Year 1

Every week, myself and Miss. Roberts decide on a ‘star of the week’. This will be a child who has been noticed for displaying beautiful behaviour and well-presented hard work throughout each school day and as a result, will be sent home with our class friend Doogie. If Doogie is sent to your home, please look after him keeping him safe, clean and dry. Doogie enjoys reading, writing, counting, playing and sharing news. Please encourage your child to write all about their weekend adventure with Doogie and display photographs in the book provided. On a Monday morning, your child will sit on the 'share chair' to tell us all about their weekend adventures.

Doogie hopes to visit your family one week soon! J

Welcome back to Summer 2, our final school term of the academic year.   

This year has flown by and I am thrilled with the amount of learning that has taken place, as well as the outstanding progress that is clearly evident, mostly in the children’s writing.

Year 1 now enter into our new topic ‘Splendid Skies’ and imagine floating high above land and sea on a bed of clouds, silently sweeping by on a billowin breeze.

Back down to earth, let’s take a walk outdoors. But what should we wear? Wellington boots? A sun hat? Maybe a warm coat?

How do we know what the weather will be like today?

We will read and write poems and postcards…and, if you don’t like today’s weather report, why not write your own?

Send a message by balloon. Up, up and away it goes, high in the sky and over the rainbow. How far will the wind blow it? Where will it land and who will find it?

What weather do you prefer? Sunshine, snow, storms, or showers? Get your wellingtons on – Let’s go!

This half terms Virtues and Values are intentional and prophetic.

Intentional in the ways that we live and use the resources of the world around us and prophetic in the example that we set towards others.  

We begin our first week of June in the liturgical season of Pentecost. The children will  develop knowledge and understanding of Pentecost as the fulfilment of Jesus’ promise to send the Holy Spirit. We will focus on the coming of the Holy Spirit as a promised gift that brought about a change in the lives of the disciples and how we celebrate and receive that gift in our lives today.

We then move on to our final topic ‘Following in Jesus today’ and develop the children’s knowledge and understanding of what it means to follow Jesus today.

The unit develops the children’s understanding of how, as followers of Jesus, we belong to the Church and the different ways that the Church, and the different members of it, follow Jesus.

Seasonal change is our science topic where we will focus on observing the changes across the four seasons and observe and describe weather associated with each season, and how day length varies.

• Uniform clearly labelled, especially jumpers/cardigans,
• Water bottles, reading books/diaries in to school daily,
• P.E kit to be bought in on the first day back and left in school until the end of term, 
• Yellow spelling books need to be bought in every Monday and white Homework books to be completed and bought in on Thursday’s. 

As this is the last term of the year, is it paramount that your child is being exposed to reading as much as possible in preparation for Year 2. Home reading really does benefit every child. 

On the last week of term, we will be counting the stickers on our class sticker chart to find out who will be awarded with the Year 1 reading award badge, so please remember to write a comment in your child’s diary each time you hear them read.                                                                                               

If you feel as though your child can read their book, please spend a little more time re-reading it to make sure they are able to not only read each sentence with expression and fluency, but understand what they have read.

Year 1’s National Phonics Screening Test will take place week commencing Monday 10^th June 2019. Please continue to practice the phonics flashcards I sent home and write alien words for your child to practice reading in preparation.

Thank you for your co-operation.

Miss. Erroi :)

Welcome back to Summer term 1 after what I hope was a relaxing and holy Easter holiday :)

Year 1 are now tiptoeing into our new topic ‘The Enchanted Woodland'.

If you go down to the woods today, you’re sure of a BIG surprise!

Foxes and badges, voles and mice, beady-eyed owls in the swaying tree tops. Beneath the leaves are tiny footprints…animal or imp? You decide!

What can you find?

Can you match a leaf to its tree?

Can you match a petal to its flower?

Let’s build a den, stick by stick and branch by branch. Or we could make a teeny tiny home for a woodland fairy!

Then let’s party down in the woods with Mr.Fox and all his friends. We’d better not get lost…let’s leave a trail of conkers as we go!

At last, it’s time to rest by the woodland fire, listening to stories and toasting our sweet, gooey marshmallows. Yum, yum!

