This year your teacher is Miss Holland and your teaching assistant is Mrs Crompton.

PE will take place every Thursday.

For PE sessions please bring the following:

- Black shorts, leggings or jogging bottoms

- White t-shirt or polo shirt

- Black pumps or trainers

It is usually best to leave your child's PE kit in school for the half-term so that it is always available to use.

Yoga will be every Monday afternoon with Mrs Ash. 

We will be doing Forest School every Wednesday with Mrs Powell. 

For Forest School sessions, please bring the following:

– Wellies 

- Waterproof coat or puddle suit

- A full set of spare clothes (please send in old clothes as the children will get muddy!) 

- Warmer clothes such as joggers and hoodies for the winter months

It is important that your child brings their reading book into school each day as the days on which they will be able to read with an adult may change from time to time. It is also crucial that you listen to your child read each evening and ensure that you sign their reading record highlighting what they have read and how they performed.

Within this class, reading records will be checked and books changed on a Monday. Please make sure your child has their reading folder with them every Monday. 

Homework will be set on a Tuesday through our online learning platform, Tapestry.

Some homework will involve an activity through the app and other homework challenges will be a practical challenge for you to complete with your child. 

Our current topic is: What do I know about me?

This half term we are learning all about ourselves, our families and where we live.

Our key text is Peace at Last by Jill Murphy.

Our weekly questions are...

Week 1 – Settling in days

Week 2 – Baseline assessments - Who am I and what can I do? What do I ‘like’/’dislike’? 

Week 3 –  Baseline assessments - How do I feel? (Colour Monster)

Week 4 – Baseline assessments - Who are my friends? How am I similar to and different from my friends?

Week 5 – Who is in my family & how am I part of my family? Are all of our families the same?

Week 6 – Where do I live and what type of house do I live in?

Week 7 – Where in the world do my family come from?

Week 8 – All about Autumn & Diwali 

Our stunning start - Pyjama day and teddy bears bedtime stories

Our fantastic finish - Stay & play

Our Communication and Language focus for this half term will be...

Listening, Attention and Understanding

• Listen carefully to stories, rhymes, songs and poems, joining in with repeated parts and talking about characters and events.

• Learn new vocabulary linked to routines and topics, and begin to use it in conversation.

• Hold simple back-and-forth conversations with peers and adults.

• Engage in both story times and non-fiction books.

Speaking

• Learn and use new vocabulary throughout the day.

• Begin to ask and answer questions to build understanding.

• Express ideas in sentences, using connectives such as because and but.

• Retell simple stories in their own words and through play.

Our Physical Development focus for this half term will be...

Gross Motor Skills

• Follow instructions and simple rules during physical activity and games, beginning to understand why rules are important.

• Move creatively and explore different ways of moving with growing confidence.

• Refine fundamental movement skills (rolling, crawling, walking, jumping, running, hopping, skipping, climbing).

• Develop strength, balance, coordination and agility through obstacle courses, challenges and creative movement.

• Use core strength for good posture and begin to move with greater fluency and control.

• Further develop ball skills (throwing, catching, kicking) with a partner.

• Build independence in school routines (lining up, queuing, mealtimes, hygiene).

Fine Motor Skills

• Consolidate tripod grip for writing.

• Continue developing control and confidence with tools such as pencils, scissors, paintbrushes and cutlery.

Our Personal, Social and Emotional Development focus for this half term will be...

Self-Regulation

• Begin to recognise, name and talk about different feelings and link them to experiences and the body.

• Learn strategies to manage emotions, stay calm, take turns and resolve conflicts.

• Set goals, show perseverance and work collaboratively with peers.

• Explore kindness through actions, noticing its impact and understanding what real kindness means.

Managing Self

• Become independent in self-care (zips, buttons, coats, shoes, hygiene).

• Follow rules and understand why they are important.

• Show confidence in trying new activities and develop healthy habits (exercise, toothbrushing, healthy eating).

Building Relationships

• Build positive and respectful friendships with peers and adults.

• Use social language to develop relationships and begin to see themselves as valuable individuals.

Our Literacy focus for this half term will be...

Reading

• Recognise letters and their sounds, blending them to read short words.

• Retell simple stories using their own words, recalling key events and characters.

• Understand print concepts (left to right, one-to-one correspondence).

• Develop phonological awareness: sound discrimination, rhyming, alliteration, blending and segmenting.

Writing

• Begin forming lowercase letters correctly and write their name.

• Spell words using initial sounds, VC and CVC words.

• Write simple labels, captions and lists, rehearsing vocabulary orally first.

• Apply letter knowledge in early writing, e.g., pretend lists or short words.

Our Maths focus for this half term will be...

Number & Numerical Pattern

• Deepen understanding of numbers 1–5: composition, subitising and representation.

• Explore one more and one less.

Shape, Space & Measure

• Match, sort and compare objects, exploring size, mass and capacity.

• Recognise and name shapes, combining and comparing them.

• Develop understanding of positional language (in, on, under, beside, between, around, through, behind).

• Explore simple patterns: copy, continue and create their own.

• Talk about daily routines and sequence parts of the day.

Our Understanding the World focus for this half term will be...

Past & Present

• Talk about daily routines, days of the week, months and seasons.

• Explore their own life story, family history, and past/future events.

• Recognise similarities and differences between past and present through stories, images and experiences.

• Learn about historical settings, characters and events in books and rhymes.

People, Culture & Communities

• Develop friendships and play collaboratively, respecting others’ likes and dislikes.

• Talk about their family, community members and different types of families.

• Recognise different beliefs, celebrations and special places.

• Explore occupations and understand the roles people have in their community.

• Describe their local environment and navigate indoor and outdoor learning spaces.

• Compare the UK with other countries, discussing people, homes, food and stories.

The Natural World

• Explore plants, animals and materials in the environment using their senses.

• Compare textures, properties and materials (rough, smooth, wet, dry, etc.).

• Recognise familiar plants, trees and birds, and learn to care for living things.

• Observe seasonal changes and natural phenomena, understanding terms such as hibernate, freeze and melt.

• Talk about how the environment changes and affects plants, animals and people.

Our Expressive Arts & Design focus for this half term will be...

Being Imaginative & Expressive

• Listen to and move to music, talking about how it makes them feel.

• Watch and discuss dance, expressing feelings and responses.

• Begin singing in a group or solo, including nursery rhymes and songs.

• Develop storylines in pretend play, adapting and recounting stories with peers and adults.

• Perform songs, rhymes, poems and stories in groups.

Creating with Materials

• Explore and use a variety of materials to express ideas and feelings.

• Build on previous learning to refine and develop creations.

• Use props and materials in role play safely, sharing their creations with others.