What a fantastic first full week we have had in Year 1…

Maths

We have had a lovely start to our maths learning this week, beginning with geometry and, in particular, positional language and ordinal numbers.

The children have been exploring words such as above, below, beside, next to, between, in front of and behind. They have also been practising ordinal numbers, including first, second, third and beyond, to help them describe position and order more accurately.

These important skills support children in developing their mathematical understanding and help them to give clearer explanations when talking about shapes, objects and sequences. We have been using lots of practical activities and discussion to make the learning engaging and easy to understand. We even used animals to help us!

Read, Write Inc.

This week, we met our Read, Write Inc. teachers and got off to a fantastic start by building on our wonderful Reception knowledge. The children were enthusiastic and engaged as they began exploring the routines and strategies we will be using in our phonics lessons this term.

We have been using our special friends, Fred Talk and saying the word to help us read, and we have also been practising our Fred Fingers to support spelling. The children have shown great enthusiasm when breaking words down into sounds and blending them together again. We have also been looking at some common exception words and high-frequency words, which can be tricky to read and spell.

This term, we are focusing on the following words:

• the

• a

• to

• I

• is

• of

• do

• go

These words will be taught and revisited regularly, so that the children can become more confident recognising and using them in their reading and writing. Regular practice at home, even for just a few minutes, can make a big difference and will help reinforce what we are learning in school.

Please continue to encourage your child to use Fred Talk when reading and Fred Fingers when spelling. Your support at home is greatly appreciated and helps to build confidence and independence in their early reading and writing.

Reading

Every week the children will bring home two books in their reading folders, one being a RWI home book. Children are expected to try and read this three times during the week to ensure they are building on their reading fluency. The RWI home books will be changed, by an adult, every Monday.

The other book (with the coloured sticker) should be changed independently by the child themselves, first thing in the morning is a great time to do this! These books can be changed as regularly as needed. We will support your children at the beginning doing this 😊

Please encourage children to place their reading folders in the trays, so we can read with your children and ensure books get changed. Thank you for your support with this.

Please listen to your child read as much as possible at home and record this in their reading records. Every week, one child from each class will receive a reading certificate in an assembly. Children will also get a certificate or pize for every 20 times they read so it is important that the reading record gets signed every time they read at home.

If you have any questions, please speak to your child’s class teacher.

PSHE

This week in PSHE, we have been exploring responsibility, emotions, relationships and belonging through a range of thoughtful discussions and activities. It has been lovely to see the children reflecting on their own choices and considering how their actions can affect others.

In our first session, we explored the importance of taking responsibility for our actions, choices and behaviour. We discussed the fact that we are all in control of the choices we make, and that these choices can have an impact on the feelings of those around us. We looked at different scenarios, considered possible consequences and thought about positive ways to respond when things do not go as planned. We also developed our emotional vocabulary by considering how others might feel, and practised showing empathy, understanding and kindness. We reflected on the sentence, “I am responsible for…”, and shared ways we can take responsibility both in school and at home.

During our Regulation Station session, we explored emotions and learned that all feelings are okay. We identified a range of feelings and discussed how emotions can influence the way we behave. We were introduced to different strategies to help us manage big feelings, including calming techniques, positive self-talk and simple ways to return to a calm and ready state. We also thought carefully about how we can recognise feelings in ourselves and others, and how empathy helps us build positive relationships.

In our final session, we explored what makes positive friendships and relationships. We discussed how good friends show kindness, honesty, respect and support for one another. We practised important social skills, including greeting others, using manners, joining in games and communicating kindly. We also considered how to respect other people’s boundaries and how to solve problems through talking and listening. In addition, we discussed respectful behaviour at lunchtime, including using good table manners, looking after our environment and taking responsibility for our choices.

You may find it helpful to talk about these themes at home, particularly when discussing feelings, friendships and everyday responsibilities. Encouraging children to think about their choices and how they affect others can be a valuable way to reinforce the learning from this week.

Home Learning

All children will receive a beige book in their reading folders, these can be decorated however they wish, as long as it includes their name on the front 😊

For this weeks home learning we would love you to practise using ordinal numbers. (1st - 8th) This could be a race, where you are in a shopping queue or which order you received your dinner in! This can be recorded any way you wish. We would also like you to practise your left and right :) 

30^th September ‘Then and Now’ Museum

On Wednesday 30th September at 1:30pm, we will be transforming our school hall into a very special ‘Then and Now’ museum.

We would love to invite parents, carers and grandparents to bring along an item from the past to share with the children. This could be an old toy, mobile phone, record, book, telephone, game, photograph or anything else that you think the children would find interesting.

The children will have the opportunity to explore the different objects and think about how they are different from the things we use today. We will discuss how and why things have changed and what these objects can tell us about life in the past.

During the afternoon, you will sit with your items around the hall, just like a museum exhibit, while the children wander around and explore the different displays. They will be encouraged to ask questions, share their ideas and talk about what they notice.

This will also be a wonderful opportunity for you to talk to your child or grandchild about the past and share memories of what life was like when you were growing up. We hope the children will enjoy hearing your stories and discovering just how different life was ‘then’ compared to ‘now’.

Date: Wednesday 30th September
Time: 1:30pm
Location: School Hall

You are very welcome to come along even if you don't have an item to bring – we would simply love for you to join us and be part of this special learning experience.

We are really looking forward to stepping back in time together and discovering ‘Then and Now’!

Here are some photos from last year…

Additional Information

PE is on a Monday afternoon please can children wear a plain white t-shirt, or a Chilton PE t-shirts, black or navy bottoms and a plain black or blue sweatshirt.

Read at 3! This is where we would love to invite you into our classrooms and read with your child for the full 15 minutes. This will happen every Friday.

Please ensure children have wellies and waterproof clothing to enjoy our outside learning whatever the weather 😊

Key dates 

• 14 to 17 September – Year 6 visit Carroty Wood

• 16 September – No Year 5 swimming; they will have PE in school instead

• 18 September – Welcome to Reception parents meeting in the hall at 2.30 pm

• 23 September – Year 5 swimming every Wednesday until the end of term

• 23 September – Year 1 park trip in the morning (Please can children wear normal school uniform with sensible footwear for the park)

• 25 September – Chilton Fundraisers Family Quiz

• 30 September – Parents, carers and grandparents invited in at 1.30 for a ‘Then and Now’ Museum.

• 6 October – Harvest Festival for Reception at 9.00 am and Year 3 at 2.45 pm

• 7 October – Harvest Festival for Year 2 at 9.00 am and Year 1 at 2.45 pm

• 8 October – Harvest Festival for Year 4 at 9.00 am and Year 5 and 6 at 2.45 pm

• 15 October – Kent Test results shared with parents

• 23 October – Halloween Disco; children may come to school in fancy dress

• 23 October – Final day of term

We hope you have a lovely weekend!

Team Periwinkle - Eloise.hall@chiltonprimary.co.uk

Team Teal  - Poppy.winchcombe@chiltonprimary.co.uk and Elaine.howard@chiltonprimary.co.uk ( On a Tuesday)

Miss Hall, Mrs Winchcombe and Mrs Howard