Year 4 Autumn Term
Rivers
(World and UK)
To engage the children at the start of this topic, we will work in groups, to practically create a representation of a river to show the different stages it has, on its journey from the source to the mouth. They will use soil, foil and water to construct the different pathways a river can travel!
In writing, the children will explore the picture book Hike by Pete Oswald to enable them to draft a diary entry to retell the events using the simple past tense. They will have opportunities to orally rehearse sentences and to work collaboratively to generate interesting vocabulary to express their thoughts to the reader. They will also explore the text Tuesday by David Weisner, in which they will delve into a sleepy town that has been overrun by magical levitating frogs! The children will produce a retelling, in the third person, to entertain the reader. Finally, the children will use their understanding of the stages of a river to produce an information text to teach another year 4 child all about a river’s incredible journey.
In geography, we will describe the three stages of a river: upper course, middle course and lower course. We will develop our map reading skills through the use of Digimaps to investigate features of the River Thames, located in London, England. We will research the impacts of flooding on the physical environment and communities. To help apply this knowledge, in a real life setting, we will complete a case study at the end of the unit, on the River Cole, in our local area.
In science, the children will group materials according to whether they are solids, liquids or gases and understand the basics behind states of matter. You will observe that some materials change state when they are heated or cooled. You will identify the part played by evaporation and condensation in the water cycle. We will also make observations and take part in practical enquiries to find out more about dissolving and diluting substances.
Art is a painting unit. The children will use a range of materials such as brushes, card and other utensils to explore expressive mark making, colour mixing and the making of tints and shades. They will explore the artwork of British female contemporary artist Maggi Hambling to create their own wave inspired paintings.
In computing , we will recap what our digital footprints is and then children explore the terms malware and phishing. They will have an understanding of plagiarism and the importance of crediting creators. They will learn about healthy screen time and alternatives they can use to reduce this.