Category: Uncategorised

Dear parents,

Over the past few weeks Reception children have been introduced to the fact that numbers are made up of other numbers.   The children’s understanding has been developed through a sequence of 3 steps.

Step 1 – we began by exploring regrouping a whole into different parts and identifying what values are hidden within numbers. 

Children are encouraged to use subitising (recognising a small group of numbers at a glance without counting) when looking at groups of objects.  For example, in the photo below rows of 3 and 4 were identified.

• 

Step 2 –  we talked about combining parts to create a whole. This is the start of calculating – addition. 

The children were encouraged to notice and find different parts that can be combined to make the same whole; concluding that there are lots of different ways to make a total.  The photo below illustrates how we used a 10 egg box carton to look at multiple ways of making number 10.

• 

Step 3 –  calculating the part of a whole that is missing.  This is the introduction of subtraction.

In the photo below the children played a game finding the missing number from a total amount of carrots.

• 

In the photo below the children were given a starting  amount (the part), a target to reach (the whole) and they found ‘how many  more…?’ (the missing part) when building towers with Duplo.

• 

How to can help at home

Talk about how a collection of toys can be regrouped eg. farm animals, all the animals are part of the whole farm but they could be regrouped into sheep, cows, horses, pigs and farmers (humans). Each group is part of the whole farm.  Or 7 vehicles could be regrouped as 4 cars and 3 trucks.

Give your child a target number and, using dominoes, can they try to find all the dominoes that have that number of dots altogether where either side of the domino would become a part. Talk about what they notice if one side of the domino shows 0 dots.

At meal/snack time find the total two groups of items.  For example, pears and bananas. Ask your child to find the total initially starting with the pears and then adding the bananas, then starting with the bananas and then adding the pears. Talk about how the order of the fruit doesn’t matter when adding.

Introduce a range of different problems that require your child to calculate a missing part.

• How many more…? If we need a snack for four people and there are two bananas, how many more do we need?

• How many left…? How many cakes left now that Mummy and Daddy have taken their cake?

• What is the difference…? You have three sweets and Mummy has two sweets. What is the difference between the numbers of sweets you have?

Play Kim’s game. Show your child a small collection of different objects on a tray and identify the whole (the total number of items). Hide them all and remove some objects. Reveal the objects left. Can your child calculate how many have been taken – the missing part.

The vocabulary of parts and whole has been emphasised throughout our learning.  The children’s understanding of equal, more and less and ‘altogether’ has also been developed to describe the whole.

Maths Challenge

Your child may wish to have a go at the following maths challenge:

• Collect a small amount of items outside eg. sticks, leaves, stones (10 items to begin and extend to 20 for extra challenge)

• Once there are a few items, explore how they might be grouped. 

• Create groups and then use subitising to say how many are in each group (if the amounts are small enough). 

• Talk about the parts and the whole and then count to find the total.

I would love to hear about your child’s mathematical discoveries on Tapestry.  We always have fun sharing the children’s home learning in class. This also often inspires their friends to also ‘have a go’!

Wishing you all a great bank holiday weekend.

Nicola Palmer

Dear parents,

As part of our Relationships and Health teaching the children discovered how God created the world and why the Bible is so special.

Last week we read the story of creation and talked about how our bodies were created by God.  We are all God’s children and part of his special plan.

The children learnt the following song ‘If I were a Butterfly’

You may wish to share the following class prayer at home:

Dear God,
You made our amazing world and all the amazing things in it.
Thank you for making me and loving me.
Help us to take care of ourselves and the world.
Amen.

This week the children began to understand that the Bible is special because we are all in it and part of God’s family.  In the Bible we hear stories about Jesus and that still has meaning for us today.  

We acted out a story from the Bible, Jesus and his disciples during the Last Supper.  I washed the children’s feet to show the children how Jesus is our role model.  Jesus is showing us a way of behaving, he showed love to his disciples and he wants us to show that love to others.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

The children made some great suggestions about how they can show love to others “You can take turns”, “You help tidy up”, “Look after someone who is sad”.  I made a suggestion that you can give someone a smile.

