Year 3/4 Class Page

Welcome to Year 3/4!

Our Staff

Hello! I’m Mrs Aldren, and I’m delighted to be teaching our Year 3/4 class.

I am a highly experienced primary teacher with over 20 years of teaching across Early Years, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. I hold a BA (Hons) in Primary Education with a History specialism and have held a range of leadership roles, including English and Writing Lead, KS1 Lead, and subject leadership across several curriculum areas.

I am passionate about creating a calm, safe and positive classroom where children feel confident, supported and ready to learn. I place a strong emphasis on clear routines, high expectations, and nurturing children’s independence, resilience and love of learning. English, reading and writing are particular interests of mine, alongside developing children’s oracy and confidence.

I believe children learn best when they feel secure, valued and appropriately challenged, and I am really looking forward to working closely with both the children and their families.

Outside of school, I have three grown-up children whom I am very proud to watch making their way in the world. My spare time revolves around my family and my three dogs: Minnie the Cockapoo, Spot the Cavapoochon and Tilly the Bichon Frise.

I am very happy to be joined by a wonderful team. In our class, we have Miss Rose, who works with us full time supporting all aspects of learning, and Mrs Newell, who supports children on a more one-to-one basis. Our classroom would not run as smoothly without their hard work and dedication.

Our Class

Welcome to our Year 3/4 class — an exciting and important stage in your child’s learning journey. This year, we will focus on building independence, confidence and curiosity while developing key skills across the curriculum.

Our classroom is a calm, structured and supportive environment where children are encouraged to try their best, take pride in their work and support one another.

What We Will Be Learning

English

In English, we will focus on:

• Developing fluent reading skills and a love of books

• Building strong sentence structure and vocabulary

• Writing for a range of purposes, including stories, reports and explanations

Mathematics

In Mathematics, children will:

• Secure number knowledge and calculation skills

• Develop problem-solving and reasoning

• Build confidence with times tables, mental maths and written methods

Across the wider curriculum, we will explore Science, History, Geography, Computing, Art, Design Technology and PSHE, with opportunities for discussion, practical learning and creative thinking.

Classroom Expectations

We work hard to create a classroom where everyone feels safe, valued and ready to learn. We have very high expectations of both behaviour and attainment.

Children are expected to:

• Follow classroom routines

• Show respect to adults and peers

• Try their best, even when learning feels challenging

Positive behaviour, effort and kindness are celebrated, and children are supported to reflect on their choices and learn from them.

Reading & Home Learning

Regular reading at home makes a huge difference to children’s progress in school. Please support your child by:

• Listening to them read regularly

• Talking about books, characters and stories

We strongly encourage children to read every night. Regular reading helps children access the full curriculum with greater confidence and fluency. As a guide, children in Year 3/4 should be aiming to read approximately 90 words per minute fluently.

We follow the Accelerated Reader programme in school. Children will:

• Read a book matched to their reading level

• Complete a short quiz once they have finished the book

• Change their book once a quiz has been completed

Please remember to sign your child’s reading record each time you have listened to them read.

Reading is a crucial life skill, and research shows that confident readers often develop stronger spelling skills and more creative writing due to exposure to a wider range of vocabulary and language structures.

Supporting Learning at Home

You can further support your child by:

• Practising times tables using TT Rockstars

• Learning weekly spellings for fluency and accuracy

Homework

Homework will be set each Wednesday and should be returned by Monday.

Children are also encouraged to:

• Read daily

• Practise spellings and times tables regularly

Children who return completed homework each week will be rewarded with extra merits and dojos.

PE

Our PE days are Monday and Tuesday. Children should leave their PE kits in school so that they are always available when needed.

PE kits should include:

• A plain white t-shirt

• Black shorts

• PE pumps

Please ensure all items are clearly labelled and sent into school in a named bag that can be kept on your child’s peg.

For health and safety reasons, earrings must be removed for PE lessons. If your child is unable to remove earrings independently, please remove them before school on PE days.

Whenever possible, we will aim to take PE lessons outdoors, so please ensure your child is prepared for being active outside.

Working Together

Strong communication between school and home is really important. We believe that children thrive best when families and school work closely together as a team.

If you have any questions, concerns, or information you feel we should be aware of, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Equally, if your child is worried about anything at home or in school, we encourage you to let us know so that we can offer the right support as early as possible.

By sharing information and working together, we can help ensure every child feels safe, supported and confident in their learning.

I’m very much looking forward to a positive, successful and enjoyable year with our Year 3/4 class.