Welcome to Year 4

Staff 

Mrs Cunniffe is the teacher of Robins Class 

Mrs Garratt and Mrs Fitzhugh are the teachers of Kingfishers Class 

Summer Term 2026

Topic

Romans: Invaders or Inventors?

This term, Year 4 are heading back two thousand years to discover the incredible impact of the Roman Empire. From the fierce expansion of their mighty legions to the ingenious inventions that changed Britain forever—like central heating and straight roads—we will be exploring what life was truly like during the Roman Empire. Our budding historians will investigate the brave resistance of Queen Boudicca, decode Roman numerals, and even learn the tactical secrets of a Roman battle formation. To bring our learning to life, we are incredibly excited to be visiting the Deva Roman Discovery Centre in Chester. During this hands-on trip, the children will march through the streets of Chester, experience the sights and smells of a Roman fortress, and discover the fascinating archaeology hidden beneath our local area!

English

Our English curriculum this term kicks off with a personal and reflective diary entry, where the children will recount their unforgettable adventures at the Conway Centre. We will be focusing on using vivid description and informal structures to bring their residential memories to life on the page. Following this, we will dive into a powerful and thought-provoking refugee narrative inspired by the beautifully illustrated book, The Journey by Francesca Sanna. This unit will allow the children to explore empathy, using emotive language and fronted adverbials to tell a story of courage and hope. Finally, during the second half of the Summer term, we will link our writing back to our History topic by producing high-quality non-fiction reports on the daily life of a Roman soldier. The children will master the art of sub-headings and technical vocabulary to explain everything from the weight of a lorica segmentata to the discipline required for a life in the legions!

Spellings:                 

The children will continue to receive weekly spelling homework on Spelling Shed linked to the spelling patterns they are learning in class. In addition, the children should learn the National Curriculum spelling lists which were given out at the start of the year. Children are expected to learn one column of spellings per half term and will require help and support at home to ensure the children achieve well. Ideally this should happen weekly – little and often – to enable the children to master the spelling of all of the words. We realise that some of these spellings may appear quite demanding, but every child in the country has to be proficient in the spelling of these relevant age-related words. (See attached list) 

Times Tables

In June, the children will be completing the multiplication tables check (MTC). This is statutory for all year 4 pupils registered at state-funded maintained schools, special schools or academies, including free schools, in England. The purpose of the MTC is to determine whether pupils can recall their times tables fluently, which is essential for future success in mathematics. It will help schools to identify pupils who have not yet mastered their times tables, so that additional support can be provided. You may best support your child in preparation for this by encouraging regular practice of their times tables and TTRS is an excellent tool for this. We will continue to teach and prepare them for the MTC in class also.

Love Music Trust
We are very fortunate here at Elworth that all our Year 4 children benefit from weekly whole class instrument lessons! Children should practise their clarinets at home.

PE Timetables 

PE is timetabled for Wednesday afternoon for children in year 4 this term and all children need to come to school dressed in their PE kit at this time.  As always, the weather can be very changeable so always send your child in with the appropriate PE uniform including a waterproof jacket/coat (please refer to the school PE uniform policy on our website for guidance).  May we remind you that all uniform should be labelled to avoid any confusion and missing kit. 

Fitness Friday

We will continue to come to school dressed in our PE kits on Fridays, as we have a focus on keeping active and healthy. Prepare for an active and enjoyable day of learning!

Reading 

All children are expected to read for up to 30 minutes three times per week as part of their homework and have their reading diary signed by an adult. These will be checked by their teacher weekly. All pupils in Year 2/3/4, when reaching a suitable standard, will have access to Accelerated Reader, where children read their choice of book and complete a comprehension quiz online at the end. These results are tracked by teachers and the children achieve points for good test results. 

Homework 

Children in Year 4 receive weekly homework in maths, times tables, spellings and reading. Homework is set on a Monday to be completed by the following Monday.  

Useful links

Google Classroom - classroom.google.com/a/elworthce.cheshire.sch.uk

AR Bookfinder - http://www.arbookfind.co.uk/

Times table Rock Stars - https://play.ttrockstars.com/auth

Spelling shed - https://play.edshed.com/

If you have any further questions or queries about life in Year 4, please arrange to speak with your child’s class teacher.   

Thank you for your continuing support, 

Mrs Cunniffe, Mrs Garratt and Mrs Fitzhugh