You may wish to share the following class prayer at home:

Dear Jesus,
Thank you for being my perfect role model.
Thank you for loving me.
Help me to share that love with others.
Amen

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend in God’s amazing world.

Nicola Palmer

We have had a successful start to the Summer term with the children all refreshed and eager to learn.

Our focus story for the next few weeks is a traditional tale, The Three Billy Goats Gruff.

The children have been learning to retell the story as part of our ‘talk for writing’ teaching.  They are learning the words superbly and I hope your child will be able to tell you the story at home.

• 

• 

We talked about key words and phrases within the story.  The children asked some very interesting questions: ‘Why did the troll want to eat the billy goats gruff?’, ‘Why did the billy goats gruff want to eat the grass on the other side?’, ‘Why were they hungry?’, ‘Why wouldn’t the troll let them go across the river?’ ‘Why did the troll live under the bridge?’.

The children have also enjoyed listening to different versions of the story kindly brought into school by their friends.  If you child has a copy of The Three Billy Goats Gruff at home we would love to read it in class.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend.

Nicola Palmer

Good morning Reception parents and children,

I hope you’ve all had a great weekend in the sunshine.  Please continue to enjoy daily exercise and outdoor activities.  Enjoying outdoor activities not only benefits children’s emotional wellbeing but also encourages an active life style.

Please also feel reassured that doing the simple things as a family, such as preparing meals together, helping with the washing, sharing a book and having cinema time at home are just as important in terms of your child’s home learning.

This week we’re going to focus on ‘getting ready’ for school.  I have, therefore, reduced other home learning activities to allow parents and children time to relax and adjust in preparation for our return to school.

Personal, social and emotional development

There will be mixed emotions about our return to school next week.  Some children will be excited whilst others may feel a little apprehensive.  I am sure this is the case for parents too.  

Please feel free to contact me either via Tapestry or the School Office if you have any concerns about the return to school.  In particular, please let me know if you feel your child may require extra support or if there is anything that I should be aware of prior to our first day. It is important to me that all parents and children feel supported and our first week is a happy time for all. 

Happy box

Please create a ‘happy box’ with your child ready to bring into school on Monday, 8 March.  We will display the boxes in the classroom for the children to share with each other.  This activity is not only great for language skills but will provide a link with home that your child can revisit during the day at school.

You will need:

An empty food packet/any kind of box that can hold a few things.  No larger than a shoe box.

What to do:

• Start by talking about being happy. What does happy look like? What does happy feel like? Make some happy faces together, maybe looking in a mirror. Draw a smiley face. When they smile or feel happy, do they feel it anywhere else in their body – warm tummy, tingly toes?

• Explain that you are going to make a Happy Box – in it you will put 3 things that make you feel happy. You could model this by having your own Happy Box to show them. Talk about the things you put in it and why they make you feel happy.

• Ask your child what makes them feel happy? What would they like to put in their box – e.g. a pebble, a photo of Nana, a special toy. Together, go in search of 3 things. Use lots of happy words – smile, laugh, giggle, warm, cosy, joy, cheerful. Chat about why they have chosen each thing.

• Your child can put the things in their Happy Box. They might want to decorate the box first – you could talk about what colours make them happy and use felt tips/paint matching their happy colours.

• You can refer to the box every so often. Perhaps if your child is feeling sad and needs cheering up, you could suggest you look in their Happy Box and choose one of the things to look at and talk about. Or if they find something else that makes them feel happy, they could add that to the box later.

Top tips: 

• Don’t include any precious items just in case of loss or damage
• Limit to 3/4 items
• Box no larger than a shoe box
• Name the box and items in the box

Maths

This activity will build on your child’s ability to subitise (recognise the amount of objects in a group at a glance without counting).  Your child will also to learn that a whole number can be created by combining small parts.

You will need:

A dice
Collection of objects eg. dinosaurs, buttons, bricks, pasta

What to do:

• Show your child a familiar dot pattern, e.g. the five on a dice. Check they instantly recognise the value.

