WELCOME TO OUR CLASS PAGE 

On here you will find everything you should need to know about Year 2 and we will also keep you updated on our learning and fun by posting photos of our work and activities throughout the year. 

Should you have any questions, you can contact me by email and I will do my very best to help:

Mrs Walker (Class Teacher)

Victoria.walker@racemeadow.org

Our Learning Support Assistants are:

Mrs Elsmore, Mrs Newbury & Mrs Skilleter 

Our first mini-mission is:

The Rainbow Fish

On immersion day, we had fun doing role play, fingerpainting, making puppets and colouring. 

In Science, we have been learning about animals and their habitats. We set up an experiment to find out which habitat woodlice prefer, after spending some time collecting them from around the school grounds. We found out that they prefer a dark, damp habitat. 

We also learnt about food chains and spent some time creating our own using pictures.

In Art, we looked at the work of Russian artist Olga Nikitina, who is known for painting underwater scenes. We compared it to illustrations by Marcus Pfister in Rainbow Fish. Their work inspired our beautiful underwater collages. We mixed different tints of blue to paint our backgrounds then used different collage techniques to create our sea creature. Have a look at our amazing work. 

In English, we looked at a variety of poetry then we practised and performed a poem called My Shell. We even made up actions! 

Our Autumn 2 mini-mission is Time Travellers. To begin with, we will be historians,  

 learning about and drawing comparisons between two significant pioneers from the past - Neil Armstrong and Christopher Columbus. We will use a range of sources to identify similarities and differences.  

Next, we will be scientists and look at the uses of everyday materials, their suitability and how they can be changed. 

Finally, we will be designers, and research, design and make a space shuttle using given design criteria. 

On immersion day, we found an amazing time capsule from 1969, buried outside on the field. When we opened it, their was a selection of photographs, dates and clues about Neil Armstrong and his mission in Apollo 11. We watched a video of the first moon landing and even made our own astronaut.

In History, we have been using different sources to research the life of Neil Armstrong. We used iPads, videos, books and leaflets to find different facts then made a list ready to use later. 

We learnt to order significant historical events and placed them on a human timeline.

Our trip to The National Space Centre

As part of our Time Travellers mini-mission, we went on a trip to the National Space Centre in Leicester . We had a great time climbing and exploring the 42m rocket tower, visiting the Sir Patrick Moore Planetarium and exploring the six interactive galleries. It was out of this world! 

Design and Technology

In DT, our project was to design and make a Space Rocket in a similar style to Apollo 11. We looked at lots of pictures and videos to give us ideas before we created our designs. Our rocket had to be launched into the air so we investigated 3 different launch methods to help us decide which one we wanted to use. This influenced our final design and what materials we chose to make our rocket. 
 

Have a look at our finished designs; they’re great!

Around the World with Paddington Bear

Our mini-mission for Spring 1, was all about Paddington and his travels from Peru to London to stay with the Brown Family. 
On immersion day, we found an old suitcase with lots of interesting things inside - a map of Peru, a map of London, the Union Jack and the Peruvian flag, a pair of red wellies and a jar of marmalade. We guessed that they belonged to Paddington Bear and were very excited!

Science

In Science we learnt about Charles Mackintosh, who invented the first waterproof coat. We investigated different materials and looked at lots of things which are waterproof, sorting them and describing their properties.

We then investigated different materials to find out which one would be most suitable to make a waterproof coat for Paddington. We looked at rubber, aluminium foil, cotton fabric, paper and plastic. We placed each material over paper coloured with felt pen then dripped water on top to test whether it went through. We found that plastic, rubber and foil were all waterproof but cotton fabric and paper weren’t. They let the water through so the felt pen smudged! 

Art and Design

At the end of our mini-mission, we became artists and studied the work of the sculptor Henry Moore. We learnt that he often uses nature to inspire his work and his sculptures are known for having holes in them. 
We later studied images of Peruvian mountains to inspire us for our own mountain sculptures. 
First we worked on our sketching skills, drawing lines of different lengths and thicknesses, using a range of sketching pencils. We also added shading and texture to make our mountains more realistic. 

Next, we used our sketches to inspire our clay mountain sculptures. We used clay tools to scrape and add texture and we used pinching, smoothing and joining techniques to create peaks and valleys. We were very proud of our works of art.

Unsinkable?

Our Spring 2 mini mission was Unsinkable. To start the topic off, we became historians, learning all about the famous sinking of the Titanic. We learnt what an amazing ship it was, with all its facilities and about the different classes of passenger. We then learnt how it tragically struck an iceberg and sank. We were very interested. 

Immersion Day

On immersion day, we took part in a Titanic workshop with a visiting company. We learnt the full sequence of events through role play and storytelling - listening to music, playing games, dressing up and acting. We had great fun and learnt so much. 

Science

In Science, we learnt all about what we need to stay healthy including sleep, air, shelter, exercise and a healthy diet. We learnt about the different food groups and how much from each group we should eat. As part of our learning, we looked at a range of foods then sorted them into the correct groups. 

Design and Technology 

In Design and Technology, our mission was to design a menu. We spent time looking at lots of different menus comparing them and discussing similarities and differences. Once we had looked at a variety of menus, we decided what our menu would have on it before designing and creating our own. 

To finish off our Unsinkable mini mission, we all made a dessert that might be served on board the Titanic - apple pie! We had great fun using cutters, adding pie filling, glazing with milk and sprinkling with sugar, before the pies were cooked ready for us to try! Yum!

Crazy Hair For Comic Relief!

Friday March 15th was Comic Relief Day. Everyone was invited to come to school with crazy hair and to donate money to Comic Relief. Look at some of our crazy hair styles! 

Easter Raffle

At the end of the Spring term, we had a chocolate Easter egg raffle, to raise money for school funds. Everyone was invited to come to school in their own clothes in exchange for an Easter chocolate donation. We then raffled off the eggs and chocolate. Year 2 raised around £180, which was amazing! 

Savannah Secrets