Autumn 1 - Journeys and Adventures

Autumn 1 Week 7

The children have worked so hard this week, and we are incredibly proud of their reading and writing! It has been lovely to see their confidence growing and their enthusiasm for learning shining through.

In Phonics, we have learnt the sounds ck, e and u. We can now recognise and say the sounds s, a, t, p, i, n, m, d, g, o, c, k, ck, e and u. We have been practising reading sentences, writing CVC words and, for some children, having a go at writing our own sentences. What fantastic progress! This week, we have also started writing our very own stories! We began by learning about an exciting story opening and have been writing about Dan and his dog. We can't wait to see how our stories develop!

In Maths, we have been learning to subitise numbers 1, 2 and 3. This means recognising how many objects there are without needing to count them one by one. We have also been exploring the number 4 and learning that 4 is one more than 3. We have built 4 using cubes, created our own dot patterns and practised writing the numeral 4.

We have been exploring autumn and looking for signs of the changing season. We have been learning about pumpkins and noticing how the world around us is changing as we move from autumn towards winter. We have a very exciting new addition to our classroom – a dog! The children have been busy thinking of names for our new class pet and writing name tags. We have loved seeing the children use their writing skills for a real purpose!

Well done, Reception, for another brilliant week. We are so proud of all your hard work, growing independence and wonderful learning.

Autumn 1 Week 5

What a busy and exciting week we have had in Reception! In Phonics, we have learnt our new sounds o and c, as well as the tricky word the. We have talked about how tricky words are words that we cannot use our phonics to read, so we need to learn to recognise and remember them. We have been practising our letter formation, reading words and writing CVC words such as cat and dog. The children have particularly enjoyed using their phonics skills independently in our continuous provision, writing words that they know and can sound out. It has been wonderful to see their confidence growing!

In Writing, we have continued learning about frogs through our story The Something by Rebecca Cobb. The children have been talking about how the characters might be feeling and developing their sentence-writing skills. This week, we introduced a frog called Pam and the children wrote sentences such as Pam is sad and Pam is mad. We also enjoyed our News Writing on Monday, where we talked about our weekends and shared our experiences with our friends.

In Maths, we have been learning about patterns and the composition of numbers. We started by looking for patterns in our environment, spotting things such as spots and stripes, before moving on to creating and identifying ABAB patterns. The children loved making finger-painted pattern snakes and creating their own patterns in continuous provision. We have also been exploring how all numbers are made of 1s, with a particular focus on the composition of 3 and 4. We have enjoyed finding different ways to make these numbers using practical resources and our fingers.

In PSHE, we have been learning about who can help us at home. We have talked about the different people who help us and the jobs they might do to look after us and our homes. We had a particularly exciting Outdoor Adventurous Learning session with Wild One Adventures! It was very exciting when Louise lost her ball down a hole, just like in our story! The children enjoyed taking part in a scavenger hunt, toasting marshmallows and playing musical instruments. We have also been busy in our outdoor provision, with the children making delicious-looking carrot and conker soup in the mud kitchen! We have also been building large obstacle courses together, helping us to develop our gross motor skills, balance and coordination.

In French, we have been learning the names of some colours. We can now say rouge (red), blanc (white) and bleu (blue). We are so proud of how the children are becoming increasingly independent in their learning and how confidently they are using the skills they have been taught throughout our continuous provision.

Autumn 1 Week 4

Reception have had another fantastic week of learning! The children have continued to impress us with their enthusiasm, curiosity and willingness to have a go. We have been very busy exploring lots of exciting learning opportunities both inside and outside the classroom. 

In Phonics, we have continued our Phase 2 learning and have been practising the sounds we have been introduced to. The children have been working hard to recognise and say their sounds and have been using their growing Phonics knowledge to help them with their reading and writing. We have also been practising our letter formation during Handwriting, taking care to form our letters correctly. We now know the sounds: s, a, t, p, i, n, m, d, g

In Writing, we have been putting our Phonics knowledge to good use! The children have been learning how to label pictures using their known sounds and initial sounds. We have also been developing our confidence in drawing and labelling, including having a go at drawing and labelling a frog. We have been very proud of the children for having a go at writing independently and using the sounds they know. We also completed our News Writing on Monday, giving the children opportunities to talk about their experiences and record their ideas. It has been wonderful to hear the children sharing their news from the weekend. 

In Maths, we have been busy comparing different things! We started by comparing size, thinking carefully about objects that are big, small, tall and short. The children enjoyed working together in groups and using mathematical language to explain their ideas. We then explored mass, comparing objects and thinking about which objects were heavier or lighter. The children enjoyed investigating and making predictions before checking their ideas. We also explored capacity, looking at how much different containers could hold. The children had lots of fun investigating which containers held more or less and using mathematical language to describe what they noticed. To finish the week, we began exploring patterns. The children enjoyed spotting and creating their own simple patterns, carefully thinking about what should come next. We have also started to think about the composition of the number two.

