St Pius X Catholic Primary School

 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...

 For fieldwork week this year, Reception class were exploring the speed, distance and direction of bubbles in the wind. They first learnt the different compass directions and used this learning to explore the direction that the bubbles travelled.  We used the compass in the playground to help us see which way they travelled. Some went fast, some went slow. Some bubbles flew straight up into the sky and others floated slowly into the trees. 'It went to the side'- Esther 'The wind has gone now and the bubbles went to the floor'- Elijah 'They went straight up and not that far'- Valentina 'They went fast'- Ivy  'Some went a long way and some didn't'- Clare  Some of the children knew about the directions on a compass and what they are used for.  'I have a toy compass, it tells you the ways'- Nina  'I know west and east'- Jesse-Joy 'I know South America is south'- Ethan 'A compass is a round object and it helps you with ...

 Today we replicated the process of digestion. First we put food in the mouth (food into a zip lock bag), we broke it into pieces like our teeth break down food we eat. Then it was on to the stomach. The food we broken down by acid (water) and mushed up. It then went into the intestines (the tights). Nutrients and water was absorbed out of the intestines (through the tights and onto a paper towel). Then the end. What was left came out...the other side. 

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!...

 It's been so much fun exploring the forest school area as part of our learning!  The children are loving all of the activities provided by our forest school leaders: Karen and Caroline.  There has been lots of bug hunting, mud kitchen cooking and tree climbing. The children love being outdoors and the lovely weather we've been having has helped massively.  ‘My favourite part was everything!’ Clare ‘ I liked playing with my friends and climbing trees with Archie and Jeevan’ Da’Jean ‘I liked looking for bugs’ Jesse-Joy 'I've been cooking dinner for all my friends'- Kiana 

As part of our new science unit Year 5 have been investigating how materials can change when put together. We were exploring our original thoughts that some materials seem to 'disappear' when placed into water.  We put some salt into water and we noticed that we couldn't see it anymore. We knew from our life experiences that if we tasted the water it would taste salty so it wasn't that the salt had disappeared. This intruduced us to the scientific term 'dissolving'. We learned that when a substance such as salt or sugar is mixed into water it dissolves and creates a solution.  We decided to test this further with an experiment. The scientific question we posed was 'Does the temperature of the water change how quickly a substance dissolves in water?' The children used their enquiry skill of observation and stirred salt into water that was cold, warm and hot and then recored their results.  ' The hot water dissolved the salt the quickest.' - Janae ...

 As part of our human body unit in IPC, we've been looking at teeth. We found out about all the different types of teeth we have, what their characteristics are and what their purpose is. We looked at herbivores, carnivores and omnivores, examining their teeth and seeing which teeth are liked to which animals.  However, we also need to know how to keep our teeth healthy. So we've created an experiment to find out which liquids have the biggest impact on teeth. We've put eggshells in bags and put different liquids each bag (water, milk, cola, orange juice and vinegar) and observe them over the next couple of weeks. Many in the class think that cola or vinegar will have the biggest impact. Let's wait and see...

 This week, we have been learning all about different types of boats as part of our transport topic. This meant we spent lots of time outside playing in the water trays experimenting with different size boats.  The children became very interested in how the boats could float, especially cruise ships and ferries when they are carrying lots of people and cars.  We decided to carry out our own investigations to discover which objects would float and sink.  The children used the new vocabulary to guess if various items would float or sink. They learnt that 'sinked' isn't a word and we have to change it to 'sunk' but 'floated' is. How confusing we thought!  ‘Sink means it goes down low’ Macie ‘Float means when it stays on the top’ Amelia ‘I think the cube will sink because it doesn’t have water on it’ Archie We tested a plastic bear in the water too. ‘ I think it will sink because it has a small hole in it’ Jesse Joy A wooden duck was tested next. Most of the cla...

We have some new (temporary) class pets! Year 2 are currently looking after 10 fuzzy, wriggly caterpillars! Over the next few days and weeks, we will observe as they go through their life cycle! We are excited to watch as they turn into chrysalides, making a special cocoon before transforming into Painted Lady  butterflies! We are amazed at how much they have already grown in just a week!   !

This week, our Year 5 explorers took to the "skies" to investigate one of the most invisible yet powerful forces on Earth: Air Resistance . The Question : Does the size of a parachute change how fast an object falls to the ground? Before we started, the class made their hypotheses . Most of our scientists predicted that the larger parachute would be slower, but they needed the data to prove it! The children made their own parachutes of contrasting sizes and attached a paper clip to them to test them.  The results were clear! The large tissue paper parachute consistently drifted slowly to the ground, while the small parachute plummeted much faster. Why did this happen? It all comes down to Surface Area . As the paperclip pulls the parachute down due to gravity , the tissue paper has to push its way through the air. Large Surface Area: The big parachute hits more air particles as it falls. This creates more air resistance, which pushes up against the parachute and slows the ...

Over the last few weeks, Year 5 have been transformed into scientists, and last week, we finally reached the "graduation day" for our very own spider plants. To understand where these new plants came from, we’ve been diving deep into the world of plant reproduction . The children learned that while many plants grow from seeds (sexual reproduction), others are masters of cloning themselves! We discovered that spider plants are experts at asexual reproduction . They send out long stems called "runners," which grow tiny baby plants—or plantlets —at the ends. Because these plantlets are genetically identical to the parent, every child is essentially taking home a "mini-me" of our classroom plant! There was a real buzz in the room as everyone got their hands dirty! The children carefully tucked their plantlets into their new pots, ensuring the soil was firm but not too tight. These plants are now ready to head home to brighten up windowsills across the communit...

