Year 3 enjoyed a fantastic day at Charmouth Coast Heritage Centre!

We learnt all about the prehistoric sea-life that once inhabited the ocean covering large parts of Devon. Our guides showed us how these amazing creatures became fossilised, before gradually becoming exposed by erosion. We got to see some authentic fossils up close- very exciting!

After a short safety briefing, it was time to fossil hunt for ourselves. Our guides led us to a secluded spot on Charmouth beach well known for fossil abundance and so it proved- every single person found something amazing; be it a belemnite (ancient squid remains), ammonite (in fools gold or beef rock variety) or a crinoid (relative of starfish and sea cucumbers, also called sea lilys). A couple found superb crystal geodes and one child was even lucky enough to find a 50 million year old fossilised sea urchin- something our guides had never seen before!

We got incredibly lucky with the weather, not only because the sun made a rare appearance but also because the recent extreme weather had exposed so many treasures. Thank you to the children; who  did our school proud with their enjoyment and engagement; to the parent helpers and to the wonderful guides at the heritage centre. They run regular fossil walks out of Charmouth Coast Heritage Centre and we would thoroughly recommend it as a fun educational activity for families! 

Year 3 had a brilliant Mediterranean themed open afternoon on Friday 13th December. Children spent the day applying their DT skills to prepare and cook Italian style pizza as well as making a (child -friendly!) Sangria.

At 3pm, parents and carers joined the children in tasting the food - there were many happy customers. They also embarked on a Google Earth adventure where they visited different countries around the world that children had learnt about in Geography. Children shared their collaborative Holiday Brochures comparing Italy and UK. It was a very successful afternoon full of the Rainbow Values of Enjoyment and Community.

Year 3's first day back to school started at passport control - they were off to travel around the world! From Greece in the Northern Hemisphere to Tanzania in the Southern Hemisphere, children got to locate countries on a map using atlases and discuss what continent they were on (applying some great Geography learning from KS1!)

They then entered the World Cafe where they could taste foods from around the globe. Olives, quinoa and even coffee were served and children showed the Rainbow Value of Enjoyment by trying everything! 

Year 3 had a brilliant day at Kents Cavern last week.

The day was jam-packed full of many learning opportunities, including handling real and replica artefacts  (deer skin, Neanderthal skulls and flint hand-axes), following a Stone Age trail around a woodland and delving into the unknown of the Kents Cavern cave. They  really did make the most of every moment! 

Exploring the cave and identifying stalactites (or were they stalagmites?) was a real highlight for many children. We were so proud of the brave few who overcame their fear of the dark to stay in the cave when the lights went out - a true taste of what life was like in Stone Age Britain!

West Town Farm Visit: the end of our Journeys and Destinations topic

Year 3 had an enthralling visit to West Town Farm, Ide, today! The sun was shining, the birds were singing and the children were in their element. We spent the day taking part in a range of activities including:

- exploring the 'wild side' of the farm where the badgers had dug their sets.

- entering the pasture field to learn about the sheep and cows reared on the farm (including extensive inspection of their poo!)

- playing with friends in the hay barn and eating lunch at the hay bale circle

- river dipping in the stream whilst being on the hunt for minibeasts

- filling our nostrils with the wonderful scents of local herbs

Thank you Team West Town farm for a fun-filled day!

Year 3 enjoyed a fantastic morning at South Dartmoor Community College where they took part in an Athletics event. Activities included long jump, distance running and javelin.

Xani showed a Growth Mindset when she challenged herself to complete the 3 minute distance running. After the race, she felt so proud of herself! A great Growth Mindset was shown by all children.

Year 3 have been getting vinegary on the penultimate day of term, as it was time to share GOAL Home Learning. Some children made volcanoes which could erupt thanks to the clever combination of bicarbonate of soda and vinegar. It was great fun watching the lava pour out of the craters!

Year 3 used their understanding of light and shadows to perform a Shadow Puppetry Show for Reception. 

The children used boxes and torches (and the Rainbow Value of Thinking) to investigate how light travels in a straight line, that our eyes need light in order to see and to learn that darkness is the absence of light.

