Welcome to the Simmonds class!

(Year 3)

We are named after Ellie Simmonds as she is an inspirational person who is a champion for disability equality. 

Her motto is, 'you only live once and you need to go out and achieve whatever you want to'. Ellie Simmonds is a perfect role model to help our children to understand that nothing can stop you from achieving you goals and dreams and reflects our mission statement to, 'Grow confident and aspirational children who believe in themselves and contribute positively to their community and the wider world'.

(Scroll down the page to jump to what we are learning this term and  any updates).

Aged just 13 at the time, Ellie Simmonds was the second youngest Paralympian in British history to win a medal of any colour when she competed at the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games.

The fact that she went on to win two gold medals in her first Games and follows the simple philosophy "work hard and be yourself" won her the hearts of the British nation. Thanks to her success she also picked up the BBC's Young Sports Personality of the Year award in the same year.

In February 2009 she became the youngest person ever to be appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) and later that year won six gold and a silver medal at the IPC Swimming World Championships Short Course in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Born with achondroplasia (dwarfism), Simmonds followed up her 2008 and 2009 successes with four gold, one silver and one bronze medal at the 2010 IPC Swimming World Championships in Eindhoven, the Netherlands.

At the 2011 IPC Swimming European Championships in Berlin, Simmonds went head-to-head with her Dutch rival Miriam de Koning-Peper, and ended up winning two gold, one silver and bronze medal.

Going into London she was one of the ‘poster girls’ of the Games and thanks to one of her sponsors, a giant image of Simmonds appeared down the side on one of the building’s facing the Olympic Park.

Despite the immense pressure on her, she duly delivered in front of her home crowd claiming two gold, one silver and one bronze medal. She also broke two world records.

In the 2013 New Year's Honours list, she was awarded an Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II.

Her success in the pool continued into 2013 with triple gold and one bronze at the 2013 IPC Swimnming World Championships in Montreal, Canada.

Prior to the 2015 World Championships in Glasgow, Great Britain, Simmonds had not lost the 400m freestyle at a Worlds or Paralympic Games since 2008. That all changed thanks to Ukraine's Yelyzaveta Mereshko, who on her Championships debut beat Simmonds in a thrilling final and claimed a further two gold medals.

Simmonds could not return to the top at the 2016 IPC Swimming Europeans in Funchal, Portugal, claiming one silver and three bronzes.

But the Briton showed at Rio 2016 she is still a force to be reckoned with, breaking the world record in the 200m individual medley by swimming under three minutes for the first time (2:59.81) and winning her fifth Paralympic gold. She went on to seal a bronze in the 400m freestyle behind Mereshko and China's Lingling Song.

All you need to know about the Simmonds Class.

Who are the adults?

Miss Jeffery and Mrs Edlin. 

What do we need to bring each day?

You need:

• A water bottle
• Your reading book
• Your reading diary 

Please remember to wear your school tie everyday now you are in Key Stage Two.

When is PE?

We have PE twice a week. On a Wednesday, we have PE outside (please wear warmer clothing such as Joggers as the weather starts to get colder). On a Thursday, we have PE inside. 

What will we be learning this term?

Please check the knowledge organisers for each term to see an over view of what your child will be learning this year. In Simmonds, we do blocks of  learning in one subject (our first one is History) and then we swap to a different subject once we have ensured the children have secured all the knowledge they need. 

What homework will we have?

Please encourage your child to read and read with them as much as possible. Studies show that reading for pleasure makes a big difference to children's educational performance and develops a broader vocabulary, increased general knowledge and a better understanding of other cultures.

• Our expectation is that children read  at home 5 times per week and this needs to be signed by a parent each time. 
• We also practice weekly spellings (these will be updated weekly and written in the children's school diary). The children will practice these in school on a Friday and Miss Jeffery will test the children on these the following Friday. 
• We expect the children to practice their multiplication target on TT Rockstars for around 5-10 minutes per day. A little practice each day makes a huge difference in children's ability to retain multiplication facts. 

If the children complete their homework tasks, they will be awarded Dojo points. We will also be sending out homework menus in the near future where the children can complete hands on or free choice activities around the topics they learn in school and the children can earn even more Dojo points.

Autumn Term 1

Please check Class Dojo pages to see some wonderful pictures of what we have been up to so far this term!

This term we are learning:

English: How to write a narrative. We are starting on describing settings and we are starting with finding powerful adjectives to up level our sentences from the video 'Once Upon A Lifetime'.

You can see the clip by clicking on the link below: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceU-uumQx-o

Maths: 

• 2 and 3 multiplication tables
• place value of 3 digit numbers,
• addition and subtraction methods (both mentally and written methods for 3 digit numbers).

Please practice place value of three digit numbers on the links below:

https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/7-11-years/place-value

History:

We are learning all about the Anglo-Saxons. The knowledge Organiser shows the key knowledge that we will be learning.