Reception - Next week - Harvest!

Hello everyone,

As you may be aware we are having a whole school themed week next week surrounding Harvest. During this week we will be learning about the origins of Harvest and why we celebrate it. As well as this we will be preparing for the Harvest assembly on Friday (7th) by learning a song. Next week we will also be cooking scones to make a contribution towards the Harvest Cafe that is run in school from 2.30 next Friday as well! You are invited to come in early to visit the cafe on this day, with your children. 

During the week we will also be having some Indian workshops. One of these will be art based but the other will have a farming link. For this we do some digging outside, irrigating some land! For this it would be very helpful if children could have some wellies in school to save school shoes from getting too muddy! If you are able to bring some wellies into school please bring them in and leave them in a named bag in the cloakroom area! We will be doing this on Thursday (6th). Thank you. 

As well as this we are also visiting Maiden Castle Farm to see how they operate around Harvest time. This is on Monday 10th October. If there are any parents/grandparents that are able to help on this morning then please let us know! Thank you, again.

Reception team

Reception - Phonics this week

Hello again,

This week in phonics we are covering the same sound three times but with different representations. This begins an added level of complexity for phonics. As well as this we will begin learning to write cursive letters. This will begin with individual letters and then build up to make words and ultimately, sentences. If you are unsure about cursive writing please come and speak to one of us. There will be lots of opportunities to practise letters over the year. Please remember that it can look quite scruffy to begin with but with practise and time the writing that children produce is very good. We will be encouraging children to write in cursive for everything we do in school. 

'c' - as in cat - Raise hands and snap fingers as if playing castanets and say ck, ck, ck

'k' - as in kit - Raise hands and snap fingers as if playing castanets and say ck, ck, ck

'ck' - as in tick - Raise hands and snap fingers as if playing castanets and say ck, ck, ck

'e' - as in egg - Pretend to tap an egg on the side of a bowl and crack it into

the bowl, saying eh, eh, eh.

Reception team

Sunday 25th September 2016 Literacy links for all!

Sunday 25th September 2016 Literacy links for all!

If you would like some literacy based activities or ideas that you can do together with your child at home why not try this website.
Either google the National Literacy Trust and access the parents/families section or search
http://www.wordsforlife.org.uk

Have fun exploring!

Mrs. Johnson

Reception - This Week

Hi all,

This week in reception we are going to be starting our first 'proper' topic: Autumn! This topic will take place over the next 2 weeks, building up to our Harvest celebration in school on Friday 7th October. There is then an opportunity for you to come into school! 

This week we'll be beginning by looking at Autumn and some of the changes that we can start to see happening around us; changing leaves, animals preparing for Winter, colder days, shorter days etc. We'll also take a look at how our wardrobe needs to change as we move through Autumn! 

We'll be starting a piece of artwork to show in the Harvest celebration too. Although we'll keep this a secret for as long as we can! 

Lastly, in maths we are going to be exploring patterns and how we can make our own patterns. See if you can make your own pattern using 2 colours at home. Or if you're feeling particularly adventurous, try using three colours! 

Recption team

Reception - Phonics this week

Hello everyone,

We are continuing to teach the children new sounds in phonics and below is a list of the sounds that we will be covering this week as well as the actions that go with them! We have also started blending some sounds we have learnt together in short words!

'n' as in nan - Make a noise, as if you are a plane hold arms out and say nnnnnn.

'm' as in mat -  Rub tummy as if seeing tasty food and say mmmmmm.

'd' as in dog - Beat hands up and down as if playing a drum and say d, d, d.

'g' as in got - Spiral hand down, as if water going down the drain, and say g, g, g.

Reception team

This Friday 23rd September is "Scoot to School Day".

This Friday 23rd September is "Scoot to School Day".

Our SUSTRANS cycling officer, Jonathan Dixon, is running a "Scoot to School Day" and we are encouraging as many children as possible to come to school on their scooters.
We will be counting the scooters and sending our tally to Jonathan to contribute to his South Dorset challenge.

DM

Reception - Show and tell and Mr. Bump!

Hello everyone,

We have begun this week by introducing a couple of new elements of the classroom that will continue for the rest of the year! The first of these is the 'Show and Tell' system we operate in reception. This method ensures that everyone gets a chance  to bring something in from home several times throughout the year and tell us all about it. When it is your child's turn, they will come home wearing a badge saying 'Show and Tell'. What children bring in is completely up to them! There is no right and wrong. We have had golf clubs, fossils, teddies, favourite stories etc. 

The second new thing that we started today was our Mr. Bump! Mr. Bump is a soft toy that children get to bring home for one evening at a time. Mr. Bump is given out at the end of each day to a child that has achieved or shown something in that day. It could be learning related, it could be their mannerisms, or how much effort they have put into something. If you want to bring in pictures or work related to your evening with Mr. Bump you are more than welcome to! If you have any questions about either of these then please come and speak to us!