  Year 1 Scientists Explore Their Five Senses With Herbs! This week in Science, Year 1 became real-life botanists as we explored how our five senses help us learn about the world around us. The classroom was filled with excitement (and some very interesting smells!) as the children investigated a selection of fresh herbs: basil, rosemary, thyme, parsley and mint . To begin, each child was given their own mystery plant. Without being told what it was, they used their senses to become detectives: 👀 What can you see? Children looked closely at the leaves, noticing colours, shapes and patterns. Some spotted “spiky leaves”, others described “tiny curls” or “smooth, shiny green”. 👃 What can you smell? This was definitely the favourite sense of the day! We heard comments like: “This one smells like pizza!” “It smells like Christmas trees!” “This one is minty!” ✋ What does it feel like? Children gently touched the leaves and stems, describing them as “soft”, “bumpy”, “tickly”, or “rough...

This week in Year 5, our scientists became experts in plant propogation.  Following our exciting exploration into how plants use flowers, bees, and the wind to create seeds (sexual reproduction), we dove into the plant world’s incredible ability to "clone" itself (asexual reproduction).  To see this process in action, we focused on a class favourite: the Spider Plant ( Chlorophytum comosum ). Mrs Cosgrove kindly lent us her well looked after spider plants.   Hanging from the ends of the stems are tiny, perfect miniature versions of the parent plant. These are called 'plantlets'. We learned that the parent plant sends out these long stems (runners) to find new places to grow. Once a plantlet touches the ground, it starts to grow roots.  We learned that propagation is just a fancy word for making new plants, and our Year 5 scientists were eager to become propagation experts. Here’s what we did: Selection: We carefully chose healthy plantlets that had already deve...

Year 2 have started their new IPC topic - Buildings! They shared their prior learning, bringing together lots of knowledge from science (materials) to geography (famous landmarks around the world). To get them excited, they were tasked with designing their 'Dream Home,' which obviously included giant swimming pools, underground tunnels and walls made from sweets! Today they explored the historical concept of chronology through timelines. Firstly by considering their own personal timeline, ordering significant events in their own lives and then ordering a range of buildings from the past. They needed to look at the materials used and the purpose of each building before placing it on a timeline. This enabled the children to discuss why certain styles and materials were used in the past and how these have changed and modernised. 'Homes didn't have electricity!' Logan 'Now we have washing machines and dishwashers,' Mia 'Old houses used stones and mud, like ...

  🌱 Year 1 Launches Their New IPC Unit: Green Fingers ! This half term, Year 1 have stepped into the wonderful world of plants as we begin our brand‑new IPC unit, Green Fingers . The children have already shown so much curiosity, teamwork, and enthusiasm — it’s been a joy watching them become little botanists. 🌼 Entry Point: What Do Plants Need to Grow? We kicked off our learning by exploring the essential things plants need to survive and thrive. Through hands‑on discussion and observation, the children thought carefully about water, sunlight, soil, and air — and then put their ideas into action. To bring our learning to life, each child planted their own watercress seeds . They carefully sprinkled the tiny seeds, watered them gently, and placed them in a spot where they could get just the right amount of light. Over the next few weeks, the children will be keeping a weekly growth record , observing how their plants change and using their scientific skills to notice patterns. Al...

This week, our Year 3 pupils became young technology explorers as they celebrated Internet Safety Day by learning about Artificial Intelligence (AI). The children were excited to discover how AI is part of their everyday lives and more importantly, how to use technology safely and responsibly. We are incredibly proud of how thoughtfully Year 3 engaged with such an important and modern topic. Their curiosity, sensible questions and creative ideas show they are well on their way to becoming responsible digital citizens. Well done, Year 3... the future of technology is in safe hands! It is important to check where your information is coming from Alex

We kicked off the morning by joining the BBC Live Lesson , which was broadcast straight from a safari park. The lesson tackled some big questions: Is AI a person? Can it be my friend? Should I trust everything it says? The children were quick to spot the difference. While a chatbot might use friendly language or even tell a joke, the students learned that it doesn't have feelings, a heartbeat, or a conscience. 'AI can tell 'lies' you can't always trust it and you can never trust it with your emotions.' - Yana  'Not all things you see online are true - it's important to double check information.' - Elodie  'It can replicate anything and it is only as good as the coder.' - Isabella  To see how AI "thinks," we turned our classroom into a science lab using Google’s Teachable Machine . The children learned that AI is essentially a "teachable machine"—it only knows what we tell it through data inputs . The challenge was simple: ...

 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

 This week we have been very lucky to have been able to see chicks hatch in school. We had a special delivery of eggs on Monday, which at first we thought might be for some baking but then we learnt all about incubators and discovered that we thought these eggs might hatch into chicks. We have been very excited during the week as we've watched the eggs start to hatch. On Wednesday morning we came into school to find there were 6 chicks so far. During the day another 2 hatched, which we were very lucky to catch on camera and on Wednesday evening 1 more hatched, meaning by only Thursday we already had 9 chicks! The chicks have started to be moved into their brooder box, where they will live for the following 2 weeks. Now in the brooder box, they will start to eat and drink, although some of them prefer to sleep in their food! They are still very young at the moment so we can't hold them just yet but hopefully by Friday or Monday we should be able to give them lots of cuddles.  W...

⚘🐛 ' 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...