Year 4 – Spring Term (every Olympic Year)
Being a British Citizen – and the world in which I live.
Special event: Visits to courts / council chambers; talks from MP, Porthcurno Museum, Tehidy Woods
This topic is all about living and looking after ourselves today. We will look at British Values and how they apply to our lives. We will think about our rights and responsibilities as citizens, our desire to look after ourselves and also look out for others. The children will explore aspects of Law, common and civil and the United Nation rights of the child. Through creative inquiry and the e-bug project we will explore things that affect us like the importance of microbes, their spread, treatment and prevention thus allowing us to take more responsibility for our own health. We will also complete Heartstart training enabling us to know the basics of life support techniques and what to do in an emergency. This will link to basic survival and shelter building techniques.In History they will study the Romans and understand what their Empire did for us as well as a stand-alone unit on Benin.
Be Healthy: The e-bug project’s aim is for the children to understand the importance of microbes in our lives and to raise awareness of the way microbes spread. It is hopes that our absence rates due to transferable diseases are reduced. In collaboration with microbiologists at the Royal Cornwall Hospital and Public Health England we are also aiming to reduce the prescription of anti-biotics.
Staying Safe: The children will look at ways to avoid infection from harmful microbes. Their work on British Citizenship will also heighten awareness of how to stay safe in our society.
Enjoy and Achieve: This topic will enable the children to look at themselves as citizens, examine what they enjoy and what their aims and goals are.
Make a Positive Contribution: They will look at all of the aspects of British values and apply them to their own context.
Achieve Social and Economic Well Being: Analysis of British Values will inevitably lead to discussions about democracy and how groups within society can work in harmony for the common good.
· Assistance with trips
· Outdoor learning tables
· Pupil progress groups
The children will listen to the sounds we hear; and explain how sounds travel. They will study the ways in which we communicate via sound and hearing precise sounds being vital our survival. For the shelter building (DT) part of their project the children will be making model torches to ensure they understand their design and use them to study electricity, circuits and switches.
Programme of Study
Working scientifically
During years 3 and 4, pupils should be taught to use the following practical scientific methods, processes and skills through the teaching of the programme of study content:
· Asking relevant questions and using different types of scientific enquiries to answer them.
· Setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests.
· Making systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, taking accurate measurements using standard units, using a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers.
· Gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions.
· Recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables.
· Reporting on findings from enquiries, including oral and written explanations, displays or presentations of results and conclusions.
· Using results to draw simple conclusions, make predictions for new values, suggest improvements and raise further questions.
· Identifying differences, similarities or changes related to simple scientific ideas and processes.
· Using straightforward scientific evidence to answer questions or to support their findings.
(Pupils in years 3 and 4 should be given a range of scientific experiences to enable them to raise their own questions about the world around them. They should start to make their own decisions about the most appropriate type of scientific enquiry they might use to answer questions; recognise when a simple fair test is necessary and help to decide how to set it up; talk about criteria for grouping, sorting and classifying; and use simple keys. They should begin to look for naturally occurring patterns and relationships and decide what data to collect to identify them. They should help to make decisions about what observations to make, how long to make them for and the type of simple equipment that might be used.
They should learn how to use new equipment, such as data loggers, appropriately. They should collect data from their own observations and measurements, using notes, simple tables and standard units, and help to make decisions about how to record and analyse this data. With help, pupils should look for changes, patterns, similarities and differences in their data in order to draw simple conclusions and answer questions. With support, they should identify new questions arising from the data, making predictions for new values within or beyond the data they have collected and finding ways of improving what they have already done. They should also recognise when and how secondary sources might help them to answer questions that cannot be answered through practical investigations. Pupils should use relevant scientific language to discuss their ideas and communicate their findings in ways that are appropriate for different audiences.
These opportunities for working scientifically should be provided across years 3 and 4 so that the expectations in the programme of study can be met by the end of year 4. Pupils are not expected to cover each aspect for every area of study.)
Sound:
· identify how sounds are made, associating some of them with something vibrating
· recognise that vibrations from sounds travel through a medium to the ear
· find patterns between the pitch of a sound and features of the object that produced it
· find patterns between the volume of a sound and the strength of the vibrations that produced it
· recognise that sounds get fainter as the distance from the sound source increases.
Electricity:
· identify common appliances that run on electricity
· construct a simple series electrical circuit, identifying and naming its basic parts, including cells, wires, bulbs, switches and buzzers
· identify whether or not a lamp will light in a simple series circuit, based on whether or not the lamp is part of a complete loop with a battery
· recognise that a switch opens and closes a circuit and associate this with whether or not a lamp lights in a simple series circuit
· recognise some common conductors and insulators, and associate metals with being good conductors.
What could this look like?
· String telephones
· Experiments with different musical instruments
· Using data loggers to explore sound different times and in different places
· Study of different ears
· Study of different voice boxes
· Ways of projecting sound
· Ways of amplifying hearing
· Wiring simple circuits
· Making switches
· Experiments with brightness
· Experiment with materials which=h conduct electricity and those which insulate.
