Blog 4/9/26

 Good afternoon everyone,

I hope you all had a lovely break. We’ve had such a lovely first couple of days in Year 4! It’s been great getting to know the children and seeing how well they’ve all settled in. We’ve already had lots of fun together, and I’m really looking forward to getting stuck into our learning next week and all the exciting things we have planned for the year ahead.

PE

The children will need their PE kits on the following days:

• Monday
• Tuesday
• Thursday

Spellings

The children will have their spelling tests on a Friday and will be given the following week’s spellings after completing the test. However, next week, I will be giving them their spellings on Monday.

Half Term Project – 500 Words

Due in the week commencing 19th October 2026

500 Words Challenge

I would like all Year 4 children to enter the BBC’s 500 Words Challenge. All they need to do is write a story they would love to read in 500 words or fewer. Spelling, punctuation and grammar are not marked – it is all about creativity and imagination!

500 Words celebrates children’s creativity, encouraging young writers from across the UK to create an original story. This year, the celebrity judges include Malorie Blackman, Charlie Higson, Francesca Simon, Sir Lenny Henry, Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Rose Ayling-Ellis.

The bronze, silver and gold winners in each age category will be revealed by the BBC in early March 2027. The winning stories will also be read aloud by celebrities on the BBC.

There are lots of prizes to be won too! Winners will receive a bundle of books, while the gold winners will also win 500 books for their school library. Each winning story will also receive a framed, illustrated cover created exclusively by a top children’s illustrator.

Children can only submit one story each. There are very few rules, but please remember that stories must:

• Be 500 words or fewer (the title is not included)
• Be written by an individual, not a group
• Be the child’s own original idea
• Be prose, rather than a rap or poem

Stories must not:

• Include any personal details about the child, including their name
• Recount a historical event (although real people or historical characters can be used as inspiration)
• Be created, written or developed using AI

Stories are judged on:

• Characterisation
• Plot
• Originality
• Language
• Enjoyment

Please note: stories can only be submitted electronically, so they will need to be typed and sent to me rather than handwritten.

If you have any questions, please email me.

Have a great weekend!