Year 4
Welcome to Year 4
Welcome to Year 4! Year 4 is full of hardworking, resilient pupils who thoroughly enjoy every fun and exciting learning opportunity at hand. This is a fantastic class to be in because we are respectful, perseverant and embrace new challenges, all with a smile on our faces! We work with Mrs Bailey (class teacher) and Mr Hunter (HLTA). Together, they help to make our learning meaningful, memorable and marvellous, ensuring that we have lots of opportunities to consolidate our learning in a fun and effective way.
Year 4 Key InformationYear 4 Long-Term Planning Overview (2025-2026)Year 4 Weekly Timetable (2025-2026)
Classroom Routines
Reading
Reading is a fundamental part of children's learning; not only does it expose them to new worlds and exciting adventures, it also helps them to build strong foundations and, ultimately, access the entire curriculum. In Year 4, we strive for our readers to read with fluency and intonation, bringing the text to life with their "storyteller voice". Furthermore, we aim to develop our readers' comprehension skills by supporting them in unpicking and understanding the texts they read in depth. In order to support your child in being a strong, fluent, confident reader, we highly encourage that your child reads at least three times a week with an adult, with an adult completing and signing their record on every new read.
An important goal in Year 4 is to foster a love of reading. To help in adopting a genuine pleasure for reading, we strongly encourage our readers to read any books at home that captivate their interests that they can engross themselves in.
We ask all children to bring their reading book and reading record into school every day as your child may need these for reading sessions. We aim to change reading books every Friday. Readers who have read at least 3 times will get entered into our class prize draw with a chance of winning our "Reader of the Week".
Homework
Homework is set every Friday and is to be completed in their homework book. Homework will consist of weekly spellings, handwriting practice, times table practice and a short reading comprehension. All children are expected to hand in their homework by Tuesday the following week for marking. If children require any assistance with their homework, they can attend Homework Club on a Monday lunchtime where they can be supported by an adult.
We also encourage children to use our online learning platforms to further support their learning. Times tables are a particularly important aspect of Year 4 so regular practice on Times Table Rockstars is strongly encouraged to support number fact fluency. Any logins can be found in the front of their homework books. TT Rockstars Login
PE
We value the importance of physical education to maintain a healthy lifestyle. We have PE on a Tuesday and Friday.
- On a Tuesday, either Sharks or Dolphins will take part in a four-week block of swimming lesson. Children who remain in school will take part in a PE lesson focused on developing our basic PE skills with Mr Hunter or Mrs Bailey.
- On a Friday, all children have a PE session led by either Mr Hunter or Mrs Bailey.
Please bring PE kits in on Monday and leave them in for the week so that children are prepared for any eventuality.
Communication
We share learning and resources through ClassDojo. Parents and children are able to post messages, photos and videos and parents can see work and send messages to the class teacher. This is a really strong way of keeping our learning up to date and staying connected with our class. If you have any difficulties accessing ClassDojo, please contact the school office for further support.
Please note any messages sent outside of office hours will be replied to the next working day.
Statutory Tests in Year 4
In Year 4, we prepare for the National Multiplication Check which takes place in the Summer term. The Multiplication Check is to support children in their ability to rapidly recall all of their times table facts up to 12 X 12. We do this through a range of teaching activities and games and work with all children to rehearse their skills. It is strongly encouraged to to practise these regularly at home too.
Times Tables Rock Stars is a carefully sequenced programme of daily times tables practice. This format has very successfully boosted times tables recall speed for hundreds of thousands of pupils.
All children have logins for TT Rockstars which can be found in the front of their homework books.
Curriculum Areas
English
Throughout the year, we read and are inspired by a diverse range of texts, from short stories such as 'The Promise', novels such as 'The Christmasaurus' and historical texts such as 'Escape from Pompeii'. Throughout our units of work, we explore and write several genres of writing from persuasive letters, newspaper reports and narratives. We also focus on using relevant spelling, punctuation and grammar skills such as similes, expanded noun phrases and fronted adverbials in our writing.
To help support your child with their writing, please encourage them to practise their spellings on at least 4 separate occasions throughout the week. Weekly spellings can be found on your child’s homework and common exception words can be found at the front of your child’s reading record for further support.
