This half term, our core text is Little Red Riding Hood, which the children are quite familiar with, and that means it would arouse their interests and develop further their writing skills. The aim of choosing this book is to give the children the opportunity to write at length in the highest possible quality. The children will listen to Roald Dahl's stories read to them. This will include ‘Matilda' and ‘The Twists’ series.

This term in R E, the children will be learning about Christianity, authority, worship and worship in the Christian faith. The children will explore religious beliefs and what Christians believe about God. They learn about the teachings of Jesus and explore worships and rituals in the Christian religion. They will also explore the sacred writings of Christianity and a range of religious stories and talk about their meanings. The children learn and describe the daily practices of a Christian and identify where Christians go to worship.

The children will continue to take part in daily phonics sessions and build on sounds they recapped in Autumn 1 to ensure these are embedded in reading and writing, and then progressing on to phase 4 and 5 to support their spelling. Children will also be reading daily, either with an adult or within a small group to consolidate their phonics and develop their reading fluency and comprehension.

In DT this term, children will observe different types of buildings in the local area and discuss what they are used for. They will learn about different materials and will use them to design and construct buildings. Furthermore, they will discuss the choice of materials and their use in making the buildings. We will link our science topic about materials and discuss the best materials for constructing. They will design and build a structure using suitable materials that can be joined. Finally, the children will add detail to their final product and evaluate it.

This term we will be focusing on adding and subtracting numbers within 20. We will be using different strategies such as number bonding, part-whole, fact families, count forward and back on the number line. The strategies will be supported with manipulatives which involve a lot of practical activities to consolidate understanding and create opportunities to transfer their knowledge and skills. We will move on to geometry which is all about 2-D and 3-D shapes and their features. There will be a greater focus on using the correct mathematical vocabulary and consolidation of basic skills to enable depth of learning and mastery of key mathematical concepts.

We will have two PE sessions each week, consisting of an indoor and an outdoor session. Weather permitting, outdoor PE will take place on Tuesdays with our specialist PE Coach. Indoor PE will take place on Fridays. We will continue to focus on effectively following rules and working collaboratively through team games.

In science, we will be learning seasonal changes and ordering the seasons and months in order in the first week. In the second week, we will be learning about the season we are in (autumn/winter) and describe the changes that have occurred (longer nights and shorter days, rainy and cold), and how we need to dress up and why. We explore the topic of materials further and learn about some materials that come in different forms. We will learn about objects that can be made from one or more materials, make scientific enquiries and test the properties of materials.

In computing this term, the children will be learning about online safety about people who may be unkind online and who can help them if someone is unkind online. The children will learn basic programming instructions to perform activities on the computer.

Our geography topics will be focused on the four countries that made the UK and their capital cities, and learn how to locate these countries on the map of the UK. We will look at the flags of each of the countries and the symbols used in each of these countries. We will learn about physical and human features and what they mean and go on a local walk. We will learn about the differences and similarities between them using pictures. We will also learn about Croydon and its location in relation to different parts of the UK.

This term in PSHE, the children will learn to understand their emotions and feelings and that of others and how to manage them. They will recognise their strengths, goals and benefits of physical activities. They will learn about relaxation techniques, basic hygiene routines and describe ways to keep safe in the sun. They learn about healthy and unhealthy foods and compare them and identify people who can help us healthy.

This term in music, the children will be listening, singing, playing, improvising composing in a wide range of styles including reggae, orchestral and pop. We will learning six songs including 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star', a lullaby in a reggae style; 'In the Orchestra', a fun song about the orchestral instrument and a dance number 'I'm a little Teapot'.

• Friday 29th November - Inset Day (school closed to all pupils)

• Thursday 10th December- Reception and Year 1 Nativity

• Friday 20th December - Whole School Carol Concert & Christmas Lunch (pupils can wear a festive jumper)

• Monday 23rd December - Sunday 5th January: Christmas Break 

• Monday 6th January: School reopens to pupils