Mini beasts
Reception have been busy bee’s this week! We have been learning about mini beasts and making bug hotels outside ! We also used junk modelling to make bee’s in the craft area.
Design and Technology
We arrrrr pirates!
Reception have been learning about pirates this week. They have had the chance to create swords, eye patches, treasure chests, messages in bottles and even pirate ships outside!
Year 2 Blast Off!
Year 2 watched the film, ‘The Way Back Home’, for the start of their adventure story writing unit in English. The boy in the story travels to another planet in his rocket. The children thought about what their own spaceship might look like if they travelled into space. Everyone showed the value of enjoyment making junk model spaceships.
Year 5: How do architects design buildings to withstand earthquakes?
Year 5 have learned about the devastating effects earthquakes can have, and different design ideas that architects use to try and make buildings in earthquake zones safe. We have used spaghetti and marshmallows, K’nex and Magnetix to see where we could find weaknesses in different structural designs, and how to make the strongest joins. Finally, we used everything we had learned to create replica earthquake proof buildings using art straws, playdoh and masking tape which were tested on our wobble board.
- I enjoyed learning new ways to join the structures together.
- I enjoyed using the magnets because it helped me visualise the different shapes in my head.
- It was really fun and creative to find different ways to strengthen our joins.
- I enjoyed learning about the different ways architects protect buildings in earthquake zones.
- It was really challenging on our final design to build with minimal construction tools.
- It was really frustrating at times but none of us gave up – we all kept trying!
Year 6: How can we build a vehicle for speed?
During design and technology week, we have been building gravity powered soapbox cars to see how far we can get them to travel from a ramp. We have used a wide range of tools and materials, and followed different design techniques to bring our vehicles to life.
- It has been really fun using different tools and learning how to use the hot glue gun.
- It has taught us how important it is to work as a team.
- I’ve enjoyed working like an engineer to design our vehicle.
- I’ve really liked the independence we’ve had to create our design and can’t wait to race it against the others.
- We liked experimenting with bigger wheels to see which would be the most stable and the fastest.
Future Designers
As part of D&T Week, Year 1 have been working hard to create fabulous chairs for their teddies.
This week, our classroom has been taken over by teddies of all shapes and sizes, but unfortunately, there were so many teddies that we didn’t have enough chairs! The children decided to solve the problem by researching, designing, creating, and evaluating their very own chairs for their teddies. We had unicorn chairs, gaming chairs and of course pizza chairs! They used junk modelling materials and even learned the skill of papier mache, as well as adding some sparkles to make their chairs extra special.
It was clear to see the teddies were very happy with what the children had created for them. We also think the children were very impressed with their creations too.
Well done, Year 1!
Stone Soup
This week we read the traditional story of ‘Stone Soup’ and looked at what made a healthy soup. We learnt about vegetable names and how to use knives safely. We then designed and made a vegetable soup to try. The children loved tasting their healthy soup and showed great teamwork!
Pizza Pizza
As part of their Design and Technology project, Year 4 have been busy making their own pizzas this week. They enjoyed eating them during their Christmas party. Well done, Year 4!
Building Bridges
This week, Year 3 have had fun being engineers. Firstly, they learnt about the different types of bridges. Then, they designed their own bridges. Next, they used recycled materials to build their own bridge with a partner. Finally, we tested the bridges – would a toy car roll across the bridge and would they support a 1kg weight?
A new chair for Baby Bear!
Year 1 read the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, and knew straight away that they wanted to create a new chair for Baby Bear! They planned out their designs and had great fun using junk modelling materials to make them. They are looking forward to evaluating their chairs tomorrow. Well done Year 1!
