Auckland (FS2)

Mrs Dale

Class Teacher

Mrs Blair

Class Teacher

Mrs Phelps

Teaching Partner

Miss Last

Teaching Partner

OUR TOPIC FOR TERM 5: SEE HOW THEY GROW

Self-initiated Learning

We value play very highly as a vehicle for learning and social development. A large variety of exciting resources are prepared in the classroom and outdoor area that are designed to stimulate creativity, curiosity, problem solving and imaginative play.

The children have access to areas such as role play, sand and water exploration, construction, art and technology. We encourage the children to select their own activities, ensuring that their experiences are wide-ranging and educational. The adults use questioning to assess and further the children’s understanding, develop vocabulary and teach the children how to record their learning.

Reading

The children read individually to a member of staff each week.   We also have a number of volunteers that kindly come into the classroom to hear readers. Your child has their own reading book, and a Link Book to record their progress, and these will go home with them each evening in a book bag. Every morning the children are able to choose a new book. The children move at their own pace through the reading levels.
Click on the PDF below, Reading at Home, to find out about the structure of our reading levels and how you can support your child with reading.

We also offer ‘Read Together’ books for your child to take home, story and non-fiction books that you can both enjoy as a bedtime story or at a time to suit you.

If you would like to hear readers in the classroom, please let us know.



Reading At Home.pdf

Literacy

This term our literacy work will focus on our topic, exploring the growing plants and creatures around us. We will be exploring the stories of The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Jack and the Beanstalk and The Tiny Seed. The children will continue to apply the knowledge and skills they are learning through phonics sessions in order to segment words for writing whole sentences, as well as using finger spaces, capital letters and full stops. Through independent writing opportunities and guided writing the children will be:

  • retelling stories
  • writing character descriptions
  • exploring non-fiction writing
  • writing instructions
  • generating speech bubbles
  • creating story maps

Our ‘Talk for Writing’ book this term is ‘Owl Babies’ by Martin Waddell.

 

Understanding the World

This area of learning broadly covers science, geography, history and culture.

This term our topic is ‘See How They Grow’, an exploration of the developing life in our environment. Various activities relating to understanding the world are available for the children to explore during their self-initiated learning times, as well as weekly sessions when the children will work in groups to carry out their activities to:

  • develop skills in scientific predictions
  • grow a variety of plants from seed
  • observe the changes involved as a caterpillar turns into a butterfly
  • discover how frogspawn develops into frogs
  • notice the signs of seasonal growth and wildlife in the environment
  • explore fruits of the world
  • learn about other religious stories

PSED and RE

Our RE will be centred on the theme of Easter for Term 4. We will learn about the Easter story and what it means to Christians, and explore how it is celebrated today.

We will also continue to have circle times which will explore how to reflect on the person we are and our achievements. We will discuss what feeling proud means which will give the children an opportunity to recognise their own achievements. This will encourage and support their skills of personal reflection and talking about themselves in a positive way.

Through Philosophy for Children, they will be given the opportunity to make choices and decisions and express their reasons for these selections.

The children will be

  • listening to what others say
  • asking appropriate questions of others
  • speaking confidently to others about their own accomplishments
  • being aware of, and respecting, the opinions of others

Phonics

Phonics is taught four times a week. The sessions last around 20 minutes. This term we will enter Phase 4 of our phonics programme.

We will be learning to read new tricky words and consistently spell the Phase 3 tricky words. Phase 4 is a consolidation phase which aims to enhance the children’s recognition and recall of all previously learned graphemes, and support their application to read and write polysyllabic words. It also supports their reading and spelling of words with adjacent consonants or blends (e.g. st, cr, dr, nt, scr).

Each phonics lesson is broken down into four sections: revising previously taught sounds, teaching a new sound, practising writing and reading the sound, and applying the sound to read and write words. This structure provides a secure routine that the children quickly get used to and enjoy.

Please continue to refer to the mini-books that the children have brought home earlier in the year, as they will help to practise the decoding of words and the recognition of tricky words.

Maths

Every week we will have a different maths focus, all of which builds on problem solving, reasoning and key number skills. Whilst the children are learning independently there are other opportunities outside of mathematics lessons where they can develop their skills and understanding.
This term, during our maths sessions, we will focus on:

  • understanding and recognising ‘neighbour numbers’ (as in odd and even numbers)
  • practising counting in 2s, 5s and 10s
  • doubling numbers
  • halving numbers and sharing.

Computing

There are a variety of digital devices available in school and the children use these during their self-initiated learning and through maths and literacy activities.  The laptops are accessible at all times and we will also continue to explore the iPads and the BeeBot floor robots.

This term the children will be developing their technology skills by:

  • using a mouse to draw, drag and drop
  • inputting commands into a floor robot
  • creating scenes with 2Simple software by selecting objects and activities
  • exploring simple iPad apps
  • using software to draw and write
  • operating a cd player
  • taking photographs.

Art and Design

Each year the whole schools enjoys Arts Week at the end of Term 5. This year we will be inspired by the work of James Turrell.

Physical Education

  • Each week the children take part in two PE sessions. This term the children will be taking part in indoor games and outdoor ball skills.

    Through PE lessons the children will be:

    • increasing awareness of others around us 
    • making use of the space around us
    • developing awareness of direction and speed and using them for a purpose
    • learning simple ball skills
    • developing throwing underarm and aiming at a target.

 

Music

Music is a fundamental tool in developing language, maths and social skills. Throughout the week we sing songs and offer simple percussion to enhance the children’s confidence and motor skills. They will become familiar with a number of topic related songs and rhymes in the classroom as well as taking part in whole school singing every day.

This term Caroline Radcliffe will lead Voice Tuition each week. The children will:

  • experience a variety of songs from different cultures
  • develop their skills in recognising the rhythm and beat of songs