They then worked collaboratively to plan a show of a Traditional Tale. They needed to design and make shadow puppets with moving parts and a shadow puppet theatre to perform in. They needed secure understanding of opaque, transparent and translucent objects in order to make their puppets as effective as possible. 

GOAL Rocks in Year 3!

Year 3's GOAL learning about rocks, fossils and soils culminated last week in a Documentary afternoon. The children worked in teams to plan a performance which showcased their understanding of rocks and their properties. The Rainbow Values of Enjoyment and Potential were present through news reports, 'Rock Raps', hot seating and live fossil excavations!

Year 3 had great fun during our whole school Maths RockStars Day! After a fantastic rock 'n' roll performance from Mr Godfrey in the hall, we were kept on our toes throughout the day with 'Stop! Drop! Rock' breaks, where we had to stop everything we were doing to complete as many multiplication and division facts as we could in 3 minutes. We are now hooked on Times Tables RockStars, which we enjoyed playing both in school and at home.

Year 3's Ancient Greeks Day

Year 3 had a fun-filled first day back at school dressed up like Ancient Greeks. We wanted to answer our Pupil Voice questions, so we took part in some drama and role play to learn what it was like to live in those times.

How were their lives similiar to ours? (Sophie)

What did they eat? (Shelby)

What did they drink? (Rihanna)

After break, we came back to a Greek Cafe where we tasted a range of foods from the time, including feta, pitta, honey on bread, olives and grape juice. Come and look in our GOAL books soon to find out which foods were the class favourites!

We had a fantastic first day of school, diving straight into our topic about the Ancient Egyptians.

As the children wanted to know why mummies were around in those times, we learnt about the Mummification process. We then reenacted this with a real live (supposed to be dead) person who was 'mummified'. Their hearts were weighed against the Feather of Truth and Justice to determine whether they could then travel on to the after life.

Visit Year 3 to see our cartouches!

Last week at the Summer Fair, Year 3 sold their Salad bowls, Caramelised onion tarts, Rhubarb tarts, Potato salads and Hessian bags that they have been working very hard on in  their cooking lessons. Mrs Hyde, Miss Evans, Mr Fox and Mr Moore worked on the stall successfully selling many tasty goodies. Year 3 have made lots of money that will go to buying new learning resources. Everyone really enjoyed the Summer Fair and feel good about how they have contributed to the school.

Year 3 had a fantastic day exploring 'We The Curious' in Bristol. With our whole school topic of 'Curiosity' in mind, the children were bursting with excitment at the prospect of exploring the waide range of interactive exhibits on offer. From making flour to designing an animation, tremendous fun was had by all! The Science workshop that they took part in was also a great way of learning more about forces and magnets.

Deadly Animal Hunting at Paignton Zoo
Year 3 spent a beautiful spring day exploring Paignton Zoo on the hunt for deadly animals. After planning our routes on a map, we teamed up into groups to explore the zoo. Some ofthe deadliest animals were actually the smallest, including a poison dart frog and a tarantula. Others were very large such as the roaring lions and a python which could grow up to 10 metres in length! It was great to get so close to these incredible animals.

“It was really fun but the ape centre was really stinky!” Josh E
“ I liked the rhinos, especially their horns.” Ollie

Year 3 had an action packed day exploring rocks and their properties. Both classes planned and carried out an investigation, with 3H focusing on durability and 3F investigating permeability. Children then came together across the year group to compare findings in a Rally Robin.

Look out for the investigation write up in our GOAL books very soon! 

Year 6 have been working hard on developing an APP for Year 3 children. They spent time gathering feedback from year 3s about the APP.

Quest story reading
Games of Top Trumps (Greek Myth version!)
Drama and Role Play
Clay Pottery Sharing

A huge thank you to all parents and carers who came along to our open afternoon. From sharing clay pottery and story writing to acting out what life was like in Ancient Greece, great fun was had by all!

As we come to the end of our Ancient Greek topic, we are looking back on all of the fun we had learning about this Ancient Civilization. Take a look at our replica Stemless Kylix pots!

Year 3 have been working hard in English! Pop along to the Year 2/3 corridor to read our fantastic recounts of our Olympic Games.