HIVE Tier 4 offers pupils access to a balanced academic and nurturing curriculum across their short-term schooling placement, supporting their behaviour development in order for them to return to their mainstream settings with greater self-esteem, social skills, confidence, and a more positive role within their school community.

Dear Parents 

Please follow the links below to find further support for you and your child.

Firstly DSPL 6 now has a Facebook Page where you can find information, including details and flyers for upcoming events.  

https://www.facebook.com/dspl6hertsmere/

Secondly the 'Local offer' let's children, young people, parents, and carers know about the special educational needs and disabilities services available in Hertfordshire and who can access them.

https://www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/microsites/local-offer/the-hertfordshire-local-offer.aspx

13th -17th June 2021

This week in Maths we have started multiplying by a 2 digit number by using the short form written column method. The introduction of the formal short multiplication method is shown to be distributive and the emphasis is on the format and understanding what is happening and why at each stage of the procedure. The children used base-10 equipment to support this method.

This week in English, the children have absolutely loved starting work on their presentations using PowerPoint. We have explored the software and learnt how to add details to presentations. The children have used their learning from last week to write accurate sentences all about The Stone Age. The children can't wait to finish them and present them to the class. We will share them with you next week.

In topic we having been exploring weaving.  We created our own cardboard looms and then practised the art of weaving.  Hunters and gatherers of the iron age would have used these skills to make baskets and nets.

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RE - In RE we listened and responded to a Bible  story about one of the miracles that Jesus performed.  We watched the following video clip to add to our understanding and inform our reflections.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWGCkovAUWM

Thrive Together - This week we read the book 'Ruby's Worries'. This book is about a girl called Ruby who loves being Ruby. Until, one day, she finds a worry. At first it's not such a big worry, and that's all right, but then it starts to grow. It gets bigger and bigger every day and it makes Ruby sad. We discussed possible ways of how Ruby could get rid of it and feel like herself again? We related this story to how we may be feeling this time of year, as the children's time with us in Hive will shortly be ending. We discussed how returning to our mainstream school could make us feel worried for a variety of reasons. Each child made a worry box which they can use to write their worries in for us to see and discuss with them. We identified that talking and sharing about our worries is always best. 

Nurture Activity - This week, the children asked to make pizzas. They rolled out their base and picked a variety of toppings to add to their pizza. The children carefully cut their toppings and grated their cheese. Once the pizzas were cooked, the classroom smelt divine. We hope you enjoy them!

7th - 11th June 2021

This week in Maths we have been working on our multiplication skills.  We have been looking at patterns when counting in multiples of 3, 4 and 8.  The pupils used arrays as visual representations of multiplication.

This week in English, we have been learning all about the Stone Age times. The children looked at time lines and focused on vocabulary like AD and BC. They had the opportunity to become ingenious inventors, making stone age tools and understood what they were used for. They learnt about the types of food that was eaten and had the opportunity to become gathers and hunters using their tools made. We have linked English with history to allow the children to find out and learn all the information needed to enable them to create an information text next week. We had so much fun going back in time. 

This week, the children decided to bake some shortbread biscuits. They followed the instructions, weighed out the ingredients to make the dough and used cutters to cut out the biscuits. We hope you enjoy them!

For our outdoor activity this week  we did some nature weaving.  We used an assortment of natural materials to create our own pieces. 

For RE we began to look at sacred texts.  We explored the meaning of the word sacred and looked at synonyms we could use.

We named the sacred texts from the main world religions.

24th - 28th My 2021

In English, the children have been working hard researching, planning, making and writing instructions for their own magnetic game. They conducted a survey with a year 3 class to see which game was the post popular and used this information to plan their own design. The children followed their designs to make their game, they had some much fun making and playing them. Once they had finished, the children wrote instructions to explain how they made it. We focused on what features were needed and used them in their writing. Here are some photos of the children making their magnetic games.

This week in Maths, we have continued learning about perpendicular lines and have learnt about parallel lines, horizontal and vertical lines. The children have enjoyed identifying these lines in 2D shapes, lines and diagrams. 

For our Thrive Together session, we made memory jars filled with our coloured salt.  Each colour represented a memory they have made throughout their first half term with us in Hive. The children did not have to share their memory however most of them felt safe enough to talk about all the positive memories and even share some difficult moments they may have experienced. As a class we reflected on both the positive and challenging memories. 