Ask your child to copy the pattern with objects. Initially use the same objects to make the pattern.

• Ask your child ‘Do you see any familiar dot patterns within the dinosaurs?’  Your child may answer ‘Yes I can see a 2 on the top’ or ‘I can see 3 diagonally’ or ‘1 in the middle’.
• Encourage your child to swap the objects for different ones to show the value they can see.

Extension and playing outside

Ask your child to collect natural objects around the outside area such as twigs, leaves and stones. Once they have a small collection, make little groups and explore how many there are by subitising where the group is small enough.

Note:  subitising is recognising a group of objects at a glance without counting.  The highest number that even adults will normally subitise to is 6.  Try it yourself.  Count a random collection of objects, say 10.  You will notice that you immediately notice the groups eg. you may see 3, 5 and 2 to quickly count the objects and know there are 10.

Zoom meeting

You will notice from my timetable that I plan to hold an extra Zoom meeting on Tuesday at 1.15 pm.  I will send the invitation to you all today.  Up until now, we have met in small groups.  However, I thought it would be nice to provide an opportunity for all the children to get together.  There probably won’t be a chance for everyone to talk to each other.  However, hopefully we will be able to share some news. 

If up until now your child has been reluctant to join one of my meetings, try turning the camera off to allow your child to watch.  Alternatively, your child could watch from a safe distance and nominate a soft toy to ‘stand in’ on the camera.

Enjoy your day.

Nicola Palmer

Dear parents and children,

I hope you all had a wonderful half term and managed to have a rest.  I appreciate that many of you are juggling family life with working and home schooling.   Hopefully, everyone is feeling ready to begin this week’s home learning.

Here are my plans for the week.

Religious Education – Lent

A promise for Lent

As you are aware, the church season of Lent began last week with Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday.  Remind your child it is purple time again in the church year; a time of getting ready for the celebration of Easter.

It is also a time to think about how we can change and grow inside to be more like Jesus.  We are growing not only physically but inside in goodness, kindness, caring and loving. Our learning will begin by thinking about what the term ‘growing’ may mean.  I have, therefore, included a couple of activities this week that observe the growth of plants. 

I am sure you will have discussed Lent with your child and may have taken the opportunity to attend St. Bartholomew Roman Catholic Church to receive the Ashes. I would really like to hear about your child’s Lenten promise.  If you haven’t already agreed upon a promise, please make a Lenten promise with your child to send to me. 

The cornerstones of Lent are praying, fasting and giving.  You may find the list of suggestions below useful ideas. 

Pray

Fast      

Give up something you enjoy eg. only have sweets or treats at the weekend
Choose to look at a book instead of the television

Giving

Helping with a chore in the house
Playing with a brother or sister

Encourage your child to draw a picture.  Scribe your child’s promise on the picture and pin it up somewhere prominent to help your child remember this special time of the church year.

Letters and Sounds

Today’s new sound – ‘ear’ (trigraph three letters but one sound)

This video introduces the ‘ear’ sound.

Show your child how to write ‘ear’ using the correct letter formation.

Letter formation for ‘e’ ‘a’ and ‘r’ can be found in your child’s letters and sounds book.

Encourage your child to ‘have a go’ at writing the ‘ear’ sound. 

For challenge

Only if your child is ready.  Write the following words:

For extra challenge

Write a funny sentence and draw a picture to accompany the sentence. 

Maths

Number positions

This week in maths your child will be learning how to understand the position of numbers and their relationship to other numbers.  We will focus on numbers from 0-10.  However, the activities for the week can also be extended to 0-20, depending on your child’s confidence.  We will be working towards understanding 1 more and 1 less. 

Let’s begin with step 1:    Recognise that a count starts with nothing (zero) and increases equally by one each time

Make a number staircase

• 

• 

This activity will help your child to see that the difference between each number is equal and goes up in ones.  It involves creating a number line physically as a ‘staircase’.

You will need:

Ideally Duplo or Lego bricks to make towers.  However, you can use pasta shapes, buttons, beads and create number lines on the floor.

