Spring Term

Children have been spending plenty of time outside this last couple of weeks as the weather has finally started to brighten up. With the changing weather, comes lots of opportunities for children to learn, ask questions about, and understand the world around them. Here are just a few of the wonderful questions I've been asked this week: What are the buds on the trees? Why are there petals on the floor? What is this insect? What month does Spring end? Is March Spring? Why do rabbits come in Spring? Can we grow our own vegetables? Why is the moon still in the sky?

What creative, curious minds!

Children had a fun-filled time on World Book Day! We dressed up in our comfy clothes, made a reading den, read, and listened to, lots and lots and lots of stories, and finished the day with some steaming cups of hot chocolate. A day well spent igniting childrens' love of reading and stories. 

We've spent the last couple of works reading 'Jack and The Beanstalk'. This book has provided us with so many opportunities to learn and grow! We've been using our blossoming phonics knowledge to read and write; we've been role-playing and describing the different characters; we've written an alternative ending to the story; we've talked about actions, consequences and how others might be feeling; we've sequenced the story from beginning to end and we've used music and instruments to express what we might feel or hear during different parts of the story. As we move into Spring, we will be growing our own beans and this has been the perfect way to introduce children to growth. 

This week we wished Ms Merchant farewell. The children made Ms Merchant feel extra special on her last day, showing her lots of care, sharing messages and showering her with gifts. We wish Ms Merchant, and her family, our heartfelt congratulations on this new, exciting chapter. Thank you Ms Merchant for all of your hard work and dedication- we will miss you!! 

Following on from learning about the people in our community, we've been learning about places in our community. We've looked at the places we could see in our home, then in our school. We also looked at the things and places we see on our route from home to school using talk, pictures and aerial photography. Children have been learning about routes we take to get from one place to another. They have been learning and using lots of directional and positional language like: up, below, left, right, down, along, next to, across from. Children made treasure maps and showed us 'x marks the spot', then we made maps of our homes and schools to further add to this learning. 

As part of 'Understanding the World', children in Reception have been learning about people who help us in our community. We've had conversations about police officers, read books about nurses, role-played as vets and doctors, made up games about teachers and sang songs about chefs, postal officers and crossing guards. It is important that children can talk about the lives of people around them and their roles in society. When you'rea out and about, see who you can spot and have conversations with your children about what they do and how they help people. 

We hope you all enjoyed a fun-filled break! The children have returned with a bang- playing, learning, choosing, making, building, and more! Take a look at some of the things we have been getting up to in class.