Glyn House

The Junior School Curriculum


Year 3

J3 - J6 make up Key Stage 2 of your child's education.


NUMERACY / MATHEMATICS

At Key Stage 2 we continue to use the New Heinemann Maths Scheme which is based on the National Numeracy Strategy. Please encourage your child to learn his/her tables. It is expected that children are already familiar with 2,3,4,5 and 10 times tables. Work will strengthen and build on this.

Continue to practise telling the time using both digital and analogue clocks. More emphasis will be put on a 24 hour clock. During this year your child should become familiar with all the minutes past and to the hour. We start to think about the passing of time.

The children will gain a clear understanding of the calendar, days, months and seasons and should in J3 learn how many days there are in each month. Please try to give your child as much experience of handling real money as possible. Cooking is not only fun but also gives your child a clearer understanding of grams and kilograms. We try to include a problem solving activity each week to get the pupils using maths in real life situations.

Work will cover units from MA2 number and algebra, MA3 Data Shape and Measure and MA4 Handling Data, Pupils investigative and reasoning skills will also be developed.


LITERACY / ENGLISH

Spelling

New spellings will be given weekly and tested on the following week. Please help your child to learn them well. Use the 'Look/Cover/Write/Check' method.

Reading

Try to hear your child read aloud each evening. They should 'sound out' any new words. When hearing your child read, to encourage enjoyment through understanding, please ask questions about the story including the characters and different endings. Now that the pupils are reading to themselves, do still read to them, as listening skills are also very important. Work will cover several genres in fiction and non-fiction.

Handwriting

Please encourage your child to write neatly and legibly. The school follows a handwriting scheme. If you do not have a copy of this, please ask.

Listening Skills

Listening and concentration skills are very important and we try to develop these further during English and Verbal Reasoning lessons.

Library

We would encourage you to join the local library so that pupils can find information books and dip into them for research skills. This also gives them more choice of fiction and non fiction books.


SCIENCE

Science lessons will develop children's knowledge and understanding of topics as well as their scientific enquiry skills.

Topics will be:

  • The Needs of Plants and Animals
  • Forces; springs and elastic bands
  • Healthy Eating
  • Materials and their properties
  • Light
  • Investigative skills


GEOGRAPHY

Topics will be:

  • Local and contrasting environments
  • Communications
  • Weather
  • Mapping Skills


HISTORY

Children will use artefacts and written and pictorial evidence to develop skills of historical enquiry

Topics will be:

  • Ancient Egypt
  • Explorers
  • The Aztecs


I.T.

Topics will include:

  • keyboard skills
  • simple data base web navigation in word processing
  • email
  • attaching pictures / captions to word documents
  • web based research projects.


P.E./GAMES / SWIMMING

J3 will be having 2 lessons of Games (outdoors), 2 lessons of P.E. (indoors) and a swimming lesson each week. The pupils will need two pairs of trainers. One for outdoors - these can be old trainers that can get muddy. Also one pair of indoor trainers which are to be kept clean. For the games lesson your child will need blue games kit, football socks and football boots. Indoors, they will wear their white P.E. shirt, blue shorts and indoor trainers with white sports socks.

Swimming costumes/hats are available to purchase from the Junior School Office. All pupils will be required to wear a hat. Pupils will be expected to dry/dress themselves after swimming. Please encourage them to practise at home as often as possible.

P.E. lessons cover gymnastics and dance.

Winter sports include football, rugby, netball and unihoc. Summer sports include cricket, athletics, rounders and tennis.

Please label all items of clothing that come into school clearly with your child's name.


HOMEWORK

In J3, the pupils have a homework diary, in which they write that evening's homework. Each night's homework should take no longer than 20 - 30 minutes. If your son/daughter is struggling to finish within that time please let them finish at a convenient place and sign the homework diary to this effect. Please check homework for neatness.


ASSEMBLIES

Assemblies take place everyday. Once each half term we meet as a whole Junior School at Chessington Lodge. We hold an assembly in the Church for J1-J6 twice a term.


VISITS/SPECIAL EVENTS

We aim to have a visit each term as well as special events in school.

On Thursday 17th December J3-J6 will go to the Bloomsbury Theatre to see 'Skellig'. Carols by Candlelight, for all Year 3 - 6 pupils and parents, will take place in St. Mary's Church at 6.30pm on Monday 14th December 2009.

The Glyn House Christmas Parties will be held on Wednesday 16th December.


INDEPENDENCE

Following on from Year 2, we expect the children to be increasingly independent. Children will unpack their own book bags every morning and be responsible for handing in homework promptly. We hope that children with lace-up shoes will be able to tie their own laces and that pupils will be able to dry and dress themselves after swimming.


If you have any concerns or problems during the year please do not hesitate to come and see Mrs Hacker or Mrs Rowe.