23/04/34

We're back Squirrels!

aaaand it's the summer term! Can you believe it?! 

The best term is upon us (say's Mr Keane) and we have so much to look forward to.

Our new topic is: Kings and Queens. A great topic to explore the history and traditions of our country and what royalty looks like around the world.

Some notable moments coming up in this topic are...

Our first trips! Firstly, we will be walking to Stephen's Castle in search of the famed Chief Stephens Stone... This is planned for Friday 10th May and will work as a practice trip for... our trip to Launceston Farm! We will be heading to the farm on the 23rd May via Coach. More information to follow in the coming weeks. Can't wait! 

Furthermore, we will be having a very posh Afternoon Tea next week, in which the children will need to dress up in some fine clothes (details down in the UTW for next week and the home learning below).

Finally, we have another performance planned for you all at the end of half term! We will run it similarly to our Space one and have it at 2.30 on the *** Second to last Friday (the 17th) before we break up for half term. Free your diaries for a Coronation Celebration! 

Understanding the World: We have had a great week learning about our lead Royal, King Charles 2nd! We discussed where he lives and what his duties are. We then explored his 'kingdom' and what the Union Jack flag represented. Next week we will learning about castles and palaces from around the world: What you might see at one which you wouldn't see at home, who lives in these places (the Royal family, chefs, helpers, stable hands etc.) and finally, what events might be held... we will then be having our own very royal, very decedent Afternoon Tea on Thursday! The children will receive their invitations on Monday and will need to dress for the occasion (think 1950's vintage, beads and jackets, but please don't panic buy anything, just smart wear will be perfect.) 

The Afternoon tea will, naturally, be after lunch, so in the morning the children will prepare their own ham or cheese sandwich and a fruit salad. I would be very grateful if a couple of parents were able to support in the morning. Taking a group of four each to support the food making, Ket me or the office know if you are free .

Phonics: This week we learned our first split digraphs! A-e as in make, i-e as in smile, o-e as in home and u-e as in rude or use (this one is a bit like th where it can make 2 sounds: Think 'yoo' or 'ew'. Next week we will continue to work our way through set 3, learning an alternative 'or' sound: 'aw'and alternative 'ir' sounds: 'ur' and 'er'. Please make sure you are practicing the children's paper RWI book at home. We have also updated their red words and removed any which they have mastered from their tins. 

Mathematics: 

This week, the children will consolidate their understanding of the composition of 5 and practise recalling the parts of 5 when 1 part is not visible. A key representation of the composition of 5 will be the fingers of 1 hand, and the children’s attention will be focused on both the fingers that are ‘up’ and those ‘folded down’, connecting this to a rhyme about 5 kittens jumping ‘down’ from the bed. They will also be encouraged to subitise when an arrangement does show 5, and when it does not.

In addition, the children will have an opportunity to build on previous work on the composition of 6 and 7 as ‘5 and a bit’, and see that both 8 and 9 can be composed as ‘5 and a bit’. A range of representations in which 5 is visible as a clear part will be used, including fingers, the double dice frame and the 10-frame. Discussing and comparing these representations will enable children to generalise that each of the numbers 6 to 9 can have 5 as a part.  

Literacy: We have been thoroughly enjoying our new text: The Queen's Knickers and have produced some lovely sentences this week. Ask your children what our BIG 5 vocab words are (Queen, royal, pair, trunk and knickers) to see if they have remembered them. They will need to have them really secure for next week as we will be using our innovating skills again to alter the 'resolution' part of our Tales Toolkit, writing our own fixes to the Queen's Knickers problem! 

23/04/24

Home Learning

This week's home learning is inspired by the Union Jack flag.

I would like the children to decorate the classroom, ready for Afternoon Tea, with their own flags, representing 4 things they love! 

Much like the four countries that make up the Union Jack, the children's flags needs to have:

A representation of their favourite colour/s

A shape of their choice

A favourite animal 

And an 'I am ...' sentence such as - 'I am a big sister.' or 'I am good at swimming.'

This task can be completed on the next page of their home learning books and returned on Monday if possible, so that their next home learning can be stuck in for Tuesday.

Have fun! 

19/03/24

Afternoon Squirrels!

Wow what a week! I have been so impressed with how much the children have achieved. They have written incredible sentences, recapping the Jack and the Beanstalk story, worked so hard on remembering their double facts and made stakes for their runner beans on Welly Wednesday .

Only 3 days next week, then a two week break for Easter, so no specific focus on Monday. Next Tuesday I will post next half terms topic and learning overview.

Phonics: Recap week. We will go through all the set 2 sounds, ensuring we can all sound out words including them and using them in our own writing. Then we will begin to prepare for Set 3!

Mathematics: Shape, space and measure. We will be doing some further learning about capacity and 3D and 2D shapes.

Literacy: We are going to finish using our text; Jack and the Beanstalk, by innovating the story. We will be changing the setting, considering how the story would be different if Jack lived in a different climate and if the giant didn't live in a castle in the clouds... I can't wait to see what the Squirrels come up with!

Home Learning

No specific home learning this week guys. Just keep up the regular reading and practicing those sound tins .

Have fun!

12/03/24

Hi Squirrels!

There is so much growing going on in Reception at the moment! The tadpoles are getting chunky, the beans and the cress are sprouting and one of you even lost a tooth! This week has been great fun learning about doubling and symmetry. We have made some beautiful art using mirrors to copy an arrangement. We have also been learning about where our food comes from. Discussing how cows give us milk but also beef and chickens, eggs and meat. Later in the week we will discuss the various shops we buy certain items - fishmongers sell cod and muscles.

Notices:

• I just wanted to say a quick thank you for engaging so well in the Home Learning tasks, you guys are doing so great and the benefit to the children is huge.
• Apologies for Tapestry being down, we will renew the subscription asap!
• Keep up the weekly reading and please make sure you not the read in your child's diary.
• Finally, if anyone has any old house plants or succulents, I would be happy to take them, big or small .

