Good morning children and parents,
I hope you enjoy today’s home learning.
Communication and Language/Literacy
Tell the story from the Gingerbread Man’s point of view
This is quite a sophisticated skill and more difficult than a basic retelling with additions and changes. Your child will have to see the story from another angle so I recommend you do this one together. Plenty of acting out the story and lots of modelling will help your child. However, the basic technique is something that your child will encounter many times throughout their school life so some exposure at this stage will be very beneficial.
Another way you could do this is something we call “hot seating”. Pretend to be the Gingerbread Man and encourage your child to ask you some questions. Or you could change roles and your child could ask the Gingerbread Man some questions. Of course, you can play this game pretending to be any of the other characters eg. the little old woman, the cow, the horse or the fox.
Try the technique with another story – perhaps when reading one of your child’s favourite story books.
Letters and Sounds
What’s the Sound Mr Wolf game?
This is a fun game we’ve played often in class.
You will need:
- Your child’s word bag.
- Lots of space – outside is best.
What to do:
Take out tricky words (star shapes) from the word bag.
You will only need high frequency words for the game (words that can be sounded out)
- Stand your child several large paces away from ‘The Wolf’ (parent).
- Pull from the word bag a word and ask your child to sound it out.
- Your child will then say the sounds loudly as they take strides forward.
- Make sure your child takes just one stride per sound.
- Choose another word and repeat.
- Once your child is close enough to The Wolf, turn round and shout ‘dinner time!’
- The wolf chases your child who runs back ‘home’ and start again. Agree where ‘home’ will be prior to beginning the game.
I normally stand with my back to the children and turn round each time I say a word.
Perhaps swap places with your child who becomes the wolf and reads the words out to you.
For support
- Check the sounds with your child by clapping them first as you say them together.
- Show your child how to take one step per sound for each word before he or she begins taking their paces.
For challenge
Try these words which focus on our new sounds.
ai – wait, pain, sail, rain, main, tail
ee – see, weep, meet, week, feet, deep, keep
igh – light, fight, might, sight, bright, fright
This would also be a good opportunity to discuss word meanings and encourage your child to say a sentence to include the word.
Maths
The box game
Children often enjoy visualising how many toys are hidden in a box. This game helps with adding, subtracting and solving problems.
You will need:
A box, number cards (or individual numbers written on pieces of paper) and some toys eg. teddies, small action figures
What to do:
- Put the toys into the box one at a time, counting the toys with your child as you hide them in the box. The amount of toys may depend on your child’s understanding. Perhaps start with 5 toys and increase the number as you play.
- Ask “Can you show me using your fingers how many toys are hidden?”
- Ask your child to find the number.
- Add one to the box, without showing the toys inside, and again ask your child to show you using their fingers “How many are there now?” “Show me the number”.
- Check your child’s answer by counting the toys in the box.
Extend this game by using larger amounts of toys and numbers. Instead of adding toys to the box, take a given amount of toys out of the box. “What if we add two more?” “What if we take two out?”
Questions to ask your child:
- How many were there at the start?
- How many are there now?
- How do you know?
- How did you work it out?
Tricky words
Here’s a reminder of our new tricky words.
I’d like to share with you a great idea from one of the children. Create your own words to add to your child’s word bag. Perhaps your child could cut the star shapes out themselves to keep learning those scissor skills.
Revisit the words on a daily basis and play ‘spot the word’ in story books. Replay the ‘tricky word’ videos posted on Tuesday, 19.01.21.
Expressive Arts
Gingerbread Man ‘See How He Runs’ song
Attached to the Memo section of Tapestry is another song to learn with your child.
Enjoy your day.
Nicola Palmer