because they can be poured, but when poured they form a heap and they do not keep a level surface when tipped. Each individual grain demonstrates the properties of a solid. Melting is a state change from solid to liquid. Freezing is a state change from liquid to solid. The freezing point of water is 0oC. Boiling is a change of state from liquid to gas that happens when a liquid is heated to a specific temperature and bubbles of the gas can be seen in the liquid. Water boils when it is heated to 100oC. Evaporation is the same state change as boiling (liquid to gas), but it happens slowly at lower temperatures and only at the surface of the liquid. Evaporation happens more quickly if the temperature is higher, the liquid is spread out or it is windy. Condensation is the change back from a gas to a liquid caused by cooling. Water at the surface of seas, rivers etc. evaporates into water vapour (a gas). This rises, cools and condenses back into a liquid forming clouds. When too much water has condensed, the water droplets in the cloud get too heavy and fall back down as rain, snow, sleet etc. and drain back into rivers etc. This is known as precipitation. This is the water cycle.

A sound produces vibrations which travel through a medium from the source to our ears. Different mediums such as solids, liquids and gases can carry sound, but sound cannot travel through a vacuum (an area empty of matter). The vibrations cause parts of our body inside our ears to vibrate, allowing us to hear (sense) the sound. The loudness (volume) of the sound depends on the strength (size) of vibrations which decreases as they travel through the medium. Therefore, sounds decrease in volume as you move away from the source. A sound insulator is a material which blocks sound effectively. Pitch is the highness or lowness of a sound and is affected by features of objects producing the sounds. For example, smaller objects usually produce higher pitched sounds.

Living things can be grouped (classified) in different ways according to their features. Classification keys can be used to identify and name living things. Living things live in a habitat which provides an environment to which they are suited (Year 2 learning). These environments may change naturally e.g. through flooding, fire, earthquakes etc. Humans also cause the environment to change. This can be in a good way (i.e. positive human impact, such as setting up nature reserves) or in a bad way (i.e. negative human impact, such as littering). These environments also change with the seasons; different living things can be found in a habitat at different times of the year.

Food enters the body through the mouth. Digestion starts when the teeth start to break the food down. Saliva is added and the tongue rolls the food into a ball. The food is swallowed and passes down the oesophagus to the stomach. Here the food is broken down further by being churned around and other chemicals are added. The food passes into the small intestine. Here nutrients are removed from the food and leave the digestive system to be used elsewhere in the body. The rest of the food then passes into the large intestine. Here the water is removed for use elsewhere in the body. What is left is then stored in the rectum until it leaves the body through the anus when you go to the toilet. Humans have four types of teeth: incisors for cutting; canines for tearing; and molars and premolars for grinding (chewing). Living things can be classified as producers, predators and prey according to their place in the food chain.

Physical Education

Taught either in our autumn or summer term, the children further develop their understanding of the different elements in athletics. Running for distance as well as speed the children will develop control and technique within their own running style. They will learn different techniques for throwing, through the discus, javelin and shot put. Finally our jumping section will look at jumping for height as well as distance.

Across the world their area range of activities that are designed to be accessible for all and this unit covers those and allows the children to try them out. Starting with boccia, the children explore how the game is played, what the key requirements are for it and ultimately how it is a game of skill and tactical thinking. Then we cover sitting volleyball, a game that also requires great skill and tactical thinking as well as adding fun to their exercise.

Building on the learning from previous years, this unit explores how to apply skills of striking and fielding into simple games. Looking at cricket, rounders and alternatives linked to these we focus on the striking of the ball or object and fielding it. Children get to learn about the tactical side more when fielding and striking, looking at ways in which they can consistently score or stop the strikers from scoring. Very skills driven and full of fun and communication!