Welcome to Year 1

Class Teacher: Miss Whitley

Teaching Assistants: Miss Walsh and Miss Culliford

Autumn 1

Welcome to our Year 1 class page!

We are so excited to begin a brand-new school year together in Autumn 1! This half term is all about settling into Year 1, getting to know our new routines and expectations, and becoming confident and independent learners.

We have lots of exciting learning ahead of us as we begin developing our skills in reading, writing, phonics and maths, alongside exploring a range of topics across the wider curriculum. The children will have plenty of opportunities to learn through creativity, practical activities, discussion and teamwork.

Most importantly, we want every child to feel happy and excited to learn as we begin our Year 1 journey together. We are looking forward to a fantastic first half term!

Please keep checking this page for updates, key information and photos of the wonderful things happening in our classroom. Thank you for your continued support – we are looking forward to a fantastic hallf term together!

R.E

Branch 1 - Dialogue and Encounter

This half term in Summer 1, Year 1 will learn what it means to belong to the Christian community. They will understand that a Christian is someone who follows Jesus and that Catholics are part of a global family of Christians. The children will explore how Jesus’ life and teachings influence how Christians live today, and they will learn about important symbols such as the cross and the sign of the cross as a prayer.

The children will also have opportunities to reflect on ideas of hope, new life and celebration. We are looking forward to exploring this special story together through art, drama and discussion.

Writing

In Writing this half term, the children will be exploring the stories Goldilocks and the Three Bears and The Smeds and the Smoos. Through these stories, the children will develop their understanding of story structure and learn how to retell familiar stories in the correct order.

We will be learning about nouns and verbs and beginning to identify and use these in our own writing. There will be a strong focus on writing complete sentences, remembering to use a capital letter at the beginning, finger spaces between words and a full stop at the end.

The children will use lots of talk, role play and oral rehearsal to develop their ideas before writing, while continuing to use their phonics knowledge to help them spell words independently.

Reading

At our school, reading is at the heart of learning. We believe it is the key that unlocks so many opportunities. To help every child grow into a confident reader, we ask that each child reads at home for 10 minutes every night using their phonics book. A new one will be sent home every Friday. Can you sign your childs reading journal when they have read at home please.

Reading little and often makes a huge difference – whether that’s practising phonics, building fluency, or sharing a story for pleasure. Alongside this, children will continue daily phonics sessions in school and will also read regularly with an adult.

Tapestry

To support your child’s phonics learning at home, we regularly upload the sounds we have been learning in class to Tapestry. These videos and resources will help you see how we say each sound and how the children practise them in school.

You can access these on Tapestry, where you can watch the videos together and practise the sounds with your child. Regular practice at home helps the children to become more confident with recognising sounds and using them when reading and writing.

Maths

In Maths this half term, we will be focusing on numbers to 10. The children will practise counting forwards and backwards, recognising and writing numbers, and finding one more and one less. They will also compare numbers using words such as more, fewer and equal.

We will begin to explore addition and subtraction within 10. The children will learn how to add by combining groups and how to subtract by taking away. We will also explore number bonds and learn the different ways that numbers can be made.

The children will use counters, cubes, ten frames and other practical resources to support their learning. Through lots of practical activities, games and challenges, we will build confidence and develop strong foundations in number.

Topic

In the wider curriculum, the children will be learning about animals including humans in Science.

In Geography, they will explore our school and the grounds, helping them to develop their understanding of place and environment.

P.E

Our P.E day will be Tuesday afternoons. 

In P.E. this half term, the children will be developing their movement skills and exploring different ways of moving. They will practise skills such as running, jumping, hopping, skipping and balancing, while learning how to move safely and confidently in different directions and at different speeds.

Through fun games and activities, the children will develop their coordination, balance and control while learning how to use space safely and work alongside others.

Through a range of fun games and activities, the children will also develop teamwork, coordination and confidence while being active.

Forest School

Forest School will take place on Wednesday afternoons. This is a wonderful opportunity for children to learn outdoors, explore nature and build problem-solving and teamwork skills. As we go out in all weathers, please ensure children have suitable clothing – wellies and coats will be especially important during the colder months.

Snack

In Year 1, the children will receive free fruit each day. On Fridays we offer toast. This will be 20p each week.

Important Reminders:

All pieces of uniform are lablled clearly

Water bottles come to school each day

P.E kit needs to be in school every day

Websites to help with learning at home

https://www.phonicsplay.co.uk/

https://www.topmarks.co.uk/english-games/5-7-years/letters-and-sounds

https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/3-5-years/counting

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zdjkjfr#z9cdh4j

If you need to speak with me, please don’t hesitate to email me at [email protected]