Headteacher: Anna Moss

29.09.23

Hello Red Class Families,

This week we made our ‘mini me’ puppets. The children painted and decorated their cups and used a sliding mechanism to make a moving head. Our puppets will be displayed in the classroom for open evening (04.10.23). You will also see our ‘All About Me’ display featuring the children’s self-portraits. These special pictures are also used on the front cover of your child’s learning journey.

It was time for PE on Monday and the children changed beautifully. In fact, they did so well that we’re going for a full change next lesson. In the hall, the children enjoyed moving in different ways and making shapes with their body.

In Phonics, we read words with ‘g’, ‘o’, ‘c’ and ‘k’ and read our new tricky word ‘is’. When reading tricky words, we talk about the part of the word where we can use phonics knowledge and the tricky part. In ‘is’, we know ‘i’ but ‘s’ is tricky because it’s saying another sound. Later in the term, during our Reception Family Workshop, I’ll share some ideas for learning tricky words at home. For example, writing tricky words on post-its and sticking them to the fridge and writing the tricky part in a different colour.

During Maths, Pirate Redmond needed the children’s help to add two groups of jewels together. Every lesson, we start with a mental starter to prepare for Maths. This week, we counted back from 10 using the ‘Beans’ song (jumping bean, runner bean, baked bean). We also counted sounds. To play this game at home, find 10 small objects e.g. conkers. Drop them slowly into a pot. Ask your child to close their eyes and lift one finger each time they hear a sound. When you drop the last object say, ‘show me’. See if their fingers match the number of objects in the pot. This game is great for focusing listening and attention as well as counting.

Have the children told you about the krongelidong? The krongelidong is a mysterious creature who lives in the Write Dance forest. During our Write Dance sessions, we created krongelidongs using long, flowing, curved movements. You can find the link to our Write Dance here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QR1bps_xn0

This week, the children started their group reading sessions. The children read their book three times a week concentrating on decoding (reading the text), fluency and expression and comprehension. During the first few weeks, we use picture books to embed routines and expectations for speaking and listening. Every Friday, we will send home a reading book and a copy of the children’s group reading book. So, hopefully, there should be 2 reading books in your bag. To make the system work and to ensure we have enough copies to send out, books must be returned on Fridays.

Next week, we start a new topic, ‘Planet Earth’. The children will also start their adventures at Forest School and they will attend their first whole school assembly.

Finally, we do enjoy a little bit of ‘Show and Tell’ in Red Class. We are always happy to celebrate achievements e.g. swimming certificates or dance medals. We also like to share creations from home. If the show and tell item is too big or fragile, please email a photo to the office address. Please keep toys safe at home.

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend.

Mrs Webb and Team Red Class x

P.S. The children’s special boxes will be sent home next week.