Advent has begun

This week we have really enjoyed practising and performing our nativity. All the the children have worked so hard on remembering their speaking parts, the actions to the songs and acting on the stage. They all looked fabulous in their costumes too. Huge well done to all the children and their families too for their support in preparing for this. Here are some photos of the stars of the show:


We also had a visit from the Elf this week. The children were so excited to find a box left in our classroom with the elf hiding in it and a note from Santa. The children all enjoyed writing a list to give to the elf to pass on to Santa.
Here are some examples of their fantastic writing:


In maths the children have been busy finding one less and adding different amounts independently during discovery time.                     Here are some photos of their learning:

In phonics the children have been writing captions for photos using the sounds that they are familiar with in phase 2.
Here are some photos of the learning they are most proud of this week:

We hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

From the year R team.

A surprise visit from the Elf!

This week the children came into school to see the Elf had been in our school overnight and had taken pictures of himself.

The children were very excited by this and were very keen to write to him to ask him to come back again!
Here are some examples of their fantastic writing:

During Maths the children have been making amounts to 5 in different ways. The children used Numicon, multi link, gems and bricks to show how they can partition the amount and use mathematical vocabulary to explain what they had found out.
Here are some photos of their learning:


The children have continued to independently practise writing CVC words during discovery time, applying the sounds they have been taught so far.
Here are some photos of their brilliant writing:

We hope you have a great weekend.
From the Early Years team.

The Snowflake Mistake

This week we have read the story The Snowflake Mistake. The children have enjoyed designing and labelling a new machine for the queen as well as having a go at making it out of junk modelling. They also made their own snowflakes using different craft materials and then talked about how they created them.


In maths we have focused on making different amounts, matching to the correct numeral and discussed one less than a given number.
Some of the children showed this with snowballs (cotton wool) and paper snowflakes. Some children counted the amount, crossed one off and talked about how it shows one less and what the amount is.



In phonics the children have been independently writing CVC words showing they can apply the sounds we have taught so far to spelling. Some children have also been writing tricky words during discovery time.



We hope you have a wonderful weekend.
From the Early Years Team.

This week we have been detectives!

When we came into the classroom on Monday, we noticed a mess had been made using some of our resources. There was police tape and cones put round it and we spotted fingerprints, footprints and a police badge left at the scene. The children have all been working hard hunting for clues around the classroom and outside area to try and identify who it was that had made the mess. The children created lists using their sounds.


Here are some photos of the excellent writing the children produced:



The children also wrote questions to the police officer who came to visit. Here are some examples:


PC Hutchinson came in and talked to the children about what he thinks might have happened in our school. He answered the children’s questions then came up with some ideas of who it might be that created the mess!

We also had a two minute silence and then talked about Remembrance Day and the important meaning as to why we wear poppies. The children chose to create poppies in their own way. Here are some examples of their excellent creations:



In maths we have been focusing on using the word ‘fewer’ to compare different amounts. Here are some photos of our learning:



We hope you have a wonderful weekend.
From the Early Years Team.

A visit from the bear!

This week the children have really enjoyed coming into class to see that a bear had been to visit! They noticed a cave and footprints that had been left so began asking lots of questions and making suggestions as to why he may have visited. We then shared the story “Wakey wakey big brown bear.” The children found a letter that the animals in the story had written asking for us to help write a list of things which we need to collect over and autumn and winter for the bear to see when he wakes in spring. Here are some examples of the children’s writing as well as photos of them exploring the cave:

In maths the children have enjoyed creating fireworks pictures. They cut stars, wrote numbers on them and then drew the correct amount of sparks off each star to match the numeral. The children also talked about one more and one less than a given number. They also showed this through playing a game. Here are some photos of their learning:

In phonics we have taught the sounds g, o, c. Please practice saying these sounds at home and writing them as well as the previous sounds we have sent home.

We hope you have a lovely weekend.

From the early years team.

Pumpkin fun!

This week in year R we have been reading the story Pumpkin Soup. The children have then enjoyed writing their own pumpkin soup recipes using some of the sounds we have taught already including s,a,t,p,i,n. In the mud kitchen the children had a wonderful experience making pumpkin soup with real pumpkins. They sliced, scooped and stirred their soup. This vocabulary has been a key focus this week.
We also talked about Harvest festivals this week and the children enjoyed making their own scarecrow together.
Here are some pictures of their fantastic learning:
The children also printed with carrots and apples to make pumpkin pictures.


