Welcome to Kestrels!
Our year 2 team consists of Mrs Harrison the class teacher and Mrs Kilby our teaching assistant. There currently are 30 pupils in the class. The pupils work hard at being kind towards each other and have a thirst to learn. It’s not just all work though. We also have lots of fun too especially when learning outside. Additionally, this year we continue our very popular virtual Show and Tell - it’s almost as good as the real thing! Every Friday, I will reveal something sent to me by a parent and their child will explain to the class what they have achieved outside of school.
Our Daily Routine
We have daily phonics lessons as well as daily maths and English lessons. English and maths lessons last for an hour and phonics for 20 min. we also read every day in class which is really fun as we also read to each other. Finally, we do guided reading to check our comprehension. Every day too, first thing in the morning, we are practising our spellings and pupils are tested on Fridays.
Our playtime is from 10:25 to 10:40 and our lunch is from 12:05 to 13:00. We use the playground at the front of the school and when the weather is good we use the trim trail and the area at the back of the classroom.
Key skills are important
Our daily input of core subjects build children skills throughout the year and they are also applied in a cross curricular approach. For instance, we are now using English learning objectives in all of the subjects as English is used in all of them. Maths skills are used in many subjects too: in French when we learn numbers, in PE when we are talking about 1st, 2nd and other places. In science when we are looking at quantities.
We believe in the power of a Growth mindset
In the class we celebrate making mistakes as pupils know that mistakes are the key to success. If children get stuck they use their Growth mindset to try and solve the issue and not to give up.
Our Year Ahead
We are looking forward to our visit to Knebworth House and Gardens in the summer term.
How we keep our bodies and mind fit and healthy
Year 2s are very active and any opportunity we have we will use to jump around and dance. We have 2 hours of PE a week, and to keep our mind healthy we also use mindfulness activities in Art and in PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economics) lessons.