This half terms Virtues and Values are curious and active.

Curious in our thoughts towards our learning and the world around us, and active in our understanding of how we can make changes for the better.

We will begin this term with‘Easter’, a unit that will develop children’s knowledge and understanding of the season of Easter as a celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus and its importance.

We will then move onto our topic of  'Pentecost', where the children will understand that this is the fulfilment of Jesus’ promise to send the Holy Spirit. We will focus on the coming of the Holy Spirit as a promised gift that brought about a change in lives of the disciples an how we celebrate and receive that gift in our lives today.

In science we will be learning about plants and understanding that plants are a living organism through photosynthesis. We will study the different parts of a plant and identify a wide variety of plants including flowers, trees and vegetables. 

• Each item of your child’s uniform clearly labelled, especially jumpers/cardigans.
• Water bottles clearly labelled,
• P.E kit,
• Reading books and diaries.

Yellow spelling books need to be bought in every Monday and white Homework  books to be completed and bought in on Thursday’s.

 Please continue to read with your child  at home.

Evidence of your child reading 3 times a week or more will reward them with a sticker on our reading chart! J

If you feel as though your child can read their book, please spend a little more time re-reading it to make sure they are able to not only read each sentence with expression and fluency, but understand what they have read.

We are now even closer to Year 1’s National Phonics screening test week commencing Monday 3rd June 2019, so please practise the phonics flashcards I sent home before Easter daily, to give your child the best possible chance of identifying each sound confidentially.

I will soon be sending home a pack of ‘alien’ word cards for your child to practise reading in preparation for their test.

Thank  you for your continuous co-operation .

Miss. Erroi J

Welcome back after what I hope was a relaxing half term break. Year 1 now prowl into a brand new topic ‘Paws, Claws and Whiskers’.

With soft fur, sharp claws and twitching whiskers…What’s your favourite animal?

One that meows?

One that barks? Or maybe one that scurries or slithers?

From pets at home to animals in the zoo, let’s find out what animals like to eat and where they like to sleep.

Do you know how to look after a rabbit? A cat? Or even a snake?

Find out how the elephant got his trunk and how the rhinoceros got his leathery skin…Perhaps you know how the dog got his waggy tail?

Can you make a food chain to show who eats who?

Who is a herbivore and who is a carnivore?

When a gaggle of mysterious pets arrive at the local pet shop, it’s up to you to take care of them. Feed them, clean them and discover their daily needs.

After all that work, curl up and take a nap…a cat nap!

The Virtues and Values for this half term are Learned and Wise.

Learned by growing in our understanding for all of our subject areas and Wise in the way that we use our learning to make good decisions. 

We will begin Spring 2 with the topic Jesus: Teacher and Healer, to develop the children’s knowledge and understanding of Jesus and his ministry as a teacher and healer. The children will gain understanding of what Jesus’ ministry reveals to us about God, how the church continues that ministry today in various ways, and how Christians are called to follow the example of Jesus in their lives.

We will then move on to ‘Forgiveness’, to develop children’s knowledge and understanding of the importance of forgiveness as a gift we receive and as a way that we can show love to others. We will explore the choices that children make, that these can be good or bad and the consequences that arise from them. The unit will also develop the children’s understanding of the need to say sorry when bad choices are made.

Finally, we will enter into the liturgical season of Lent, when children will develop an understanding that this is a time of change and of growing to be more like Jesus by following his example. Children will explore various aspects of Jesus’ message and ways in which Christians can apply these to real life situations.

That your child's P.E kit needs to be in school from the first week of term and left in school until the end of term when it'll then be sent home to be washed.

Daily reminders:

* Named water bottle,

* Coat,

*Reading book,

*Reading diary,

*To be on the playground from 8.30am to receive a bagel breakfast.

We will again be doing our best to read with your child a lot more in school but, please continue to read with your child at home, to ensure they are being heard as much as possible. Reading with your child 3 times a week or more and recording in their reading record will earn your child a sticker on the reading chart! J

If you feel as though your child can read their book, please spend a little more time re-reading it to make sure they are able to read each sentence with expression and fluency.

