Summer

Victoria Tunnel

We had such a great day visiting Victoria Tunnel in Ouseburn! Upon arrival, we were met by two Air Raid Wardens and our guide for the day, Lynn. Dressed in her best 1940s outfit, Lynn led us through the tunnel, telling us all about how it would have been during the dark days of WW2. Used as an air raid shelter, Victoria Tunnel had secret entrances all over Newcastle and could accommodate up to 9,000 people at any one time. We experienced what it would have been like to be crammed in the tunnel with little space to move about and what it would have been like to experience a complete blackout (luckily only for 3 seconds for us though!).

We also heard all about Basil's story. He lived in Newcastle and was evacuated to Barnard Castle as a young boy. It was fascinating to hear what his experiences were and imagine ourselves in his position. How scary it would have been! We handled some objects from WW2, including a gas mask and ration books. We even got to try a tin hat on and experience how it protected people from explosions... or a leather strap in our case!

Finally, we finished the day having lunch at Stepney Bank Stables. It was lovely to see the horses but we weren't too keen on the smell! Have a look at our day below:

The Big Gig

Year 4 have been working hard this year learning how to play the ukulele. Every week, they have been brushing up their skills and this week it was finally the time for The Big Gig! A celebration of schools across Newcastle who have been taking part in music lessons from the music service, we tuned in to a virtual event live from The Globe. We enjoyed joining in and singing along with some great tunes.   

Fantastic Fractions!

Year 4 have been working hard exploring fractions this week. It's been great to hear everybody using mathematical vocabulary when discussing our work. Have a look at the photographs below to see us matching equivalent fractions:

Using Primary Sources 

In History, we have started studying World War 2. The question posed this week was 'What Happened at Dunkirk?'. Armed only with primary sources, our History Detectives got to work to see if they could find all the clues that would piece together the story. Our favourite source was a letter, written by a local man who had fought in France as part of the British Expeditionary Force. It was interesting to hear a little bit about his life and then use that to work out what happened next. Take a look at our detective work...

Super Scientists!

This week we have been investigating circuits. Within our teams, we each had an important role to make sure our investigation ran smoothly. We had Personnel Managers to resolve any conflict, Administration Officers to record our observations, Communications Officers to report back findings to the rest of the class, Resource Managers responsible for any equipment used and Health and Safety Managers to ensure we were working safely at all times. Take a look at all of our hard work: