Willow

Welcome back everyone! I hope you had a lovely half term break and enjoyed some family time.

Our KS1 topic for this term will continue with our geography topic will be ‘What is it like to live by the coast?’. The children will be continuing to learn how to use maps and atlases to locate and name the seas and oceans surrounding the UK. They will continue to learn about what a coast is and the different physical and human features that can be found there. In EYFS the children will start be term by exploring diverse global environments, comparing them to local ones through activities using digital map exploration, books and role play to enhance the understanding of geography and cultural differences. We will then all move on to a history-based topic called ‘How am I making History’. The children will learn how to order photographs correctly on a simple timeline. Use the terms ‘before’ and ‘after’ when discussing their timelines. Talk about their memories and place them on a timeline. Explain why memories are special and name four events that they celebrate throughout the year. Know a similarity and a difference between childhood now and in the past and use key vocabulary to compare the present, the past and possible changes in the future. If possible, please could your child bring in some photographs that can stay in school of when they were a baby, a toddler and a child. If any parents or grandparents would like to come into school to tell the children what their own childhood was like then please get in touch as we would be very happy to have you.

Our KS1 text for this half term is ‘Grandad’s Secret Giant’ by David Litchfield . The children will be learning how to write a story inspired by the text with a moral focus. The children in year 1 will be learning how to use simple conjunctions, add suffixes where no change is needed to the root of the word and punctuate sentences using a capital letter and a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark. Whereas in year 2, the children will learn to write sentences with different forms: statement, question, exclamation, command and how to use subordination to extend their ideas. They will also be focusing on homophones, suffixes and their spelling rules and apostrophes.

In EYFS, the children’s topic will be ‘Recycling and Oceans’, linked into their key text ‘Somebody swallowed Stanley’. The children will continue to develop their blending and decoding as we continue learning new sounds with our Little Wandle programme. The children will be learning about different types of pollution and how we can help to save sea creatures.

In Maths, Reception children will be focusing on doubling and halving numbers, number bonds to 10 and continuing patterns. The children in Year 1 will be focusing on place value with numbers to 100, money and telling the time in 15 minute intervals. Whereas in year 2 the children will be working on fractions and telling the time in 5 minute intervals and statistics.

The children in KS1, will be doing lots of investigating in Science this half term. First, they will focus on plants, learning about their different parts and their functions. Exploring the school outdoor environment to find, identify and compare various plants and once again observing seasonal changes. These observations will also be used to introduce the children to deciduous and evergreen plants. In addition, the children will further develop their knowledge of materials by testing the properties of different materials for absorbency, waterproofing and strength. In EYFS, They will be focusing on different materials and sorting them into items that can be recycled. The children will identify, compare and sort various sea animals as they learn to name them and their body parts. They will also investigate floating and sinking and what happens to different materials when they are mixed with water. Linked to this sea and material theme,

This half term we will also be developing our skills with clay in our art sessions. The children will learn how to flatten and smooth their clay, roll shapes successfully and make a range of marks in their clay. They will learn to make a basic pinch pot and join at least one clay shape onto the side using the scoring and slipping technique. Eventually they will draw a house design and plan how to create the key features in clay. They will then create a clay house tile that has recognisable features made by both impressing objects into the surface and by joining simple shapes.

Our RE topic for this half term is ‘Why is the Church a special place for Christians?’. Through stories, discussion, photographs, creative activities and reflection, the children will learn that the Church is not only a building but also a community of people who gather together to worship God. They will discover the different features found inside a church, such as the font, altar and stained-glass windows, and learn why these are important to Christians. The children will also explore how special places can make people feel and think about why Christians consider churches to be holy places. They will also learn about other places of worship, including synagogues, mosques and Hindu shrines, and compare how people of different faiths gather to pray and worship.

The children will have PE lessons every Wednesday and Friday this half term, so PE kits will be required to be in school on these days if possible.   As the weather is starting to warm up, please ensure your child has appropriate kit to keep themselves cool e.g. sunhats and water bottles.