Rivers Topic – A Flow of Exciting Learning!

This half term, Baybridge Class is diving into our brand-new topic: Rivers. We will begin with an exciting Hook activity where the children will design and create their own river models. This hands-on experience will help bring our learning to life and spark curiosity about how rivers are formed and how they shape our world.

English

Our English learning this term is closely linked to our Rivers topic.

• We will be sharing the beautiful story The River, using it as inspiration to create our own imaginative versions.

• The children will write formal, persuasive letters focused on saving and preserving a local river.

• We will also explore shape poetry, creating our own river-shaped poems inspired by the movement and journey of a river.

Throughout the term, children will develop their creative writing skills, focusing carefully on vocabulary choices, descriptive language, and sentence structure. Some children will also be working towards achieving their pen licence, concentrating on neat presentation and consistent handwriting.

Our main class text is the much-loved classic The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, which links beautifully to our Rivers topic. Through this text, the children will:

• Strengthen their reading comprehension skills

• Develop inference skills

• Make thoughtful predictions

• Build familiarity with key characters and themes

Science – States of Matter

In Science, our focus this term is States of Matter.

The children will explore:

• Solids, liquids, and gases

• The particles that make up each state

• The key features of each state

• How materials can change state through heating and cooling

We will carry out practical experiments to observe these changes in action and deepen our understanding of how matter behaves.

 Geography & Topic Work – Understanding Rivers

As part of our wider Rivers topic, the children will learn:

• The key features of rivers, including the source, mouth, waterfalls, meanders, and tributaries

• How rivers act as habitats, supporting ecosystems and vegetation

• The journey of a river from its source to the sea

This cross-curricular topic will combine geography, science, reading, and writing in a meaningful and engaging way.

We are looking forward to an exciting half term of discovery, creativity, and exploration as our learning flows through the fascinating world of rivers!