Class One Newsletter – Autumn Term
Class One Newsletter – Autumn Term
Welcome back to the new school year. We hope you all had a lovely summer break. The children are settling into year one well. We are encouraging the children’s independence as they get used to the routines in a new class. They are already improving their morning routine of putting their things in the correct places ready for the day.
Our topic this half term is about ourselves and where we live, with a focus on Our School.
The children will be introduced to the Primary Curriculum, initially through play and small group activities, although the lessons will become more structured as the term progresses.
Our learning will be split into the following subjects;
English: In year one we aim for the children to become confident and independent readers. The children will increase their phonic knowledge to include blends. Blends are not individual letter sounds, but letters which make a new sound when they are together. We will be learning; oo (book) oo (moon), ee, ai, oi, oy, er, ar, ur, or, th, ch, sh, ng, ow, ou, igh, air, ure, ear and ir which we find inside words. ‘Book’ for example, will have 3 sounds.; b-oo-k. The children already know the individual letter sounds so they need to recognise that two ‘o’s make an ‘oo’ sound. The children will be encouraged to use these skills to enable them to write independently. Reading Books will be changed frequently, thank you for using the Reading Journal to let me know how your child has read at home and when they need a book change. It is really important that the children read as much as possible. In class we will spend lots of time reading with an adult and with their Friend in 5.
Maths: This term we are looking at counting and ordering numbers to twenty and beyond and adding and subtracting small numbers.
Science: We will begin the year thinking about ‘Animals including humans’. We will be looking at ourselves and what makes us different from each other, then moving onto animals we find in our local environment.
Topic (History and Geography): In our topic work we will be thinking about making simple maps and using language to describe the position of objects, based on the book ‘Rosie’s Walk’. We will also look at photographs of the school grounds and try to spot things that have changed or stayed the same.
Music: We will be looking at the song Hey You! It is written in an old school Hip Hop style for children to learn about the differences between pulse, rhythm and pitch.
Art: In art we will be looking at the artist Klee, particularly ‘Take a Line for a Walk’.
DT: We will begin the year with Food Technology, looking at different fruits and designing and making our own fruit kebab.
PE: I will be taking Dance on Mondays, whilst Mr. Snelling will teach the class multi skills on Thursday afternoons. Please make sure your child has the correct PE kit on those and days. Please also make sure that all uniform is clearly named. It is also a good idea to send a spare pair of socks, especially for the girls who wear tights, to put on for PE. All children with long hair must tie this up for PE and watches must be removed.
Computing: We will begin the year with a topic on e-safety and progress to learning how to use word processing.
RE: This term we will be thinking about Special People.
PSHE: We will be thinking about Citizenship and making a positive contribution.
Homework: As homework we will send home sounds to be learnt as a part of the children’s phonics work, learning these will really support your child’s class work, we ask you to spend roughly 20 minutes a week on phonics homework. We also encourage regular reading with your child, ideally daily, and writing this in their reading record book so we can keep an eye on how they are getting on.
Please ensure you send your child with a named bottle of water every day so we can encourage regular drink breaks.
If there are any parents or grandparents who can spare half an hour or so around drop off/ pick up weekly to help with reading book changes, please come and let me know as soon as possible. We do understand that not everyone is able to help but anything you can offer is really appreciated. To be able to do so you must have the correct DBS checks through the school, if you are interested in helping but do not have the checks please let me know so we can start this process.
Please try not to send children in with large rucksacks as school bags, unfortunately we do not have the space to store these during the day in the classroom. A small bag which can fit on their peg is ideal, the school ‘Book bags’ are great as they go in trays.
If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to approach me at the end of the school day.
We look forward to working with you over the coming year.
Miss Hagger, Mrs Thomas and Mrs Martin
If you have internet access at home, these are really useful websites to support your child’s learning;
www.letters-and-sounds.com www.twinkl.co.uk https://www.phonicsplay.co.uk/