Today Y5 came into Y3 as ICT experts to show us how to use the explain everything app which links to our class project of fire safety. Y5 used everything they know about communicating clearly when explaining, to help the Y3 children use the app.
Year 3, what was your favourite feature you learnt to you on the app?
This morning Nursery were challenged to operate the Bee Bot machines. Through carefully questioning from Year 5 the children experimented with different controls and watched to see what happened!
Nursery explained to how the Bee Bots move;
“press the buttons”
“press GO!”
“make the wheels move”
Many thanks to your 5 for your support. Year 5 what surprised you this morning? What challenged you? Why?
How could we challenge Nursery next?
We’ve been using the above website to improve our typing skills – essential skills for those that want to learn how to write code!
The whole of KS2 went on a virtual school trip today using Google Virtual Reality Headsets! To tie in with their topic learning, Years 3 and 4 went to a tropical rainforest and Ancient Greece, while years 5 and 6 took a tour of a Lancaster Bomber and then went to Africa to look at the Namibian Desert, The Cape of Good Hope and the Kruger National Park.
After that, we went off topic and went to a variety of places including Antarctica, under the sea at the Galapogos Islands, prehistoric earth (dinosaurs!), the International Space Station, the solar system and lots more. We went to so many places i’ve forgotten them! Can you remind by commenting below?
Huge thank you to Rumana from Google Expeditions for bringing all the equipment and helping the morning run so smoothly.
What did you think? Did you enjoy learning in a different way? Was it better? Why?
We will be using this website for our Computing Club this afternoon:
KS2 – challenge yourself with this one
Or have another look at this one – what is similar/different about the 2 ways of coding?
Year 5 and 6 have been learning about computational thinking by writing an algorithm about brushing teeth! They have learnt that computers think in a ‘binary’ way therefore any decisions have to be answered with a yes or no.
When they had drafted and debugged their algorithms, they reproduced them in MS Publisher.
How could you develop your algorithms y5/6?
Today, during maths, we will be learning about Alan Turing. Alan Turing was a mathematician who, with an excellent team around him, cracked the ‘Enigma Code’ (secret code used by the German Army during WW2).
This website gives us some fantastic information about Alan Turing:
If you want to extend your learning – the website below gives more information about how Alan Turing created modern ‘computing’.
(in class: stop after approx 1 min)
I knew that the children of Maple Cross loved Skoolbo; we’ve been using it for a while now. However, I had no idea how well this school years re-launch would go! What has made the difference this year? Is it that we have a leaderboard on our school blog? Maybe. Is it that we all VALUE learning so much that we willingly do it in our own time? Possibly. Is it that Skoolbo is brilliant fun – not too easy, not too hard? You’ll have to let me know.
No 1 in the World!Andy H, as I write this post, is currently at THE TOP OF THE WORLD LEADERBOARD! That means no-one, anywhere in the world, has answered as many Skoolbo questions as Andy, this week. This is an incredible achievement – you are really putting Maple Cross on the map! What attributes have you had to use, Andy?
Special recognition needs to go to 2 other children – Bianca N in Y6 and George C in Y2. You have made it onto the top 100 WORLD leaderboard this week (Top 40 on the UK leaderboard). That is a fantastic effort – there are hundreds of thousands of Skoolbo users – just like you – and you are leading the way!
What I really want to know is: Is this having an impact in the classroom? If you use Skoolbo (which is most of you) – Do you feel like you’re that little bit sharper in maths? Are some of those words slightly easier to read? How is it helping you?
Parents – what do you think? Is it having an impact on your child’s learning? Do let me know.
I love Skoolbo – but do make sure you take regular screen breaks, don’t stay up too late playing it, keep reading normal books too and get out into the fresh air to play. It’s all about balance. Good job Maple Cross.
Thanks to the ideas generated by our Y4,5&6 Computing Club, We now have a much better idea of how we will use Digital Leaders next half term. In our inaugural Digital Leaders meeting we discussed our journey so far, and where we could go:
Thats part of the plan – the next stage will be for them to set up a working party to meet with y1,2 & 3 teachers to plan some classroom activities.
Their will be some other roles too – details to be announced.
So, Digital Leaders (you know who you are) – keep the ideas coming. What else could we do?
Here are some great online activities to help support our learning of geometry in Year 4. You will need to use your learning to complete the tasks!
For use on the laptops:
2D and 3D shapes and their properties
For use on the iPads:
