1.5.26

Last week, Year 4 completed their Literacy work based on No Monkeys, No Chocolate. What an amazing and thought‑provoking book! The children loved learning about ecosystems and discovering how different animals play vital roles in the process of making chocolate. We continued this week to make hot chocolate using a pestle and mortar to grind cacao beans. Although it didn’t taste very nice to modern palates, the Aztec people considered it an indulgent drink and a highly valuable resource. We have launched our exciting new topic, “Rock Around the Clock.” We posed this title to the children and asked them what it meant to them. As always, their creativity and imagination amazed us, and we gathered an incredible range of ideas. After lots of discussion, we agreed to link the topic to space, music and fashion which has already generated huge enthusiasm. Our new class novel is Cosmic by Frank Cottrell Boyce—an out‑of‑this‑world adventure! This brilliant book is packed with humour, emotional depth, strong family relationships and a genuinely exciting plot. We are confident the children will absolutely love it… and so will we! In numeracy last week, the children completed lots of practical activities focusing on: Estimating length and converting between different units of measurement. This week, the children will be measuring how far they can jump and recording their results in a spreadsheet to analyse the data—an excellent way to combine maths and computing skills. In Design/Technology, we are finishing off our 100g chocolate boxes, which have been absolutely fabulous. The completed boxes have made a fantastic display and really showcase the children’s creativity and precision. Over the next few weeks, we will be creating a new role‑play area to help consolidate specific skills. The Sweet Shop has been a huge success, and we can’t wait to see what the children make of the next one! The mini marathon was an amazing and memorable experience. We had so much fun, stayed active, and loved the exciting atmosphere. Taking part gave us a small glimpse of what we could achieve in the future and inspired us to keep challenging ourselves. (Thank you Mrs Maguire for organising this). Also, a thank you to the parents who came in to share their experiences in the World of Work. These sessions were inspiring for so many of our young learners. 

Date for your diary- Monmouth Mischief Town Parade. Drybridge Park. 2.5.26, 11:30-17:00. If you can come, dress in green. (Don’t worry if you don’t have anything in that colour and bring your mystical creature). 
The parade will start from St Marys Priory NP25 3BR, top of Monmouth, we are gathering from 11am ready to leave at 11.30. Moving down the High Street to the celebratory event at Drybridge Park. Hope to see lots of you there. 

Thank you for your support and enjoy the bank holiday weekend. 

 

17.4.26

We hope you had a lovely Easter and managed to enjoy some quality family time together. Welcome back to a new term – we have lots of exciting learning planned for the weeks ahead! In Literacy, the children have been identifying the language and text features of an explanation text. This learning will support them as they prepare to write an exciting piece titled How Monkeys Play a Vital Role in the Making of Chocolate. The children had great fun using drama to explore how different animals help the cacao tree to grow. It was a pleasure to see their confidence building as they responded creatively, worked collaboratively, and developed their teamwork and critical thinking skills. In Numeracy, we have been focusing on estimating, choosing appropriate units, and accurately measuring weight and mass using metric units. The children completed a range of practical activities to support this learning, including designing and making a box to hold 100g of sweets. This hands-on task really helped to bring learning to life and encouraged problem-solving. We also made drinking chocolate, just as the Aztec civilisation did. The children ground cacao nibs into a powder and mixed it with hot water to experience chocolate in its purest form. It was a delight to see the expressions on the children’s faces as they tasted it. (It tastes really bitter!). An experience that really brought history to life. In Health and Wellbeing, the children took part in a thoughtful, emotional discussion about what they are thankful for, focusing on things that do not cost money. This was a lovely opportunity for reflection and respectful listening, and the children showed great maturity in sharing their ideas.  

Thank you for your continued support. We are looking forward to another positive and productive term in Year 4! 

20.3.26

Busy, Busy Busy! It has been a wonderfully full couple of weeks in Year 4, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. We are delighted that Think Creatively are leading this year’s Schools Outreach Project with the Wye Valley River Festival 2026, exploring the exciting theme “Rare Earth.” Your child is currently taking part in this, in‑school creative project. Together, we are imagining and designing new folklore stories and mythical characters inspired by the land around us and the unique places we call home. The children’s ideas will help shape a large-scale puppet, built from natural materials from the Wye Valley. A professional puppeteer will bring the final creation to life, and it will be proudly paraded during the Wye Valley River Festival on: 

📅 Saturday 2nd May 2026 
⏰ 11:00am – 12:00pm 

We are very excited to see Year 4’s imagination become part of this wonderful community celebration! (Hope you can come, more info to follow).  

Our Sweet Shop continues to thrive, and the children’s imaginations never cease to amaze us. They have taken great pride in designing, organising, and role‑playing within the shop, showing fantastic independence and teamwork. Fractions can be a challenge, but the children have really impressed us. By sharing sweets into equal amounts, they’ve been able to identify and explain quarters, thirds, three‑quarters, and more. Making learning practical and learning through real life experiences. Our Spike Education project is well underway, and we are blown away by the children’s design skills, debugging strategies, and budding entrepreneurship. These creations take time, so please be assured that every child will have their turn to complete a full project over the coming weeks. We hope you loved your Mother’s Day artwork inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe. The children explored different pastel techniques to create bold, beautiful floral pieces, and they were so proud of the results. We have started reading No Monkeys, No Chocolate by Melissa Stewart and Allen Young. The children were fascinated to learn how monkeys play a vital role in the survival of cocoa trees. Cocoa pods don’t fall on their own, monkeys eat the pulp and spit out the beans—helping scatter them and grow new trees. Without this process… no chocolate! This led us to explore ecosystem interdependence, discovering the roles of midges (pollination), leaf‑cutter ants, coffin flies, lizards, and more. The children will soon be identifying the language and text features of a report, ready to write an informative piece on one of these incredible creatures. (Who knew there was such a thing as a coffin fly?) Thank you, as always, for your continued support. 
Have a lovely weekend! 

 

 

6.3.26

What a lovely surprise to enjoy some sunshine at the beginning of spring! Year 4 have had a wonderfully busy and creative week, filled with learning, laughter, and memorable moments. In Literacy, the children have been crafting poems inspired by mythical forest creatures. We have been truly amazed by their imaginative ideas and their confident use of personification, similes, and expanded noun phrases to bring their poems to life. They also created detailed descriptions of their creatures—explaining how they move around the forest, what they do, and even giving them unique names. Their creativity has shone through every piece! Our work in Expressive Arts continues to be inspired by the whimsical style of Welsh artist Rhiannon Roberts. The children have been producing vibrant, magical paintings filled with colour and personality. These are already beginning to brighten up our classroom. In Numeracy, Year 4 have been busy collecting and analysing different types of data. They have created frequency tables, pie charts, pictograms, and block graphs, showing an excellent understanding of how information can be represented visually. We’ve seen some incredibly creative approaches—our display is becoming a colourful celebration of data. Our first Forest School session after half-term was certainly a chilly one, but we were lucky to catch glimpses of sunshine peeking through the clouds. The children loved playing Predators and Prey, and after the first round, we saw some very impressive tactical thinking emerging. (And don’t worry—we only managed to lose three children temporarily!) It has been a very special week with both Eisteddfod and World Book Day celebrations. The children looked fantastic on both days and threw themselves wholeheartedly into the activities. We are incredibly proud of all those who performed; we know how nervous you were, and you were brilliant. These are the memories that make school so special. (Whoops, forget to say we are loving our drumming lessons too). 
#proudtosupportnationalyearofreading

13.2.26

What a busy couple of weeks we’ve had in Year 4! Despite the winter weather, we managed to enjoy Forest School on the only sunny day of January and February. It felt like spring had arrived early! Although it was very boggy underfoot, it certainly didn’t dampen our spirits. The children loved exploring, and we collected some beautiful natural materials including gnarled wood, red acorns, and lichen. We are very excited to share that Year 4 have been selected to take part in the Wye Valley River Festival 2026 – Rare Earth. We had a Zoom meeting with members of the festival team to learn more about what our involvement will look like. During this session, we listened to a short story that explored the land and geology of the Wye Valley and were introduced to mythical characters inspired by the landscape. Our task now is to create our own mythical creature using natural materials. If you find yourself out for a walk during the half‑term break, please keep an eye out for interesting natural objects—sticks, seeds, moss, cones, unusual leaves—anything that could help us bring our creatures to life. In Science and Technology, children have been using the snack data they previously collected and entering it into Google Sheets. They learnt how to use digital tools to create graphs and were amazed at how clearly information can be interpreted when presented visually. We have been learning that just as we keep our bodies healthy through eating well and exercising, we can also keep our minds healthy. We discussed: talking about how we feel, taking breaks and resting, being kind to ourselves and other activities that bring joy. We have been learning a Welsh county dance in readiness for the Eisteddfod. The class is becoming more confident with the steps and are enjoying practising together. In Numeracy, we have been focusing on interpreting and creating different types of graphs. We also collected data in class to find out Year 4’s favourite sweets and chocolates, which made the activity even more enjoyable! We hope you all enjoy a restful and refreshing half-term. 
Thank you, as always, for your continued support. We look forward to welcoming everyone back for another busy and exciting term!

30.01.2026

We’ve had a busy and exciting week in Year 4, and we’re delighted to share what the children have been getting up to. In Literacy, the children have been exploring different ways to make their writing more descriptive and engaging. They have been learning how to: spot personification (giving human qualities to non‑human things), use expanded noun phrases to add detail, and identify onomatopoeia, those fun sound words that bring writing to life. We also looked at the features of free verse poetry, and the children really impressed us with their imagination and creativity when creating their own free verse poem based on chocolate. It has been lovely to see their confidence growing as writers. In Numeracy, our learners have been developing their measurement skills by exploring how different units relate to each other and why accuracy matters in real‑life situations. We’ve been busy converting, comparing, estimating, and applying our knowledge to authentic problem-solving tasks. In Health and wellbeing, we have explored feelings of worth and realise the important effect of feeling valued. We had a thought-provoking discussion on how we can all help our peers to feel valued and respect who they are. Dosbarth Pedwar have been working incredibly hard in gymnastics. 🤸 They’ve been developing strength and tension in their bodies and working with partners to create their own simple gymnastic routines. Their teamwork and concentration have been brilliant. Next week, we will be starting Welsh Country Dancing as we prepare for Eisteddfod celebrations. We’re very excited to get started. The last few weeks we have introduced Spike Education, which allows the children to explore robotics and problem‑solving through hands‑on activities. The children have shown great resilience, independent thinking, brilliant collaboration, and impressive critical‑thinking skills. In Science, the children have been looking at the nutritional content of various snacks and in particular sugar and salt content. Next week, we will be using google sheets which gives the children an opportunity for analysing specific data. Last Friday, we had the wonderful opportunity to take part in the Cymraeg Jambori. It was a lively, fun‑filled morning packed with singing, dancing and celebration. The children had a fantastic time joining in with other schools, and it was lovely to see their smiles and confidence shine. 

Thank you for your continued support. Dosbarth Pedwar are working so hard, and we’re looking forward to another great week ahead! 

16.01.2026

Happy New Year to you all and welcome back to a brand-new term – and what an exciting one it’s going to be! Our Spring topic is Wonders of the Earth, and we’re kicking things off with something truly delicious… Chocolate!  We’ll be exploring where it came from, how it was used thousands of years ago, and why it’s become such a treat today. Chocolate isn’t just tasty – it has a fascinating history! Did you know it goes back over 4,000 years? We’ve started researching how ancient civilizations like the Mayans and Aztecs used cacao beans to make a bitter, spiced drink, and even used them as currency. We’ve already been super busy (so much for a quiet start!). Here’s a little peek at what we’ve been up to: We’ve been working hard on identifying and recording multiples of 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10. Then we took things up a notch by applying mental strategies to multiply and divide 2-digit numbers by a single digit. Lots of brain power needed. Our focus text has been Chocolate Me by Taye Diggs. It’s a wonderful book that celebrates being unique and finding joy in who we are. We’ve had some brilliant discussions about positive identity and what makes each of us special. We’ve been talking about the importance of exercise and how it helps keep us healthy. Everyone has been thinking about the activities they do in school and after-school clubs, and we’ve even created our own exercise diaries. 

We’ve been learning some lovely Welsh songs ready for the Jambori next week – can’t wait to hear everyone singing! Plus, we’ve set some exciting goals for the term ahead. Friday was a real highlight – author Paul Leyshon came to visit! He shared his journey to becoming an author and led a creative workshop that had everyone buzzing with ideas. What an inspiring day! So, as you can see, it’s been a jam-packed couple of weeks already – and we’re only just getting started! There’s so much more to come this term, and we can’t wait to share it all with you.  

