Electricity, lights action!

After researching Thomas Edison and Lewis Latimer, we took some time to develop our own, new and improved lightbulb. This involved thinking about how we could improve the lightbulb and painting on the key elements of their invention. Can you remember 4 of them?

Next, we looked at creating mechanical drawings so we could be electricians ourselves! We used our knowledge of how a circuit works to design light houses. Some of them even had a switch!

Hadrian's Wall Afternoon

Today, year 4 explored what life would be like as a Roman legionary on Hadrian’s wall. Children learned about the features of a Roman fort and crafted important structures like a barracks, a grain store, a bathroom, a house for the centurion and a hospital. Unfortunately, the fort was raided by the northern Picts which meant some of our structures were destroyed. This required all of the legionaries to take up defensive positions and use our shield wall skills to hold the fort. Fortunately, we managed to complete the Fort in time for the inspection from Emperor Hadrian.

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"All aboard the Golden Hinde!" Our Francis Drake WOW day.

On Monday 13th January, we were introduced to our Spring Term topic with a visit to the Golden Hinde. We left school at 10am and headed towards the 388. We knew that the journey on the bus would be long but well worth it.

Nearly an hour later, we arrived at London Bridge bus station. We crossed a busy road and came to Borough Market.

The joy of a school trip!

The joy of a school trip!

We walked hastily through the market, which smelled delicious. As we rounded the corner of Southwark Cathedral, we saw in front of us the magnificent Golden Hinde. Copper Beach jumped on board the ship first, as we ate our lunch and waited patiently.

Thirty minutes later, it was our turn to embark on the perilous journey of the Golden Hinde. We were greeted by our captain, Nat. She took us on board the ship. It was a little daunting.

Can you spot the “poop deck”?

Can you spot the “poop deck”?

We learned all about Drake and his men. We even got to see the ”poop deck”. From here, we moved all around the ship, moving to the deck below and even the deck below that! We learned about the canons, the powder monkeys, where the crew slept, what they ate, and even got to experience Drake’s journey as he circumnavigated the globe.

When we were finished our tour, we got back on the 388 and arrived at school just in time to change our library books. It was a busy day so we were all exhausted. Want to know more about Sir Francis Drake? Ask any of us. We are experts now!

Ambitious Explorers

Ambitious Explorers

Our visit to the East London Mosque

On Monday, we visited the East London Mosque. Currently in class, we are learning about the Qur’an and its importance in the Muslim faith. During our visit, we saw the prayer hall, learned about the Imam and his role in the religion, and visited the Ablution (Wudhu) room. We even got to see the Mosque’s beehive!

We had a great day and were very patient with the buses. They took so long to arrive!

Well done Hazel Class. You represented the school and yourselves brilliantly!

Look at our Roman legion!

As a part of our Roman topic, we became Roman legionaries. We wrote applications to the Roman army, we re-created the invasion of Celtic Britain and we designed and built our own Roman shields! We even learned the formations; the testudo and the wedge. We are powerful, we are FIERCE!

Our Roman WOW Day

In Year 4, we introduced the kids to our new topic by exploring the Romans.

In the morning, we had a carousel of four activities, each lasting 15 minutes. The first activity was a Roman Feast! We ate grapes, strawberries, oranges, tomatoes, cheese and bread and created our own delicious menu. The second activity was to build Roman sandals. They were a bit too small, even for our feet, but they look great! For the third activity, we made dice with Roman numerals. Our task was to pick a physical activity and do it the number of times which appeared on the dice e.g. If the dice landed on V we had to do 5 star jumps. The final task was to try on togas, a very important part of Roman culture. We were excellent at following the written instructions so most of us got to have a race to see who was the fasted at securing their clothing.

In the afternoon, we learned about the importance of public speaking in Roman times. We discussed the features of persuasive writing and were told that we would have to write a speech to become Berger’s next emperor. Once we had all written our speeches, we voted in our table groups for the best one. Each of our nominees (or candidates) then had to stand in front of the class and present their speeches. The importance of democracy was discussed as we each privately voted for the person we believed should be Berger’s Emperor. And guess who it is… ZEYNEP! She made promises we just couldn’t refuse.

We look forward to learning much more about the Romans!