Welcome to Reception!

We work closely together in the Foundation stage to plan a challenging and stimulating learning environment, where children can develop and consolidate new skills and knowledge, take reasonable risks and learn to be independent.

We know that children learn best through play which is why we plan meaningful learning opportunities based on children's own interests and fascinations. We ensure a careful balance of adult initiated activities with child initiated play and spend time observing children to understand their learning styles and to plan their next steps. 

Please speak to Mrs Burgoyne or Miss Lythgo if you have any questions about your child at school.  

In Reception we love to read!! We have story time everyday and we love all kinds of different stories. 

As well as sharing stories, it is also really important that your child reads their reading book at home every night, even if they have read with an adult in school- and don't forget to write it in their reading diary too! 

We change the children's reading books on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Please ensure that the children bring their book bags every day so that we can send letters home too.  

Take a look at our Reading for Pleasure webpage for ideas on how to develop your child’s love of reading and suggestions for books to read together. Click here 

Autumn Term 2

Our topic this half term is Festivals and Celebrations

This half term our topic is Festivals and Celebrations. We will be talking about Bonfire Night, Diwali, Remembrance Day and of course, Christmas!

We will be learning songs for our Christmas nativity and going on our trip to Hatton, where we will be meeting Father Christmas- it is going to be such a busy and exciting half term! 

To find out more, read our curriculum newsletter.

Click here to view our topic web.

RECEPTION HAVE PE IN THE HALL EVERY WEEK. PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR CHILD HAS A NAMED PE KIT IN SCHOOL EVERY DAY. PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT THEIR UNIFORM IS ALL NAMED AS WELL! 

We also spend lots of time outdoors using the bikes/scooters, climbing equipment and the balls/beanbags/hoops etc. 

Physical development in Early Years is also about developing fine motor skills. Threading, cutting, play dough, puzzles and using tweezers all help the children develop their hand eye co-ordination and build up the muscles in their hands ready to start writing. Lots of these activities are easy for you to do at home too! 

Learning from home

If your child cannot come to school for some reason, we will try to put some ideas for work for you to do at home. 

Maths 

Sing some number songs- how many do you know? 

Go on a number hunt- can you write down the numbers that you find? 

Practice counting- you could count your toys, sweets etc

Phonics

• Practice all the sounds we have learnt so far- s,a,t,p,i,n,m,d
• Think of some words starting with these sounds
• Try making words using these sounds. For example sat, sit, pin, tap 
• Practice the new sounds we learn each week- remember to keep looking at your phonics pack!

Screen-free Afternoons!

We all need time to unplug. While we all recognise the numerous benefits of mobile devices for children to learn at the moment, it’s equally important to remember the importance of screen-free time. Research has found that too much screen time can have a negative impact on children, affecting their sleep and eating habits, among other things. We would like children to have time to play and relax using other methods. Children need time to be able to explore their physical world, build their curiosity, and expand their imaginations. Therefore, as a school we are asking that you take an afternoon a week as screen-free time.