Year 4 Information

Soundproofing

Our science topic this half term was Sound. We have learned how sound is made when an object vibrates quickly. The sound can then travel as a wave through a solid, a liquid or a gas like the air. When the soundwave reaches your ear, your eardrum vibrates, which makes tiny bones vibrate against your cochlea. Inside the cochlea, hair cells send messages to your brain about the sound you have heard. We also used different materials to soundproof a “music studio” – a cardboard box containing an iPad playing music – and used a computer to measure how much the soundproofing reduced the volume of the music.

Gymnastics Competition

Year 4 were delighted to welcome Queen Emma Year 4 for our Gymnastics house competition. The children did very well with their gymnastics routines they have been learning this term. The Year 6 Sports Leaders did a great job of scoring, supporting and encouraging the children.

Estate Agents

We pretended we were a new intern working for an estate agent. To prove we had the skills necessary to be promoted to a Junior Estate Agent, we had to describe features of our classroom that would persuade new families to come to Queen Edith. Here are some of our ideas:

When you enter the spacious classroom, which is at least as big as a dinosaur, the first thing you will notice is the huge bookcase. It has a wide range of colourful books for all readers, sorted into different levels. Relax on the comfortable beanbags as you read. If you turn to the left, you will see a fancy Smartboard – almost as big as an iMax screen. The latest technology will help your child to learn English, maths and science much better than they would at any other school. Your child can earn housepoints if they work hard and behave well. A giant, golden trophy is presented to the winning house each term. Not only that, but in class there is magnificent Jigsaw time, which means you play with amazing toys and don’t have to do lessons!

How we learn Times Tables

On Parent Open Afternoon, we taught our parents some of the ways we learn our times tables. We showed the Counting Stick, Loop Cards, Quizzes, Round the Room and of course Times Tables Rock Stars. Some parents even had to join in and make sure they knew their times tables!

Roman Bread

Joe, Luke and their mum baked some Roman libum bread, using a 2000-year-old recipe from Cato the Elder. With honey, bay leaves and ricotta cheese it is unlike most bread we eat these days. Here are some photos of the libum that Joe and Luke brought in for everyone one in Year 4 to taste.

Gases

In Year 4, we are learning about solids, liquids and gases. We thought about whether gases really weigh anything. Some people thought not because they are invisible or lighter than air. We did an experiment with fizzy water to find out.

First we weighed some fizzy water in a cup, then we stirred it to make the gas

come out and weighed it again. The second time, it weighed less, showing that the gas that had escaped really weighed something (about 0.4 grams). We also used some even more sensitive scales and we could watch the weight going down as the bubbles escaped by themselves.

Science – Sound

In Year 4, we are learning about Sound in science this half term. We used slow motion video to capture sand grains bouncing on the vibrating skin of a drum. Although we couldn’t see a tuning fork vibrating when it made a sound, when we dipped it in water the vibrating ends splashed the water.

Chalk Pit Visit

We visited Cherry Hinton Chalk Pits as part of our Changes topic. Millions of years ago, the sea covered the local area, and the shells of sea creatures were deposited on the sea bed, taking 1000 years to create one centimetre depth of chalk. After the sea had retreated, Iron Age and Roman people lived in the local area, leaving behind evidence such as flint tools, animal bones and pottery. More recently, stone was quarried until the 1980s. It was used for buildings such as Cambridge colleges. In 2009, the chalk pit was converted to a nature reserve and is home to many plants, birds and other animals. While we were there, we also had the chance to practise our perspective drawing.

Middle Years Assembly

This week one of the Year 4 children gave a short talk to Years 3 and 4 about environmental pollution, including some of the causes and what we can do about it. If children have a topic they think is important or interesting, and would like to present it to the rest of Middle Years, they can speak to Mr Blower to arrange it.

Science – Gases

In Year 4, we are learning about solids, liquids and gases. We thought about whether gases really weigh anything. Some people thought not because they are invisible or lighter than air. We did an experiment with fizzy water to find out.

First we weighed some fizzy water in a cup, then we stirred it to make the gas come out and weighed it again. The second time, it weighed less, showing that the gas that had escaped really weighed something (about 0.4 grams). We also used some even more sensitive scales and we could watch the weight going down as the bubbles escaped by themselves.

4.1 Mission Statement

In 4.1, as part of Habit 2 (Begin with the end in mind) we have been thinking about why we come to school, how we best work together and how we would like others to view us. We gathered our ideas into a mission statement, and also made posters to show our thoughts.

Class Mission Statement We are in 4.1 to learn, so we do our best in our work; we listen carefully without interrupting and we share our ideas.

We also want to make friends and have fun, so we support each other in learning and playing, and we agree or disagree kindly.

We hope others will see that we are well-behaved, hard-working, we try our best and we are friendly and kind.

Leader in Me

For the first 8 days of the Autumn term we have been introducing all the children to the 7 habits and our new whole school project: The Leader in Me.

Please see the link to our daily newsletters which introduced parents to each habit and our celebration day on Friday.

We are seeking to teach children that they are the leader of themselves and with the 7 habits they can become leaders of others.

Year 4 Roman Projects

In the second half of the Spring Term, the Year 4 children were set the challenge of creating a project based on our Roman topic. Some people researched and presented information; some created an Roman artefact, model or piece of art. On the last day of term, we showed one another our finished projects.

Years 3 and 4 Treasure Chest Cuboids

Children from Year 3 and Year 4 have combined learning maths with our pirate-themed production to produce treasure chests. The 3D shape of a treasure chest is a cuboid, so we cut out a net, then folded and glued the flaps carefully. We decorated our cuboids to look like treasure chests.

Internal Monologues

For World Book Week, the whole school is reading “Welcome” by Barroux. It is about three polar bears who are separated from their home, and are refused entry onto other animals’ islands. In Year 4, we wrote about what the polar bears were thinking after being rejected for the third time. The children were challenged to write it as an internal monologue, rather than narrating the story. The children excelled at giving an insight into the bears’ emotions. In order to bring their monologues to life, we recorded each child reading their writing. You can find the audio file with your child’s voice on it stored under their table group name.