Young Chef of the Year

This week three pupils from Euler class, Kali, Jean-Luc and Eli visited the Food Technology and Nutrition Department at Cardinal Allen High School.  As part of the Young Chef of the Year competition, they used the facilities of the school to prepare dishes suitable for their 'Food Hero'.

Eli made pancakes with peaches and raisins; Kali prepared a beef lasagne and Jean-Luc made a hearty chicken soup.

The three children were supported by Mrs Horan at Cardinal Allen and would like to thank her very much for the advice and help they received during the day.

Faster, Higher, Stronger

On Friday 23rd June Euler went on their class trip.  Designed to complement our current topic 'Faster, Higher, Stronger' and the Olympic theme, we visited Blackpool Model Village followed by Stanley Park outdoor sports arena.  The children completed a quiz at the model village and then took part in our own mini Olympics in the stadium at the park.  They also enjoyed time on the outdoor sports area, where they tried to climb higher, move faster and be the strongest!  A great day was had by all!

Amazed by Algebra!

This week we used our outdoor space for an algebra challenge in our Maths lesson.  We worked in pairs trying to solve both picture and number puzzles involving all four maths operations.

Year 5 Visit to Cardinal Allen

As a taster for their time in high school, Year 5 children visited Cardinal Allen to sample life as a student there.  Over the course of a day the children took part in various lessons including Maths, English, RE, Art and Drama.  As well as this, they tried a school lunch which included everything from sausages to paninis.  It was a great opportunity to see how a high school works and also to catch up with St. Mary's students of past years.

Hey Euler - What's cooking?

This week children from Euler class took part in a food technology lesson with the team from Twelve Restaurant in Thornton.  As part of the Young Chef  of the Year project they learnt about food preparation and healthy diet, including food from the important food groups.  They are looking forward to more 'hands on' activities in the coming months.

Topic - Amazon Adventure

During this part of Summer term we are going to be studying the Amazon Rainforest in our topic lessons.  In English we have been looking at creating a newspaper article on the subject of deforestation, while in Art we used collage materials to create animals which we will put on our Amazon display.

Maths Challenges - Indoors and Out!

Taking advantage of the Spring weather, Euler took maths outside onto the playground.  The challenge was to match pairs of equivalent numbers; using fractions, decimals and percentages.

Life Education Bus

This week we have been visited by the Life Education Bus where children learn about various topics related to PSHE.  The Year 5 children spent time with Karen, who taught them about drugs awareness and peer pressures.  They had a great time and came away much more informed on these important topics.

Hunting for Easter Eggs

To celebrate Easter and to reward the children who had earned Dojos, the children were given the opportunity to hunt for Easter eggs and an Easter bunny.  They had great fun and it was a lovely way to end this busy term.  We hope you enjoy the Easter holidays.

Stations of the Cross 2017

Thursday 4th April was our day of reflection for Easter, Stations of the Cross.  Our stations this year were the 4th station (where Jesus meets his mother) and the 10th station (where Jesus is stripped of his clothes).  We hope you were able to visit and share this special time in school.  Take a moment and look at our photographs of the day.

Inventive Euler

In English lessons this week Euler have been thinking about Alex Rider; the teenage special agent created by award winning author Anthony Horowitz.  Working together in small groups, children had to think of everyday objects which could be adapted to become 'spy gadgets'.  Then, using the gadget as a starting point, they had to describe their original inventions.  They focussed on strong verbs and effective adjectives, while also trying to include technical vocabulary in their descriptions.  We hope that this introduction to Alex Rider will encourage our children to read some of the fantastic novels written by Horowitz.

Shaping Up Nicely!

In our Maths this week we have been learning about the properties of 2D and 3D shapes.  Some of us tried to construct our own 3D shapes from art straws while others tried constructing shapes from nets.

Rainbow Writers

We have been thinking about all the different elements we need to include in our creative writing.  We gave each a colour focus and our star writers managed to complete the full rainbow.  Their reward was a pack of Skittles  Write the rainbow, taste the rainbow!

Finely Balanced

Euler children learning about different ways to travel and balance using some of our gym equipment.

The Life and Inspiration of CS Lewis

On Monday 13 March, Euler children visited Emmanuel at the Mount Church to take part in a special workshop.  They learnt about the writer CS Lewis, author of the Narnia books, and the part his faith played in his writing.  In small groups they took part in several activities aimed at explaining Lewis' outlook on life; how being a soldier tested his faith in God and his membership of the Inklings writing club at Oxford University.  In particular, they were introduced to the allegorical themes of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.  Why not ask them to explain what this means?