Homework:

Children are to complete the page in their English book and page in their maths book that are dated in red pen.

Homework books are given out on a Friday and need to be returned on the following Thursday.

Thank you for your continued support :)

Happy New Year, 2019 and welcome back to a brand new school term after what I hope was a wonderful, relaxing and festive break.

Stomp, crash and roar! Watch out – there are dinosaurs about! Yes, that’s right, in our 'Dinosaur Planet' topic, we’ll be travelling back in time to the age of the dinosaurs.

We’ll look closely at ancient fossils and study reptiles to understand how dinosaurs may have lived and eventually died out. We’ll learn about the great fossil hunter, Mary Anning, and follow in her footsteps, studying dinosaur teeth and bones to find out what dinosaurs liked to eat. Learning dinosaur names, creating puzzling riddles, writing fantastic fact files and creating exciting dinosaur stories are some of the other activities we’ll be involved in during Spring 1. We’ll use our artistic skills to make model dinosaurs and to design dinosaur landscapes.

At the end of our project, we’ll invite you to a dinosaur party to share our knowledge with you. We’ll invent some dinosaur games to play and entertain you with our wonderful dinosaur music.

The Virtues and Values for this half term are eloquent and truthful.

Eloquent by speaking clearly and being descriptive in our writing and truthful by being honest and saying what really happened.

In R.E, we will be completing our ‘Christmas’ topic by understanding and recapping the importance of the birth of Jesus and sharing our individual Christmas celebration experiences with one another.  Children will work together to retell the story of Mary and Joseph travelling to Bethlehem through drama, and independently through writing.

We will then move onto ‘Families and Celebrations’, where children will describe celebrations in which they have been involved in at home or in school and identify celebrations as an important part of family life.

We will learn that mass is an important celebration of God’s family and describe the different words, actions and gestures that take place. Finally, children through hearing stories of Jesus’ life, will understand how Jesus' family and friends celebrated his life together.

In science we will be learning about ‘Animals’, their habitats, survival skills, way of life and food intake. Children will learn the meanings of herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores and use this knowledge to separate animals into these groups.

I’m sure Father Christmas will have gifted some children with new items of clothing or coats etc. If so, please ensure that each item is clearly labelled, especially jumpers/cardigans.

• Named water bottles (containing water only and to be bought in everyday)

• Reading books and reading diaries (into school everyday)

• P.E Kits (to be left in school every week and will be returned to be washed at the end of term)

We will again be doing our best to read with your child a lot more in school but, please continue to read with your child at home to ensure they are being heard as much as possible. Reading with your child 3 times a week or more and recording in their reading record will earn your child a sticker on the reading chart! J

If you feel as though your child can read their book please spend a little more time re-reading it to make sure they are able to read each sentence with expression and fluency.

Homework:

Your child’s English homework book and Maths homework book are given out on a Friday and need to be returned on the following Thursday.

Only one page in each book per week (the pages that need to be completed are dated in red pen.) If your child completes more than one page, we will keep the books in school until the new piece of homework is due to be set.

In May 2019, all children in Year 1 nationally, will take a phonics test. In preparation for this, I will soon be sending home more information, alongside a pack of phonics sound flash cards. These are your child’s to keep and practise at home as much as possible.

Thank you for your continued support.

Miss. Erroi J

A very warm and autumnal welcome back to our second term in Year 1! After a busy 8 weeks in training, we left for the October half term as ‘Superheroes’. We now rocket our way into our brand new topic, ‘Moon Zoom’. 

We’ll travel through space to learn about the Solar System. We’ll investigate an alien crash site, write an incident report and try to find the aliens who have landed. Where could they be? We’ll make models of the Solar System and design spaceships. Books and photographs will help us to learn about the first lunar landing and the astronauts who venture into space.

We’ll share our learning in a variety of different ways. We’ll read our exciting science-fiction stories aloud, sing space-themed songs and create an exhibition of our space models. It will be out of this world!....

Are you ready for blast off?

The Virtues and Values for this half term are faith-filled and hopeful.

