Ancient Egypt: "Wonderful Things!"

Class 3V rounded off their study of Ancient Egypt with an afternoon stepping into the shoes of the famous archaeologist, Howard Carter.

The scene was set: it was autumn 1922, in the Valley of the Kings.  Lord Carnarvon, a British aristocrat, had spent eight years financing the search for the lost tomb of the boy Pharaoh, Tutankhamun, but to no avail.  His patience (as well as his money!) was running out.  Howard Carter knew this was his last chance.  He was almost giving up hope...

Quite unexpectedly, a young boy, who was employed by Carter as a water carrier, stumbled across some old stone steps buried in the sand.  Could this be the entrance to the lost tomb?

Filled with trepidation, 3V took it in turns to investigate the mysterious tomb that had appeared in the literacy area.  Since the the tomb was sealed, awaiting the arrival of the Egyptian authorities, the class had time only for a very quick peek into the gloom.  They knew they had to remember what they had seen in order to make field sketches of their finds...

Armed only with a torch (and a stylish 1920s hat) each pupil took a turn investigating the contents of the tomb.  They could only look for a few seconds, in case the stale air inside the ancient tomb overcame them.  They had to use all their powers of observation to remember what they had seen, in order to create a field sketch of an artefact.

Just like Howard Carter, they saw "wonderful things" inside!

After they had looked into the tomb, the class had to work to piece together the evidence they had found.  What could these artefacts tell us about the tomb's famous resident?

We looked in detail at the different artefacts.  There were so many different grave goods, each made of lavish materials such as gold and jewels.  We decided that the tomb must belong to someone very important.  But where was Tutankhamun himself?

We looked closely at photographs of the tomb again.  There was a patch of plaster that didn't seem to match.  A guardian statue stood on each side... What could be hiding behind the wall?

The anticipation in the room was palpable as we peeled back the plaster... to reveal an enormous wooden coffin emblazoned with hieroglyphs!  Surely this must be the tomb?  Inside, there was another stone coffin, and another, and another, until finally the glorious golden sarcophagus was revealed!  We were able to confirm that we had indeed found the tomb of the boy king, Tutankhamun.

A volunteer examined the tomb, on which the famous curse was inscribed: "Death shall come on swift wings to him who disturbs the peace of the King."  In spite of the risk, the final box was opened, to reveal the beautiful, ornate mask of Tutankhamun himself, amid gasps of delight from the children.

The children had such an enjoyable afternoon discovering Tutankhamun's tomb for themselves, and using photographs of the the discovery and the artefacts found by Howard Carter to piece together the story.  They learned that artefacts left behind by the Ancient Egyptians could tell us so much about the way the Pharaohs lived, and died, so long ago in the Valley of the Kings. 

Musical Composition

Over the past few weeks in 3V, we have been learning about the way in which music can be used to create mood, and how different instruments can be used to represent different things.

First of all, we listened to Camille Saint-Saens' 'Carnival of the Animals' and tried to spot all the different instruments, and work out which piece related to which animal.

Then, we listened to Holst's Planet Suite and thought about the moods suggested by the different pieces of music.  We enjoyed thinking of 'WOW Words' to match each movement, and trying to guess which planet was which. Our favourites were Mars: Bringer of War and Jupiter: Bringer of Jollity. 

More recently, we have enjoyed composing our own pieces of music using the the glockenspiels.  It was tremendous fun and each group managed to create and perform a piece of music for the rest of the class.

Today, we have been looking at how music is written on a stave and the values of each of the musical notes.  We used a computer programme to compose our own short pieces of music with four beats to the bar.  

Mummification Mayhem!

In our history lessons in 3V we have been learning all about the Ancient Egyptians.  This week, we looked at how the Ancient Egyptians looked after their dead.  

We learnt that the Ancient Egyptians believed that the body should be preserved as well possible, so that the soul could recognise the body when the two were reunited in the afterlife.  

We looked at all the grisly details of the mummification process and then acted out the mummification for ourselves.  We had brilliant fun mummifying a pupil and going through all the necessary steps to ensure that she was beautifully preserved!

Science: All About Plants

This term in Year 3 we have been learning all about plants.  This week, we learnt how plants transport water from their roots to their leaves via transpiration.  

We wanted to prove that plants move water all the way up to their leaves, using special tubes called xylem, so we designed an experiment to check.

First, we mixed some food colouring with plain water in a beaker.  Then, we added a lettuce leaf, making sure that the bottom of the leaf was under the coloured water.  We talked about making the test fair, and decided to keep one leaf in plain water as a control.

We are hoping that the leaves will change colour as the food dye is transported through the plant, and we are excitedly awaiting the results!

Maths: Using Directional Language

This week in 3V we have been learning about directional language: using the terms clockwise and  anti-clockwise, and whole, half and quarter turns.  

After a quick  practice in the classroom we went outside to the playground and, in our table groups, we created mazes and then gave each other instructions using directional language to guide each other through them.  We all took a turn being the ‘human bee bot’ while our team mates gave us  directions.

Finally, we gave instructions to Mrs Vaqueiro using directional language, to help her lead us back to the classroom.

Egyptian Art

In 3V we have been learning all about the Ancient Egyptians.  We have been studying paintings and hieroglyphs left behind by the Ancient Egyptians, and in our art lessons, we have been making clay tiles depicting Ancient Egyptian people.  We were helped by the ladies from Art Base who were able to share their expertise with us.

First, we designed templates for our people: we made a man and a lady.  Then, we rolled out our clay and used the templates as a guide to cut out the shapes.  We added some extra details to the basic cut outs, and then, once the clay was dry, we were able to paint them.

Once the tiles are completely finished we will add them to our class display.

Don't they look fabulous?

Welcome!

Welcome to Class 3V's blog for the academic year 2017-18!  

Here, you can keep up to date with all the exciting things we do in Class 3V - be sure to check in regularly for the latest news.

Mrs Vaqueiro :)