What a FANTASTIC surprise we had on Thursday 20th September! Our Year 2 children were delighted to discover three birds of prey waiting for them in the junior hall. Phillip and Adam from Durham Falconry showed us: a barn owl named Bobby, a harris hawk named Jasper and a falcon named Seph. Linking to our science topic about living things, habitats and food chains, we learned soooooo much about these three fascinating birds and even got the opportunity to hold one, as well as watching a flying display! Wow!
Linking bossy commands with place value, our year two pupils worked in pairs to spot the mistake and reason about two-digit numbers.
We gave the pupils a photo of apparatus that did not match the two-digit number shown in numerals.
Using apparatus, the challenge was to solve the problem and write a set of bossy commands to correct it!
At the moment, we are learning about bossy commands and reading lots of instructional texts. Bossy commands need to be short and snappy and begin with a bossy verb.
So, we thought our year two pupils would enjoy working in pairs to read carefully and follow a set of instructions to help them make a delicious jam sandwich!
The final bossy command was the best……..   “Now eat the sandwich!”  Mmmmmmmm!
In Year 2 we have been identifying, describing and sorting living, non-living and dead things in our school grounds.  We had fun searching high and low in areas such as: our wild life garden, the school playing fields, hedges, bushes and lots more. After finding living creatures and plants, we thought about why they lived in these habitats or micro-habitats. Were they good ‘homes’ or not? Why?  
As part of Year Two’s Buddhism topic, pupils worked collaboratively, in pairs, to plan and make their own Buddha statue. Pupils had studied whether statues were the same or different and explored why statues of Buddha are important to Buddhists.  After ………..
making their finishing touches, pupils then had to describe the features on their particular Buddha to show the different aspects of Buddhism.
What a fortnight we’ve had in Year Two celebrating Sunderland hosting the start of The Tall Ships Race this year. This whole school topic has captivated Year Two (and the rest of the school) and, through an enriching, creative curriculum, pupil learning has been fantastic!
Visiting the port of Sunderland, seeing the breathtaking vessels and venturing on to the deck of a tall ship made learning so real! Our pupils will cherish these memories for years to come.
We even had some of our Year Two pupils being interviewed by a local radio station! WOW!!
Year Two also were very lucky to have had a visit from Pippa Bell, a local historian, who works for Magic Lantern – an educational charity which gives interactive art history workshops in schools.  Pippa brought to life our topic in the classroom and used art to help our pupils learn more about tall ships and pirates. Our pupils observed and explored the world around them and were encouraged to think creatively and critically. Pippa stimulated an imaginative use of language and got our pupils involved in role play, which they loved!
Furthermore, Year Two pupils have made a ship in a jar, written wanted pirate posters, been involved in a scavenger hunt with Year Five pupils and thoroughly enjoyed our whole school pirate party!
What a fun-filled fortnight!!
And finally, Mrs Miller, our history lead, held a whole school assembly to celebrate work 
Year Four have been involved in with Craig Richardson, who has been part of a heritage project involving ONLY seven other schools in the authority! This incredible opportunity, organised by Mrs Miller, involved our Year Four pupils finding out about the local ship building of the Doxford Family and producing an ENORMOUS collaborate display which was proudly presented on show in the port of Sunderland during ‘The Tall Ships’ celebrations. It is now on display in school and please feel free to come and see it!
To celebrate National Sports Week, Year Two have been very busy keeping active. We’ve participated in exciting sport activities and events that keep us fit and healthy – from Ceilidh dancing to hula hooping and even skiing!  We also enjoyed our annual Sports Day.  What a fun-filled fit week we’ve had!  
In Year Two, this term, our science topic has been ‘Materials’. There are many different materials in our world so, practically, we sorted a variety of everyday materials into groups.  Then we had an ………… amazzzzzzzing apron experiment!
It is important to use materials that are right for the job so we planned and carried out a FUN experiment.
Which material – cotton, plastic, paper and aluminium foil – would be best for making an apron?   Carefully, we compared the different materials before choosing!
Can you guess which material was best and fit for purpose?