St Pius X Catholic Primary School

 Designers in the making! Year 5 Year 5 finished off our Greek pottery this week. They added carefully practised designs to their pots to make them resemble the Greek pottery we have been studying in history lessons.  Once we had finished our pots we spent some time evaluating them. We thought about things we were proud of such as the shape of our pots and things we would change if we could start again!  'I like the pattern on my pot, I tried to do many figures like the images we have seen.' James  'My pot broke apart a little, I would make it thicker if I were to start again.' - Grace  We think they look amazing and the designs are fabulous! 

This term, Year 5 have been stepping into the shoes of archaeologists as we explore the captivating world of Ancient Greece! Our journey began in history, where we turned detective to study ancient Greek pottery. As a primary source of information, these decorated vessels offered us a direct window into the past. By examining the detailed illustrations on ancient urns, amphorae, and kraters, the children inferred key details about everyday life, mythology, religious rituals, and heroics from thousands of years ago. Inspired by what they uncovered, the children set to work designing their very own pottery, carefully planning how to weave historical details into their creations. Then came the hands-on fun in DT! The classroom transformed into a buzzing pottery workshop as the children learned the tactile arts of shaping, moulding, and sculpting clay. They mastered essential ceramics techniques: using water to smooth and manipulate the clay, carefully pulling and attaching sturdy handles,...

Continuing with our circuit lessons, we thought about how useful switches are and how we can use them in everyday life. So we created our own light up cards with simple circuits! Using copper tape, a flat battery and an LED, we created a circuit with a very simple switch. It was tricky at times and it took a couple of goes to get it right, but with some problem solving skills we got there. "It was hard, but when we worked out what was wrong I was so proud."

 Today, we made our own ice cream to help with the heat and as an end of year treat.  We used our phonics skills to read the ingredients and instructions.  We had to use double cream, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract. First we had to whisk the double cream until it made strong peaks. The children all showed each other what a peak looks like using their hands.  “ It's making bubbles” Quinn “ It looks like milk” Lydia “It looks a little bit thicker” Jesse-Joy Then we had to fold in the condensed milk, which bought up lots of discussion around what folding meant; we knew we couldn't fold like a blanket so how did we do it?  Finally, we added the vanilla and poured the mixture into freezable containers. 3 containers were topped with oreo and 2 we left plain.  “The vanilla will make it sweet” Valentina “It looks beautiful and so fresh!” Takundanashe “It’s starting to look like ice cream” Ivy “You fold rather than mix as its keeps it solid” Nina Finge...

  Year 1 Art Week – Sculpture & Aboriginal Art Focus During Art Week, Year 1 have been busy exploring art through sculpture and painting , taking inspiration from Australia and its rich artistic traditions. The children began the week by learning about different types of sculptures and how artists use shape, texture and form to bring ideas to life. They then created their very own Australian animal clay sculptures , carefully shaping kangaroos, koalas, wombats and more. The children loved experimenting with clay tools, smoothing, carving and adding details to make their animals look as realistic as possible. Later in the week, the children learned about Aboriginal dot painting , looking closely at traditional patterns, symbols and colours. They created beautiful dot‑style backgrounds to accompany their clay sculptures, thinking carefully about colour choices and repeating patterns. These paintings were designed to sit alongside their sculptures in our Art Week Exhibition. The f...

As a culmination of our English work last term, we recently teamed up in groups to create an epic ‘Explorer Exhibition’ . The goal was to take everything we’ve learned from our class book and bring it to life in a creative, interactive way. The Explorer Exhibition wasn't just about recapping the plot; it was about digging deeper. Each group was tasked with diving into three main areas: The Main Themes: We explored the big ideas hidden within the pages—things like survival, friendship, resilience, and the beauty of discovery. Character Evolution: Characters don’t stay the same, and we tracked how our favorites changed from the very first chapter to the final page. It was fascinating to map out their growth, their struggles, and how the journey transformed them. Key Learning Points: We also looked at the bigger picture, connecting the book to the wider lessons we’ve tackled across the term. To make sure everything ran smoothly, every single member of each group had a specific role...

  🎨 Year 1 Art — Exploring Pastel Techniques to Help Our Earth! This week in Year 1, the children became real artists as they explored a range of exciting pastel techniques . We began by looking closely at how artists use colour and texture to bring pictures to life. The children experimented with: Blending – gently smudging colours together to make soft skies and smooth backgrounds Pointillism – using tiny dots to build up colour and texture Small strokes – perfect for fur, feathers and grassy areas Long strokes – great for waves, trees and bold shapes Layering – adding colours on top of each other to make richer tones Drawing and outlining – keeping shapes clear and confident The classroom was full of colour as the children practised each technique on scrap paper, discovering how different marks can change the mood and feeling of a picture. After exploring these skills, the children applied them to their own “Save Our Earth” and “Protect Our Wildlife” artwork. Using the ...

