Metacognitive learners. Building the foundations for a knowledgeable future.

It’s... Brainwaves: Metacognition

In Art, we’ll be learning about:

• Making a colour wheel
• How to mix secondary and tertiary colours
• How using success criteria and skills rubrics improves learning.

In Health and Wellbeing we’ll be learning about:

• What it means to have a growth mindset and how it improves learning
• Personal Learning Goals and how they can help us with our learning 
• Strategies to help us remember new knowledge
• How to regulate our emotions
• How to use a communication strategy to solve conflict 
• How making connections strengthens learning 
• How sugar impacts on our brain. 

In Physical Education we’ll be learning about:

• The connection between music, movement, exercise and emotions.

In International we’ll be learning about:

• Comparing school experiences in different places and different times.

next...

Did you know that rainforests once covered 14% of our world’s surface? Now sadly they cover between 3-4% of the world. Why are they vanishing? We will need to be geographers, scientists including being botanists who explore the plant world to find out the answers to critical real-life problems. If we don’t act soon it could be too late!

It’s... Vanishing Rainforests

In Geography we’ll be learning about:

• Locations of rainforests around the world
• Products we use that come from the rainforest
• What life is like for people who live in tropical rainforests 
• Changes to the rainforests over time
• Causes of deforestation 
• What we can do to save, sustain and protect the rainforests.

In Science, we’ll be learning about:

• How plants get what they need to thrive in a rainforest
• Rocks and soils
• Different plants and animals in the rainforest
• Photosynthesis and what plants do with water
• Different types of leaves
• Seed dispersal
• Animal classification
• Food chains in the rainforest
• Animal adaptations in the rainforest.

In Art we’ll be learning about:

• Using the rainforest as inspiration for prints
• Identifying and using the elements of art. 

In Design, Technology and Innovation we’ll be learning about:

• How to design a mask to represent an animal
• Making a mask secure enough to wear for a dance.

In International we’ll be learning about: 

• What organisations, charities and countries are doing to help sustain the rainforests 
• Choices we can make to support and help sustain the rainforest. 

In Music we’ll be learning about:

• Creating the atmosphere of the rainforest through sound.

In Physical Education we’ll be learning about:

• Creating a rainforest dance. 

In I.C.T and Computing we’ll be learning about:

• Designing and building quizzes.

and then...

Humans are special. Unlike other animals, we can adapt and learn new skills in order to survive, which is exactly what our ancestors did in the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages.

It’s... Scavengers and Settlers

In History, we’ll be learning about:

• How fossils are formed and what we can learn from them
• How our earliest ancestors might have lived
• The migration of early humans
• How we can learn about the past by investigating a Stone Age village
• What life was like during the Bronze Age and Iron Ages.

In Physical Education, we’ll be learning about:

• Throwing with accuracy when moving and avoiding obstacles
• Skills of defending and attacking
• The importance of rules and fair play.

In Art, we’ll be learning about:

• Making and decorating ancient style pottery
• Prehistoric cave paintings.

In Health and Wellbeing, we’ll be learning about:

• The diet of the Stone Age man
• The dangers of foraging in the past and today.

In Geography, we’ll be learning about:

• The historical region of Mesopotamia
• Ancient Mesopotamian farming and how they were self-sufficient.

In International, we’ll be learning about:

• The reasons for migration
• The charities that provide humanitarian aid.

and finally...

Geographers and explorers estimate that there are over one million islands on earth! We will be learning about the islands of the world, how they are formed, what life is like on some islands, as well as some of the threats to people’s lives and their unique cultures. We will explore how islands range hugely in shape, size, location and climate but that they are all surrounded by water. We will need to be geographers and cartographers as well as artists and musicians. As almost one in ten people on earth live on an island, let’s explore what some islands are like across the globe! Can you imagine what life would be like to live on a small island?

It’s... Island Life

In Geography, we’ll be learning about:

• The continents of the world and their islands
• Interpreting and using maps
• Lines marked on maps and globes that divide up the Earth 
• The geographical features on different islands
• Features of a river
• The water cycle
• How to use 4 figure grid references
• The different ways islands are formed
• How humans have developed and made use of islands.

In History, we’ll be learning about:

• Darwin’s exploration of islands. 

In Art, we’ll be learning about:

• Fabrics and patterns from different islands
• How to create an island-inspired stamp
• Artists who have been inspired by islands. 

In International, we’ll be learning about:

• The unique cultural aspects of a place
• How island culture and ecology is under threat and how to protect them.

In Music, we’ll be learning about:

• Different music from islands around the world
• Creating the atmosphere of an island through sounds and rhythms.  

In Physical Education, we’ll be learning about:

• Teamwork through island-inspired games
• Creating a dance inspired by islands
• How to stay safe in or near water.