Dear Parents,
The playground has been a winter
wonderland this week. If you look at the class photos on the blog, you
will be able to see the children sledging on old tyres, cushions and plastic
mats - anything and everything that could have been used to transport children
around the playground - was!
It was an uphill struggle to keep the
children focused on academic subjects; however, with promises of extra
‘snow-time’, we still managed to achieve a reasonable amount of work.
Some children have now completed a range
of Level 6 questions on: percentages, fractions, decimal, ratio, proportional
reasoning, calculating with fractions and to finish this block of study, a
number review. They have now begun the algebra section, looking at the method
for trial and improvement and how to construct and solve linear equations.
Other children are working through individual revision programmes, focusing on
examination style questions.
As part of our project on ‘The Merchant of
Venice’, we are investigating four sub-plots of the story; in our next piece of
assessed writing, pupils will be expected to demonstrate their ability to
‘weave’ two sub-plots into their text:
The four interwoven plots are:
1. The deal between Antonio, a
merchant of Venice who makes his money from trading fine goods carried to
and fro in his sailing ships, and Shylock a Jewish moneylender. The deal
goes wrong when a number of Antonio's ships perish at sea and
threaten him with ruin. Shylock is determined to earn the pound of
Antonio's flesh that was promised him instead of interest when the
loan was made. Can Antonio escape death?
2. The love between Portia and
Bassanio
3. The elopement of
Shylock's Jewish daughter, Jessica, with the Christian Lorenzo
4. A trick Portia plays on Bassanio
to test his love of her.
Investigating the characters of Antonio
and Bassanio has been achieved through looking at the Royal Shakespeare Company’s
production that was set in modern day USA, Venice being Las Vegas: needless to
say, there were many volunteers to act out the scenes!
It was a pleasure to meet with you on Wednesday
evening; please make an appointment with me should you wish to discuss the
matter further.
Have a lovely weekend.
Kind regards,
Mrs T
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