In science, we have been learning all about materials and changes in  materials.  We have explored making a solution using salt and water and then attemptong to reverse this process using evaporation.  This week, we moved on to exploring irreversible changes. The children explored the different ways materials make irreversible changes for example: Mixing, heating, burning.  We took this opportunity to complete some cooking in class and explored how ingredients for pancakes changes when mixed and then heated.  We began by looking at all the ingredients in their original form - flour, milk and eggs. We then mixed them together and discovered we had already witnessed an irreversible change - we would not be able to separate the mixture now! Some of the class thought of our previous lesson on evaporation and whether this would work with our mixture. This was a key learning moment for us as we discovered that mixing doesn't ALWAYS result in an irreversible change!...

 To conclude our recent topic 'Buildings,' Year 2 have been extremely busy preparing for their class art gallery! They recently finished their Van Gogh inspired paintings and have been learning new skills in order to create a wooden frame for their artwork! The children were shown a demonstration of how to use the hack saw safely to cut their wood. They measured their pieces of wood so they would fit around their painting, decorated them and then used the saw to cut them to size! The children then had a chance to walk around the class gallery to see what everyone had created! Gershlene said ' we might be inspired by someone in our class!' Finally, they gave positive feedback to a classmate, commenting on their artwork, frame or overall finished piece! This reciprocity was lovely to see - well done!!

  In Art Year 2 have been studying ' cityscapes'   and comparing them to the famous 'Starry Night' painting by Van Gogh. We used the Tate kids website ( click here ) to find out more about the artist. Here are some of the cityscapes they looked at: They then looked closer at Van Gogh' s painting, picking out colours, patterns and techniques used by the artist. By zooming in, they could see that the brushstrokes were short like dashes and that there were swirls and dots which made up the bigger picture. They also took note of the colour scheme before applying this to their own experimentation in their sketchbooks using pastels. After this, they used paint , considering how to made different shades of blue, to create their own starry night! It is brilliant to see that every single one is different even though they have been inspired by the same picture! Next the children drew and cut out silhouettes of buildings and trees to place in the foreground. The final (and ...

 Before the Easter break, year 5 embarked on a DT project in which they had to learn to sew!  The children spent time learning some essential skills such as threading the needle, a running stitch and a back stitch. They mastered these difficult steps before designing their own sewing square to complete.   'It was really fun and I enjoyed using the thread to create a running stitch.' - Emanuela  'We learned a cross stitch and a back stitch - we learned to loop it right to left, not under and over.' - Isabella  They were able to use a variety of colours to create their designs and were able to choose the stitch that would match their creations the best!  We were very proud of their resilience and determination while learning this new skill! Well done year 5!

 This week, we have been making our own crosses using clay.  We shared the Easter Story and thought about how people would have felt when Jesus died on Good Friday and resurrected on Easter Sunday. To celebrate Jesus' resurrection, we chose to create and decorate our own crosses.  The children used clay and different tools to create pictures and drawings on top of the crosses.  'It's much harder than play dough'- Henry  'This is Jesus'- Ivy 'Jesus died on the cross and people didn't believe him'- Kathlyn 

 Today was Safer Internet Day and had the focus on using AI and technologies around us.  We started by thinking about what the internet is.  ‘It makes our TV’s and electronics work’ Ethan ‘We have the internet at home’ Elijah ‘No internet means your telly doesn’t work ‘ Idrees Then we discussed why we use technology and which apps we know.  'Snapchat is yellow'- Macie  'I watch YouTube at home'- Logan Finally, we discussed Roo's new friend. She was described as being very smart, magical and powerful! But we didn't expect the friend to be Alexa!  We shared how using these devices can be useful- they can help us to answer questions or play our favourite music. Then we also thought about what they can't do- give us a hug, make dinner and be our friend.  ‘I have an Alexa’-  Logan  'An Alexa doesn’t have any hands' -Quinn ‘I ask my Alexa to play music'- Henry  ‘Alexa is actually not real people’ - Idrees  ‘It’s just a robot’ - Lydia

⚘🐛 ' Live and Let Live' is the IPC topic for Year 2 this Spring half term. It's been the perfect opportunity to see things in action, developing their understanding of life cycles, food chains and how animals adapt to different habitats. This week Year 2 have planted poppy and pansy seeds and will make regular observations in order to track the changes from seed to flower in real-time. Last week the children were enthusiastic and excited to design their own bug hotels ! They used their knowledge of materials and thought about what bugs would want - a safe shelter! This week, using as many natural or recycled materials as possible, they used (and adapted) their plans to make their hotel. It has been brilliant to watch their curiosity and creativity whilst putting many skills into action: decision making - choosing appropriate and available materials resilience and problem-solvin g - finding ways to overcome challenges when things don't go to plan. collaboration - he...