(-Pupils should explore and identify the way sound is made through vibration in a range of different musical instruments from around the world; and find out how the pitch and volume of sounds can be changed in a variety of ways.
Pupils might work scientifically by: finding patterns in the sounds that are made by different objects such as saucepan lids of different sizes or elastic bands of different thicknesses. They might make earmuffs from a variety of different materials to investigate which provides the best insulation against sound. They could make and play their own instruments by using what they have found out about pitch and volume.
- Pupils should construct simple series circuits, trying different components, for example, bulbs, buzzers and motors, and including switches, and use their circuits to create simple devices. Pupils should draw the circuit as a pictorial representation, not necessarily using conventional circuit symbols at this stage; these will be introduced in year 6.
Note: Pupils might use the terms current and voltage, but these should not be introduced or defined formally at this stage. Pupils should be taught about precautions for working safely with electricity.
Pupils might work scientifically by: observing patterns, for example, that bulbs get brighter if more cells are added, that metals tend to be conductors of electricity, and that some materials can and some cannot be used to connect across a gap in a circuit.)
Progression in skills:
· Teacher support occasionally.
· Questions raised by children as a result of initial illustrative work.
· Predictions beginning to include knowledge and understanding.
· Children develop variables with limited support ie amounts of soil, type of soil, amount of water, temperature of water.
· Concept of range internalised. Varies according to investigation.
· Tables constructed unaided. Children check for unusual results with adults. Median used. Bar graphs constructed unaided. Patterns and trends discussed with limited support.
· Correct scientific vocabulary used ie dissolving, melting used by teacher. Differences between the definitions of scientific words developed. Concept maps used to start interactive displays.
· Develops idea of recognising hazards and risks in investigative work. Can respond to questions about hazards and risks.
· Interval developing ie thin to thick material,
· Using equipment confidently with limited support. Developing precision ie 10g, 1 degree Celsius.
· Three measurements taken routinely. Standard units used more carefully. Adults introduce scanning results for unusual readings.
· Children report back with limited support. Teacher questioning used to develop explanations. Use of “because” encouraged.
· Explanations encouraged in writing. Patterns and trends developed. Answer whether the evidence supports prediction, whether and how the test was fair. Explain new findings.
Key vocabulary: sound, pitch, volume, vibration, auditory, ear drum, cochlea, electricity, circuit, cell, battery, switch, buzzer, bulb, series, parallel
Attainment targets: By the end of each key stage, pupils are expected to know, apply and understand the matters, skills and processes specified in the relevant programme of study.
· I know vocabulary related to sound
· I know vocabulary related to the ear
· I know vocabulary related to electricity
· I can make a switch
· I can make a circuit
· I can explain changes in my circuit
· I can explain conductors and insulators
History
The children will research the Benin Civilization of West Africa looking in particular at their culture and beliefs about Creation.
They will also look at the Roman Empire and its impact on Britain. These are two stand alone topics to ensure KS2 coverage.
Programme of Study
During their historical studies:
· Pupils should continue to develop a chronologically secure knowledge and understanding of British, local and world history, establishing clear narratives within and across the periods they study.
· They should note connections, contrasts and trends over time and develop the appropriate use of historical terms.
· They should regularly address and sometimes devise historically valid questions about change, cause, similarity and difference, and significance.
· They should construct informed responses that involve thoughtful selection and organisation of relevant historical information.
· They should understand how our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources.
· A non-European society that provides contrasts with British history –Benin (West Africa) c. AD 900-1300.
· A study of the Roman Empire and its impact on Britain
What could this look like?
· Internet research of the Benin and Romans
· Comparison of stories from different civilisations and cultures including our own present day beliefs
· Studying specific Roman inventions and regimes that have shaped society today
Progression in skills:
· Place events from period studied on a time line
· Use terms related to the period and begin to date events
· Use evidence to reconstruct life in time studied
· Look at evidence available and begin to evaluate the usefulness of different sources
· Use text books and historical knowledge, e-library and research
· Display findings in a variety of ways
· Work independently and in groups
· Choose relevant material to present a picture of one aspect of life in time past.
· They scan text from text books provided to find key information.
· They find information using search programs from sites provided by teacher.
· Ask a variety of types of questions.
Key vocabulary: Civilization, Benin, culture, beliefs, philosophy, kingdom, succession, emperor, empire
Attainment targets: By the end of each key stage, pupils are expected to know, apply and understand the matters, skills and processes specified in the relevant programme of study.
· I can explain features of Benin civilization
· I can make comparisons between that civilization, other African civilisations and my culture today.
· I can give examples of the impact on Britain today of the Roman Empire
Computing
In addition to the Constantine Rolling Programme of Branching Databases and Making Patterns and Modelling effects n screen…
The children will use databases to classify all of the information discovered through their fieldwork in the woods. They will use these to produce graphs of their data and to ask questions of their data. They will also use the ipads to film whilst out in the woods and use their movies to enhance their poetry writing. The children will have the opportunity to use light sensors and dataloggers to analyse different conditions for plant growth in the woods.
Throughout the topic digital literacy (e-safety) skills will be developed.