Understanding the World: Next week's UTW is all about How We Grow and Change. The Children will think about how they’ve changed so far in their lives since the ‘All About Me’ unit of work in Autumn term. This is another chance to think about how we have grown and changed, building on what they can already talk about.  Explain that when we learned to walk we became toddlers. When we are older we will become teenagers. Explain that when we were babies we needed lots of help from an adult to eat, move around, get dressed etc. Now we have become more independent which means we can do more ourselves. 

Phonics: This week's red ditty book is called Cluck and The Green book is The Spell . Next week's sounds to review will be - b, d, and p. 

Mathematics: 

Next week, the children will use practical contexts to sort objects according to different criteria. They will be encouraged to notice different attributes in groups of objects – such as colour, size or function – and to describe what they notice. Beginning with adult-led sorting activities and games of ‘How am I sorting?’, the children will go on to develop their own criteria for sorting.

Alongside this, they will continue to practise recalling the composition of numbers as doubles. Then, towards the end of the week, the children will apply their sorting skills to numbers and will investigate ways to sort the Numberblocks. They will use their previous experience of investigating doubles to begin to practically explore even and odd numbers. Within the context of building Numberblocks characters, they will investigate when a number can be composed of 2 equal parts. It is anticipated that the children will quickly identify that even numbers can be composed as doubles, through their experience of seeing numbers composed of 2 equal parts.

Literacy: Next week we are starting a new text, a true classic... Jack and the Beanstalk! Naturally, have you seen how big our beans are growing. We will use this text to explore observational, creative writing.

12/03/24

Home Learning

It's time to get out the photo albums and start asking the big questions! 

What was I like as a baby!

In your home learning books, separate your page into 2. One side for when your child was a baby and the other for now.

If possible, stick a picture of your baby Squirrel and you Reception-age Squirrel in the relevant sections, leaving space for 2 sentences in each.

Get your child to ask these question, digging out old pictures to reminisce: 

What was my favourite food as a baby?

What was my favourite toy as a baby?

Then, using the sentence starters write:

- My favourite _______ as a baby was ______ x2 (food and toy)

- My favourite _______ now is ______ x2 (food and toy)

I cant wait to hear about what the Squirrels enjoyed as babies!

Have fun!

06/03/24

Bonjour Squirrels! 

It has been an ace week in Reception and the sun is finally out . We have runner beans growing, tadpoles morphing and a whole lot more planned for next week!

Notices:

• Don't forget, after school tomorrow we would love for you to join us for a read along and a cozy book swap. I will be sharing one of my favourite stories to whoever would like to listen. 
• We are still after any old dress up gear that your child no longer wants. Think of us when spring cleaning too, we're always keen for new resources and things to improve our provision. 
• Thank you to one of our lovely parent's who have offered to come in and cook with us next week. If anyone else is interested, let me know on the gate, tell the office or upload a blank Tapestry with a message which I will reply too.

Understanding the World: Next week's UTW will be all about food and farming. We will be exploring where our food comes from (debunking the notorious "carrots come from rabbits") and learning what sustainability means. We will also be designing our own Soup and even making it later in the week. Yum!

Phonics: This week's red ditty book is called Let's Swim and The Green Set 1 is Six fish. Next week's Set 2 sounds are 'ir', 'ou', 'oy'. The set 2 sounds are now in your children's tins for them to review at home. 

Mathematics: This week, the children will continue to explore the composition of numbers within 10, focusing on the ‘special case’ of when 2 equal parts combine to make a whole. The children will first use their skills of comparison and identify when 2 sets are equal or NOT equal. They will see a range of familiar representations including dice and fingers to explore the idea of ‘2 equal parts’, and then find the whole by combining these parts. This week the children will continue to use their subitising skills, and begin to ‘know’ the whole when they see 2 parts the same size for larger numbers within 10, as well as begin to recall some doubles facts when an image or physical resource is not available to support them.

Literacy: We are continuing to use our text, Tadpole's Promise, to 'invent' our own tale with a shocking ending! If anyone knows the Tadpole's Promise, you will know how shocking the ending is.

We will use our tales toolkit to support the structuring of our tales , as well as the sentence starters - At the start, then and in the end. 

05/03/24

Home Learning

Firstly, thank you for using the home learning books, they look really nice with the children's work throughout. Just to remind you that the books will be handed in on Monday's and returned with new home learning on Tuesday's.

For this week's Home Learning I have sent home a sheet for them to complete (should be in their books or loose in their book bag)

The children are well versed in the life cycle of a frog but it would be nice for them to showcase their learning to you guys at home! 

The instructions are on the sheet. Could you please either - stick the completed sheet in the Home Learning books or slip it in the book for me to do at school.

Have fun!

27/02/24

Hi Squirrels!

The days are getting longer, finally, and the tadpoles are getting bigger! 

It has been a big week in Reception, with the children receiving their new Home Learning Books and starting our Art books (check out Tapestry for our first collage piece) 

Later this week we will be planting our beans too. I can't wait!

Notices:

• Please can all school books and the home learning book stay in your child's bag when not in use. Occasionally, I need to swap books a day early/later, or share a home learning book with a member of staff. 
• We are looking for World Book Day guests to come in and read to the children, If you are free and would like to share one of your favourite books with us, the sign up sheet is out the front of school.

Understanding the World: Next week's UTW focus will be our zippy little friends, the tadpoles! We will be reading a new text called Tadpoles Promise. During this story, we see the life cycles of a tadpole and a caterpillar. We will draw our own life cycle maps and study the terms predator and prey, discussing food chains.

Phonics: This week's red ditty book is called Let's Sing and The Green Set 1 is My Dog Ned. This weeks set 2 sounds are 'oo', 'oo' and 'ar' and next weeks are 'or', 'air', 'ir'. The set 2 sounds are now in your children's tins for them to review at home. 

Mathematics: This week, the children will consolidate their understanding of the composition of numbers by investigating the numbers within 7. Composing and de-composing numbers involves the children investigating part–part–whole relations, e.g. seeing that 7 can be made of 5 and 2. The children will deepen their understanding of a whole being made up of smaller parts through games and practical experiences, such as investigating the number of ducks on a pond. They will begin to recognise that numbers can be made by combining parts in different ways, and will be encouraged to make links by considering similarities and differences in the various ways of making 7. A key focus will be on partitioning 7 (splitting it into parts) and thinking about the missing part.

Literacy: This week we have 'imitated' the text, by taking the setting and story and writing it in our own words, then 'innovated' it by swapping various details in the hungry caterpillar story to a tadpole story. Next week we will be starting a new text: Tadpoles Promise! 

27/02/24

Home Learning

Your children now have their own Home Learning Books! 

I would like these books to be handed in every Monday and I will return them on Tuesdays. That way I will be able to comment on any work completed and stick in any activities for the next week. 

That gives you a good week to have a crack at the tasks and a more cohesive way to keep it all together.

For this weeks home learning I would like the children to have a go at their own story maps! 

The children are well versed in completing story maps as we do them every time we explore a new text. Below is an example of one we made as a class together. 

Start by choosing a story at home which your child is very familiar with. Re-read the story and decide on 4 or 5 key points.

Then draw a large, backwards 'S' (see picture) in your child's home learning book. 

Mark where you are going to draw the key points, the top of your map being the beginning and the bottom the end. With the very hungry caterpillar book we marked 4 points in the story when the caterpillar changed. E.g. It hatched, it ate lots and got fat, it made a cocoon then it became a butterfly. 

Have fun!

20/02/24

Welcome back Squirrels!

It's a new half term and a new topic people! I'm sure you have heard all about our tadpoles .

For the next 6 weeks we are going to be exploring the changes plants, animals and people go through, linking these processes to our class texts - The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Jack and the beanstalk and Tadpoles Promise. We have many exciting activities in-store, so stay tuned!

Notices

• We are after any old dress-up outfits that you are willing to part with.
• Please can we have any large plastic bottles you have, cleaned and ready to grow beans in next week .
• The children's new home learning books will come home next Tuesday
• Around the fourth, fifth and sixth week of term we will be after a few parents to come and help us with some 'cooking'. This will most likely be on a Thursday afternoon. Let me know if you're interested .

Understanding the World: This week we have reviewed what we know about the seasons. We have used our new art books to create a grid collage, representing a tree in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. Next week's focus is plants - we will be 'planting' our own beans and growing them in plastic bottles (hence the donation)! This will link to the changes we observed when discussing seasons as well as discussing recycling, growing our own food and laying the foundations for our text Jack and the Beanstalk.

Phonics: This week's red ditty book is called Wuff Wuff and The Green Set 1 is On the Bus. We are continuing to learn the names and the capital formation of our single sounds (see home learning), however, this will be covered in Handwriting lessons. During the Phonics sessions we are again focusing on Set 2 sounds. This weeks are 'ay', 'ee' and 'igh' and next weeks are 'oo' as in moon, 'oo' as in book and 'ar'. 

Mathematics: We have spent this week, recapping our 'careful counting' technique up to 10 whilst orally counting to 30. For new learning we began investigating the 1 more/1 less pattern within 10 and ordering numbers between 1 and 10, noticing the '5 and a bit' structure. Next week the activities will focus on ordinality: considering where numbers to 8 are in relation to each other.

Literacy: This week we have story mapped our new text - The Very Hungry Caterpillar, as well as written captions and a simple sentence to describe the four changes the caterpillar goes through. Next week we will be 'imitating' the text, by taking the setting and story and writing it in our own words, then 'innovating' by swapping the character from a caterpillar to something else that changes!  

20/02/24

Home Learning

As stated before half term, the children's tins are updated with set 2 sounds. Practice these little and often .

Also, continue to read the paper phonics and decodable book in your children's bags and fill out the reading diaries three or so times a week. 

As for the task this week, I would like the children to practice the capital letters we have learned so far. These are:

Mm, Aa, Ss, Dd, Tt, Ii, Nn, Pp, Gg, Oo, Cc, Kk, Uu, Bb, Ff and Ee

Attached is a template with the blue and red lines the children are familiar with when sizing their letters. The red lines are for ascender and descenders (an example is on the template).

Have fun!

06/02/24

Hey Squirrels, 

Sadly, our learning about Space has come to an end, as has our first Spring half term...

But that means we will be starting an exciting, new topic after the break: Growing and Changing!

It has been a another fantastic half term in Reception, full of joy, passion and progress. We are all super proud of how the Squirrels are doing. 

Notices:

• Don't forget our performance on Thursday at 2.30! However, due to the weather, we will perform inside the classroom instead. Please still enter through the morning gate and remember not to take any of your own photos or videos. We will record it for Tapestry. 
• Please can we make sure school books and reading diaries come to school every day. Thank you.
• Finally, a big thank you to Mr Gowing for offering to help us out with stones for our construction area. We really appreciate it . 

Understanding the World: Our new topic: Growing and Changing, will begin with the study of the four seasons on earth. They will recall that the earth orbits the sun (knowledge they learned this half term) and will know that when our part of the earth tilts towards the sun we experience summer. Then continuing to think about the idea of change, children will think about the past and how places change over time. This is another opportunity for children to establish an early understanding of chronology, building on their learning from the Autumn unit, Transport, where children learned about transport in the past and how it has changed over time.

Moving through the unit, children will have an opportunity to plant a seed and observe its growth as well as look at how animals grow and change. We already have our Frogspawn at the ready!

Attached is a helpful PDF outlining this topic:

06/02/24

Home Learning

All children will have their tins updated with set 2 sounds and common exception words. Practise these along side your regular reading so that we a ready to go with Set 3 sounds on our return! 

Additionally, the children are non-stop writing in class and during their play, so continue to encourage this at home. List writing, descriptive sentences, letters to family members, are all great opportunities for them to hone their letter formation and phonetic spelling. Avoid captions now that we are confident with the sentence writing rules - ask your children to demonstrate our little dance we use to remind us about capital letter and full stops! 

Have a lovely break everyone and have fun!

31/01/24

Squirrels, do you read me? Over. 

Only two weeks left of our space topic guys, it has been a real blast! 

We have been learning about a fellow called Galileo this week and how he was an astronomer from long ago. We compared the telescope he would have used with one we saw on the news recently - The James Webb telescope! We then plotted our own constellation and made abstract pictures by joining up dots (resembling the zodiac signs).

Notices:

• Next Thursday is our first Singing Performance! If you are able, please could you arrive at the back gate (where we drop-off) by 2.30. We will be singing outside to you all so please wrap up! IMPORTANT - please do not take any pictures or recordings of the children, we will record it on our school iPads and upload it to Tapestry.
• Does anyone know any landscapers or traders who have any spare shale or small stones? Due to the amount of rain we have had this winter, our outside construction area has completely washed out...

Understanding the World: Our final week in space will be all about exploration and how space travel has evolved over time and what it might look like in the future! 

Phonics: Next week's red ditty book is called Pick it up! We have learned the 'names' and formed the capitals for M, A, S and D this week and will be learning T, I, N and P next week.

Mathematics: The activities this week will focus on further developing children's innate skill of comparing as they are encouraged to focus exclusively on the numerosity of sets, without being diverted by colour, shape or size. They will then be encouraged to notice when quantities are equal or unequal, and will begin to consider how they can manipulate the number of objects in 2 sets to make them equal.

Language is a key focus. The use of ‘more than’, ‘fewer than’ and ‘an equal number’ to describe how many objects there are in each set, is the objective. ‘Fewer than’ is used rather than ‘less than’, as the focus is on countable things.

Literacy: We will continue to use the rules of a simple sentence: A naming part and a doing part + capital letter and full stop. to write simple sentences based on our class text.

31/01/24

Home Learning

This week's home learning is a relatively basic one. I will be assessing the children on their single sound or red word tins next week. For those who now have red words, just like the sounds prior, these need to be rote learned.

Little and often is key team. Expose your children to the sounds/words as much as possible, whether that is spotting them in stories or splatting them with a wooden spoon in the floor!

Have fun!

P.s. I have acquired some really nice (though a bit big) home learning books for next half term. I will stick in what the children have submitted so far and send them home with your children next Friday. I have also made an inside cover sheet with some helpful information outlining how we will use the books .

23/01/24

Hey Squirrels!

It's marble treat week! We did it! 

We have also had another great week of exploring and learning. The children have been repeatedly praised for their focus and can-do attitudes recently and I am very proud of them. It is clear our space topic has been a big hit. Next week is all about the stars, so look forward to seeing your children's constellation art! 

Notices:

• Please remember that only water should be in the children's bottles.
• Does anyone know anybody who has spare gravel or stones? Our construction area is mostly black lining now after all the rain and wind this winter...!
• Don't forget to send in your children's reading diaries daily. Please pop their 3 books back in their bags too after each read at home. 
• On the topic of home reading: To clarify, your child should have a RWI paper book, which we are reading at school that week, a leveled, colour band book which your child should be able to near fully decode and a library book they chose themselves for a bedtime story. 

This week's Tapestry focus is: Capital letters

Understanding the World: Next week is all about the distant balls of light we see in our night sky, Stars! We will be learning about the different constellations and doing a some history based off of the zodiac signs and their star patterns. The children will be using pins, cork and string to make their own animal shaped star clusters.

Phonics: Next week's red ditty book is called Jam! We will also be learning the 'names' of the single letters and how to form the capital versions of them. Please continue to work on sound recognition at home, especially the set 2 digraphs. These can be found in a front page of your reading diaries. You could even make your own flash cards at home!

Mathematics: We are continuing to look at composition (the numbers within a number), exploring ways to represent numbers using the Hungarian number pattern (die pattern). These key representations will help to underline the ‘5-ness’ of 5, and provide structures that will support exploration of its composition and its relationships with other numbers. The children will secure their understanding of the pairs of numbers that make 5, and then use double dice frames to begin to explore 6 and 7 as numbers that are composed of ‘5 and a bit’ 

Literacy: With the introduction of capital letters next week, we will be moving away from captions and writing only using the rules of a simple sentence: A naming part and a doing part + capital letter and full stop. 

23/01/24

Home Learning

This week in class we have discussed the geography of where we live (something we have done before - We live on planet earth, in the country England, in the area Dorset...) Then we zoomed out and explored where we are in the Universe and even in the Galaxy! 

This then got us discussing how we would find our way home if we were lost in space...

So, for this weeks home learning I would like the children to draw a map!

Now, the 'birds eye view' concept is tough for our Squirrels to grasp, however, they are excellent at drawing roads and familiar landmarks. Work with your child to design a map from home to school, plotting important waypoints en route. Do this on either A4 or A3 paper and use lines for roads.

As a chestnut challenge, see if your child can use their phonics to label the landmarks they have drawn on their routes. 

Have fun!

16/01/24

Evening Squirrels!

What a chilly few days it has been! Perfect conditions for a trip around Neptune or Uranus.

It has been all about astronauts this week, including Neil Armstrong, Mae Jemison and our own Tim Peake. We have donned our own suits and listed what we need to take on a trip into space, particularly enjoying making Buzz Lightyear style wrist gadgets out of cardboard! 

Notices:

• Don't forget to keep your diaries free for our surprise on the last Thursday of half term.
•  Please ensure your child has their reading journal everyday.
• Can we all have a practice with zips and buttons at home. We should all be able to zip up our own coats now! 
• Exciting opportunity!: We are looking for one (or a couple) of parents to start reading with children on a 1 to 1 basis in class next half term. We are flexible with timings and days. Please let me know if you are interested, either by catching me after school or leaving me a message in your child's reading journal. 

This week's Tapestry focus is: Ordinality (numbers in a sequence) and Cardinality ('4' represents a group containing 4)

Understanding the World: Space! This week was all about Astronauts and their equipment. Next week we are exploring 'Our Solar System' and looking deeper at the other planets orbiting the sun.

Phonics: We are decoding Red Ditty book 2 this week, a copy of which you will find in your children's book bag'. Remember, the green story words, speedy words and red (common exception) words, are found at the start of each of the little stories. Practice these before reading the text.

Mathematics: This week we have focused on ordering numbers and matching the numeral to the quantity. Next week looking deeper at the composition of 5, using the part, part, whole model.

Literacy: We are continuing to write basic captions and sentences based on our book, Astro Girl.

16/01/24

Home Learning

Meet Luna! 

She is an astronaut preparing for an important mission to Mars. It is only day's before her rocket blasts off and she has left her packing late...

Can you help Luna make a list of space gear so she does not forget anything for her journey across the galaxy? 

Parents and carers, I would like the children to the use the caption starter: She will need...

First, sit with your child and discuss what sort of equipment Luna will need and why.

Then, on a piece of lined paper, support your child writing the starter She will need then allow your child to phonetically write what you discussed she might take. 

Three to four things would be great, then either pop the writing in the book bag or take a photo and add it to Tapestry. 

Have fun!

09/01/2024

We are back Squirrels!

I hope you all have had a wonderful break and are looking forward to another great term with the Squirrels, I certainly am! 

We are kicked off a new topic for this half term - Space!

I have many exciting things planned for this topic, including...

• Exploring what makes our planet so unique in our universe and looking at the diversity of environments found on Earth.
• Gazing at constellations of stars and creating our own with string and nails.
• Working our way through the planets and creating our own display for the roleplay using paper plates.
• Many more creative and exciting space themed activities. 
• A secret surprise for the end of the half term.

Notices:

• We are in need of more quality recycling please, we have rockets to build!
• We would happily accept any space related stories or toys that are in need of a new home.
• Any unused footballs, basketballs, soft balls etc. I will be buying new ones in the summer but a few fresh ones soon would be wonderful.

This week's Tapestry focus is: Reading - Segmenting and blending words.

Understanding the World: Space! Our Planet. This week we have learned about what makes our Planet special (it is the only one that supports life!) and how different Earth can be. We have discussed how we revolve around the sun, giving us season and that Earth also spins making night and day.

Phonics: We have started our Red Ditty books! This week we are reading through 'Pin it on' with our phonics partners and learning our first 'speedy green words' and 'red words'. These are - 'it', 'a' and 'put'. FYI, speedy words are phonetic but shouldn't need blending as they are basic, however, red words are exception words which are not phonetic and need to be memorised. See this weeks Home Learning for more information.

Mathematics: We are starting this half-terms Math's off with further subitising practice, applying the skill to games such as dice bingo, where quick subistising skills would be advantageous. 

Literacy: We have started a new class text: Astro Girl by Ken Wilson-Max. We will story map this text first then begin to learn to write our own basic sentences using the bar method (see picture below) related to the text.

RE: Beginning our Salvation 1 strand and discussing how Christians 'help others' and how Jesus demonstrated this. 

09/01/24

Home Learning

This weeks Home Learning is an exciting one! I will be sending home a copy of the children's new Red Ditty Phonics book: Pin it on.

I would like you to spend the next few days listening and supporting your child reading the three chapters of this book. Please choose a time when you can dedicate 10/15 minutes to sit quietly and allow your child to steadily work their way through this book, as they should be able to decode it in it's entirety. 

Start by going through some Speed Sounds on the inside cover to warm-up (we use a lollypop stick to point them out in random order in class). Then Fred Talk (sound out) the Green and Red words on the opposite page. Mention to your child that these words will appear in the story.

Then start the story, pointing to the sounds for your child to segment and blend.

You will receive a new Phonics book each week (replacing the picture books from before) as well as a library book for you to enjoy. Can you please mark each read in your reading journals .

Have fun! 

05/12/2023

Not long now Squirrels! 

As we come into the final week of the Autumn term, we are celebrating all that we have learned so far and looking back on our journey.

I could not be prouder of our Squirrels. Their passion to explore and question is a delight to see, and their drive to learn is evident. They have all made considerable progress and are all set for next term! 

Notices:

• Date for the diary: On the last Thursday of next half-term (Thursday 8th), the Squirrels have a surprise for you! It will be held at 2.45 in our outside area, so you only really need to turn up a little early for pick-up. More information to follow in January .

This week's tapestry focus is: Gross Motor - Explore different ways to travel

05/12/23

Home Learning

Brilliant job on Mini Mash guys! In ICT today it was evident you have been practising logging in. 

For our last home learning before the holidays... I would like you to write some captions for me at home using your phenomenal phonics skills! We have started this in class and I am certain you can do it  .

I have taught you our first common exception word - 'the', which will come in handy for this activity.

Adults, please write the word 'the' for your children to copy but allow them to write the rest of their caption using their phonetically plausible spelling. Such as: Hors for horse (the children have learned the 'or' sound, so this spelling is accurate to their phonic knowledge.)

Your writing focus for this task is ... Father Christmas' gift to the class!

The children might have told you already, but Santa has sent us some money to buy something new for our classroom.

I would like the children to write down their suggestions. 

Sit with your child and ask them what we could use the money on. Then build a caption with them -

This might be - toys for the bookshelf (apart from 'the' this sentence if fully phonetic.)

Encourage your child to 'Fred talk' the sounds they need for words like 'book'. If their word is 'pencils' get them to sound it out and write it phonetically. it might look like 'pensels'. Which is fine! 

Have a go at writing 3 captions for suggestions. As they are captions, they do not need capital letters or full stops. Encourage well formed letters, but please don't worry your children too much about their general writing, the aim of the task is for them to try to write words phonetically. 

Have fun!

28/11/23

Hi Squirrels!

The Holiday's are creeping ever closer and us Squirrels are certainly getting ready for it! We even built our own moving vehicles using real hammers and nails, like the Elves in the Workshop!

Notices:

• Unfortunately, the person due to do our hearing tests was unwell and unable to come in. I will let you know when this is rearranged. 
• Thank you for your Bookvent involvement! There is still time to wrap up and share with us your favourite book this Christmas. Also, thank you for the ingredients for our cooking session with Mrs Mcdonald, we loved it! 
• We are still after any old tools to use for our new woodwork station. Old hammers, screw drivers, saws etc.

This week's tapestry focus is: Using manipulatives to help us count to 10.

Understanding the World: We will be recapping our Transport topic and putting together our pages for our class floor book. A photo will be uploaded on Tapestry.

Phonics: We will be revising all set 2 sounds next week, focusing on writing words using digraphs and trigraphs. Later in the week I will be dictating words for the children to attempt to write independently. 

Mathematics: Next week will be all about 'the one-ness of one' and the two-ness of two'. This means we will be looking deeper into these numbers and using manipulatives, such as tens frames, number lines, bead strings and rekenreks to support our learning. 

Literacy: We will be writing captions, discussing the 'naming part' as a prelude to caption writing. We will base this off of our Transport topic recap. 

28/11/23

Home Learning

Great work writing labels for the park scene everyone!

For this week's home learning, I would like the children to log back into Mini Mash! 

Remember, your child's details are in their journal. 

Once your child has logged in, head to the math's area and tab over until you see 'Counting Quizzes'.

See below:

Then choose the autumn counting activity and let your child have a go at counting or subitising the objects!

If possible, a picture on Tapestry of your child having a go, would be great.

Have fun!

21/11/23

Hi Squirrels!

Another great week has gone by and we have explored so much!

We managed to evade the Polar Bears and scale a great glacier on our Arctic expedition, and tackle the big monkey bars and swing bridge on Welly Wednesday.

Notices:

• We will be having our hearing test on Tuesday 28th November 2023.
• You will receive an email before the end of the week regarding Bookvent, which is a really nice way to share our favourite stories as a class.
• We are after any old tools to use for our new woodwork station. Old hammers, screw drivers, saws, even large nails (though I have already bought some). Thank you!

This week's tapestry focus is: spatial reasoning

UPDATE: We are very fortunate to have Mrs Macdonald with us next Wednesday and the Wednesday after to help us make a Christmas cake! Before then, we will need to get the ingredients. We have divided what we need into 14 and will put a sticker on the front of the children's reading journal, which will tell you what you need to get and how much. Please can these ingredients be bought to class before Wednesday 29th. Thank you!

Understanding the World: Next week we will be putting on our hard-hats and goggles and making our own, moving transport! After carful training, we will be using hammers and nails to add wheels to a cardboard shape, transforming it into a moving vehicle of our own design.

Phonics: Our sounds for this week are 'oo for book', 'ar', 'or', 'air' and 'ir'. Next week's are 'ou' and 'oy' as well as revising the set 2 sounds we have learnt so far.

Mathematics: This week we have been carful counting 7,8 and 9, when it is not easily arranged. This has included objects of different sizes, objects in a non-linear order and different colour counters. We have also learnt the important rule: 'If you do not add and more or take any away, the total stays the same.'

Literacy: Using our text; the Naughty Bus, we have been using our ever increasing bank of sounds to label phonetically plausible words, such as b-u-s and s-i-nk.

21/11/23

Home Learning

Myself and Mrs Webber are blown away by your Arctic Bases! They are incredible, you should be very proud of yourselves .

For this week's home learning, I would like the children to do some phonetic labeling.

I would like them to use the sounds they have learnt to spell and write words onto the sheet provided, carefully considering if they need a single sound (a dot) or a digraph/trigraph (a dash).

(Please let me or Mrs Webber know if you need it printing).

Sit with your child and look at the picture of the park, start with the seesaw. Ask them which way the left side is going. The missing word is 'up'. Ask them which sounds they need for 'up', and that they can use their 'Fred fingers' to help them. Then they can have a go at writing 'up' above the dots.

Have the same level of discussion for the rest of the missing words and get the children to think of the sounds that are missing. If they are struggling, you can segment (sound out) the sounds for them. 

Refer to the PDF of the letter formation guide I sent earlier in the year for handwriting rhymes and support. 

The other missing words are (from left to right) - top, spin, sand, net, tree.

Have fun!

14/11/23

Evening Squirrels!

Firstly, thank you all for attending our parent consultations. It was a joy to discuss how your children are doing in Reception and the progress they are making .

Secondly, due to some technical difficulties, you may have noticed there haven't been many observations uploaded to Tapestry. I think I have sorted this and believe there will be a bit of a mega-upload later today. 

Thirdly, please can the children come into school dressed for the arctic next Monday 20th (but still in uniform). This is for Understanding the World (see below). 

Finally, keep the recycling coming (quality cardboard such as loo rolls and cereal boxes etc.) and ensure the reading journals and books come back to school every day.

Understanding the World: Continuing on with our Transport topic, we have been exploring transport from the past and comparing it to now. We even learned what a Penny-farthing was! 

Next week we are heading to... the South Pole! For this, I would like the children to come dressed for the expedition - wooly hats, gloves and scarves will be necessary, as well as any additional equipment an arctic explorer might need. Get creative with it! 

Phonics: This week we have started set 2 sounds! We will be covering ay, ee, igh, ow and oo this week.

Mathematics: This week we have been looking at 1 more and 1 less and using different resources to help us. We have also been helping Colin the Caribou; who is prone to making mistake, become a careful counter, thinking of 'top tips' for him (any us) to use.

Literacy: We have started a new text: the Naughty Bus! This text is very creative in it's delivery, with changing fonts depending on the sentence and eye-catching pictures which sparks imaginative thinking and discussion. This week we are innovating, changing the story's main character (the bus) to another form of transport and describing the mischief they could get up to with pictures and captions. 

14/11/23

Home Learning

Well done for learning your logins for Purple Mash! Mrs Hawkin's was very impressed in ICT yesterday when many of you could remember your details.

For this week's home learning I want you to get cutting, sticking, colouring and building, to make an Arctic Base! You will need to think about what an Artic Base might need, to be successful in the freezing temperatures.

Do they need any special vehicles? What colour might it be to be camouflaged in the snow? Does it have any secrets? 

Build these at home using either junk modelling or lego/duplo and have them ready for next Tuesday for us to share in class 

We can't wait to see what you have created. Below are some pictures for inspiration. 

Have fun!

07/11/23

Hey Squirrels!

What a great first week back we've had. Firstly, well done to all of you who practiced your sounds over the half term break, and shared some wonderful moments on Tapestry. Myself and Mrs Webber loved seeing what you got up to.

Good news everyone... we have reading journals! We have popped your new journals in the children's book bags, along with a login for Purple Mash (more on this in the home learning section).

Filling out your journal at home: 

We have been 'reading' the picture books and checking the children's sounds weekly at school, logging how they are doing internally. We will now make a note when we do this in the journals as well, to show you which books we have read with them. When you have read with your child at home, add notes to the reading log if they enjoyed discussing it and could identify any sounds or blend any words., or if they struggled with anything, for me to look into at school. This line of communication is great for sharing your child's learning with us and working together to hone their reading skills. 

This weeks Tapestry focus is: Exploring and using media and materials

Phonics: We have now learned all of our set 1 sounds! However, there are still a few which we are revising this week. These are 'ch', 'qu' and 'th'. Please keep working on any other sounds which your child is struggling to recall, at home. 

Mathematics: Now that we have learnt to count to 10 accurately and when objects are in different compositions, it is now time to look deeper into numbers. We have started with 6, 7 and 8, exploring different manipulatives to count and arrange these numbers.

Literacy: We are continuing with our Wheels on the Tuk Tuk story, exploring similarities and differences between a Tuk Tuk in India and a bus we might ride in England.

07/11/23

Home Learning

Firstly, great job with last weeks home learning! You all did such a fantastic job .

Now, for this weeks home learning, I have supplied you with the login details for Purple Mash; a children's coding software. 

We will be using Mini Mash on iPad's this half term to begin to learn about the basics of coding! We are now experts at 'waking up' our iPad's and opening and closing apps. However, the next step is logging into one... and that's where you come in! 

We would like your children to simply practice logging into Purple Mash with their personal details (either on an iPad/tablet or PC). Their details are pretty simple, so if they can remember them for when we log-in at school, even better! 

Have fun! 

31/10/23

Welcome back Squirrels! 

We hope you all had lovely half-terms and didn't miss Reception too much .

But we are back and getting straight into our new topic: Transport!

And you can be sure the children will be doing plenty of balance bike riding and role playing drivers, pilots and captains for the next few weeks.

Also, a new half-term means... new carpet seats and talk partners!

The children moved to their new spots today and have had an opportunity to discuss what modes of transport they might use to get across the English channel with their new partners.

Now that we have Tapestry fully up and running, I will be writing here our weekly observation focus which will be uploaded for each child throughout the week. 

This weeks Tapestry focus is: collaboration

Phonics: We only have 6 of our initial sounds to go! These are - 'z', 'ch', 'qu', 'x', 'ng' and 'nk'. Once we have these covered, we will then begin to send phonetically decodable books home for you to read. 

Mathematics: This week we are recapping 1 - 10 insuring we have a good understanding of the order we count in and which numbers come before and after each other. 

Literacy: We are starting a new story: The wheels on the tuk tuk - a twist on the classic 'wheels on the bus' nursery rhyme set in India. This story introduces the children to new cultures and traditions, as well as new vocabulary and language they have likely not come across.

31/10/23

Home Learning

For this weeks home learning I would like the children to have a go at some letter formations we generally find a bit tricky. To make this a bit more interesting the activity will be a little cross-curricular and involve some counting too!

Around the house I would like the children to find:

3 things which start with the sound 'd'.

4 things which start with the sound 'p'.

and 5 things which start with the sound 'b'.

Each object will need a label with the sound written on by the child. This can be a sticky note or piece of paper sellotaped or rested in front of the object. This means your child needs to do (or pick their best) 3X 'd', 4X 'p' and 5X 'b'.

Please can this be photographed and added to tapestry under the heading

Home Learning - 31/10/23.

Have fun!

17/10/23

Afternoon Squirrels! 

It's the last week of our first half term in Reception, can you believe it?

There is no specific home learning for the half term break, however, I will outline at the bottom tasks I suggest the children do 'little and often' to keep the the progress embedded .

After half term we will be starting a new topic - Transport! 

We will start by looking at different types of transport and the children will get to experience our new role play. I will explain more come next half term .

Phonics: We have learnt 'j'and 'v' so far this week and will be doing 'y, 'w' and another digraph 'th'! The children will then have a lot of sounds under their belt to memorize ready for next half term where we start to make words and later simple sentences with these sounds.

Mathematics: 8, 9 and 10 are done! We are practicing with different resources and models. Next half term we will be digging deeper into the composition of numbers 1-10 as well as looking at shape, space and measuring.

Literacy: This half term we have studied three texts - The Squirrels who Squabbled, Dan and Diesel and Super Duper You. Each book has been linked to a 'Tale'. Each tale has a general structure which the children have learnt and made a story map of. Over the six weeks, the children have then sequenced the texts, thought more deeply about the themes, such as linking characters feelings to zones of regulation and changed certain details of the stories.  

17/10/23

Home Learning

There is no specific task for the children to complete over the half term, however, please continue to practise the silver tin sounds as often as possible so that these become really embedded and hone letter and number formation. I have attached pictures below of all formations so far.

Additionally, enjoy the picture books and diversity books in your children's bags and consider introducing them to new vocabulary and discuss themes and settings to further their comprehension. These books are in preparation for next half term, when you will be receiving phonetically decodable texts to read with your children. 

Have a wonderful, restful half term break everyone. We look forward to seeing you all again in a week and a half's time! 

12/10/23

Hi Squirrels! 

Here's another update and home learning task for this week.

Our Understanding the World focus this week has been People Who Help Us. We have roleplayed as nurses and police officers and even Mr keane! We have also considered how our parents and carer's help us every day and how we can help them back. 

Phonics: We are almost done learning our initial sounds and have even learnt our first digraph (which we call a special friend) ! We completed last week with the sounds 'c', 'k', 'u', 'b' and 'f'. The sounds this week are - 'e', 'l', 'h', 'sh' and 'r'.  We have also started to do a lot of handwriting, practicing the formations of these sounds

Mathematics: It's been all about number 7 this week! We have been using multiple resources, such as Rekenrek, tens frames and the part, part, whole model to show different compositions of 7 and started to touch on addition using the number bonds method. 

Other subjects: In RE we have been discussing who are VIP's are in life and why God is our most VIP. In PE we have thoroughly enjoyed learning about our body parts and how they move any adapting them to different scenarios. For example, moving 

12/10/23

Home Learning

For this weeks Home Learning I would like the children to practice their number formation. We have started this in class and are up to 7. However, many are still struggling with 2, 3, 5 and 6.

Please sit with your child and practice these on either paper or a whiteboard, following the formation templates in the pictures below. Ensure your child is forming their numbers the exact way the pictures are showing. 

Once complete, a picture or pictures of their written numbers can be uploaded to Tapestry. (Thank you for all of your consent forms. Tapestry logins will be sent out tomorrow).

Have fun!

03/10/23

Happy Tuesday Squirrels!

It's time for another update and home learning .

Continuing on with our topic: All About Me, we have been focusing on Where we Live. The children are now experts at explaining that - "We live on planet Earth, in the country England, in the area Dorset, in the town Verwood and we go to Trinity!" 

Phonics: We have continued to learn our initial sounds. Adding, - 'g', 'o', 'c' and 'k'.  We have also started to Fred Talk (sound out) words to break them down, then blend them back together,. This is a crucial skill the children need to master to be confident readers. 

Mathematics: We have moved on to the number 6! This time using our subitising skills to recognise that we can skip counting 5 if we can quickly see 5 objects, and move on to counting any additional objects. For example, I rolled two dice for the children which displayed 5 dots and 1 dot. The children then needed to recognise the 5 quickly (subitising) and count the one to give them 6! 

Other subjects we have started to explore: Computing: We 'woke up' the iPads and found the notes app. Then we drew a picture using the pen tool.

Additional notes:

Hopefully Tapestry will be up and running soon. Thank you to those who have returned your consent forms .

Also, a genuine, massive thank you from me for all the donations and the hoop! I am so thrilled to be able to provide such an engaging and well resources provision, which would not be possible without your kindness and generosity. 

03/10/23

Home Learning

For this weeks Home Learning I would like the children to simply practise their newly learnt sounds. I have sent home a tin with their name on which contains the sounds we have learnt so far.

These tins need to be returned to school every day so that I can regularly add new sounds. Try to practise these sounds daily so that they become rote learnt and quickly recalled. A strong grasp on these sounds will propel the children's reading stamina and overall progress.

Feel free to be as creative as you like when running through the sounds. Some ideas I have are: 

Playing splat the sound with a spoon or fly swatter. 

Going on a sound hunt around the house or garden.

Matching words to the sounds such as - matching a picture of a cow to the 'c' sound.

Spotting sounds in a bedtime story.

Have fun!

26/09/23

Hello Squirrels! 

It is time for our first update and home learning .

We have had a wonderful few weeks learning the routines and expectations of Reception life and have thoroughly enjoyed exploring it all. 

This half term our class topic is All About Me. We have specifically been looking at our families and ourselves this week, exploring how we grow as humans over time and how our families change with us. We even saw Mr Keane and Mrs Webber as babies! 

Phonics: We have been busy learning our new, initial sounds these last couple of weeks including - 'm', 'a', 's', 'd', 't', 'i', 'n' and 'p'. I have attached a Read Write Inc. video below of a child pronouncing all of the sounds correctly, for if you wish to practise at home with your children. 

Ruth Miskin Training: YouTube

Mathematics: We have been counting to 5 using objects, numerals and varying resources, addressing any misconceptions such as 'does the size change how many we have?' and does it matter which order we count them in?'. Mr Keane's top tip for the children is to ensure they count every object only once, if you do this correctly, your last number should be your total .

Other subjects we have started to explore: Computing (receiving our log-ins and discussing using iPads), RE beginning our Creation topic, Geography and history (Google Earth view of school, learning that 'we go to school on planet Earth, in a country called England, in an area called Verwood.' 

PE: Coach Elliot has begun Ball Skills with the children and I am working on fundamental movements.

Additional notes:

We will be sending out consent forms digitally for Tapestry soon so that we can begin sharing photos and videos more regularly with you all. 

Welly Wednesday will start tomorrow, no pressure on getting wellies by tomorrow but just a heads up that we will be going rain or shine in the winter. 

26/09/23

Home Learning

For this weeks Home Learning I would like the children to create an All About Me poster! 

I have attached one that I have made for reference. 

Your children can either draw or stick photos on their paper and if they like, have a go at writing labels.