Welcome to the Autumn term in Reception!

Reception Class Teacher - Miss Walters and Learning Support Officer - Mrs Ward / Mrs Woszczycki

Reception Class Teacher - Mr Trigg and Learning Support Officer - Mrs Perry / Mrs Pooley

We have had a fantastic start to the year and the children have settled in very well. Our overarching concept this term is Human Kind, Identity, Diversity and Discrimination. The children have spent time exploring their new learning environment and we have discussed our classroom expectations, rules and routines. We will continue to learn about friendships, family and caring for others. The children will develop their social skills by playing co-operatively and responding appropriately to both adults and peers. They will be encouraged to look after their belongings and continue to develop their independence.

This term the children are continuing to develop their oracy, reading and writing skills through our 'Core Knowledge' Literacy. Through class based and small group activities, children will show they can listen and respond appropriately and effectively with growing attention and concentration.

They will be encouraged to respond to more complex instructions and ask and answer a variety of questions. A love of reading will be developed through our book corners, daily stories and later in the term with home / school reading books. The children will use a variety of instruments and a range of materials to develop their letter formation. Emergent writing will be developed through role play activities and topic based work.

Children will begin to use incidental Welsh through our daily activities and Helpwr Heddiw sessions. Children will be encouraged to respond and ask questions through stories, songs and rhymes.

This term in maths, the children will use the number names accurately, matching the symbol to the sound. They will begin to count to 20, reciting forwards and backwards from different starting points. They will read, write, compare and order numbers to 10. We will be using mathematical equipment such as five and tens frames, where we will be encouraging the children to visualise what they can see and what is missing. We will also be using dice, counters and number blocks. We will exploring different mathematical concepts through stories, songs and rhymes. They will explore number and concepts through day to day activities and play.

They will listen and begin to use and respond to mathematical language and key vocabulary. We will be introducing the children to sentence stems and a variety of mathematical language e.g. '.... is bigger than', '.... is smaller than', '..... is fewer than', '.....larger than'. We will explore non standard measures including size, height, length, distance.

They will explore Numicon shapes and investigate these in their play and structured activities. They will recognise and name 2D shapes in their environment and play with shapes by making models and pictures. We will also explore the concepts of addition and subtraction in a variety of practical ways using a range of equipment.

In other areas of the curriculum, the children will develop their enquiry skills by exploring their inside and outside learning environment. We will be using the 'Learning Lodge' and '4D room' for activities.

We will continue to build on pupils experiences of technology through the use of iPad apps such as Seesaw.

The children will also get opportunities to spend time with Barney, our school well-being dog.

They will get creative through art, craft, music and movement activities. They will celebrate festivals and traditions including Diwali and Christmas.

Children will have the opportunity to take part in a range of activities linked to our overarching theme of 'Human Kind'. We will explore themes such as family, friends, animals / pets and our local area. Children will have the opportunity to ask and answer "Big Questions" surrounding these themes. Later on in the term, children will have the opportunity to apply prior knowledge and understanding as we discover the journey of Paddington Bear.

Please ensure children’s water bottles have water in them and not squash. Bottles need to be clearly labelled with their names. PE will be on a Wednesday afternoon and children will need to wear their PE kit to school on their PE day. Please ensure all clothing is clearly labelled. At present we are unable to provide children with fruit from school. We have a fruit snack in the afternoon, so if you wish your child to have a fruit snack, please send in a small tub, with fruit cut up and prepared. Please do not send in whole grapes.

We do have some children in school with a nut allergy, we aim to be a nut free school so please do not send in sandwiches or snacks that contain peanut products.

Please complete this form to provide feedback and comment

To contact your child's teacher please drop us an email via ask@oldcastleprimary.co.uk or call us 01656 815790.

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