17th - 21st May 2021

This week in English, the children have been working hard completing their explanation text and finding appropriate images that relate to the information they have written about. They used their computing skills to copy and paste images. They learnt how to text wrap them to move them around a word document. The children were super proud of their work once it had been put together. I'm sure you will be just as proud of their achievements as we are!

In maths, the children have been learning about perpendicular lines. These are lines that meet at a right angle. They have used geoboards with elastic bands to create perpendicular lines and have identified them in a variety of different lines. The children have even explored them further and used their angle muncher to see which capital letters have perpendicular lines and those that don't. 

This weeks Thrive together activity involved us reading the book 'A Huge Bag of Worries. We discussed the different types of worries Jenny experienced throughout the story and spoke about how some of us shared the same worries. We looked at different strategies to support us with these worries as keeping them all to ourselves can make us feel very unhappy and lonely. The children wrote some of their personal worries on a bubble template and placed them in their bag. They then wrote down some strategies that they felt would be best for them to use when they are feeling worried. Once we had completed our worries and strategies, we went out onto to playground and blew our worries away using bubbles. This made them relax and feel lighter. The children enjoyed this activity as it allowed them to off load their worries. They identified that sometimes we share the same worries.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5ibh-RzwIU

This term in RE we have been exploring how Muslims celebrate Ramadan.  This week we looked out how mehndi patterns are used as a part of Eid celebrations.

As part of our Design and Technology we have been making cars with an axle.  An axle is a key component to allow wheels to move freely.

For our outdoor activity this week we used objects from nature to create our names.

We used twigs, sticks, flowers, petals bark, leaves, herbs and whatever else we could find.

10th - 14th May 2021

In English, the children have been working extremely hard writing an explanation text all about 'Gravity'. They have been looking at the features, researching, planning and writing some interesting information about what they have learnt. The children have shown great interest in their writing and have explained some technical vocabulary. We can't wait to share these with you once they are finished.

In Maths, we have had great fun learning about angles and right angles. The children have learnt that angles are measures of a turn and have explored this using geostrips. They have compared and ordered angles using angle munchers. They loved exploring the playground looking for objects that have a right angle, angles less than a right angle and angles greater than right angles. The children learnt that if an angle is less than a right angle it is called 'an acute angle', if an angle is greater than a right angle it is known as 'an obtuse angle'. Throughout the week, the children identified internal angles in 2D shapes and sorted them according to their properties.

Thriving Together - This week, the children have been discussing and creating their network hand. This includes thinking about those people around school who can help and support them. They identified adults who they felt safe with and that they trusted to talk to and share their worries, concerns or even ask for help. As a group we spoke about other important people who can support and help us, parents, grandparents, family members, the police and Childline. We spoke about when we might need to call 999 or Childline and what they called help us with. Below is the Childline website we looked at. The telephone number is 08001111.

 https://www.childline.org.uk/

Topic - In Science, we learnt all about magnetic forces. We explored magnets and learnt about each end of the magnet, the south and north pole. We discussed the vocabulary 'attract' and 'repel'. The children explored the classroom to find a list of different magnetic objects. Together they worked out what each item was made from and identified its properties. The children presented their findings in a tables. They had lots of fun finding magnetic objects.

Nurture Activity - This week the children have been fantastic chefs. They have enjoyed cooking sausage rolls and loved tasting them. We hope you enjoy them just as much as they did. 

3rd - 7th May 2021

In English, the children have been looking at explanation texts. We have looked at why we need them and identified the features of a good explanation text. The children have been learning about adverbs and have practised using adverbs of manner. These are words that tell us how something has been done. For example, the car rolled down the ramp quickly.

In Maths, the children have continued learning to use the formal written method to add. We have focused on regrouping the ones, tens and hundreds. Throughout the week, the children have used different language to that relate to addition. The children have identified that when we add it is commutative. This means you can add any number , in any order and you will get the same answer. 

Nurture Activity - This week, the children made cupcakes to share with their families. They enjoyed followed a recipe, baked them and then washed up. We had so much fun.

Den Building - The children had great fun using the den building equipment. They worked as a team to build a den with a shelter that was waterproof. They discussed, planned and constructed their den. We were very proud of their team effort. Here are some photos for you to enjoy.

Topic - The children made mini parachutes using a selection of materials, such as plastic bags, nylon and paper. They tied string to the material and added blu tac to the parachute. The children then tested their parachutes by seeing what happened when they dropped them from different heights. The children identified that air resistant is the force that opposed the downward pull of gravity.

