Dear Parents & Carers

Welcome back everyone to the Summer Term.  We have a busy, fun packed time ahead with our exciting trip to Hever castle, sports day and swimming.  Below is an overview of the topics being covered in years 1 and 2 up until the end of the year. We have lots of exciting, fun learning experiences ahead of us and we are sure the children will love telling you all about them.

Learning Curriculum

 Children in year 1 will see a reduction in child led learning as they get used to greater structure in preparation for Year 2.

Maths:

:We will be following the strands contained within the National Curriculum for Maths for years 1 and 2.  

Year 1 will be focusing on multiplication and division, fractions, position and direction, place value within 100, money and time.

Year 2 will be working on fractions, time, capacity, statistics and position and direction.  You can help your children by helping them to learn the 3s,5s and 10 x tables.

Literacy:

Our lessons in writing this term will focus on fiction and non-fiction.  Year 1 are beginning the term by reading Jim and the Beanstalk, as we are learning about plants. Year 2 are working on the story George and the Dragon. We will be using these books to continue to work on sentence structure, punctuation and effective use of varied word types.  We will also be looking at how to present information in different ways and this will focus on animals and hibernation. Our trip to Hever later this term will give us the opportunity to learn about the features of written recounts.

History:

Our driver topic this term is in history and is called ‘Magnificent Monarchs.’ This project teaches children about the English and British monarchy from AD 871 to the present day. Using timelines, information about royal palaces, portraits and other historical sources, they build up an understanding of the monarchs and then research six of the most significant sovereigns.

Science:

This term the children are learning about Animal survival.  This project teaches children about growth in animals by exploring the life cycles of some familiar animals. They build on learning about the survival of humans by identifying the basic needs of animals for survival, including food, water, air and shelter.

RE:

This term we will be asking and exploring the big question, what can we learn from sacred books?

Art:

Our topic is called ‘Portraits and Poses.’ This project teaches children about portraiture. They analyse the portraits of Tudor monarchs and compare Tudor portraits and selfies today. They use photo-editing software to create royal portraits.

Computing:

We will be thinking about IT around us and then following a topic on digital painting.

DT:

Our topic ‘Cut, Stitch and Join’ teaches children about fabric home products and the significant British brand Cath Kidston. They learn about sewing patterns and using a running stitch and embellishments before making a sewn bag tag. We will complete a second topic called ‘Push and Pull.’ This project teaches children about three types of mechanism: sliders, levers and linkages. They make models of each mechanism before designing and making a greetings card with a moving part.

Homework

READING:

LIBRARY:  our child will visit the school library each week where they will be given a free choice and bring home one library book each. 

PHONICS: Year 1 will continue to work through the Little Wandle programme.  They will be learning alternative graphemes for sounds already learnt.  This is part of Phase 5. Early in term 5 Year 1 will be undertaking the National Phonics Screening Check and parents will be notified of their child’s result in the end of year report.

ACCELERATED READER: Year 2s will continue to be assessed using the Accelerated Reader Star Reading Assessments.  These are taking place once a term.  Once a child reaches the reading age of 7, they will be able to choose a book within the points band matching their assessment profile.

All children have a Reading Record book which we ask you to comment in each time you hear them read.  If this has been lost, please let the staff from your child’s class know.

Wellies

Please can you ensure your child has a named pair of wellies in school as we will be venturing outside when weather watching.  We have racks in school for their safe storage.

PE

During the Summer Term, Year 1 and 2 classes will have outdoor PE on a Monday.  Children will continue to come to school wearing their kits on this day.

Hair must be tied back and earrings removed or protected with tape during PE sessions. I would just remind parents/carers that staff are not able to remove and replace earrings. Please ensure your child has the correct PE kit as follows:Hair must be tied back and earrings removed or protected with tape during PE sessions. I would just remind parents/carers that staff are not able to remove and replace earrings.

Please ensure your child has the correct PE kit as follows:

Trainers or plimsolls

House colour T-shirt

Black PE shorts

Green track suit bottoms or black skins underneath the white shorts maybe worn for outdoor games in cold weather. Skins must not be worn without white shorts over the top.

All items of uniform need to be clearly marked with your child's name

Swimming

We will be starting swimming in term 5. The office will issue further information. Year 1 will swim on a Wednesday and Year 2 will swim on a Tuesday. Please send your child in with a named kit on the appropriate day. Children should bring a swimming costume, swimming hat and towel. Children will not be allowed in the pool without a swimming hat. Goggles are optional. On swimming days, we ask that children remove their earrings before coming into school as they are not allowed to be worn in the pool.

Uniform

Uniform promotes a sense of belonging and equality. We expect our children to demonstrate pride in their appearance and respect for the school uniform. Please ensure your child is in correct uniform at all times.

We expect our children to demonstrate pride in their appearance and respect for the school uniform.

Grey tailored trousers or shorts

Grey skirt, pinafore dress

White shirt/polo shirt

White short-sleeved shirt/blouse

School bottle green round neck/V-neck sweatshirt or sweatshirt fabric cardigan

School tie (optional)

Black tights

Grey socks (white socks can be worn with dresses)

Green checked dress

Black shoes

Children should be well- presented and their white shirt/polo shirt must be tucked in at all times.

Children must wear sensible black shoes to school, NOT TRAINERS or BOOTS.

Makeup and nail varnish are not permitted. Excessive hair accessories or extreme hairstyles or colour are also not permitted.

No jewellery except for one, small, stud earring allowed in each ear.

Analogue watches are encouraged but SMART watches are not allowed.

To order uniform please click on the link https://www.brigade.uk.com/parents/ or visit the uniform section on our website.

The Parent and Teachers’ Association also runs an excellent second-hand uniform shop on site.

School helpers

We are always very grateful for any help with reading, art activities etc. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, please contact the school office in order that a DBS check can be completed. This also applies to any grandparents who wish to get involved too.

Lunch boxes and snacks

If your child has a packed lunch, please make sure that you are providing a healthy lunchbox (see below for ideas). If you choose to send in a playtime snack, please send only fruit and/or vegetables. Please note we have a child who has a peanut allergy, so please do not send in any foods that contain nuts.

Book Bags, Pencil Cases and Water Bottles

Just a reminder that children must use a school book bag as we do not have the space to accommodate rucksacks etc.  Rucksacks are also causing the locker doors upstairs (Year 1 classrooms) to break. Children rarely need to bring anything into school that requires larger bags and we will let you know when they are.  Please do not send a pencil case into school as items get easily lost. We would prefer children to use a named school water bottle.

Summer Weather

Please make sure you send an appropriate coat, depending on the weather. Please send hats during hot weather and don't forget to apply sun cream before setting off in the morning. We live in hope for a warm and sunny summer!

 

Mrs Austen (Year 1 teacher MYRTLE)

Miss Lister (Year 1 teacher MYRTLE)

Miss Phillips (Year 1 teacher WILLOW)

Mrs Bale (Year 1 teacher WILLOW)       

Mrs Wibroe (Year 2 teacher BAY and Key Stage 1 Lead)