Welcome to Year 3

Year 3 marks the beginning of Key Stage 2, an exciting new chapter in your child’s learning journey. As they move into more independent learning, our curriculum encourages critical thinking, problem-solving and creativity across subjects like English, maths, science and the arts. Our dedicated teachers provide a supportive environment that promotes confidence and curiosity, helping children embrace new challenges and develop their unique strengths.

The smiling teacher points out a subject whilst the children look on animatedly

Upcoming events for Year 3

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

Settling in Catch Up With Class Teacher
Mon 29th - Fri 3rd Oct
3.30pm-4.15pm

Please check with your child’s class teacher for the specific date.

Open Classroom
Mon 13th - Fri 17th Oct
8.45am-9.15am

Please check with your child’s class teacher for the specific date.

Year 3 Curriculum

Art and Design / DT / Food and Nutrition

At KS1 and KS2 we follow a two year sequence:

2025/2026 and 2027/2028

Autumn 1 – Printing

Autumn 2 – 3D: Metal

Spring 1 – Electrical Systems

Spring 2 – Mechanica | Systems (axles and wheels)

Summer 1 – Portraits, including mixed media

Summer 2 – Structures

 

2026/2027 and 2028/2029

Autumn 1 – Textiles – batik

Autumn 2 – Painting

Spring 1 – Mechanical Systems: Pneumatics

Spring 2 – Collage

Summer 1 – Portraits, including mixed media

Summer 2 – Food Technology

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
English

Reading to Learn

Once children have been carefully assessed as having met the requirements of the phonics program, they should be able to decode any age appropriate text. At this point, children move onto our ‘Paradigm Literacy and Language’ program.

The program allocates 3 weeks to ‘fiction writing’ such as: stories, poetry, one week to ‘journalistic writing’ such as biographies and non chronological reports and two weeks to a ‘non fiction writing’ program in which specialist teachers across the Trust have worked together to create and provide high quality texts in The Humanities and The Sciences.

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

Geography

Children in Year 3 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 3 we look at Ancient Greece, then Romans (not British).

Mathematics

Our school uses Maths Mastery to teach the subject.

In Year 3 we cover:

  • Number sense and exploring
  • Calculation strategies
  • Place value | Graphs
  • Addition and subtraction
  • Length and perimeter
Modern Foreign Languages

We introduce Spanish at Key Stage 2, through a system called Early Start Spanish Programme.

Music

Autumn 1 – Hip Hop

Autumn 2 – Introduction to the Orchestra

Spring 1 – Reggae

Spring 2 – Vocal Techniques: Scat/beatboxing

Summer 1 – Ensemble Skills

Summer 2 – Reflect, Rewind and Replay

PE
  • Striking / fielding (e.g. rounders, cricket)
  • Gymnastics
  • Invasion Games (e.g. hockey, netball, football)
  • Athletics
  • Swimming
  • Dance
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
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

 

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.

Science

We teach Science on a two year cycle.

25/26 and 27/28

Autumn 1 – States of Matter

Autumn 2 – Animals including Humans

Spring 1 – Electricity and Energy

Spring 2 – Plants

Summer 1 – Environmental Issues

Summer 2 – Living Things and Their Habitats

 

26/27 and 28/29

Autumn 1 – Living Things, their Habitats and Classification

Autumn 2 – Earth and Space

Spring 1 – Forces and Magnets

Spring 2 – Rocks

Summer 1 – Light and Sound

Summer 2 – Properties of Materials

Children colour with an activity at the desk
Ukeleles in red, blue and pink adorn the walls of the music room

Inset days:

1st September

2nd September

3rd September

 

Pupils should not attend school on these days.

Term Dates
Start Monday, 1st September
End Friday, 19th December
Half Term Holiday Dates
Start Monday, 27th October
End Friday, 31st October
End of Term Holiday Dates
Start Monday, 22nd December
End Friday, 2nd January

Inset day:

5th January

Pupils should not attend school on this day.

Eid Ul-Fitr

Tower Hamlets has advised the provisional date of Friday 20th March for school closure.

Term Dates
Start Monday, 5th January
End Friday, 27th March
Half Term Holiday Dates
Start Monday, 16th February
End Friday, 20th February
End of Term Holiday Dates
Start Monday, 30th March
End Friday, 10th April

Eid Ul-Adha

Tower Hamlets has advised the provisional date of Wednesday 27th May for school closure.

Term Dates
Start Monday, 13th April
End Tuesday, 21st July
Half Term Holiday Dates
Start Monday, 25th May
End Friday, 29th May

Frequently Asked Questions

 

On PE days, does my child come to school wearing their PE kit?

What do I need to know about homework?