26th - 30th April 2021

In English, the children have been working very hard writing their own version of the story 'Augustus and his smile'. They followed their plans from last week and used their learning of subordinating conjunctions and verbs to create fantastic stories. Miss Kneller visited us to read our brilliant work. She was super proud of how brilliant the children's stories were. 

This week in maths, the children have begun learning to add using the written method. They have used their knowledge on regrouping to support the method. This week we have focused on adding up to three digit numbers by regrouping the ones. The children used dienes to support the method of regrouping and was able to apply it for the written method. We will be extending the learning on using the written method next week.

Thriving Together - This week in our thrive together session we read a book called 'The Colour Monster'. This book is about a colour monster waking up feeling very confused. His emotions are all over the place; he feels angry, happy, calm, sad and scared all at once! To help him, a little girl shows him what each feeling means through colour. We discussed what the Colour Monster is feeling? Can you help him feel a little less mixed up? We created hand puppets using paper bags and paint sticks and the children used them to introduce themselves and chatted about their body sensations related to their emotions. We discussed how they know when they are feeling this emotion, how they behave and what they might need when they're experiencing this emotion. The children identified that not everyone had the same colour for the same emotion. 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ih0iu80u04Y

This week in Topic we have been exploring how objects move on different surfaces. As part of our Science we set up some ramps with a variety of different surfaces. We measured how far the car travelled on the different surfaces.

Playing with forces: 

The children used a range of PE equipment to explore forces. This included hoops, balls, ropes and bats to hit, kick, throw, bounce, pull, push, spin and roll. They invented a game to play and explained  which forces were at work in their game.

Nurture Activity: 

The children have been great bakers! They have baked some delicious cookies with their own choice of fillings. We had white chocolate, milk chocolate and blueberries. 

As part of our RE this week we have continued to explore Ramadan. We looked at foods eaten for Eid and made some sweet treats.

19th - 23rd April 2021

This week has been British Values week. The children have completed a variety of activities related to rule of law, democracy, individual liberty, mutual respect and tolerance. Here are a few of the activities we completed.

In English, we have continued reading the book 'Augustus and his smile'. The children have recapped expanded noun phrases and planned their own version of the story. The tiger in the children's stories will be visiting some very exciting places. This will include an erupting volcano, a snowy mountain and a trip to the moon for a dance. We can't wait to share these with you once they have been completed. 

This week in Maths the children have continued learning different methods to add. The children have  understood that addition can be done order, as it is commutative. Throughout the week we have been finding complements to 10 and 100 when adding and regrouping a number sentence using our number bond knowledge to be able to add mentally. 

Thriving Together - This week we have been learning all about how our brain works and how it affects our behaviour. The children watched the video all about The Triune Brain and discussed the three parts of our brain. We discussed what each part did and why it was important. We looked at what happens to us when the prefrontal cortex is offline and we go into fight, flight or freeze mode. We explored the actions and emotions our body feels when this happens. The children labelled parts of the brain and identified that it is important to always try and communicate our needs.

Have a look at the video attached, you will be super impressed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVhWwciaqOE

Nurture Activity - The children worked hard to bake chocolate brownies. They found a recipe, measured the ingredients and prepared the mixture before the adults baked the brownies. Here are some photos of the children baking. We hope you enjoy your treats.

12th - 16th April 2021

This week in English, we have been reading the book 'Augustus and his smile'. Before reading the book, the children made predictions using the images they needed to find in a scavenger hunt. We learnt about subordinating conjunctions and how they are used to introduce a subordinate clause. The subordinating conjunctions the children used in their sentences were because, and, when and until. They orally composed sentences and then wrote detailed sentences about Augustus using verbs, adjectives and subordinating conjunctions.

In maths, the children have been learning to add 2 and 3 digit numbers using regrouping 'think 10' and 'think 100'. They used tens frame to support their regrouping and practically added before writing down their method and answers. 

The children completed the splodge activity by working out the answers to the questions using this weeks lessons. The children had to decide whether they needed to use no regrouping, regrouping think 10 or think 100.

22nd - 26th March 2021

It has been a busy final week in Hive finishing off our work from Science week. The children made their pizza following their plans and designed posters to advertise them. They then planned and performed an advert persuading you to buy their pizza. We look at money and practised giving change. The children used number lines to support them finding the difference. 

To finish the week, the children made Easter treats to share with their families. On behalf of the Hive Team, we would like to wish you and your families a restful break. 
 

