Dear Parents and Guardians,

As we wrap up another fantastic school year, we want to take a moment to reflect on the incredible journey our Year 2 students have been on. It has been a year filled with growth, learning, and memorable experiences. Here’s a look back at some of the highlights:

History: Preston Guild

Our history unit took us back in time to explore the rich traditions of the Preston Guild. The students learned about the historical significance of this event, its origins, and how it has evolved over the centuries. They were fascinated by the stories and the heritage that continue to shape our community. Thank you to all the families who donated some fantastic artefacts for the children to explore and to Bernie’s grandma who came into class to discuss her experiences of the Guild celebrations.

English: Innovating Stories and Writing Explanation Texts

In English, the children embarked on an imaginative journey by innovating the classic story of "Dick Whittington". They added their own twists and turns, creating unique versions of this timeless tale. Following this creative exercise, they honed their writing skills by composing their own explanation texts, demonstrating their understanding of various topics in a clear and structured manner.

Science: Sustainability

Our budding scientists delved into the important topic of sustainability. As part of this unit, they wrote heartfelt letters to Sir David Attenborough, expressing their concerns and ideas about protecting our planet. This activity not only enhanced their writing abilities but also fostered a deeper awareness of environmental issues. We look forward to his replies!

PSHE: Growing and Changing

In PSHE, we focused on the theme of growing and changing. The students engaged in thoughtful discussions about personal development and the various changes they experience as they grow. This unit helped them build a better understanding of themselves and their peers, promoting empathy and self-awareness.

Art: Exploring Clay

Our art sessions were a highlight for many students as they explored the versatile medium of clay. They enjoyed getting their hands dirty and bringing their creative visions to life through sculpting. The resulting artworks were impressive and showcased the students' growing artistic talents.

RE: Ascension and Pentecost

In Religious Education, we explored the significant events of Ascension and Pentecost. The children learned about these important aspects of the Christian faith and reflected on their meanings. These lessons were enriched with activities that helped the students connect with and understand these religious traditions.

I want to take a moment to thank you all for your support during my time at St Leonard's, I am looking forward to my next adventure and it has been joy to teach this colourful class. All the staff in year 2 very proud of the progress the children have made not just in their academic abilities but in their own personal growth.

All the best,

The Year 2 Team

Summer 1 Newsletter

As we head our May half term break, it was wonderful to look back at everything the children have achieved this half term. 

Our English lessons have been particularly exciting as the students engaged with the text The Manor House, a suspense story. Inspired by this tale, the children wrote their own innovated stories. Their stories were filled with suspense and creativity, making for a thrilling read! We enjoyed a fantastic outing to the woods, where the children had a picnic and explored the natural surroundings. After our return, we used the experience to write a recount of our time in the woods and enjoying platters of fruit on the school field. 

In maths,  the children have been learning how to tell the time. We have also learned how to divide shapes into equal parts and writing them as fractions. It's been wonderful to see their progress and enthusiasm for these essential skills.

In the afternoons, we have been busy with a delightful sewing project in DT. The children have shown great perseverance and independence as they learned various sewing techniques such as a running stitch. The results are impressive, and we are proud of their hard work and dedication! In geography, the children have explored the human and physical features of the new seven wonders of the world. In this topic the children have been inspired about different cultures and landscapes from around the world. In RE, we explored why people of faith visit religious buildings. We looked at the world faiths, how people around the world and locally worship. In science, the children absolutely loved learning about the different life cycles of animals. 

We hope you all have a lovely break and we are looking forward to welcoming the children back for our final term in Year 2.

Spring 2 Newsletter

As we get ready for a restful break over the Easter holidays, here is a catch up on what Year 2 have been up to in the Spring 2 term.

Our trip to Mrs. Dowson's Farm was an absolute blast! The children had a fantastic time learning about different animals and discovering how to care for them. From little lambs to fluffy rabbits, the children we able to get up close to feed and stroke the animals. Thank you to the volunteers who made the trip possible.

