Year 2 Update

Year 2 have had a busy and exciting few weeks of learning! In Maths, we have been focusing on our 2, 5, and 10 times tables, exploring patterns and relationships on our hundred squares. The children have enjoyed spotting number sequences and using their knowledge to solve quick-fire challenges. To keep this momentum going, please encourage your child to continue practising their times tables at home — little and often really helps. Don’t forget, children who reach the top three on Numbots each week are awarded certificates in Monday’s assembly.

In English, we have started exploring different forms of factual writing, with a focus on non- chronological reports. The children have been looking closely at how leaflets are structured and presented, as we will soon be creating our own fact-filled leaflets all about wolves. To support this learning at home, you could look at leaflets or information posters together and discuss how they share facts — for example, at a museum, zoo, or visitor centre.

In Science, we have continued our topic on materials. The children have loved taking part in hands-on investigations, describing and comparing the properties of different materials through touch, observation, and discussion. They’ve shown fantastic curiosity and used great scientific vocabulary when talking about what they discovered.

However, we have noticed that a number of children are not reading regularly at home, either with their reading books or on our online reading platforms. Reading every day, even for just ten minutes, makes a huge difference to children’s progress, confidence, and enjoyment. Please make it part of your daily routine to listen to your child read, talk about the story, and record this in their reading record. Your support really does make a lasting impact.

Year 4 Update

Year 4 have had a productive week with their learning. They have settled into the Year 4 routines well and are playing well together at playtime and lunches.

In Maths the children have learnt to add numbers including numbers where they had to make more than one exchange.

In English the children have completed their research on either Walter Tull or Harriet Tubman as two key figures for Black History Month and written reports on them. They are also starting to research the Windrush generation including how and why people were invited over to the UK.

In Geography, the children have been continuing their work on river and comparing rivers from around the world.

Within their PSHE topics, children have been learning about actions and consequences as well as making good decisions. This has led to many conversations around doing their homework and the rewards of this, not immediately, but later on in life and in their future.

Year 5 Update

This week in Year 5 we have been consolidating our maths work on addition and subtraction using written methods to support. The children have solved a range of problems using different methods and learnt new mental methods to help them solve problems.

In Geography we have continued to learn about our planet and have used atlases to find countries on the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn as well as learning about different climates around the world.

We are continuing to read Friend of Foe in reading lessons but we are also now starting to focus our reading to support work for Black History Month. We will be reading poems by the late Benjamin Zephaniah and learning about different people of colour who helped to change history.

Science work is still all about space and we have been learning about why we have days and years. The children who did not go on the residential complete some fantastic artwork around space travel in the future.

Finally, our writing has focused on descriptive writing. We will be writing a description of the beginning of the narrative poem: The Highwayman. We have studied the poem and created images to support our descriptions. The children have been creating similes, metaphor and alliteration that they can use in their writing.

We are looking forward to our trip to the Science Museum and still need some parents and carers to support this trip. If you are able to come please let your class teacher know.

Year 6 Update

Being Active in Year 6

Our Year 6 pupils have kicked off the School Walking Challenge with great enthusiasm! Each month, at Elmgrove we will be monitoring the number of pupils who walk to school. This initiative ties in with our School Travel Plan and our commitment as a school to make healthy choices for ourselves and our planet. Classes 6L, 6B, 6K, and 6O are going head-to- head to see who can earn the most active travel ticks and take home the coveted Golden Boot award. We’re encouraging everyone to get involved—whether it’s walking, cycling, scooting, or even doing a ‘park and stride’ for those who live a bit further away. Every active journey counts, and it’s a fun way to stay healthy, reduce traffic, and show our school spirit. Let’s see which Year 6 class will stride ahead to victory!

English

This week in English, we’ve been building up to writing our non-chronological reports on the Vikings. The children have been exploring the key features of report writing, including how to organise information clearly and use formal language effectively. We have also focused on using colons for lists and clauses, and distinguishing between active and passive voice to make our writing more varied and engaging. Everyone is looking forward to applying these skills in their final Viking reports next week.

PSHE

This week in our PSHE lessons, we have been exploring the theme “Being Me in My World.” Together, we discussed some important questions, such as:

• How might our choices affect others – both in our local community and across the world?
• Why is it important to empathise with others?
• How can empathy influence the choices we make?

As a class, we also agreed to follow the Jigsaw Charter to help us learn in a calm, respectful environment where everyone feels confident to share their thoughts and ideas.

Maths

Mastering the Four Operations

In maths, we have been focusing on the four operations. The children have been recapping, revising, and learning new strategies to help them solve problems involving addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. They have been practising how to use formal written methods to support their calculations and have worked hard to improve both their speed and accuracy. We have used methods such as the column method, short multiplication, long multiplication, and short division to solve a range of problems.

Last updated 2:20pm on 3.10.25

Wednesday 1st October

2pm

After a long journey, we arrived safely at the Pioneer Centre. Everyone is currently settling in and will be jumping into their first activity shortly.

5pm

We have settled in and done our first activities. We have done a high wire course, wall climbing, leap of faith and some of us had fencing, which we all thoroughly enjoyed and are all feeling proud of our achievements. We will have dinner soon and then onto the next activity, campfire!

8pm

We ate lots of food at dinner and enjoyed some singing and games around a campfire.

Thursday 2nd October

12pm

We had great fun this morning building rafts and testing them out. Some of us got a bit wet!

4pm

We had a break for lunch and then some of us had abseiling, zip wire and fencing. Some of us even tried the high rope course blindfolded!

