Year 4 2025 - 2026

Welcome to Year 4!

The teachers in Year 4 are Mrs Drury (4D) and Miss Rothwell (4R). The teaching assistant is Mr Foster.

Welcome back! We are really looking forward to having you all back in school and hope you are excited for all you will to learn in the Spring Term!

What will we be learning this half-term?

English

We will begin this half term by focusing on key grammar and spelling skills. The children will revisit different word classes, explore sentence structure and apply these skills to our writing.

Click the link for a selection of videos to help you support your child with this: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/zktdp9q

Following this, we will be exploring the fictional text ‘The Princess and the Pea’ by Lauren Child. We will take part in a variety of sentence stacking and experience-based lessons following the story of The Princess and the Pea with a view to create their own version of the story. We will then explore writing Instructions based on the same narrative. 

We will focus on embedding a variety of grammatical and linguistic techniques in our writing. These will include fronted adverbials, dialogue using inverted commas, expanded noun phrases and varying sentence structure. 

Maths

This half term, we will be developing our understanding of calculation with a focus on multiplication and division. The children will learn to multiply and divide using formal methods such as column multiplication and bus stop method for short division. They will also explore maths fluency through diagrams and practical resources.  Alongside this, we will continue to consolidate mental and written methods for addition and subtraction. These skills will provide a strong foundation for the work we will move on to later in the term.

Reading

This half term, we will be beginning with a fiction unit in our shared reading, studying the text ‘Perry Angel's Suitcase’ by Glenda Millard. The children will develop their retrieval and inference skills, whilst expanding their vocabulary through definition and application.

We will then move onto a non-fiction text, ‘Mysteries of Harris Burdick’. During this unit, we will build on the skills introduced previously as well as developing an understanding of non-fiction texts and their features.

Art

This half term, Year 4 will focus on using acylic paints to create their own Pointillism seascapes, with a focus on positioning obejcts in the foregrund and background of their image. Inspired by the work of Georges Seurat, pupils will study how the artist captured detail and expression through layering. They will experiment with a range oftools to create different sized dots and building layers of paint to create depth. 

Science

In Science this half term, Year 4 will be investigating the Digestive Sysytem. Pupils will learn about the organs in the digestive system and their functions through a series on hands on, explorative tasks and investigations. They will also learn about the different types of teeth and the importance of oral hygiene. 

Geography 

In Geography this half term, Year 4 will be exploring the enquiry question “What role do rivers play in the water cycle and how does it's course change throughout its journey?" Pupils will learn to use maps, atlases and digital tools to locate rivers and mountain ranges. They will explore physical and human impact of rivers on communities. The children will be able to describe the rivers journey and identify key features. They will also be able to link this to their scientific knowledge of the water cycle. 

Religion and Worldviews

During the spring term, we will be learning more about religion Judaism. We will be focusing on the concept of ‘commitment’ and ways in which many Jewish people choose to show their commitment to G-d. They will learn about Kushrut Law, Kosher foods and Passover. The children will explore the Story of Exodus and the importance of this to Jewish people. 

Home Reading

Children will be given a reading book to use for reading at home. The books should be returned to school once the children have read them, at which point your child will collect a new book to read. If your child is receiving phonics catch up, their reading book will be electronically assigned on Collins Hub (https://www.collinshub.co.uk/login/). Logins can be found on the front page of your child’s reading record.

We expect children to be reading for 10 minutes a day at home to an adult. Children will also be given a reading record to record when they have read to an adult at home. Comments should be written in the box provided, so we can track their progress and respond appropriately. Reading records will be checked daily to ensure they are being used effectively.

P.E. and Swimming

Children will take part in weekly P.E. lessons. P.E. will take place every Wednesday. Children should come to school in their PE kits, ready for PE. This PE kit is to consist of a white top, black trousers/shorts/leggings and appropriate trainers.

The children in Year 4 will also take part in weekly swimming lessons. Swimming lessons will take place on Mondays starting on 8^th September. Children must come to school ‘swimming ready’ with their swimwear on underneath their uniforms. Children must bring underwear and a towel in their swimming bag. Please refer to our swimming information letter, which can be downloaded on this website page, for details about the sessions and what your child needs to wear.

Homework

Children will be expected and encouraged to complete weekly homework linked to their learning. Every Friday, a short task will be set on Mathletics and Ed Shed, which will be linked to our learning in Maths and English that week. As part of the Wider Curriculum, children will also be assigned a piece of homework linked to our foundation topic. This will be recorded in their homework books.

All homework will be set on Friday and is to be completed by the following Thursday, ready to be checked and reset the next day.

Spellings

Children will be given spellings at the start of each week. These must be practised during the week, ready for our spelling test on Friday.

Times tables

By the end of Year 4, the children need to know all the times table facts for the 1-12 times tables. At the end of the year, children will take part in the Year 4 National Times Table Check, which tests their knowledge of the times table facts for 1-12 times tables.

This assessment will take place during a two-week period in June.

We will practise regularly in school, but it is crucial that children are practising their times tables at home daily for rapid recall. To support them with this, please make sure your child is regularly practising on Times Table Rockstars. In order to support your child further, we will have a weekly focus on a particular multiplication groups, which they will then be tested on and their progress will be monitored.

If you have any questions or need any help or support, please come and speak to us at the end of the day or email at the following class email addresses.

Mrs. Drury 4D

4d@ashburymeadow.manchester.sch.uk 

Miss. Rothwell 4R
4r@ashburymeadow.manchester.sch.uk