In English, our budding authors have been busy crafting their own stories using the Dialogue Toolkit. The creativity and humour displayed in their stories were truly remarkable! The children worked hard over the half term to create their own innovated story based on the text, The Papaya That Spoke.

In maths, we explored 2D and 3D shapes. Through hands-on activities and interactive games, they explored the properties of these shapes.

World Book Day this term was another highlight and it was filled with literary delights! The children discussed their favourite book characters, sparking conversations about different stories and authors. We immersed ourselves in the magical world of wordless books, celebrating the power of storytelling and imagination.

In Religious Education, we explored the symbols associated with Easter, which we were able to see during our trip to church this morning. These symbols serve as powerful reminders of the spiritual significance of Easter and the children enjoyed making connections with symbols they see regularly and how they link to the Easter story.

Wishing you all a wonderful break and thank you all for your continued support. 

Warm regards,

The Year 2 Team

Blink and you miss it! A short half term for Spring 1 but an action packed one for Year 2.

This half term we have had some special visitors come in and went on a trip to Quwwat ul Islam Mosque in Preston. Lancs Fire and Rescue delivered a work shop on fire safety and how to stop, drop and roll. We had three mystery readers during National Story Telling week, many thanks again to the parents who read to the classes and those who came in for Careers Day too.

In RE, year 2 enjoyed their visit from Captain Debbie Eaton, one of the leaders from the Salvation Army in Preston. Debbie delivered a calming, relaxed session showing us how Christian charities welcome everyone, just as Jesus did and how Jesus teaches us to be a friend to all.

In English, we created our own warning stories using Kassim and the Greedy Dragon as our text. The children enjoyed their homework task, creating their own information texts on a subject of their choice. We have been blown away by the children’s creativity!

In maths, we have learnt about money, the value of coins and notes, calculating total amounts and comparing total amounts.

In geography, we have learnt about farming in Sri Lanka and Snowden, Wales. We have compared the two areas, explored how the farming styles differ and why.

In science, we conducted an experiment by planting seeds in a dark place and a light place to see, what do plants need to grow healthily. We will check on our plants after half term to finish our experiment.

In DT, the children designed and created their own ferris wheels. The children were proud of their achievements as this was a fiddly project that required patience and determination.

In music, we have thoroughly enjoyed listening and appraising different songs in the rock genre.

Well done year 2!

We have had a wonderful half term in Year 2.

In English, we have learnt how to write a descriptive story using the text, The Disgusting Sandwich. We focused on using similes, noun phrases and sentences of three to describe.

In maths, we have been learning about the 2, 5 and 10 times tables and have been using these facts to multiply and divide. We have also been learning about measuring length using cm and m. 

In science, we have learnt about different materials and conducted investigations to see which materials can be stretched, bent and squashed.

In history, we have enjoyed learning about the Great Fire of London. We had a drama workshop in school to start this unit of work. We learnt about how the fire started, why it spread and how London changed after the fire. We used sources such as Samuel Pepys diary to find out more information. 

We had a fantastic end to our half term by putting on our nativity show, Bethlehem Ballroom. All of the children spoke loudly and clearly and their acting skills were great. We hope all of our audience members enjoyed the show.

We have had a busy half term in New Zealand class.

In Science, we have been learning about animals and what they need to survive. We found out that most need air, food, water and shelter to survive. We had an interesting lesson learning about fish where we got to touch the different parts of real fish. 

In Geography, we have been learning about the four countries of the UK. We found out what the capital cities are, the highest mountain in the countries and famous landmarks. Many of us have visited the four capital cities and we enjoyed sharing pictures of this.

In DT, we have been making healthy wraps. We learnt about the different food groups, tasted different foods and designed a healthy wrap. We then made our wrap and invited our parents in to enjoy them. We had great feedback from our parents on our evaluation sheets. 

In computing, we enjoyed learning about inputs and outputs. For our final lesson, we made robots using junk modelling.

In RE, we have been learning about different holy books. We learnt about stories in the Bible and why the Bible is special to Christians. We also looked at the holy books of Islam, Hinduism and Judaism and then made our own scrolls in the style of the Torah.