(A1 W3) Alien's Visit POW!

A Wonderful Week

Hello Reception Families, 

I hope you're all well and are having a fabulous weekend, especially with the sunny Saturday we've had! I just wanted to start by saying a huge thank you to all families for how amazing all children looked on Monday for school pictures: the children were fantastic and managed themselves very well. 

Before I start sharing our exciting week, I have popped some imported messages at the end of this blog so please check those out! 

On Tuesday, Reception discovered a surprise in the POW woods! An alien spaceship had crashed! As young explorers we investigated the scene and soon discovered the site was covered in debris from the spacecraft. We soon spotted the spaceship in one of our trees and studied the site to gather ideas on why it had crash, where the aliens had gone and how we could help the aliens get back to their home planet 'Boggle'. 

When we returned to the classroom we put on our expert hats and explored different alien themed activities to learn more about our visitors. 

On Wednesday we came in to school to find the aliens wanted to come and introduce themselves and ask for help to get back home! 

We will be spending the new couple of weeks helping our aliens learn about humans, Earth and how to get back to planet Boggle. 

Amongst all of this excitement, on Thursday we also started our DT Cooking unit for this half term and explored a range of fruit and vegetables. We started by identifying the fruit or vegetable and then sorting them (we discussed how seeds would often indicate that the food is a fruit but we also discussed where and how it was grown). I was pleasantly surprised to see how many children wanted to try new foods and we also had lots of fun making a plate of our favourite fruit and vegetables using our cutting and sticking skills. This was also a brilliant opportunity for children to be supported in using our new child friendly chopping knives. 

In maths this week we have been exploring numbers four and five. We will be mastering our numbers 0-5 for the remaining of this half term using a range of representations, looking at comparing, using 10s frames, using part-whole models, spotting patterns, exploring 1 more and 1 less and much more. 

In Phonics this week we have been learning the sounds m / a / s / d / t /. Please repeat these sounds at home to consolidate their learning and incorporate them in every day life. For example, you could ask your children on Monday what sounds the word Monday begins with and if they say 'Mmmmonday' emphasising the  /m/ sound. 

And lastly, I wanted to share some photos of some particularly happy learning moments in class this week! 

Important dates / learning coming up: 

- This week are exploring our five senses (sight, sound, touch, smell and taste) to teach the aliens about humans. 

- The reception will be visiting the Maiden Castle Farm on Thursday 17th of October (I will provide more information nearer the time). 

- In phonics we are learning the sounds i / n / p /g / o / 

- The weather is supposed to be wet this week so please be mindful of this and ensure children have coats, wellies and some spare socks, trousers and clothes in school (clearly named). 

- This week we would also like to promote as much independence from the children as possible. If your child could say goodbye to adults outside of the classroom door with staff supporting the locks areas would be greatly appreciated. 

And finally, please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions or would like to discuss anything regarding your child.

My email address is f.godden@princeofwales.dorset.sch.uk

Hope you've all had an amazing weekend, 

Miss Godden, Mrs Rogers, Mrs Smith and Mr Long.