Faith-filled in our beliefs, by putting our faith in God and encouraging others to do the best that they can do, and hopeful in our thoughts and actions towards our future.

Our R.E learning will begin with ‘Prayer’, a unit designed to develop the children’s understanding of prayer as a special way of spending time with God. The children will be exploring the Vocabulary, actions, places and aids associated with prayer, with particular reference to the prayer of praise and intercession. The children will also explore how Christians give praise to God in the psalms and in prayers like the “Glory Be To The Father” and the “Our Father”. 

Moving from 'Ordinary time', we will then enter into the season of 'Advent'. Children will learn and understand that this is the special time of waiting and preparing for the celebration of the birth of Jesus and his coming again. 

In Science we will be learning about the 'Solar System' before moving onto 'Everyday Materials'.

To ensure that every item of your child’s school uniform is clearly labelled, especially jumpers/cardigans.

* Water bottles need to be labelled and bought into school every day.

* Reading folders containing your child's reading book and reading record/monkey diary are bought into school every day.

*Home reading will contribute and support your child with their ability to read and evidence of reading 3 times a week or more in your child’s reading diary will earn your child a sticker on our reading chart! J

* Your child’s English homework book and Maths homework book are given out on a Friday and need to be returned on the following Thursday. Please ensure your child only completes one page in each book per week (the pages that need to be completed are dated in red pen.) If your child completes more than one page in each book, we will keep the books in school until the new piece of homework is due to be set.

CRASH, BANG, BOOM, SPLAT,

Miss.Erroi would like to WELCOME YOU BACK!

I hope that you have all had a fun and fantastic summer holiday!

Year 1 have lots of exciting challenges ahead of them as Superheroes in training!

It's time to rescue the planet from evil villains!

The heroes we admire the most may be ordinary people who have achieved great things, or may be people who save lives in our emergency services.

Superheroes have super senses. We will be using ours to identify mystery items with our smell, taste, sound and touch.

KAPOW! 

The Virtues and Values for this half term are compassionate and loving.

Compassionate in the way we feel sympathy and concern for others who are in difficulty, and Loving in our actions and through the words that we use.

There are lots of fun writing activities that Year 1 will be completing in English. Children will have to work hard to hold their pencil using a fine pincer grip and carefully form their upper and lower case letters. We will also be learning to apply the correct types of punctuation in all of our writing.

The Human Body is our Science focus for this term. Year 1 will be looking closely at the strength and muscular power a Superhero needs in order to be and stay fit, strong and healthy. We will focus on healthy eating as well as learn about our five senses: taste, smell, hearing, touch, sight.

Our class saint is St.Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland.

In R.E this term, we are learning about ‘Creation’. This unit will develop the children’s appreciation of themselves and the world around them as part of God’s Creation. The children will be sequencing the story of Creation and reflecting on the need to thank and praise God for his many gifts.

READING

Your child’s reading book will sent home daily in their reading folder – this needs to please be returned every day in order for us to hear your child read in school. Reading books will be changed once a week on a Friday (more times if we feel necessary) however, your child’s reading book will only be changed if I feel that your child is able to confidentially read the book independently and with fluency.

As much home reading as possible will make such a difference to your child’s reading. Even just listening to your child read two pages a day, will support their ability to read and develop significantly. Please write a comment in their reading diary each time you hear them read.

READING REWARD SYSTEM

Our new reward system will reward your child with a sticker on our chart if we see evidence of your child reading three times a week.

HOMEWORK

Homework will be handed out every Wednesday and collected back in on the following Tuesday. Please ensure only one page is completed per week in each booklet. I will also be sending home a letter and number formation sheet each week. This will be to help your child practise forming letters and numbers correctly. It will be very helpful for you to encourage your child to complete this in order to gain as much confidence and independence in their writing and number formation.

WATER BOTTLES

It is very important for your child to have access to their water bottle in school every day.

CLOTHING

Please can you ensure that every item of your child’s school uniform including bag, coat and water bottle are clearly labelled. This will help massively if any item were ever to get lost.

Without further or do, Year 1 wish you, a ‘Hulk SMASHING’ day!