Academic Year 2022-2023:

Topics

Our topics across the year are Marvellous Me, Rhyme Time, Free as a bird, Invention, Innovation and Imagination, The United Kingdom and Our Planet. These broad themes bring together the specific areas of learning of the EYFS and the foundation subjects from the National Curriculum to allow shared learning at a range different of levels.

Phonics & Reading

Nursery children will be prepared for phonics teaching by taking part in a wide range of daily speaking and listening games as set out in phase 1 Letters and Sounds. These activities include body percussion, environmental sounds, rhyme and alliteration.

From Reception our children will be taught using the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised programme. Children will be taught in year groups and regular support will be in place for any children who require it.

By Year 1 children will be able to read words such as wriggled, delicious and celebrate, having been taught the grapheme-phoneme correspondence and progressed through the programme.

Reception and Year 1 will take part in three reading sessions with a trained adult each week, building on the key skills of reading decoding, prosody and comprehension.  This book will then be available to read at home in the form of an eBook. In addition to this, children will be invited to take home a book from our classroom, or library, to read with a grown up, reading for pleasure.

At the end of each day we share a story as a class.

Writing

In Class 1 there are always opportunities to write within our classroom environment. Children are taught mark making patterns, before letters shapes and formation. Once they are able children are encouraged to write their name using the correct letter formation and a capital letter.

It is important that young children see the purpose of writing and therefore we will encourage them to label models, write lists of the things that they need and write notes or cards for each other.

Children will be exposed to a wide range of vocabulary using The Write Stuff approach. Grandma Fantastic is always on hand to deliver some good vocabulary for the children to learn, use themselves and own. It is important that young children see the purpose of writing and therefore we will encourage them to label models, write lists of the things that they need and write notes or cards for each other.

Children are also introduced to a variety of different genres and will see various examples of letters, instructions, traditional tales and poems, for example, before writing their own. Year 1 children are expected to progress to writing at least a paragraph of quality writing frequently.

Spelling is taught as part of the Little Wandle phonics programme.

Maths

Our school follows the White Rose scheme of work for maths. Most of our maths learning is done through practical sessions, using many different resources to support. Children are taught about number in a sequential way and are exposed to a range of representations of each number. Children will learn and have a sound understanding of number bonds to and within 10, before looking at numbers beyond 10 in Year 1.

Addition and subtraction are explored using physical objects, before pictorial representations and then number lines.

Other topics covered in maths across the year include mass and weight, length and height, capacity, time, money, fractions, 2D and 3D shape and pattern.

Marking and feedback

Children’s work in their books is checked and they each receive verbal feedback, further questioning and time to respond to the feedback. Any written comments are read to the children.

Independence

Whilst young children often need help with carrying their belongings to school, once in the classroom we do encourage the children to put their belongings in the correct places by themselves. Coats and PE kits go on their pegs, water bottles go in the blue tray, book bags go in the blue box and purses go into the basket for tuck shop.

Forest schools

Forest school’s visits take place every week, unless otherwise stated. Children need to come into school in their outdoor clothing, waterproof trousers, coat and wellies, or walking boots. These sessions are invaluable in developing children’s confidence and independence, physical skills, knowledge of the world and nature, imagination, spacial awareness and resilience to name but a few. Please send children’s uniform and shoes to change into on our return to school.

Tapestry

We share as many moments as possible with parents via Tapestry and it also provides a valuable record of learning that takes place throughout the year.

Academic Year 2022 – 2023

Science

This year in Science,  Class 2 will learn about; the properties and uses of different materials; living things and their habitats, forces and magnets; plants.  Other aspects of Science are revisited and opportunities are made for links across the curriculum such as through design and technology and Earth science in Geography.

History

Children will develop their chronological understanding of British History starting with the Roman Empire and it’s impact on Britain: For Year 3’s this will build on their prior knowledge of the Stone Age to Iron Age covered last year. For Year 2 it will be an introduction to the narrative of British History.

Later in the year we will learn about the Anglo Saxon period which came after the retreat of the Romans.

Pupils will develop their ability to think like historians: using evidence to draw conclusions, consider cause and consequence and to consider how reliable sources of evidence are.

During all history topics we consider if and how our locality was effected. In addition we build our local area history knowledge including our village and significant historical figures in the surrounding area.

Geography

In Class 2 we learn how to make and read maps and are introduced to OS maps with grid references and scale.  We learn about the geography of our local area and ensure know the names and location of significant places and features.

Children will learn about the water cycle and environmental issues relating to the water cycle such as pollution and deforestation.  We will consider the water cycle in our local area and consider flooding, drainage and sea defence.

Art, Design and Technology

Class 2 have some fabulous units to cover including mechanisms, drawing, painting and print making. They will enjoy learning how to use new mediums, developing skills and finding out about the work of famous artists.  They will collaborate on building our class art gallery throughout the year.

Writing 

In class 2 we continue to nurture children’s enthusiasm and confidence for writing.  We use a range of texts as well as real life experiences to engage and inspire ideas.  Cursive (joined) handwriting is gradually taught once the children are seen to have correct letter formation.   Understanding of basic sentence structure is developed with the use of a range of punctuation including full stops, capital letters, exclamation marks and question marks.   

Children will have opportunites to write invitations, letters, poems, stories and non fiction.