Thank you so much for the Christmas cards, messages and gifts. They were really appreciated. x 

19.12.25

What a term it has been! The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of festive fun and learning – so much so that we’ve all lost track of what day it is, what we’re supposed to wear, and what we need to bring in! (If you sent your child in with a Christmas jumper on the wrong day, you’re not alone – we’ve all been there!) In Literacy, we’ve been busy creating Stone Age Boy-themed podcasts, and we are so impressed with the children’s creativity and humour. Their scripts were mature, engaging, and full of personality. The children learnt how to video their scripts, edit them, and even add lyric videos to make their work more interactive and fun. A huge well done to all of them for embracing these new skills! In Numeracy our big focus was the Enterprise Project, where the children explored costs, profit and loss. They worked hard to design and create items for the Christmas Fayre, and we are so grateful to everyone who came along and supported us by buying their products. The children will now decide what resources to purchase with the money raised – a fantastic way to see their hard work pay off! Thank you for joining us at the Carol Concert on Tuesday. We think you’ll agree the children were amazing – learning their lines, singing beautifully, and showcasing some very talented musicians. We are so proud of them all. This final week has been full of festive creativity: Christmas cards, advent calendars, and baubles galore! We hope these treasures bring a little sparkle to your home. Lots of festive fun at the Christmas Party and hopefully we managed to wear the children out a little! What better way to finish than with a trip to the Savoy Theatre for the pantomime – a real treat for everyone! 

A Big Thank You for all your help and support this term. It’s been busy, joyful, and full of learning. We hope you have a wonderful Christmas, find time to recharge your batteries, and enjoy some special family moments. 

See you all in the New Year. 

5.12.25

It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas here in our classroom. The tree is up, and we are all super excited! The children have been busy with our enterprise projects, where they have created a persuasive video to sell their products. They’ve also been calculating costs and potential profits, which has been a fantastic way to learn about budgeting. In the spirit of the season, the children have been crafting beautiful natural floral bouquets and delightful gingerbread garlands. The profits from these creations will go towards purchasing new resources for our class, ensuring that our learning environment remains vibrant and engaging. We are also excited to share that we have been practising traditional carols for our upcoming concert on Tuesday, 16^th December. The children’s enthusiasm is truly infectious. During our Forest School session, we collected various natural materials to enhance our floral bouquets. Just a quick reminder: this was our last Forest School session until the New Year. In Literacy, we have been exploring different podcasts to prepare for creating our own. The children have identified key structures and elements to include; together with understanding how different episodes, themes, sound effects and music can enhance the podcast. Thank you for your support. 

21.11.25

 

We hope you’re all safe and well after the recent floods. It's heartening to see the resilience in the community during these challenging times. We can only imagine how devastating it has been for so many in the Monmouth area.  

Last week, the children took part in a wide range of meaningful Remembrance Day activities across the curriculum. In literacy, they wrote thoughtful reflections and poems, while in art they created symbolic poppy-themed pieces to honour those who served; together with creating stunning Zen doodles with a Remembrance theme. We were truly impressed by their creativity and thoughtfulness. During history discussions, the class explored why remembrance is still important today, showing maturity and empathy in their responses. Despite the rainy weather, we still enjoyed marking Children in Need with charity-focused activities and conversations about kindness and helping others. The excitement was palpable as we tackled the Strictly 25-Step Challenge—cha cha cha! The children had a blast showing off their dancing skills, and we even performed for the Reception Class, who cheered us on with infectious enthusiasm. Furthermore, we took part in a fitness session with Year 5 and 6 which certainly tested our strength and stamina. Our creativity continued to shine brightly as the children crafted a fabulous Pudsey Bear using natural materials and designed vibrant sporting T-shirts in his iconic colours. As a school, we came together to contribute to the impressive challenge of walking the 25 km, showcasing our spirit and dedication. In maths, children have been learning to read and plot co-ordinates in one quadrant, gaining confidence in using grids accurately. They also applied their geographical skills by using Digi Maps to explore the local landscapes around Trellech, identifying key features in and around the village. In ICT, the class completed a valuable Common-Sense lesson on creating safe and memorable passwords, learning how to protect their personal information online through strong password strategies. Additionally, we had some special visitors from Google last Friday who educated the children about internet safety in such a fun and engaging way! It was a wonderful opportunity for them to learn important skills while enjoying the process. In PE, the children continued developing their rugby skills, practising passing, dodging, and teamwork—even managing great progress despite the soggy pitch! 

These fortnightly newsletters are flying by. Thank you for your support. 

