Welcome to the Year 4 webpage

Staff 

Mrs Cunniffe is the teacher of Robins Class 

Mrs Garratt and Mrs Fitzhugh are the teachers of Kingfishers Class 

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/

Spring Term 2026

Topic

🏛️ What Made the Greeks So Great?

Get ready for an epic odyssey this term as Year 4 travels back thousands of years to Ancient Greece! We will be becoming history detectives, investigating how this incredible civilisation shaped the world we live in today. From the fierce warriors of Sparta to the brilliant thinkers of Athens, we’ll explore the eras of the past, mastering the use of BC and AD to map out where the Greeks sit on our global timeline.

Throughout the term, we will be diving into primary and secondary sources to uncover the secrets of Greek life, making fascinating connections between their ancient achievements and our modern lives. The children will develop their skills as historians by comparing different periods of time, debating the significance of the first Olympics, and using specialist terminology to explain how these "Great Greeks" changed the course of history. Whether we are unearthing the myths of the Gods or examining the birth of democracy, it’s going to be a legendary term of discovery!

English

In English this term, we are letting our imaginations bloom as we dive into the beautiful story of 'The Secret Sky Garden' by Linda Sarah. Using this enchanting book as our inspiration, the children will be writing their very own transformation narratives, exploring how a grey, lonely space can be turned into something magical.

To make our writing as vivid as the garden itself, we will be focusing on building expanded noun phrases to add rich detail and using fronted adverbials to create flow and suspense. We’ll also be learning how to use inverted commas for character dialogue and perfecting our use of possessive apostrophes for plural nouns. By using clever nouns and pronouns to keep our stories cohesive, we will become expert storytellers, transforming our ideas into polished, professional paragraphs!

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 Thursday afternoon for children in year 4 this term and all children need to come to school dressed in their PE kit at this time.  At this time of the year, the weather is 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.  

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