Week 8

Week beginning 18.12.23

Reception have had a very enjoyable last few days for the end of term. We made peppermint creams, watched a movie with popcorn and ended our last morning with a Christmas party.

All the staff would like to wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy new year. Thank you so much for all of your support this term. We hope you all have a restful break and we look forward to seeing you all at 8.40am on Monday 8th January 2024!

Week 7

Week beginning 11.12.23

Reception have had another busy week. Well done to all the children for a brilliant performance, they all worked so hard, and we would like to thank the adults at home for the supporting children to learn their lines.

We all enjoyed our Christmas dinner day on Wednesday, we made place mats and hats and enjoyed our lunch with festive music! We had an exciting visitor this afternoon, Santa came to our class and even gave us an early Christmas present!

Phonics

Here are some phonics videos for you to watch at home this weekend.

Maths

This week in maths we have been consolidating our learning from this term. We have recapped sorting objects, counting and representing numbers up to 10, 2D shapes and positional language.

Wider Curriculum

In topic we have been exploring different pop up books. We then made a Concertina pop up card using a Christmas template. We have also been looking at shadow puppets and how shadows are made. We then made our hands to make puppets with shadows.

Makaton

Our new Makaton sign this week was ‘daddy’. See if you can use it at home this weekend.

Just a reminder, the term ends on Wednesday 20^th at 11:50am. Please pick your child up from their classroom as normal.

For the last three days of term, all children are allowed to wear non-school uniform if they wish. Please no fancy dress but Christmas jumpers are welcome if they would like to. If children would still prefer to wear school uniform this is also fine.

We hope you have a lovely weekend!

Week 6

Week beginning 4.12.23

Reception have been busy practising our Christmas performance ready for next week. Please can children continue to practise their lines for the play at home this weekend. There are still a few children that are unsure about what they need to say.

After the disappointment of our visit from Santa in the helicopter on Wednesday being cancelled due to the fog, we were super excited that he rescheduled his visit and came to wave to us today!

Phonics

Here are some phonics videos for you to watch at home this weekend.

Please note these videos will expire after 3 weeks.

Forest school

Cherry Class had an exciting visit to forest school this week. We enjoyed listening to the story ‘Stickman’ and then we make our own out of the sticks that we found.

Maths

This week in maths we have been consolidating our learning from this term. We have recapped shapes, pattern, finding more and fewer, subitising, addition and subtraction.

Wider Curriculum

In topic we designed and made some robots! We made our robots from junk modelling and had lots of fun being very creative with this! We also had another explore with the programmable toys and gave them instructions to move around the classroom.

In English we wrote a letter to Etho from Birt, explaining that we would like to be friends and that we missed him. We talked about how to be a good friend and the importance of sharing and looking after each other.

In Jigsaw, we supported Jigsaw Jenie with dealing with conflict and friendship troubles. We talked about what Jigsaw Jenie should do when someone is unkind to him.

Makaton

Our new Makaton sign this week was ‘mummy’. See if you can use it at home this weekend.

We hope you have a lovely weekend. See you all at 2pm on Tuesday for our Christmas performance!

Week 5

Week beginning 27.11.23

We have had another lovely week in reception and have been busy getting ready for our nativity play! Please remember to bring your child’s costume in a labelled bag before the 5th December so that dress rehearsals can begin. The weather has also become a lot colder in recent days. Please ensure that your child comes to school wearing the appropriate clothing including hats, gloves, scarves, so that they can enjoy the full curriculum on offer outdoors.

Forest school

Hazel Class had a very cold visit to forest school this week. We enjoyed listening to the story ‘Stickman’ and then enjoyed trying to make our own out of the sticks that we found.

Phonics

Here are some phonics videos for you to watch at home this weekend.

Please note these videos will expire after 3 weeks.

Maths

This week, we continued to learn about shapes. This time we focused on 4 sided shapes such as squares and rectangles. We spotted them in our environment and found them in pictures of real places. Later in the week we began to think about time. We discussed things that happen during the day and night. We also looked at clocks and identified the different features before making our own moving parts clock. 

Wider Curriculum

In topic we looked at emergency vehicles. We discussed how they help us and learned about the different people who work in emergency vehicles. Then we explored how cars move differently and at different speeds depending on the surface they are on. We used cars on different types of floor including carpet and laminate and thought about how ramps can increase their speed!

In English we used visualization to imagine what it would be like to be a character in the story. We generated ways to describe the characters and the scene, wrote a diary from the perspective of the character and went on to explore rain in more detail by creating beautiful raindrop paintings.

In PE, we continued to learn about movement. This time we explored stretching and reaching from different positions in order to move a brick beyond a line.

In Jigsaw, we focused on friendship and made a list of helpful tips on how to make a friend.

Makaton

Our new Makaton sign this week was ‘more’. See if you can use it at home this weekend.

Well done everyone for another great week and have a wonderful weekend!

Week 4

Week beginning 20.11.23

It has been a very busy week in Reception. Thank you for all the donations for the Christmas Fayre. Today was our cross country competition, well done to all the children for participating!

We have been practising our Christmas performance, if you child has a speaking part, their lines would have been sent home today. Please practise these at home. 

Forest school

Next week, Hazel class have forest school on Monday. Please ensure your child has wellies and waterproofs in school.

Phonics

Here are some phonics videos for you to watch at home this weekend.

Please note these videos will expire after 3 weeks.

Maths

In maths we have been learning about circle and triangles. We have been comparing shapes, looking at properties and finding different shapes in the classroom. We have also been describing positions of objects including, under, on, between, in and behind.

Wider Curriculum

In our wider curriculum lessons we have been looking at different vehicles. We have discussed different features and observed shapes and lines. We did observational drawings using creative techniques. We also described similarities and differences between vehicles from the past and present.

Makaton

Our new Makaton sign this week was ‘home’. See if you can use it at home this weekend.

Please remember to bring in your child’s costume for the Christmas play before Monday 4^th December. If you have any questions, please do you ask your child’s class teacher.

Have a lovely weekend!

Week 3

Week beginning 13.11.23

We started our week wearing odd socks to celebrate anti bullying week.
The children have been BRILLIANT at learning the new songs for our Christmas performance this week. Your child should have come home with a letter regarding their costume today. If you have any questions about this, please do you ask your child’s class teacher.

Reception spend a lot of the school day outside and with the weather getting colder now, please do ensure that your child always has a warm coat, hat and gloves which are NAMED! Every child also needs to have a spare change of clothes in school.

We have enjoyed learning about Diwali this week. We have made some Diva lamps from clay and will be painting these next week.

Forest school

Cherry Class had lots of fun building dens at forest school on Monday. They demonstrated brilliant team work and made some sturdy dens, which they enjoyed hiding in. We also went on an animal footprint hunt, made a drum kit and made leaf kebabs.

Phonics

Here are some phonics videos for you to watch at home this weekend.

Please note these videos will expire after 3 weeks.

Maths

In maths we have continued to match objects and put them into sets based on the similarities and differences. We have identified and talked about the rules of the sets and finding the odd ones out.

Wider Curriculum

In our wider curriculum lessons we have made some great art work using lots of nuts, bolts, screws, etc. Mr K very kindly lent us his box of spare parts. We have also learnt about how a circuit works, with a battery, bulb and wires. We talked about what a complete circuit looks like and what happens when there is a break in the circuit. We discussed the importance of being safe around electricity too.

Makaton

Our new Makaton sign this week was ‘food’. See if you can use it at home this weekend.

We are starting to practise our Christmas performance next week! If your child has a line to learn they will bring a copy home to practise.

Have a lovely weekend!

Week 2

Week beginning 6.11.23

We have had a great week in Reception! Thank you to all the parents that came with us on our train trip to Reading. The children had lots of fun on the train and were an absolute credit to the school. One member of the public even made a point of saying to a member of staff how well behaved the children were!

We have learnt all about Bonfire Night and Remembrance Day this week. We all made a poppy and placed it out on the school field to create a poppy field! It looked beautiful!

Forest school

Hazel Class had another great morning at forest school! We made leaf kebabs and natural collages using the autumnal leaves we found that has fallen from the trees. Some of us had a go at climbing some of the trees. We talked about how to do this safely and the importance of helping each other. It was great fun! Next week it will be Cherry Class learning at Forest School.

Phonics

Here are some phonics videos for you to watch at home this weekend.

Please note these videos will expire after 3 weeks.

Maths

In maths we have been looking at matching. We identified similarities and differences between different objects in order to match the pairs and have begun to make sets by matching larger number of objects for example making a set of triangles or a set of red things. We have matched items because they are the same and started to look at sets and how a set can be made.

Wider Curriculum

In our wider curriculum lessons we have started to compare old and new machines. We talked about the similarities and differences between them and how machines have developed to make jobs quicker and more effective for us. We were very excited to take off the back plate of a laptop and look to see what is inside. We were amazed at how many parts are needed to make a marvellous machine work.
We enjoyed talking about all our imaginative ideas we had when we were exploring cardboard boxes. We said ‘It is not a box. It is a …… racing car, house, rocket.’

Makaton

Our new Makaton sign this week was ‘no’. See if you can use it at home this weekend.

Well done everyone for another great week and for making all the teachers very proud on our trip on the train! Have a wonderful weekend.

Week 1

Week beginning 30.10.23

It has been a very busy first week back in Reception. The weather has been a lot more unsettled this week, which hasn't stopped us having fun outside! Please ensure your child has a spare change of clothes, either a bag which is left at school or in their book bags, please ensure all items are named.

Forest school

Cherry class had lots of fun building dens at forest school on Monday. They demonstrated excellent teamwork and made some very sturdy dens, which they enjoyed hiding in. We also made pumpkin collages, using leaves and other natural resources. 

Next week Hazel class have forest school. Please ensure your child has wellies and waterproofs in school. Please see the emailed letter for more details and dates.

Phonics

Here are some phonics blending games to try at home over the weekend. 

Please note these videos will expire after 3 weeks.

Maths

In maths this week we have been comparing size, mass and capacity. We have been using the terms big and small to compare the size of different objects. We have been using balance scales to compare the mass of objects and using the terms lighter and heavier. We have also been describing the capacity of water and identifying which objects would fit inside different size boxes. 

Wider Curriculum

We have started our new focus story ‘On Sudden Hill’. This week children have been exploring what a cardboard box could be. Children had lots of creative ideas such as an aeroplane, car, rocket, bathtub and a tortoise shell.

We have been identifying machines which use electricity in the classroom and at home. We also discussed various communication devices, including smartphones, walkie-talkies, Dictaphones, and string phones. We made sting phones to show that in the past, telephones had wires that carried sound from one source to another. We found out that sound moves by vibrating along the string! We had lots of fun communicating using our string phones!

Makaton

Our new Makaton sign this week was ‘yes’. See if you can use it at home this weekend.

Next week we are going on our train trip to Reading. Please return your permission slip on Monday if you have not done already. We are looking for as many parent volunteers as possible, so please do let us know if you are able to come with us.

Have a lovely weekend!