Reception team

Phonics this week

Hi all,

We have well and truly begun phonics this week! We will be covering about 4 new sounds a week up until Christmas time. Although this sounds like a lot, the children are already showing that they are picking them up. The sounds that we learn will help children to begin to read simple books and stories. As the year goes on the complexity of the sounds will increase as well as the words that they go to make up. As previously mentioned, we do offer workshops on phonics to show you how we teach phonics in school and how you can support this at home. Every week we will place a blog up to outline the sounds that we have been covering that week. We also learn actions that do with each sound and we will include those as well! Below, are the sounds for this week as well as the two that were covered at the end of last week:

• 's' as in sit - Weave hand in an s shape, like a snake, and say ssssss
• 'a' as in ant - Wiggle fingers above elbow as if ants crawling on you and say a, a, a.
• 't' as in tap - Turn head from side to side as if watching tennis and say t, t, t.
• 'p' as in pan - Pretend to be a pig and puff out the candles and say p, p, p.  
• 'i' as in ink - Pretend to be a mouse by wriggling fingers at end of nose and squeak i, I, I
• 'n' as in nap - Make a noise, as if you are a plane hold arms out and say nnnnnn

Reception team 

Reception - home learning

Hi all,

As a school we are always encouraing children to participate in home learning and whilst this is not compulsory, it is a great way to engage children and help to progress their learning. And starting early does help to set a positive precedent. In reception, home learning can take many forms; any Wow! Moments that come in to school are treated as home learning, home learning blogs (like this) give some ideas for things you could do at home, or any other making, writing, talking that you do at home that children are proud of. All of these are very welcome to come in to school. We have a daily slot where we show any home learning to the rest of the class and give children a chance to talk and explain about it.

For the next few weeks we'll be having a focus on name writing. So, with that in mind we usually have a bit of a home learning competition this time of year. Namely, display your name in as interesting manner as you can think of! This could be written with a pen, made from spoons, glitter or lego. Anything goes, as long as it displays your child's name. Please bring these into school and we will show them to the rest of the class. We look forward  to seeing lots of different and interesting ways of writing your name. And as is usual with a competition, I'm sure there will be a prize or two somewhere! Good luck!

Recepption team

Reception - what we're up to this week...

Hello everyone,

Thank you to everyone that came to the parent informaiton session on Monday. If you weren't able to make it please come and speak to us and we can pass on any information you would like. However, a termly newsletter will be coming out this Friday with all the information on so please keep an eye out for this.

This week in reception we are continuing to settle in and become familiar with the school routine, expectations, and length of the day! As well as this we'll be starting ou first proper topic: Ourselves! This week we'll be talking about how each of us is different but special and that it is ok for people to have different likes and dislikes. As well as this we'll be looking at our bodies and all the different parts of it! 

We will also be continuing to have phonics lessons throughout the week. More information will follow on this and as the weeks go on, there will be a weekly blog about the sounds we have been covering in school. We have also started to do a couple of adult led literacy and maths lessons this week. These will begin quite short and snappy but will build up to focused learning time. 

Reception team

 

Reception - Wow! Moments

Hello everyone,

All the children are doing exceptionally well as we come to the end of the first week! They are learning the routines of the day and the expectations of the reception classroom. We had our first phonics lesson today and these will continue on an almost daily basis for most of the year! More information will be shared about phonics on blogs and the parents information session that is next Monday at 9.00am in the hall. If you can attend that is brilliant but if not, please let us know and we can pass on any information you need. 

As many of you will already be aware we operate a Wow! Moments system to act as a link between school and home. Thank you to those who have already brought one in! We really want to know what you and your child are getting up to at home! This can be anything that makes surprises you or that you are proud of. Please write them down on a Wow! Moment and bring them in to school for us to look at. We will then read all of these out during the day and send them to Mrs. Mewett to read. The children will then receive a certificate to take home. If you aren't sure where to find the Wow! Moments to write on, they are pinned to the display board above the drinks and snacks area. There really isn't anything 'wrong' to write on them so please don't worry! Once again, more information will be shared regarding this in the parent information session.

Reception team 

Reception - Teddy jobs...

Hello again,

Everyone had another fantastic day today! Even if there were some tired children at the end! As the children become more comfortable with coming in to school and the expectations we have, we will begin to add different elements that will become part of the routine. The first of these will be teddy jobs. These are set jobs in the mornings that are designed to engage children for short periods of time, covering lots of different areas. The children are put into a group and these groups are used for a whole host of things throughout the year. Today, we shared these groups with the children and which one they would be in; Mr. Bump, Mrs. Armatage, The Hungry Caterpillar, The Gruffalo, Stick Man or Elmer. Starting on Thursday children will come in to the classroom and instead of choosing anything to do, will be directed towards a set 'Teddy job' to do whilst everyone is still coming in and getting settled. There will be cards out where the jobs are so children will hopefully be able to spot their group! Hands will then be clapped at 9.00am for the register. I hope all this makes sense and once again, it will become second nature after a week! Any questions, please come and ask.

Reception team

Welcome to Reception

Hello everyone,

Just a quick message to say that ALL the children did extremely well on their first day in reception! After settling, they were all willing to explore, talk and investigate the different areas of the classroom! There was a lot to take in! All children were paired up with a year 4 buddy today to help them settle in to the school. We also all made our way over to the lunch hall for the first time!

 Thank you for your patience this morning, hopefully it will become easier to make your way around the classroom in the future! Please remember that if you have any questions on of us is always available to talk to in the morning and after school! Tomorrow morning will be much like this morning; please come in and drop things off and then children free to choose something to do inside the classroom. 

Reception team

First Day Tomorrow!

Hello everyone,

We hope that you have been having a fantastic summer and enjoying all the sunshine that we have had! Tomorrow morning is the first day of the new year for the Reception children. We will be opening the doors at 8.45am for you to come in! All the children have a peg where you can hang coats & bags as well as a tray where you can put book bags etc. Both of these are named. You are welcome to bring PE kits into school from tomorrow also. These live in the 'Big Red Box' which is by the sink area as you come into the classroom. There are also trays for snacks and drinks by the trays and pegs. If you are choosing to bring in a packed lunch these can live on the shelf above the pegs. For the first couple of days, children are free to choose anything to do inside the classroom. This will change into set jobs after the first couple of days. Lots of information, apologies, but it will become second nature before you know it! If you have any questions at all please come and talk to one of the reception team. We will clap hands once we feel most children are comfortable and you are welcome to stay until this time! 

We look forward to seeing you all tomorrow morning!

Reception team