What to do:

• Write numbers 0-10 on a separate pieces of paper.  You could use the numeral cards I previously sent through Tapestry.  I’ve resent them for today.
• Give a number to your child.
• Ask your child to make a tower of cubes to match the value on the card.
• Ask your child to order the towers from smallest to largest labelling each tower/length with the number card.

The idea is for your child to increase the number of items used for their towers/lengths by 1 each time. 

Ask your child ‘What do you notice?’  Ideas you will be looking for:

Celebrating our Learning

The children really enjoyed learning about Chinese New Year.  Many thanks for all the wonderful photos and creative ideas.  I thought the children may like to share their photos with each other.

I look forward to hearing all about your learning through Tapestry and wish you all a great day.

Nicola Palmer

Good morning Reception parents and children,

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and ready for another week of home learning.

Please find below my plan for the week. 

As part of the whole school Geography focus, we will be looking at China and celebrating Chinese New Year which falls on Friday, 12 February.  To help you prepare for tomorrow, I’ve posted a template and instructions for the paper lantern on Tapestry today.

I also set out below materials you may wish to gather together over the week ready for Friday’s dragon costume.  Of course, you’ll be able to improvise so don’t worry too much if you can’t find everything listed!

Religious Education– St. Adrian

Chaplaincy Team Assembly

Please find enclosed a link to our Chaplaincy Team Assembly.  It’s all about St. Adrian, who is our class saint.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VNYPH-QkpG4adjlYXu2IbHCD3RpS_bVN/view

If you cannot access the assembly link, below is link to a short video and information all about St. Adrian.

https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-adrian-of-canterbury

Your child may like to take part in the school competition set by the Chaplaincy Team.  Draw a picture or make a poster to celebrate our class saint, St. Adrian.  The deadline for the competition is Friday, 12 February.  Post your entries on Tapestry and I will forward them to the Chaplaincy Team. 

Letters and Sounds

Today’s new sound – ‘ur’ (digraph two letters but one sound)

This video introduces the ‘ur’ sound.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9354FVIi0nM

Show your child how to write ‘ur’ using the correct letter formation.

Letter formation for ‘u’ and ‘r’ can be found in your child’s letters and sounds book.

Encourage your child to ‘have a go’ at writing the ‘ur’ sound. 

For challenge

Only if your child is ready.  Write the following words:

For extra challenge

Write a sentence and draw a picture to accompany the sentence. 

Maths/PE

Spatial thinking

The language of spatial thinking is linked to many aspects of mathematics. Position and directional learning is the most obvious but also patterning and geometry. It is also essential when considering the relationships between numbers; knowing which numbers come ‘before’, ‘after’, ‘next to’ or ‘in between’ is important, as well as knowing how near or far numbers are from each other or from a given point. If the language of these are not fully understood in the real world, it will be difficult to use them in the abstract world of numbers.

The other aspect of spatial thinking covered in this learning sequence links to understanding abstract representations of the real world. The ability to transform images from pictorial to an abstract image later supports solving worded maths problems. In this sequence, the children will go from passing through a space in reality to using maps of known spaces with symbols to represent known objects.

Here’s our first activity:

This activity can be done inside or outside.  It naturally builds on itself because children will want to provide feedback on specific obstacles and courses can have endless combinations.  The perfect obstacle course should be challenging, silly, and easily deconstructed or reconstructed.

Using any equipment available such as cones, cushions, tables, hoops, beanbags or small mats, ask your child to devise a route to be followed and then invite other members of the family to try their route.

The idea is for your child to use directional language to explain their route.  For example, “Jump over the cushion. Then hop on to the mat. Now throw the beanbag in the hoop.”

The key words you want your child to use are:

up, down, forward, through, over, turn backwards,

under, turn around, turn towards

To end today’s blog, I’d like to celebrate our learning from the last week.

Children’s Mental Health Week

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Maths

• 

• 

• 

Phonics and reading

• 

• 

Looking forward to hearing all about this week’s learning through Tapestry.

Nicola Palmer