7.11.25

What a busy and exciting week we’ve had in Year 4! Before half term, the children made Stone Age bread, and I must say, it was surprisingly tasty, using just flour and water! We had a great discussion about how bread would have been cooked in those times, exploring the progress from hunter-gatherers to simple farming methods. At Forest School, we individually found a comfortable sitting spot. There’s so much going on in nature around us—buzzing insects, fluffy clouds transforming shapes, spiders weaving webs, and ants tidying up. Do we really take the time to notice? A sit spot is the perfect way to enjoy nature’s countless mysteries; together with being present and concentrating on your immediate environment. In Literacy, we’ve explored powerful Remembrance Day poetry, using “In Flanders Fields” as inspiration to write our own thoughtful verses about peace, courage, and gratitude. The children have shown great empathy and creativity, producing moving pieces that reflect the importance of remembrance. In Maths, we’ve been investigating positive and negative numbers, learning how to read temperatures below zero (very handy for chilly Welsh mornings!) and practising weighing and measuring using grams and kilograms in practical activities. Our RVE lessons have focused on Harvest and farming in Wales, where pupils researched local produce and designed bright and informative infographics showing how food is grown, shared, and celebrated in our communities. In Commando Joe’s, teamwork has been the key as the children worked together to build and protect their own Stone Age villages, planning how to collect food and keep their settlements safe — a fantastic mix of strategy, cooperation, and creativity! In Humanities, we’ve travelled back to 1605 to discover the story of The Gunpowder Plot, using debate to explore different viewpoints and understand why we still remember this historic event today. Year 4 have truly shown enthusiasm, imagination, and teamwork across all areas of learning — da iawn pawb! 🌟 

17.10.2025

What a busy couple of weeks we’ve had in school! The children have truly immersed themselves in their learning, and their creativity has shone through in every activity. During our forest school session, the class had a fantastic time building a den for a small world character. It was wonderful to see them collaborating and using various natural materials to create an unusual shelter. In Literacy, we delved further into “Stone Age Boy” where the children created dialogues between two characters, using the rules of speech marks. In Humanities, we wrote informative texts comparing the lives of hunter-gatherers with those of early farmers. They were able to articulate how farming changed lives and why it was more beneficial than foraging. We participated in the annual event, the anti-racism campaign - Show Racism the Red Card; that aims to raise awareness and fight racism through education and solidarity. A discussion led to an engaging activity that encouraged the children to reflect on their multifaceted identities, highlighting that each person cannot simply be defined by one role. In Numeracy, we have been applying column addition to solve problems involving 2- and 3-digit numbers. Then using the inverse operation to check addition. In Science and technology, we utilised our knowledge about teeth to create a poster on Adobe Express, whilst learning new skills to enhance our digital poster. To top it all off, our PE sessions have been high-energy! The class participated in a HIIT session, boosting their heart rates, followed by a soothing yoga and whole-body meditation that left everyone relaxed, calm and ready for the weekend. 

Thank you for your support. 

              

19.9.25

What a busy two weeks it’s been! The children have settled in brilliantly, and we’ve dived straight into our Literacy, with the enchanting text Stone Age Boy by Satoshi Kitamura. This exciting adventure story, brimming with gentle humour and delightful surprises, has sparked plenty of creativity in our classroom. We've been exploring how different types of punctuation, font sizes, and overall presentation can influence how a reader responds to a text. This week, our discussions turned to diaries—why we use them and their historical significance. We took a fascinating look at the diary of Samuel Pepys and identified the unique language and text features that make his entries stand out. It’s wonderful to see the children making connections! In other news, our first trip to Forest School was a wet one, but it certainly didn’t dampen our spirits! We explored the changing autumn landscape and marvelled, (I love that word) at the fungi popping up all around. In Science, we’ve been learning about different types of teeth and their functions, differentiating between herbivores and carnivores. In DCF, we have looked carefully at micro: bits- identifying some of the main functions; and this week we have experimented with creating some interactive projects. We're also keeping active with some HITT training to get our heart rates up and discussing the importance of exercise. We even enjoyed a session of whole-body meditation to learn how to relax and switch off; and we all need a bit of that! Here’s to more adventures ahead!  

Thank you for your support. 

5.9.25

What a lovely start to a new and exciting term, albeit a little damp. Hopefully, we will get some autumn sunshine before the nights draw in. We hope you have had a lovely break from school routines, and your family has had a chance to recharge their batteries. We have completed some activities to get to know the children better and settle them into Year 4. The children were introduced to Zen doodle art which concentrates on design and repetitive patterns. Zen doodle is very good for concentration, reducing stress and promoting calmness.  Our topic this term is- Memory Box. I am sure you all know Katie Churchill- local historian and archaeologist; and hopefully, we have exciting plans to visit a dig at Buckholt just outside Monmouth. This is nationally, significantly an iron age and Neolithic site with lots of prehistoric stone tools. It is once in a lifetime dig! Shhhh, don’t tell anyone.  

Thank you for your support and we look forward to the year ahead.