Hi! My name is Miss Collingwood and I have taught at St John's since it first opened. I started my teaching career 42 years ago and have taught children from nursery age right up to year 6. I am also a qualified Reading Recovery teacher. The teaching profession has seen many changes over the years but my passion for helping children to learn is as strong as ever.

In my spare time I enjoy curling up on the sofa with a good book, playing the piano (wearing headphones so nobody else can hear!) and spending time in my garden. I have a handsome black Labrador called Arthur and we love going for walks along the beach together.

I spent the first 18 years of my teaching life at a school in South East London. Patrick Okogwu, one of my ex-pupils, went on to win two Brit Awards and performed at the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games – he is now better known as Tinie Tempah!

Who knows what great things the children in Kingfisher Class will achieve if they work hard and aim high!

Other staff working in our class are:

   Mrs Jones – Teaching assistant   Mrs Sanger – Art and DT teacher fortnightly on Tuesday afternoons

Our Weekly Timetable:

Important dates for the diary this term for Kingfisher Class:

PE – Every Friday

Our learning this term:

This term we are learning all about ‘Settlements: Home or Away?’. The children will be finding out about different parts of the UK and working on their map-reading skills in order to locate towns, cities, counties and regions.

This term in English we will explore ‘James and the Giant Peach’ by Roald Dahl. We will be writing character descriptions using a range of adjectives and adverbs to create effect. We will also be writing diary entries from James’ point of view as he travels inside the peach. Additionally, we will be developing our use of speech when writing a news report with eyewitness accounts.

 

 

In maths we will be learning about money, shape and statistics. The children will learn to count money and find change. Maybe you could practise these skills at home or while out shopping! We will then move on to shape; identifying and naming 2d and 3d shapes and learning about angles. Finally, they will learn how to collect and represent data using bar charts and pictograms.

In science, we will be learning more about plants. The children will carry out an experiment to see if seeds need soil to grow well by ‘planting’ seeds in different materials. They will find out about the names of different parts of a flower by dissecting real flowers and will learn all about pollination and why bees are so important to us!  

 

 

In R.E we will be learning about ‘Humanism’. We will explore our big question: What are Humanists and what do they value?

The children will continue to develop their German vocabulary including speaking, reading and writing about their likes and dislikes. As we end the year, they will revisit all of the learning from this year; greetings, colours, numbers, days and months and body parts. 

 

 

 

Learning at home for Kingfisher Class: 

 

Children are expected to read every night for at least 15 minutes.  Please spend time each day listening to your child read as it really does have a positive impact on their progress. Remember to sign your child’s reading record book when they have read to you.

When your child has finished an AR book, they can complete the quiz. We are focussing on quizzing accuracy. Your child will receive a raffle ticket if they pass a quiz at 80% or above and will have the chance to win a prize at the end of term!

It is important that reading books and reading record books are in school every day, even if your child hasn’t read.

 

                                       

Please remember that you can access Times Tables Rock Stars (TTRS), Numbots and Spelling Shed from home. There are certificates and a trophy for the winning class and individual certificates for the child that scores the most points each week. Spelling assignments will be given out each week, which support the spelling curriculum that your child will be following in school. You will find your login details in your child’s reading record book. 

Be ready for learning!

In Kingfisher Class, your child will need to have these items in school: 

• PE kit (to be worn on PE day – Friday) 
• Water bottle with sports cap lid (filled with fresh water each day, no squash or juice) 
• Small rucksack (big enough to hold lunchbox and reading books) 
• Wellington boots (to leave in school) 
• Coat (weather appropriate) and sunhat

Please don’t bring other items into school, as we do not have space to store them, and it can cause upset if things are lost or damaged. 

School uniform checklist:

Please, please, please check that all items of school uniform and PE kit are clearly named, as it can be upsetting for the children and frustrating for parents and teachers when clothes go ‘missing’. Don’t forget to check regularly as names can fade easily in the wash!

Snacks

Please note that in KS2, children do not receive a snack for break times.

If your child would like a snack, please feel free to send them in with a piece of fruit or a vegetable in their bag that they can eat during their morning break! Grapes should be cut in half lengthways please.

Highlights from Term 5

 

Although it was a short term, we managed to fit in a lot of learning and fun!

We enjoyed our trip walking the River Stour and were excited to see many different uses for the river. We even saw a pair of swans and some ducklings!

The children worked really hard to create their costumes and banner for our St John’s Carnival; printing with sponges and making their own printing blocks, making tassels from wool, creating headbands and making flags and fans.

In Science, when learning about plants, we loved learning about stems, leaves and roots. We particularly enjoyed visiting the field to draw lots of different stems.

Highlights from Term 4

 

We started off our term by becoming investigative journalists tasked with travelling to Egypt to find out about Howard Carter’s amazing discovery. We had to decipher hieroglyphics and dig for clues to uncover the facts of the case.

In D.T. we were really excited to create our own coil pots and enjoyed learning how to use a scratch and slip technique to make sure that they all stayed together when they dried. We then carved into the leather hard clay to create patterns and texture before painting our pots when they were dry.

In Science, when learning about shadows, we loved creating our own shadow puppets and observing how they changed size depending on where the light source was.

Another highlight was our Egyptian exhibition! We were so happy to see so many of our adults there to see all the amazing things that we had learnt about Ancient Egypt.  

We ended term 4 with our Easter Bonnet parade and all enjoyed looking at the fantastic hats that children had created at home.

 

 

 

 

 

Highlights from Term 3

We really enjoyed creating our impressionist art paintings inspired by Claude Monet. It was wonderful to see so many parents/carers at the KS2 Art Exhibition.

In science we were learning about animals including humans. The children investigated how leg length correlated with distance that they could jump and enjoyed learning about the skeleton and how our muscles work!

Another highlight was our Egyptian day! We were able to make our very own crowns and collars so that we really looked the part.

Of course, we also enjoyed our King’s breakfast trip! The King’s School staff complemented the children on their good manners and behaviour – well done Kingfishers!

Our Fantastic Friday maths problem solving lessons have been great success. The children have enjoyed working practically and collaborating with others.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Highlights from Term 2

 

In science, we were learning about rocks. The children tested rocks to see how hardwearing they were by scratching them, and if they were permeable or impermeable by dropping water on them using a pipette.

 

We took our learning outside when we made our own volcanoes and made them ‘erupt’ by adding bicarbonate of soda, vinegar, red food colouring and washing up liquid. We also looked at the different types of soil that are around our school grounds.

 

We had a visit from the Kent Road Safety team and practised finding safer places to cross the road. Kingfishers all know that they need to Stop, Look, Listen, Think and Hold Hands with and adult before they cross the road.

 

In DT lessons we practised our sewing skills. The children looked at existing products before designing and making a Christmas cushion. Their designs were impressive and they showed great skill when using running and backstitch to add decoration to the cushions.