We have had a sun filled week at school. Take a look at our wonderful learning.

RWI

As you may know, RWI is designed to help our children become confident and fluent readers by learning how to decode words using sounds. We have been making great progress with the different sounds, and the children are becoming more skilled at blending these sounds to read simple words. To support their learning at home, please encourage your child to practise reading regularly.

In addition to our phonics work, we are also focusing on ‘red words’. These are words like ‘the’ and ‘put’ that cannot be phonetically decoded. It’s important for the children to recognise these words by sight, as they appear frequently in texts and will aid their reading fluency. We spend time exploring these words and identifying which part is being naughty.

Furthermore, we are encouraging the children to write short sentences using both their phonic skills and the red words they have learned. Children practice starting each sentence with a capital letter and to use full stops at the end. This practice is invaluable in helping to develop their writing skills and ensures they understand the basics of sentence structure.

Maths

This week, we continued our exploration of odd and even numbers. The children enjoyed practising how to share numbers between two, which helped them discover an important concept: if a number can be shared evenly into pairs, it is classified as even; if not, it is odd. We further investigated this concept by challenging the children to share numbers fairly between 2, 3, and 4. It was delightful to see their reasoning skills develop; for example, one child noted that since 9 can be shared evenly between 3, then 10, being one more than 9, would have a leftover when shared among 3.

Following our exploration of odd and even numbers, we moved on to the concept of doubling. The children learned that doubling means adding the same number twice, and we engaged in some practical activities to reinforce this understanding. We had lots of fun using objects to visually demonstrate how doubling works, which helped solidify the concept in their minds.

Thematic

This week, the children have been engaged in exploring the fascinating lifecycle of a frog. Through this topic, they have not only learnt about the metamorphosis from tadpole to frog but also expressed their creativity by creating some wonderful art for our display.

To further enhance our learning, we read the story Tadpole’s Promise, which beautifully illustrates the journey of tadpoles and caterpillars. This story ignited the children’s imaginations and provided a great conversation starter about change and growth.

Following our exploration of the frog's lifecycle, we shifted our focus to the lifecycle of humans. The children reflected on what they can and cannot do at various stages of life. This aspect of learning has led to engaging discussions about their own experiences and future aspirations. Encouraging these conversations at home can enhance their understanding of personal growth and the cyclical nature of life.

As we continue this theme, I would recommend you take some time to discuss your own experiences with your children. Sharing stories about when they were babies, toddlers, and how they are growing each day can help solidify their understanding of change and development.

Next week we will be learning about the lifecycle of a butterfly. Ask us about the visitors we have in  class.

Important messages

- Please ensure your child comes to school ready for the weather. As it has been hot, we will need sunhats and suncream (named and in bags).

-Please ensure your child comes to school with a water bottle.

-All clothing should have your child's name.

- Reading record books are changed every Tuesday and Thursday, please sign the record and put them in the basket to be changed. 

Important dates

5th May – Bank Holiday

6th May to 15th May – Year 6 invited into school for breakfast from 8am

6th May – Thrive Coffee Afternoon at 3.30pm

8th May – Reception to have vision and hearing checks

8th May – Year 3 class assembly 2.50-3.05

12th-15th May – Year 6 SATs week

15th May – Year 1 class assembly 2.50-3.05

16th May – Year 6 trip to London

19th May – Year 5 CAT tests this week

19th May – Year 6 to Elev8

20th May – Year 6 to Boonies

21st May – Year 6 to Ramsgate Tunnels

21st May – Reception Viking Games at RAPS

21st May – Year 4 class assembly 2.50-3.05

22nd May – Key Stage One Viking Games at Chilton

23rd May – Be here, Be you, Belong celebration. Children can come to school wearing anything they feel represents them as part of our ‘Dress to Express’ day. We will have a parade at 2pm on the field to celebrate this, to which our families are all invited.

Many thanks for your continued support.

From the reception team