Here are some of the texts that we have studied and enjoyed so far:
Mathematics
In our school, we follow the White Rose Maths scheme of work with a focus on deepening our knowledge and understanding through the completion of daily fluency, reasoning and problem-solving activities. We also complete daily Flashback 4 quizzes to help us build confidence and retain our previous knowledge. In Year 4, there is a strong emphasis on multiplication and division; we focus on building our confidence and speed with our times table facts.
Science
We love science lessons and getting to learn and experiment by taking part in a variety of fun scientific enquires.
In Year 4, we concentrate our learning on the following science topics:
- Sound
- States of matter
- Electricity
- Animals including humans
- Living things and their habitats
History
This year, we look in depth into the Romans. In the Autumn term and Spring term, we focus on the Roman invasion, consider why they wanted to invade our country and explore the lasting impact that this had. Finally, in the Summer term, we study the Anglo Saxons to compare and contrast what life was like with the Romans.
As part of our History topic we will also visit Binchester Fort to explore the ancient ruins and take part in a Roman soldier workshop.
Geography
Our geography focus this year is Europe. In Autumn, we locate various European countries on world maps, atlases and globes, comparing their human and physical features, landscapes and biomes. In Spring, we hone in on Italy, focusing the Italian culture and landmarks before exploring volcanoes formation and earthquake causes. This topic links effectively with our Roman history topic as we research the eruption of Pompeii and use this to learn more about the Ancient Romans. During Summer term, we carry out an enquiry into climate change, looking in particular at the causes and effects.
Physical Education
Throughout the year, we take part in a range of sporting activities, taught by Mr Hunter or Mrs Bailey. We are also fortunate to partake in sports that are led by sport specialists and coaches.
In Year 4, we participate in:
- Swimming
- Tag Rugby
- Dance
- Gymnastics
- Hockey
- Football
- Cricket
Music
Throughout the year, the children listen to a range of music and explore pitch, rhythm, singing and composing. In the second half of Year 4, our class learn to play violins and can also choose to learn how to play violin through small group violin tutoring.
Further information about taking up musical tuition can be found at: https://www.durhammusic.org.uk/sign-up
French
We have our weekly French lessons taught by language specialists at Lingotots! We learn to hold conversations in French, and develop new vocabulary based on classroom instructions, modes of transport and foods. The sessions are lots of fun and are filled with games and activities!
PSHE and RSE
We strive to ensure that our PSHE lessons are adapted to the needs of our class. To ensure we have access to a thorough and inclusive curriculum, we take inspiration from a range of resources including the 'No Outsiders' approach through story books and discussions, Melva and Jigsaw. The Jigsaw units of work we study which are:
- Being Me
- Celebrating Differences
- Dreams and Goals
- Healthy Me
- Relationships
- Changing Me
Computing
We follow the Teach Computing scheme of work to develop our computing knowledge and skills. At the start of every lesson we focus on an aspect of Online Safety to ensure we are confident in staying safe online.
Our Computing units are:
- Computing Systems & Networks - The internet
- Data & Information - Data logging
- Creating Media - Audio production
- Creating Media - Photo editing
- Programming - Repetition in shapes
- Programming - Repetition in games
Art and Design
In Art, we follow the Access Art scheme of work to build on our skills and knowledge. We get to use a range of art mediums and resources such as clay, paints and oil pastels to explore our creativity and create a range of individual art pieces.
Our art units are:
- Drawing & Illustrations
- Photography/Still Life
- Sculptures
Design Technology
Every other half term, we undertake a DT project in which we evaluate existing designs to get inspiration, and design our own creation before making and evaluating our final product. We focus on a range of skills throughout the year and often link our projects to other areas of the curriculum.
Our DT projects are:
- Textiles - Creating a Christmas cushion
- Electrical Systems - Night lights
- Structures - Roman pavilions
Religious Education
Throughout Year 4, we focus on Christianity to gain an in-depth understanding of the religion and beliefs. We study the significance of the Bible, how Christians show care for others, and explore religious celebrations such as Christmas and Easter (Lent). In the Summer term, we also study Durham Cathedral and take a school visit to learn more about St. Cuthbert.