We have also been talking about Seasons and in particular signs of autumn. We have discussed what we would see in each of the different seasons outside, what the weather is like and what clothing we would need to wear. The children enjoyed drawing their own pictures and writing about what their favourite season is and why.

Here are some examples of the children’s work:

In maths we have continued with counting and recognising numbers to 10. The children engaged with an interactive game where they had to count the sea animals on the screen and then select the correct number to match the amount.
Here are some photos of the children:


We also focused on Black History Month with the children. We looked at pictures of Martin Luther King and talked about how he taught us that we must include everyone no matter what our differences our. The children then thought about what makes them special and unique. Here are some pictures of the learning:


This week we also said farewell to Mrs King. She has been a wonderful member of the Early Years team. All the children and staff will miss her a lot! We wish her all the best with her future in Spain.

We hope you all have a wonderful half term break.
From the Early Years Team.

Our learning for this week

This week the children have enjoyed listening to the story “What makes a rainbow?“. They have talked about how a rainbow is made and what their favourite colour is. The children made their own rainbows out of paper, by drawing and by painting.
Here are some photos to show our learning:


The children have also really enjoyed constructing with a variety of resources. They used their imaginations and worked collaboratively to create robots, marble runs and lighthouses.

Here are some of their creations:

The children were fascinated by the skittles science experiment which we shared with them. They discussed what they thought would happen when we added the water and then what happened after and why.
Here are some photos of the rainbow it created:


We have also started learning phase 2 in phonics. The sounds we have learnt so far are s, a, t and p. Encourage your child to do a sound bunt around the home looking for objects that start with the sounds they now know.

In maths we have focused on the number 8 and 9 making the amount in different ways and recognising the numeral.
Here are some photos from this learning:


Please remember to check Tapestry for updates on your child’s learning throughout the week and ways in which you can support at home.

We hope you have a lovely weekend.

From the Early Years team.

Learning for this week!

In literacy this week we have been reading the story Mixed. The children have then been drawing pictures of themselves and writing to show what they are good at. This has helped us to think about the importance of everyone having different strengths but it still means we can all be friends together.
Here is some examples of the work the children have created:

In maths we have focused on learning number 6 and 7. The children have enjoyed making their own Numberblocks characters to show different amounts.
Here is some examples of the work the children have created:

In phonics we have been listening to the initial sounds in words. Some of the children have been looking for objects in the environment and saying the initial sounds and some children have been writing the sounds they hear at the start of words when they look at pictures.
Here is some of the learning they have done this week:

The children have also really enjoyed mixing colours during discovery time. Here are some examples of their creations:

Please continue to check Tapestry for the home learning which we put up each week to support your child at home.
Have a lovely weekend.

From the Early Years Team

Another fun week in Year R!

This week in literacy we have introduced the Gruffalo story. The children really enjoyed following the footprints that he had left us leading to the story. The children found his purple spikes and brown fur left on the pathway! We shared the together and then the children drew their favourite part of the story and explained to us what happened.

The children also enjoyed making their own masks of the characters from the story and acted parts out together.

Here is some of the drawing and writing the children have created this week:

 

In maths we have focused on numbers 4 and 5. The children have really enjoyed making the characters from Numberblocks to represent 1,2,3 and 4. Please continue to practise recognising the numerals and making the amount using different objects around the home.

In PE this week, the children have focused on their gross motor development with balancing, hopping, jumping and rolling.

In phonics the children have been focusing on rhyming words. Again please practise this at home so the children can get used to listening to the sounds in words ready for learning phase 2 phonic sounds.

We hope you have a lovely weekend.

From the Early Years Team

Our First Full Week Together!

What a wonderful first full week of school we have had. We are so proud of all the children for settling in so well and adapting to all the new routines. We expect they are very tired after having so much fun learning!

We introduced the story Owl Babies in literacy. The children have been drawing pictures to show how they might feel when they are sad or happy and linking it to how the owls felt when their mummy flew away. We have also been acting like the owls flying around the garden looking for where our mummy might be!

During phonics we have been listening to different sounds and thinking about which animal or instrument would make the sound. We then drew what we thought we could hear.

In maths we have been focusing on numbers 1-3 being able to recognise and make these amounts using different objects.

We have had some parents asking about whether they can visit the school library to collect the must read books. Sadly due to the current situation, we cannot allow parents into school to choose books with their children. However all children will be able to choose a book from a selection bought to them once a week from the librarian. We will let you know if this changes and we can welcome parents in again. Thank you for your understanding.

Please continue to share any home learning your child does with us on Tapestry so we can see the progress they are making.

We hope you have a lovely weekend.

From the Early Years Team.