This half term we'll be looking at The Polar Express

The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg is now modern classic Christmas story about a young boy who boards a magical train to the North Pole on Christmas Eve. With many children aware of the film adaptation, using the book as writing inspiration is fantastic opportunity to explore and develop their creativity. 

We follow the Read Write Inc. phonics programme, which gives children a flying start in learning to read and write.  Children are assessed regularly and grouped to meet their needs. We teach children the initial sounds, moving into reading 'special friends' such as ng and oo.  Then children are taught to decode and blend to develop their reading skills.  Reading is the key to opening the door to learning.

This half term we will be focusing on number and place value. The foundations of place value and shape will help with our learning as we head towards adding and taking away later in the term. 

In Geography, we'll be looking at all the countries that make up the United Kingdom. This will involve looking at the similarities and differences between our nations, as well as focusing on the capital cities and the different coastal and rural areas of the different nations.

In History, we'll be looking beyond living memory at the Great Fire of London! As part of our study, we'll look at how the fire started, why it spread and many of the amazing and wonderful things that happened before and after.

In Science, we'll be looking at changing seasons and how our environment changes with the different weather the seasons bring. This will be linked with our outdoor learning and forest learning.

Our focus for this half term is why What do my senses tell me about the world of religion and belief? This will involve interesting discussions and use of the floorbook. 

We will be learning about our feelings. This will involve lots of discussion and drama workshops around managing and understanding our emotions.

Art:

We will be exploring drawing this term.  We will be learning about the different materials ways of sketching and drawing

DT:

We will be focusing on design. This will involve thinking up and designing interesting items and inventions, helping us understand why things are designed the way they are. 

We will be learning to perform actions to music and respond to musical signals and themes using movement. We will be exploring and creating rhythm patterns and learning how to use these to create a composition, writing down our compositions.

This half term we'll be looking at E-safety and Internet Safety. This will involve lots of work around how to use iPads, apps and computers safely online. A lot of our Internet Safety work will involve the use of age-appropriate stories and videos. 

We link a range of learning to our woodland sessions.  The children really enjoy their time in the woods (both learning and wild play time for exploring and following their own interests).  This is a fundamental opportunity for children to develop teamwork skills and build resilience through problem-solving.  It also teaches children about having respect for our environment.

Our woodland session is on a Monday afternoon. Please could children wear clothing suitable for the weather, as we are likely to be outside even if it is raining.  They will also need different shoes or wellies to wear in the woods.

Our PE days are Wednesday and Friday this half term. Please ensure your child is wearing the full and correct PE kit on these days.  Could we please also ensure that children are not wearing earrings (where possible) on these days and that long hair is tied up.

In PE this half term we will be doing team building with Mrs Morrell, developing our team work and collaborative skills. We will also be learning 'Fundamentals' with Mr Bates on a Friday. We will learn the rules for new game and how to play fairly.  

Class Dojo is our main form of communication with parents. If you have not yet signed up for Class Dojo and would like to, please do not hesitate to come and see us.  We are more than happy to help if you are having difficulty in accessing this.  It's a great space where you can view photos, videos and information about all the amazing things that are happening in our classroom and around the school. It gives you the chance to see what your children have been learning in school each week, giving you the opportunity to talk to them at home about what they have been doing.

A home learning menu will be posted on Class Dojo at the beginning of each half term.  These activities are suggestions linked to the Discovery Learning focus for the half term, but you are free to explore other home learning opportunities with your child.

Please ensure your child’s clothing and belongings are clearly labelled.