British Science Week 15th - 19th March 2021

This week we celebrated 'Science Week'. We had great fun taking part in the The Farming STEMterprise project which involved the children completing a range of cross-curricular activities in order to grow their own ingredients, conducting a market research through a Teams interview with another class and concluding their findings. They then designed their own food flag pizza products and set up a pizzeria business. The children focused on British food as its star ingredient. This project will continue into next week.

This week we were very lucky to have some eggs arrive at school. The children were able to go and see the eggs in an incubator and ask lots of questions. As the week went, some of the eggs hatched and the children were able to visit the chicks. 

Welcome back to school everyone!

We hope you have all enjoyed your first week back at school. All the staff in Hive have really loved having the children back in the classroom.

This week our lesson's have been based around the story 'The Fish Who Could Wish'. We started the week by looking at the front cover and predicting what we thought would happen in the story and thinking about questions we could ask. The children then looked at the different wishes the fish had made and as a class discussed different wishes they would make. Once the children wrote their wishes they then placed them in their decorated wish jars. Later in the week the children identified the rhyming words that were in the story. As a class they used these words to create a group rhyming poem.

In maths this week, we looked at 2D shapes. The children named and identified properties to a variety of 2D shapes. We discussed regular and irregular shapes and sorted them into groups. They played the game 'Know my shape' and give facts to a partner about their 2D shape. The children wrote riddles to give clues on a 2D shape using their knowledge learnt throughout the week. To link our maths with the story 'The Fish Who Could Wish', we created 2D shape fish.

Everybody Worries

This week we have worked on our worries and how we can manage these. We listened to the book 'Everybody Worries' by Jon Burgerman and discussed how things have recently changed. Throughout the week we held discussions about how we are feeling and what we can do if we are worried, so that our worries don't become to big for us to manage. We looked at words that we may have recently heard and discussed them further and explained them to the children if they were unsure of what they meant. 

Week Beginning 4th January 2021

Getting to Know You 

This week in Hive we are focusing on getting to know you.  We want to find out all about you.  The activities listed will focus on who you are, what your family looks like, what your interests include, your hopes and dreams and to familiarize you with Summerswood school rules.

Each day we will post a short video of us modelling one of the activities for you.

Please complete 3 of the activities each day and email us a photo of your work.  We look forward to seeing how you get on.

English

This week we are continuing looking at 

Floella Benjamin's

Coming to England.

We are writing our own weather reports and poems about what we would miss about England

Maths

This week we are learning about Fractions.

Outdoor activity

This week we made yarn Christmas trees.

This week 23rd -27th November

English

This week in English we are learning to write instructions.  We are designing and making our own puppets.  This relates to the text we have previously read, Scaredy Squirrel makes a friend.

We will be practising our sewing skills and getting creative.

Here are the puppets the children designed and made.  

Maths

We are continuing to practise strategies to subtract two digit numbers, these include regrouping and the   expanded column method.  Please ask your children about the different strategies they have been learning throughout the week.

Outdoor activity

This week we have been feeding the birds!  We made bird feeders and hung them in the school grounds.  Perhaps you could make one for your garden?

16th - 20th November 2020

Anti-Bullying week and #JustTalkHerts

This week we all took part in Anti-Bullying week and #JustTalkHerts. The theme for Anti-Bullying week 2020 is 'United Against Bullying.' As a school we focused on discussing mental health and raised awareness of this important part of our lives.  

We started the week off in a positive way with both children and adults wearing odd socks to school. This celebrated what makes us all unique.

Throughout the week we discussed what constituted bullying and the different roles people have when bullying happens. The children discussed what would make a good anti-bullying ambassador and designed a logo for our future anti-bullying ambassadors. 

We discussed and designed a poster to promote mental health and wellbeing, focusing on the key ‘Just Talk’ messages and how we could look after our own mental health.

This week in HIVE we were thinking about the words we use. Some words can make us brave, some make us laugh, some make us happy and others make us sad. We thought about the impressions our words make on other people’s hearts and how we would like those people to remember us. 

Capacity

The children in Hive have been learning about capacity and volume. They have learnt that capacity is the amount of liquid a container can hold and volume is the amount of liquid which is in the container. The children worked together to read the scales of different measuring jugs and were able to estimate and order them from smallest to greatest

Place Value

In maths the children have been looking at place value and have been using different resources to represent numbers. They have been focusing on two digit numbers. The children have played numerous games to show their understanding of the value of each digit and have been ordering numbers from smallest to greatest and vice versa.