World Book Day 2017

At St. Mary's,  we celebrated World Book Day in style!  Children took inspiration from their favourite books to create a 'book on a hat' or dress as a character.  We hope you were able to join us in our celebration assembly.  Remember to use your book tokens and spend them on a new book to share at home.

The Digestive System

Euler class have just started their Science unit on the Digestive System.  This works in conjunction with their current topic Chocolate.  Using Weetabix, tights and food colouring, the children tried to replicate the action of the enzymes in the digestive system.

French - What is the weather like today?

In French we are starting to learn about describing the weather.  We used props to represent the different kinds of weather.  In future weeks we will try and produce our own weather map complete with symbols.

Chinese New Year

We spent time this week learning about the traditions of Chinese New Year.  The new year which starts on 28th January 2017, is the Year of the Rooster.  We watched a short film about how Chinese people celebrate this special time and made our own lanterns and money wallets.

Topic - Chocolate

In Spring term we are studying chocolate.  We are discovering it's history, where in the world cocoa beans are grown and how it is made.  We have been visited by the Minister of Chocolate who taught us about the importance of Fair Trade farming.  He then gave us the opportunity to design and make and our own individual chocolate bar and a chocolate lollipop.  It was delicious!

Fractions Fun

Euler class are starting to work with fractions.  We have started to learn key words like numerator and denominator.  This week we have tried a variety of activities including matching pairs, fractions bingo and rainbow fractions to support our learning.

Merry Christmas

Just a few snaps from Euler party afternoon.  We had a great time playing games and dancing.  We would like to wish all our families and friends a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Fisherman's Friend

This week Euler class had a visit from Mark Whittaker of Fleetwood company, Fisherman's Friend.  Mark explained about the origins of the company and  showed the children a presentation about the present day operation.  After tasting some of the many flavours available across the world, the children went on to design their own Christmas cold lozenge.

Advent

We are preparing for Advent by making our Advent promises which will be hung on the Christmas tree.  We have prepared a Posada box which will be making a journey to our homes during the Advent season.  We will share prayers with our families and take photographs.

Maths Trail

During our maths lesson Euler children have followed measuring clues to solve a maths trail. 

Euler have the X Factor

Well done to the first group of children to achieve their times table champion badge.

English - Oliver Twist

In our English lessons during Autumn 2, Euler children are reading the classic novel by Charles Dickens, 'Oliver Twist'.  To improve their written sentences, they have been learning about the importance of conjunctions.  The paper chains help them understand that by adding a conjunction their sentences will be stronger, just like the links of a chain.

The Mount - The Sea Swallow

Using the backdrop of the Wyre Estuary and the facilities provided by the Mount Pavilion, the children have been trying to produce news reports detailing the events of the story of the Sea Swallow.  After brainstorming in groups they used iPads to record short videos in the style of a news report.

English - The Sea Swallow

In our English lessons we have been reading this atmospheric story, written by Gareth Thompson, based on the waters of the Fylde Coast.  The children have been using the story as a basis for their own descriptive writing.  They have been learning how to sequence events and use adverbs to improve their own stories.

Practical Investigation

Science Week ended with a final round of practical science investigation.  Working in small groups the children looked at different chemical reactions, including dissolving and absorption.

Science Week - Eureka Trip

A highlight of this week was our trip to Eureka! The National Children's Museum in Halifax.  Euler children learnt 'All About Me' in a dedicated section of the museum, then spent time exploring the other exhibits.  They had the opportunity to work in a supermarket, in a garage and to learn about space and sound.

Science Week (3-7 October 2016) - Mad Science

Science Week was launched with a visit from Mad Science.  'Nitro Neil' and helpers from KS1 and KS2 conducted investigations into sound.  We learned about vibrations and sound waves, and how both light and sound travel.

Football Coaching in PE

During one of our weekly PE sessions, Euler Class have been working with a coach from the Football Association.  They have been learning that before they can control a ball, they must first be able to control their own bodies.  The children have been practising balances and movement skills as well as working with a football ready to play the game for real.

A Kingdom United

In our topic lesson we have been trying to create coats of arms using various art mediums.  Pupils used various methods to produce their own coat of arms, these included chalks, paints, pens, pencils and collage materials.

Good All-Rounders!

To reinforce our maths this week, the children have been using the game of rounders to support their learning.  Answering questions about rounding numbers to 10, 100 and 1000 they worked in teams to complete rounds on the playground. 

Outdoor Classroom

Taking advantage of the lovely September sunshine, Euler class used our outdoor space to learn how we represent and estimate numbers on a line.