Hunting for numbers!

Nursery are working on recognising their numbers and this morning they went on a number hunt around the school. Look at all the numbers they found!

Crowns and helmets

This afternoon we have been learning about and making crowns and helmets. First we looked at some pictures of crowns and helmets and talked about them, thinking about what they looked like, what they were made of, who might have worn them and why they would have worn them.

Then we made either a crown or a helmet of our own. We thought about how to decorate them and chose the tools we would need to cut and stick our crowns or helmets together.

Finally we posed for a photo all together - the brave knights with their helmets are standing by, ready to protect the kings and queens!

Castle-spotting!

This morning we watched a scene from Disney's Robin Hood and looked out for different parts of the castle that we had been learning about. We saw doors, windows and gates and the grey stone castle walls. We saw towers, the battlements, the drawbridge and the moat. We also spotted the portcullis which gets lowered and traps Robin inside the castle! We really enjoyed watching this part of the film and did a super job spotting, naming and talking about all the different parts of the castle.

High or Low?

This afternoon in music we were learning about high and low notes. We made high and low noises with our voices and moved our hands to show if the sound was high or low. We had to copy Miss Ayres saying lots of sounds low and then high. Then we had to say our names in a low voice followed by a high voice.

After that we looked at the xylophone. Miss Ayres taught us the best way to play the xylophone and we all had a go at playing high and low notes. We also practised playing all the notes, either going from low to high or from high to low.

We played some games to develop our listening. We took it in turns to play high or low notes and everyone else had to close their eyes, showing with their hands whether they thought they could hear a high note or a low note. We also looked at a middle note that is between the high and low note on our xylophone. We played some more games, listening and identifying which note was being played.

Then we looked at how we could record which note we wanted to play. Miss Ayres drew some lines on the board and we used circles to show if the note was high, middle or low. This is similar to how real music is written, so we're going to be super at reading music when we're a bit older! We chose 4 notes to play and practised them, then we chose another 4. We had a go at playing all 8 notes and made a super effort! Well done to Harry who was able to play all the notes brilliantly without help and earned himself a housepoint.

Finding out about castles

This afternoon we have been learning how to use books and computers/iPads to find out information. We are learning all about castles, but there was lots we didn't know! First we looked at some photos of different parts of the castle and talked about what we knew about castles. Harry said, "Castles are big and strong so other armies can't get in," and Grace said, "the water around the castle is called a moat." We read the words on the photos but weren't sure what some of them meant, so we had a guess. We thought a keep might "keep you safe" and a portcullis "is a kind of gate to close to stop people getting in." (Lilly). Jamie knew that a dungeon "is where you lock people up" and Ollie said dungeons were "down in the castle." We looked at a picture of something called a battlement and thought it might be to do with battles, which are fights. We looked at the arrow slits and Maddie said, "they're for shooting arrows." We knew what a bridge was, but we weren't sure what a drawbridge was and how it was different to a normal bridge.

We came up with some questions we wanted to find the answers to. These were:
What is a drawbridge?
What is the keep?
What are battlements?
Why are arrow slits narrow?
How does a portcullis work?

Then we used books and the internet (using a laptop and the iPads) to find answers. We made notes as we went along so we wouldn't forget what we had learnt! Here are some of the things we found out:

The drawbridge goes up to stop people getting in. (Maddie)
Dungeons were dark and prisoners were kept there. Dungeons were full of rats and spiders. (Jamie)
The moat means you can only get across by boat or drawbridge. You can also fish in it. (Olivia)
The keep was a tall square tower. It was very safe and the king lived there. (Lucy)
Battlements are at the top of the castle. You can shoot arrows through the gap and hide behind the high bit. (Grace)
You close the portcullis with chains. (Lilly)
You can shoot an arrow out of the arrow slit but other people can't shoot in. (Harry)

There is still a lot we can learn about castles - today we learnt about different parts of the castle, and we know that you can get information from books and computers. Check out our blog for the rest of the week to see what else we can learn about castles!

Breaking News - Rare dragon spotted in classroom!

The rare Gaddesden Ridgeback dragon, known for its nocturnal habits and its preference for living near parks and gardens, has made an appearance at Great Gaddesden School. Children spotted the red dragon in their classroom on Friday afternoon and decided to learn more about it. They discovered that the Gaddesden Ridgeback's green eyes are good at seeing in the dark and that its strong wings mean it can fly up to 40mph. It also has bright gold claws, spikes and a bright gold tail. Despite its fiery breath, however, Gaddesden Ridgebacks are very friendly dragons which can be tamed and kept as household pets.

After learning all about Gaddesden Ridgeback dragons the children delivered an oral report to the headteacher, Miss Worsley, so she can remain properly informed of the new visitor who has made its way onto school grounds. To ensure the public are well informed about this species of dragon, the children also created information posters, with detailed pictures of the Gaddesden Ridgeback and labels containing all the important information.

Rest assured that the Reception children at Great Gaddesden School are well on their way to becoming dragon experts - look out for more reports on dragon species in the coming weeks.

Dragon making!

This morning we read some stories about dragons and made a big dragon of our own! We stuck egg boxes onto a picture of a dragon that Mrs Batson had drawn - this shows how bumpy the dragon is! We are going to make some flames to come out of its mouth to show that dragons breathe fire. What else do you think we need to do to finish our dragon?