In RE, we have been thinking about where our favourite foods come from. The children enjoyed talking about foods they like and considering where these foods might come from. This provided lots of opportunities for discussion and encouraged the children to think about the journey our food takes before it reaches our plates. In Art and Design, we have been exploring our houses. The children had a go at building their house from junk modelling and drawing their house. We have also been following the children's interests in what they would like to be when they grow up. The children have created paintings of their chosen career!

We have also enjoyed our PE and Gymnastics sessions this week. The children have been developing their physical skills, following instructions and practising moving their bodies in different ways. We have loved seeing their confidence grow as they have a go at new movements and challenges. In PSHE, we continued thinking about “Me and my special people.” The children talked about the important people in their lives and what makes these relationships special. It was lovely to hear them sharing their thoughts and experiences. We have also continued our French learning and enjoyed developing our confidence with new French vocabulary.

Well done, Reception, for another fantastic week!

Autumn 1 Week 3

Reception have had an amazing week this week! The children have continued to blow us away with their fantastic listening and learning. They have been absolute superstars! 

In Phonics, we have been learning the sounds n, m and d. The children have been practising reading VC and CVC words, as well as working hard on their letter formation. Some of us have even been having a go at writing our own CVC words. We have also been practising writing our names using the correct letter formation.

In Literacy, we have been learning our story song based around our wonderful class text, The Something by Rebecca Cobb. The children worked together to create a class storyboard, helping us to remember the key events from the story. We have also been using our new Phonics knowledge to write initial sounds for pictures from the text. This week, we were introduced to Sentence Snake! 🐍 Sentence Snake is going to help us with our writing in class and remind us about the important things we need to think about when we are writing.

In Maths, we have continued our learning about sorting and grouping, focusing on sorting objects by different attributes.

It has been fantastic to see everyone joining in with our whole-class Maths learning on the carpet! This week, the children became the teachers as they created their own sorting rules. We chose objects from a collection and decided on our own rule for sorting them. The other children then had to look carefully and work out what the sorting rule was. We had some fantastic ideas! Some children sorted by colour, some by type of object, and others created more interesting groups such as “blue and not blue!” 

Why not have a go at sorting objects at home? You could sort toys, socks, cutlery or anything else you can find. Can your child create a sorting rule for someone else to guess?

We were also introduced to another new friend this week, Whizzy! Whizzy is going to help us with our Maths learning. He came to help us practise our counting, but there was just one little problem… Whizzy kept getting his counting wrong! The children watched with great enthusiasm and were fantastic at spotting and correcting Whizzy's mistakes. They noticed when he counted too quickly and helped him to remember to count each object carefully. What brilliant mathematicians we have!

Alongside our adult-led learning, we have been busy exploring and creating throughout the classroom and outdoor area.

This week, we have enjoyed mark making both inside and outside, making mint-scented play dough using herbs from our outdoor area and creating models of our houses.

Autumn 1 Week 2

We have had a brilliant second week in EYFS! The children are continuing to build lovely friendships with their peers and are exploring the continuous provision with growing confidence. They have been absolutely fantastic in the hall at lunchtime.

Miss Bateson has been so impressed with the children’s listening, enthusiasm and engagement during our carpet and group sessions. This week, we have enjoyed learning through Phonics, Maths, Handwriting, stories and Worship.

In Phonics, we have been learning the sounds t, p and i. The children have worked incredibly hard to recognise and practise these sounds and, most importantly, to apply them within our continuous provision. We have been looking carefully for our new sounds and having lots of opportunities to use them in our independent learning and play.

In Maths, we have been busy sorting and comparing. The children have worked together in groups to sort objects in different ways, including by size, colour and shape. We have also been exploring how to match sets together, developing our understanding of groups of objects and comparing what we can see.

Throughout continuous provision, the children have continued to develop their independence, communication and problem-solving skills. It has been wonderful to see them working together, sharing ideas and becoming increasingly confident in choosing and extending their own learning. Outdoors, the children have continued to enjoy developing their gross motor skills through exploring the large playground and outdoor apparatus, as well as working together in imaginative and physical play.

We are so proud of how well the children have settled into their second week and of the enthusiasm they are showing for their learning. 

Autumn 1 Week 1

🌟 Our First Week in Reception 🌟

What a fantastic start to the school year! The children have been absolutely amazing during their first week in Reception. It has been a real joy to watch them settle in so confidently, exploring their new environment, forming early friendships and beginning to show their wonderful personalities. The children have enjoyed getting to know both our indoor and outdoor provision, diving into activities with great enthusiasm. 

A big well done to all the children for learning the lunchtime routine so quickly. They’ve been brilliant at collecting their tray, cup, and cutlery independently, such grown-up superstars! This week also included some exciting ‘firsts’, our very first phonics lesson, Maths groups and a fun-filled French session with Madame Wardle. The children approached both with energy and excitement, and we were so proud of how they listened, joined in and tried something new.

Miss Bateson, Mrs Schofield, Mrs Gottweiss and Miss Booth are incredibly proud of every single child for showing such confidence, independence and resilience during their first week. What a wonderful beginning to our Reception journey!

We’re already looking forward to seeing everyone again on Monday for another week of fun, learning, and discovery.