A shorter blog for you this week, but hopefully still informative
English
We are starting to take the persuasive writing into more refined territories now by looking at the use of counter arguments. The planning will look the same, collecting both positive and negative sides for the argument. The skill though will be in acknowledging the negatives, developing them to show that they are valid, then using statements such as, ‘The truth is…’ to make them seem less important than the main point. Tricky stuff, but certainly something which will bring a lot of depth and expansion.
The homework this week has a different format, allowing me to link it directly to the teaching actually taking place that week.
Maths
Fractions have begun. In my experience this can be quite a polarising subject, with many children feeling quite queasy at the mention of the word. The initial focus has therefore been on the basics of simplifying and comparing fractions. Through this, a lot of misconceptions are exposed and ironed out so that when we encounter mixed fractions and calculating with fractions later on, the groundwork is in place.