9pm

We enjoyed an evening of board games while watching a film. We also visited the tuck shop to get some sweets and souvenirs. 

Friday 3rd October

11am

Here are a few photos of this morning's activities...

12pm

We have started our journey back to school and are due back at the end of the school day.

I am a pupil who was chosen to represent our school in the 2025 Wondermaths Challenge along with Pelumi (5K), Musa (5K), Habibah (5G), and Aaron (5ST). Together, we formed a team of five to take part in this exciting maths competition. This year, 68 schools from across London took part in the Wondermaths Challenge. We first competed in the heats back in May and were thrilled to win our heat, which meant we qualified for the finals. It was already a big achievement, but what came next was even more special.

On the day of the finals, we arrived at school and began practicing straight away. Mr Gorsia went over the rules with us and gave us some final tips. Around 10:30am, we set off from Kenton Station and took the train to the competition venue. Before heading in, we had lunch at a nearby park at around 12:00pm to 12:30pm. The venue for the finals was a large hall filled with children from other schools. It felt exciting and nerve-racking all at once. Once we were settled, the competition began. In the first round, we tackled pentominoes, dominoes, T shapes, and dice. We were really pleased to get full marks in that round with a score of 200 out of 200. The second round was the 24 Game, which is all about using numbers and operations to make 24. We were proud to score above the usual limit of 200. We were not sure how we had done in the final two rounds, but we stayed positive and worked well together as a team. Before the results were announced, we had a special visit from Simon Singh, a famous author and mathematician, who entertained us with fun and tricky maths challenges. Finally, the moment came. When they announced that we had won, we were completely shocked. We were not expecting it at all. We each received a medal, and our school was awarded a certificate and a beautiful glass trophy with the words 2025 Wondermaths Champions engraved on it.

This victory was extra special because it marked the fourth year in a row that our school has won the Wondermaths Challenge. This would not have been possible without the help of Mr Gorsia, our hard work of one and a half hours of practice every day and Mrs Carroll, our lucky charm.

Written by Hani 5ST

24 Game Competition

This week, on Wednesday the 18th, the 24 Game Maths Team went to a competition at Aylward Primary School. Our team was made up of six children: four from Year Six and two from Year Five. We arrived at school by 8am. and had a short practice session before leaving at around 8:30am. We walked to Northwick Park Station, took the train to Wembley Park, then changed to the Jubilee Line. After getting off at Stanmore Station, we walked another 10 minutes to reach Aylward Primary.

To prepare for the competition, we have been training since January, practising for an hour each day. We also attend maths club after school on Fridays. The team has shown great commitment by working hard both at school and at home. Last Friday, we held a special showcase after school for staff members to see what we have been working on. All of our dedication paid off, as our school won 1st place for the fourth year in a row. Every child on the team also placed in the top 6. The competition had five rounds, each lasting seven minutes, with four or five children at each table. Seven schools took part, with a total of 42 children competing. To qualify for the final round (Round 5), participants had to score the highest number of points. Four children from our school made it to the final round, along with one child from another school.

This success would not have been possible without the help of Mr Gorsia, who trained us, helped us prepare, and is a great teacher to everyone. We are also very grateful to Mrs Carroll, who has supported us throughout the years and always cheered us on.

By Antonia 5K

On Monday, pupils at Elmgrove were thrilled to welcome wheelchair tennis star Andy Lapthorne for a special visit. The current British number 1 quad wheelchair tennis player delivered an inspiring assembly where he shared his incredible journey and spoke about the dedication and determination it takes to be an elite athlete.

Andy has won 58 titles during his career, including 18 Grand Slams and 4 Olympic medals for Team GB. Our pupils had the chance to ask thoughtful questions and learn more about his achievements. Afterwards, some lucky students got to meet Andy in person, chat with him, and even enjoy a fun game of tennis together – a truly memorable experience for everyone involved.

A huge thank you to Andy and we wish you the best in Wimbledon!

Hi everyone! I’m one of the five Year 5 pupils who had the amazing chance to represent our school in the Wondermaths Challenge Heats Round yesterday—and I’m so excited to share our experience with you!

This year, 80 schools from across London took part in the competition, with seven heats happening throughout the week. Only the winning school from each heat is guaranteed a place in the finals—and we’re thrilled to say we came 1st in our heat and qualified!

Our journey started all the way back in November, when 25 of us from Years 4 and 5 began training. After an in-school tournament in March, five of us—Hani (5G), Habibah (5G), Aaron (5ST), Musa (5M), and Pelumi (5K)—were chosen to be on the final team. We’ve been going to Maths Club twice a week and practising every day at home, learning seven different and very tricky games to get ready.

We were trained by our teacher, Mr Gorsia, and had some amazing help from last year’s Wondermaths Champions—Antonia M (5G), Sofia (5G), Tajae (6B), and Abdul (6O). They became our coaches this year and gave up their time after school to help us. Some of them even rearranged their own plans just to support and encourage us. Their help made a huge difference, and we can’t thank them enough!

The competition itself was tough—we had to use all our strategies and quick thinking to compete against 12 other schools. After two and a half intense hours, the results came in: we won our heat! We think we scored 152 out of 200 in the Shapes Round and 184 out of 200 in the 24 Game Round, although final scores are still being confirmed.

This is the sixth year in a row our school has made it to the Wondermaths Finals, and we’re proud to keep the streak going. Thank you to everyone who supported us—we’ll do our best in the finals this July!

Written by Pelumi 5K