Welcome to Year 2

A warm welcome to all our Year 2 children and families! Year 2 is an exciting and important year, as children continue to build on their learning from year 1 and prepare for their transition into KS2. Our dedicated team is committed to providing a rich and engaging curriculum that nurtures curiosity, confidence, and a love for learning. We also focus on fostering independence, resilience, and a growth mindset to help every child achieve their potential. We look forward to a fantastic year ahead!

A young boy pupil looks forward to a task whilst others in the class work behind him in a group

Upcoming events for Year 2

Here’s what you’ve got to look forward to over the coming weeks.

Wear One Red Item For Comic Relief
Fri 21st Mar
Parent/Carer Consultation Evening
Wed 21st - Thu 22nd May
Summer Concert
Thu 10th - Fri 11th Jul
Sports Day
Fri 11th Jul

Year 6 are helping at this event

Curriculum

Art and Design / DT / Food and Nutrition

At KS1 and KS2 we follow a two year sequence:

2024/2025 and 2026/2027

Autumn 1 – Painting

Autumn 2 – Mechanical Systems (Sliders and Levers)

Spring 1 – Collage

Spring 2 – Food Technology

Summer 1 – Portraits, including photography/digital

Summer 2 – Textiles – weaving

 

2025/2026

Autumn 1 – 3D: Clay

Autumn 2 – Food Technology

Spring 1 – Printing

Spring 2 – Mechanica | Systems (axles and wheels)

Summer 1 – Portraits, including photography/digital

Summer 2 – Structures

Computing

Each year through KS1-2 we cycle through the following units at increasing depth:

  1. Productivity
  2. Programming
  3. Computational Thinking
  4. Creativity
  5. Networks
  6. Communication/collaboration

The Year 9 curriculum is both the culmination of Key Stage 3 studies and introduces many concepts and skills that form part of the GCSE syllabus.

Topics taught this year include:

  • More advanced graph work
  • Algebra work, including simultaneous equations, algebraic products and factorising quadratics
  • Number work, including trial and improvement, recurring decimals, percentages work with appreciation/depreciation and rounding (upper and lower bounds)
  • Trigonometry
  • Congruency and similarity for triangles
  • Transformations, particularly enlargements.
English

Learning to Read

Children in the early years who are learning to read (decode) follow the Read Write Inc. synthetic phonics program.

This enables them to work to decode a book appropriate for their phonic knowledge, to begin to develop reading stamina and fluency. At this point, children take part in our Oral Shared Reading program, so they can work on their comprehension skills using a shared text, read by an expert teacher.

Click here to see which books we read in Year 2.

Geography

Children in Year 2 learn about the following subjects:

The living world

  • Biomes
  • Hot and cold climates
  • Rainforests

The economic world

  • Food, water and energy
  • The changing economic world
  • Tourism and ecotourism
  • Case study: Cambridge

 

History

We cover two topics a year for History in Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. In Year 2 we look at Food and Trade, then Punishment and Medicine.

Mathematics

Our school uses Maths Mastery to teach the subject.

In Year 2 we cover:

  • Numbers within 100
  • Addition and subtraction of two digit numbers
  • Addition and subtraction on word problems
  • Measures: length
  • Graphs
  • Multiplication and division 2, 5 and 10
Music

Autumn 1 – Film Music

Autumn 2 – African Music

Spring 1 – Folk Music

Spring 2 – Bhangra

Summer 1 – Samba

Summer 2 – Reflect, Rewind and Replay

PE
  • Gymnastics
  • Dance
  • Attack/defend/shoot
  • Hit/catch/run
  • Send/return
  • Run/jump/throw
Religious and Non-religious Worldviews (RE)

We follow a three-year cycle (see below) covering the major world religions as well as worldviews.

The programme is designed so that each previously taught religion is reviewed and comparisons are drawn between the content. Over six years, each child will have studied each identified religion/non-religion twice, studying in greater depth and making connections between religions.

Pupils are taught key substantive knowledge for each religion and worldview and each lesson is broken down into one of 3 disciplines: Theology, philosophy and Human/Social Science.

2024-2025: Christianity and Islam
2025-2026: Judaism and Humanism
2026-2027: Hinduism and Sikhism
Parents/carers have the right to withdraw their child from all or part of RE – please contact the principal if you wish to explore this as an option.
RSHE and PSHE

The Paradigm primary schools follow the Jigsaw programme.

From September 2019 we have allocated 45 minutes per week to PSHE at KS1 and KS2.

  • Being Me in My World
  • Celebrating Difference
  • Dreams and Goals
  • Healthy Me
  • Relationships
  • Changing Me
Science

Autumn 1 – Plants and Seasons

Autumn 2 – Materials and Forces

Spring 1 – Animals including Humans

Spring 2 – Plants

Summer 1 – Materials

Summer 2 – Living things and their habitats

INSET Days for this term are:

  • Monday, 6th January

Students should not attend school on this day.

First Half Term Dates
Start Monday, 6th January
End Friday, 14th February
Half Term Holiday Dates
Start Monday, 17th February
End Friday, 21st February
Second Half Term Dates
Start Monday, 24th February
End Friday, 4th April

INSET Days for this term are:

  • Tuesday, 22nd April

Pupils should not attend school on this day.

The first day back after the Easter holidays for pupils is Wednesday 23rd April 2025.

The first day back after half term for pupils is Monday 2nd June 2025.

First Half Term Dates
Start Tuesday, 22nd April
End Friday, 23rd May
Half Term Holiday Dates
Start Tuesday, 27th May
End Friday, 30th May
Second Half Term Dates
Start Monday, 2nd June
End Thursday, 24th July