​During our science lesson this week the children were posed the question:
Which materials are suitable for making a waterproof coat?
They were then given a range of materials to handle and look at.  They were asked to predict whether they would be suitable for a waterproof coat or not.  They then tested the materials using water and a pipette to see if the material was waterproof and recorded the results in a table.  As a class we then discussed our findings and the children chose which material they thought would be most suited to make a waterproof coat and explained why. 

Aldgate in Winter will be a celebration of the essence of community, exploring themes including ‘light, hope and nature’.
The children in Year 2 had a very exciting afternoon as two people from Aldgate in Winter came to visit us for a lantern making workshop.  We discussed their favourite foods to eat and different words that come to mind when they think of the food.  We then used different materials to make our lanterns – willow, wet strength tissue paper, tissue paper, paint sticks and black paper.  The children had to then use their skills of teamwork, joining, cutting, sticking and designing to construct their lantern. 

Year 2 visited English Martyrs Church this week to learn about the Holy Trinity from Father Alex.
We learnt that the Holy Trinity is:
One God
Three Persons
 
God the Father who created the beautiful world we live in.
God the Son who came down to earth so that we could get to know what God is like.  He died on the cross so that we could be free.
God the Holy Spirit lives in our hearts and guides us to make the right choices.
 
We say the Trinity every time we make the Sign of the Cross.

The children made an observational drawings of St Pauls Cathedral dome.  We looked really closely at the detail on the dome.  Using pencil, we applied pressure to add shading and thick and thin lines for detail.​

​This week the children had a very special safety session all about carbon monoxide (CO), understanding what it is and how we can keep ourselves safe.  Safety Seymour (a superhero bear) and his safety assistant virtually visited our class, on a mission to rid the world of CO poisoning but he still needs our help!! 

​During Science this week we thought about what already knew about materials.
We distinguished between an object and the material from which it is made
We identified and named a variety of everyday materials, including wood, plastic, glass, metal, water, and rock
 
The children were given a tray containing a mix of objects and samples of materials and allowed time to explore and discuss them. Then they wrote down anything they knew about materials and how they might describe them.
In small groups the children were then given two hoops and asked to think of different ways they could sort the objects/materials and explain how they had sorted them.
 

​In English we have been studying the poem ‘The Candle Flame’ by Pie Corbett.  He uses similes to describe how the flame moves.  We wrote our own simile poem about the Great Fire of London, thinking about how the fire moves.

​During our trip to St Pauls we

• Explored the Crypt and Cathedral floor to find memorials from the Pre-Fire Cathedral that survived the Great Fire.
•  Used visual aids and story-telling to extend our knowledge of the events of September 1666.
• We reflected on what it would have been like to experience the Great Fire of London through role play.
• Learnt about the rebuilding of the Cathedral under Sir Christopher Wren and that the dome weighs 65,000 elephants.
• Thought about how London has changed since 1666

​During religion this week we looked at the celebration of Diwali.  We read the Rama and Sita story and discussed the festival of Diwali.
We learnt that Diwali is a festival of lights and Hindus celebrate it with joy. During this festival, people light up their houses and shops with Diyas (small cup-shaped oil lamp made of baked clay). They worship the Lord Ganesha for welfare and prosperity and Goddess Lakshmi for wealth and wisdom.
We made our own Diya lamps out of clay and decorated them.