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Year 3

Welcome to Year 3

Welcome to the Autumn Term 2024. 

Here you will find all the information you need to know about the goings on in Year 3.

Our topic this term is history-based and takes us hurtling back into the Stone Age. We will develop our understanding of the chronology of this period; learn about the similarities and differences between the Stone, Bronze and Iron Age and consider the reasons why the Romans under Julius Caesar chose to invade Britain in 55BC.

This will be done through: 

  • Using sources of evidence such as cave paintings, to understand about life and survival in the Stone Age. 

  • Interpreting Ice Age maps of Europe to understand how new crops were brought to Britain and the impact this had on settlement 

  • Investigating how important the discovery of Skara Brae was for archaeologists and historians in building our knowledge of the Stone Age 

  • Considering the difference between fact and opinion through work on Cheddar Man and how more recent discoveries can challenge and change historians thinking about what we know about the past 

  • Constructing questions to find out what the Amesbury Archer can tell us about the Bronze age 

  • Delving into the stories of Lindow Man and the Snettisham Hoard to understand what they can tell us about life in the Iron Age 

  • Researching written accounts from around the time of 55BC to discover what people really thought about Britain at the time and how that might have influenced the Romans decision to invade. 

  • Some of our cross – curricular activities will involve creating our own cave paintings and using information from the Snettisham hoard to create our own Celtic designs (Art); building a pre-historic shelter (Outdoor Learning and DT); making maps of Skara Brae with overlays and plotting monuments from the Stone, Bronze and Iron Age on to a map of the UK (Geography- human settlements) 

Throughout our learning, we will be considering key enquiry questions (listed below) and using our research and newly acquired knowledge to answer them. 

  • What was ‘new’ about the new Stone Age? 
  • Which was better bronze or iron? 
  • If you were Julius Caesar, would you have invaded Britain in 55BC? 

Our Science unit this half term is Scientific Enquiry.

This unit takes the children through six lessons where they learn the scientific skills they will need to apply during each unit of learning during key stage 2. Specifically, they will learn how to:

  • ask relevant questions and use different types of scientific enquiries to answer them
  • set up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair tests
  • make systematic and careful observations and, where appropriate, take accurate measurements using standard units, and use a range of equipment, including thermometers and data loggers
  • gather, record, classify and present data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions
  • record findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables
  • report on findings from enquiries, including oral and written explanations, displays or presentations of results and conclusions
  • use results to draw simple conclusions, make predictions for new values, suggest improvements and raise further questions
  • identify differences, similarities or changes related to simple scientific ideas and processes
  • use straightforward scientific evidence to answer questions or to support their findings.

We continue to follow White Rose curriculum in Maths and the Year 3 topic overview can be found on the Maths Curriculum page by clicking here.

For a more detailed breakdown of curriculum coverage please scroll down to the Maths section below.

Our English units of work for this halfterm will be based around these fantastic books: 

  • The First Drawing by Mordicai Gerstein
  • Leon and the Place Between by Angela McAllister
  • The Lost Spells by Robert MacFarlane and Jackie Morris

For details about curriculum coverage of our English units please scroll down to the Year 3 Writing section below.

Our PE days will be Tuesday and Thursday.

On these days the children need to come to school in their school PE kit

with their school uniform packed to change into if they get very wet during a PE lesson.

Please remember jogging bottoms when the weather turns colder.

Please ensure you bring reading book & reading record, 

water bottle and healthy snack to school every day.

The Year 3 team is Mr Leivers and Mrs Boese.

Communicating with school:

For general things e.g. lost jumper, wearing trainers because shoes too small etc, please contact the class teacher using the updated messaging function on Seesaw

For more significant concerns or worries, please email secretary@nshprimary.co.uk with FAO Mr Leivers Class Teacher in the subject.

Any changes to school pick up should go through the school office.

Year 3 Topics

Year 3 Maths

Telling the Time

Year 3 Writing

Year 3 and 4 Spelling list

Reading

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Websites

Year 3 Photo Gallery