Welcome to the Foundation Stage Unit & KS1 (Age 2- 7)
Welcome to Summer Term 2024
We hope you all had a wonderful Easter break. Does anyone have any Easter chocolate left? We have another exciting term of learning ahead of us, including the Yr 1 Phonics Screening Check, swimming lessons and sports day later in the term. More information about these events will follow in due course.
In all that we do, we aim to build Relationships, be Respectful, be Resilient, be Resourceful and be Reflective; these values are also reflected in all areas of our learning and we regularly refer back to them. Every Friday, three children will be chosen and we will celebrate the learning that they have done throughout the week. The reasons will also reflect our school values and how this has been reflected in the children’s learning.
Curriculum
We carefully plan the curriculum to suit the learning needs of all our pupils and make them excited to learn. Where possible, the curriculum areas are linked to provide context to their learning and allow them to delve deeper into the topic.
Our topic this term is ‘Our Wider World’. The younger children will be exploring how things grow in the first half of the term and in the second half, they will be learning about the rainforest. They will be looking at a variety of different books including, Jack and the Beanstalk, Handa’s Surprise, The Growing Story and Rumble in the Jungle. In Key Stage One, we will also be learning about ‘Our Wider World’ and more details are shown below.
In English, we will begin by looking at the story of ‘Augustus and his Smile’, followed by ‘The Train Ride’ where various writing outcomes will be generated such as story writing, character descriptions, poetry and letter writing. Throughout the term, we will explore other texts to develop our writing skills and encourage pupils to apply the various grammar, punctuation, spelling and handwriting content taught. ‘Plants’ and ’Seasonal Changes’, make up our topics in Science this term. Pupils will learn about different plants, what they need to grow and how they survive in different habitats. In our History topic we will be learning about the history of transport. In particular will be exploring, the history of Ash Mill, Ashwater Station and the old railway. The children will be encouraged to consider the effect it had on locals when the railway closed. In Design Technology we will be looking at different levers, pivots, moving parts and sliders. This will then be used to support the children in planning, designing and evaluating their own moving vehicle. In Geography, we will be learning about Zambia and comparing it to the UK. Within the topic we will be exploring what it is like to live in Zambia and will be writing letters to another school in Zambia to learn more about it. Our Art work will focus on textiles and printing. We will be taking inspiration from our Geography topic exploring textiles and prints from Zambia. For Computing, the children will be exploring different word processing skills and developing their understanding of the keyboard. In Music, each unit adapts an integrated approach where games, elements of music (pulse, rhythm, pitch etc.), singing and playing instruments are all linked. Madam Clark will continue to teach the children French on a Wednesday afternoon where links are made to class topics and texts as well as basic French words and phrases. In our Religion World Views, we continue to follow units within the Devon Agreed Syllabus. The units: ‘How should we care for others and for the world and why does it matter? And ‘Who is Jewish and how do they live?’ will be taught and explored. Within RSE (relationships and sex education) will be exploring health and wellbeing focusing on healthy eating. These topics will be taught through the Coram Life Education SCARF resources, who have a useful family page on their website if you would like to know more. PE is planned for a Wednesday afternoon. However, it is always useful if the children have their PE Kits in school for the whole week.
On a Friday, the children will be having a session with Mrs Bailey. For the second half term, the children will have WildTribe. – dates will follow in the school newsletter. Please can children bring in:
-Waterproofs to go over school uniform. If they don’t have waterproofs, please bring in a long sleeve top and trousers (not jeans).
– Wellie boots (in a carrier bag in case they get muddy)
– A coat (separate to normal coat if possible as they often get wet and or muddy).
You might also like to pack hat, scarf, gloves and perhaps spare socks in case theirs get wet but this is not a requirement.
Please make sure you keep up to date with our school newsletter to ensure you don’t miss anything. Please send your child with their water bottle every day labelled with their name and in anticipation for the weather worsening, please ensure children bring a coat, hat and gloves on colder days. You are welcome to send pictures through Class Dojo, to share your child’s achievements from home. These contribute to your child’s assessment and are a vital part of the progress your child will make.
Reading Books
“Reading is the gateway for children that makes all other learning possible” – Barack Obama. A sentiment we share across the Federation and one we want to nurture in our children.
Preschool- they are welcome to change their library books every day and are able to access a large variety of books within the classroom on a daily basis.
Reception, Year One and Two- The development of reading is of utmost importance. Please remember to bring in your reading books and diaries every day. The children need to read 5 times a week and the reading record needs to signed by an adult.
Pupils will have daily opportunities to read through Read Write Inc and have access to our class book area where they can explore a wide variety of genres.
Children who are no longer on the Read Write Inc programme, will have daily opportunities to read and develop their comprehension skills; we use VIPERS (Vocabulary, Inference, Predict, Explain, Retrieve and Summarise). Please support your children’s learning by regularly engaging with stories and books at home; this can be listening to them read, reading to them or discussing what they have read. Please remember to bring in your reading books and diaries every day. The children need to read 5 times a week and the reading record needs to signed by an adult.
Home learning;
Home learning for KS1 & Reception children will continue to be set via Class Dojo and is set on a Friday. It is often better to do a little but often. Please continue to read with your child 5 times a week as we have seen great improvements when this is done consistently. Remember, the reading does not need to be the whole book but a page will still benefit. You could also each read a sentence each or read one and repeat it until they feel fluent in their reading. Once the children have completed RWI they will be able to access Reading Buddies which is an online reading system. Spellings will continue to be RWI words that we using during the week as well as common exception words. All reception and KS1 children will be using MathSeeds for homework.
The children’s well-being is of paramount important to us and as a school we aim to create a happy, healthy environment for all. If you have any worries or questions, please do not hesitate in coming to see me. Please email the school office if you have any urgent concerns to ensure we receive it straight away.
Miss Gee, Miss Dannon and Miss May
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