Phonics and Spellings 

Our new Little Wandle phonics programme ensures a seamless transition from Class 1 to Class 2. Children will continue to participate in Little Wandle phonics lessons until they are secure in their phonic knowledge and can read with an appropriate level of fluency and expression.  We provide daily keep up and catch up sessions to support all pupils to achieve and become proficient readers.

Spelling is taught using Spelling Shed which dovetails well with the Little Wandle phonics programme. Spelling rules are taught in sequences of lessons throughout the year and spellings which don’t follow particular rules or are needed frequently in writing will be clustered into small groups to be learned.  

Emphasis is put on encouraging children to ensure that they don’t just learn a list of spellings but actually apply the spellings in their writing.

Reading 

Children are encouraged to become bookworms in Class 2!   Children have regular opportunities to read and to be read to.  We have regular whole class reading lessons each week.  These are very focused sessions which include the development of key reading skills such as scanning texts for information, making predictions and learning the meaning of new words.   Pupils who need extra support with their reading will take part in smaller group sessions and 1:1 reading as required. 

We are continuing to use the Accelerated Reader Programme to help children with their reading skills.  This ensures that each child is able to answer a range of questions about their book so that they can demonstrate their understanding.  Once a half term the children complete a test to which then gives the child a new ZPD score and the range of books that they should be reading. The ZPD range for your child is written on the inside front cover of their reading record and will be adjusted throughout the year as required.  Children also complete quizzes on the computer on the books they have read and to ensure they have understood what they have read.  

I think all school staff will agree that helping your child to learn to read and to love books is the most important thing you can do to support your child at home.    

Maths 

Maths is a fun and vibrant lesson each day. We use White Rose Maths resources which are clear and engaging for pupils. Children learn to love maths and develop their skills, knowledge and understanding through access to a range of resources including ICT and practical apparatus.

Feedback and marking 

Children are given feedback during the lesson to enable them to make progress and further their confidence and understanding while it is fresh in their minds.  Most feedback is verbal for children of this age but we also do make some comments in their books and obviously mark any independent work.   Children are given time to check and respond to feedback, including making corrections to any errors. 

Independence 

As the children continue to get older and take more responsibility in their own learning and organisation it is expected that all children organise their own equipment, bags, coats and ensure that they are ready for the day’s learning.  Please support us in this and allow your child to come into school on their own and organise themselves for the day.  Children should be able to remove and replace their own earrings for PE sessions.

Academic Year 2023-2024:

Topics

We cover a wide variety of topics in Class 3 and they are on a three-year cycle. This year in Science we will be learning about Electricity, Animals (including humans), Light and Living Things and their Habitats. In History we will complete a study of The Windrush, Ancient Greece and Egypt. Our Geography work will involve the children learning about Settlements, Land use and Economic Relationships, Physical Processes (Earthquakes, Mountains and Volcanoes) and to develop our map reading skills. In Design and Technology, we will look to develop a deeper understanding of food and nutrition, build electrical circuits, investigate forces and mechanisms. Art will involve working with textiles, printing, 3D artwork and painting.

Writing

Each day we work on a variety of skills in class and try to develop writing.  Children are taught a whole host of skills to create mood and atmosphere in their work, look at different text types and the features they have, a whole range of punctuation and their purpose and are given opportunities to improve their writing stamina. 

Spellings

The children will be given a new set of spelling rules to work on each Monday (sometimes this changes if there is something unique happening at school).  As a class we then work on developing a deeper understanding of the spelling pattern/rule through the rest of the week. We look at a variety of spellings patterns through the course of the year and also investigate prefixes, suffixes and homophones to name but a few.  The children can continue to work on their spellings at home by using Edshed.

 Reading

Guided reading takes place each day at school.  During this time the children in each group all have access to a book that is suited to their level of reading.  This is a very focussed activity and enables every child to discuss the text, answer questions, work on their reading, look at the language used and how punctuation is used.  It is important that children read a book for a minimum of 20 minutes each night with an adult and we ask that you please support in the teaching of this important skill.

Children also have an opportunity each day to read independently.  Once they have read part of their book they are expected to write about what they have read in their Reading Record book.  They should write a minimum of two comments each day.  We try to check that this is happening but if parents could ensure that they are keeping up with this it would be much appreciated.

We are continuing to use the Accelerated Reader Programme to help children with their reading skills.  This ensures that each child is able to answer a range of questions about their book so that they can demonstrate their understanding.  Once a half term the children complete a test to which then gives the child a new ZPD score and the range of books that they should be reading.

Maths

The children work together as a class in maths.  Work is differentiated on the board and the children are encouraged to choose the right level of work for them or are direct to the correct task.  Parents are encouraged to work on times table and related division facts at home in order to keep these important skills fresh in your child’s mind.

Feedback and marking

All children have an adult that is assigned to their work area.  This enables all of the children to get instant feedback on the work that they are doing.  These helps to eradicate any misconceptions and provides a powerful teaching technique in the classroom.  The children are aware of a tick system that relates to the work that we are learning about in lessons.  There are other codes and comments that are used in order to ensure that children are getting the correct feedback.

Independence

As the children continue to get older and take more responsibility in their own learning and organisation it is expected that all children organise their own equipment, bags, coats and ensure that they are ready for the day’s learning.  Please support us in this and allow your child to come into school on their own and organise themselves for the day.