We have had a change over in our role play areas and now have a new 2 tier stage outside for our shows and inside we have a new 'Bubble Tea cafe.' We must give a special thank you to Mrs Marsden's daughters Ellie and Olivia, ex-Little Bowden pupils, who kindly got the resources for us and came in after school last week to set it up for us! 

We are using 1ps only in the cafe and would like to use real 1ps. If anyone has any 1ps that they could donate we would be very grateful. Also if any children come home with 1ps from the cafe in their pockets, please do return to school. Many thanks.

EYFS - week commencing 22nd April, 2024.

In Literacy lessons, we will reading and discussing 'The Tiny Seed' by Eric Carle. We will be expanding our vocabulary and the book links to our work in Understanding the World on work on the past and present, as well as our work on the natural world.

Our phonics programme continues this week and the children will continue to revise set 1 sounds and the special friends - sh, ch, th, qu, ng, nk as well as ll, ss, ff, zz and ck. Some children will revise set 2 sounds - ay, ee, igh, ow, oo as in 'poo at the zoo,' oo as in 'lookout the book,' ar, or air, ir, ou and oy, with a focus on spelling words containing these sounds and for other groups they will be learning these sounds, one at a time. The office have emailed home links for 5 weeks of phonic videos to watch for homework to help support this work.

In Mathematics, we will complete week 23 of the NCETM Mastering Number programme, which focuses on composition. 

Subject knowledge

This week, the children will consolidate their understanding of the composition of 5 and practise recalling the parts of 5 when 1 part is not visible. A key representation of the composition of 5 will be the fingers of 1 hand, and the children’s attention will be focused on both the fingers that are ‘up’ and those ‘folded down’, connecting this to a rhyme about 5 kittens jumping ‘down’ from the bed. They will also be encouraged to subitise when an arrangement does show 5, and when it does not.

In addition, the children will have an opportunity to build on previous work on the composition of 6 and 7 as ‘5 and a bit’, and see that both 8 and 9 can be composed as ‘5 and a bit’. A range of representations in which 5 is visible as a clear part will be used, including fingers, the double dice frame and the 10-frame. Discussing and comparing these representations will enable children to generalise that each of the numbers 6 to 9 can have 5 as a part.  

Connections

The children will already have lots of experience of using their fingers to represent quantities in efficient ways. This week’s focus will encourage them to use their fingers not just to represent numbers, but also to explore the composition of numbers within 5. The children will have previously used double dice frames to represent numbers to 7; they will develop their understanding this week by using the same representation to explore the composition of 6 to 9 as ‘5 and a bit’ and by making links between the double dice frames and finger representations. The children will also be encouraged to make further connections to a different representation – the 10-frame. Supporting the children to develop an understanding of 10 will help them as they begin to use rekenreks in Year 1.

Making connections and developing skills in mathematical thinking will help to support the children’s future mathematical engagement and understanding. When the children can represent, compose and flexibly de-compose numbers mentally, they will become more fluent in their knowledge of number bonds and will be able to use them efficiently when calculating in Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.

As part of our work in Understanding the World, we will be discussing growing and planting our own seeds. We will also be discussing similarities and differences between the natural world around them and the contrasting environments, drawing on their experiences and the story that we will read in our Literacy lessons this week.  In Art and Design, we will be making observations and drawing pictures of the plants in our outside classroom. in our work on the past and present, we will be talking about the lives of the people around us and their roles in society.

Our work in Physical Development involves PE sessions in the hall on Maypole dancing and Mrs Lewis, a retired Little Bowden teacher is kindly coming in to teach us all about thus. We will also be completing work to develop our gross motor skills through our 'Big Moves' programme, as well as working on developing our fine motor skills using activities from our 'Funky Fingers' station. This term, weather permitting, our PE session on Thursdays will be outdoors on the astro turf on ball skills, games and athletics - including preparing for our first Little Bowden Sport's Day! 

We are also working very hard on our handwriting and are trying to hard to remember that all letters start at the top, except for d and e and also that all our numbers start at the top. Please help us to practise at home in sand, rice, chalking as well as on paper using felt tips. 

PE kit should be worn to school on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Don't forget to label everything, especially jumpers/cardigans! Please note that ear-rings need to be removed on these days and left at home. Our hall slot is on Wednesday afternoons, so please ensure you wear warm clothes for outside Physical Development on Thursday afternoons.

Please click on the phonics powerpoint below if you have not already watched it. If you need any further guidance, please arrange to meet with your child's class teacher.

For those who couldn't make the open evening, we have sent home some information packs and attached the powerpoint. If you have any questions, please just come and see us.

EASTER HOLIDAY!

It would be really helpful and beneficial to spend just a few minutes each day keeping your child's phonic knowledge and red words ticking over during the holidays. Also your child will come home with a sheet about their Design and Technology 'Not a Box' project and a sheet to complete. They may bring their 'Not a Box' to school with them on Monday 17th April. If their creation is too big to bring, you may bring in a photograph instead. Below is the link to the related story.

We hope you all have a lovely Easter!

EASTER HOLIDAY

In school this week, the children will have listened to the story 'Not a box' and discussed designing and then making their own 'Not a Box'.  You may listen to Mrs Baldwin reading the story again on the link below.

Your child will come home with a sheet about their Design and Technology 'Not a Box' project. Please can they complete the sheet first with your support and then make their 'NOT A BOX'. They can return the completed sheet with their  'Not a Box' creation to school on Monday 8th April. If their creation is too big to bring, you may bring in a photograph instead. Below is the link to the related story.

We hope you all have a lovely Easter!

It would be really helpful and beneficial to spend just a few minutes each day keeping your child's phonic knowledge and red words ticking over during the holidays. You could re-watch any RWINc videos and keep practising your set 1 and 2 sounds. Reading and writing 3/4/5 letter words will be really useful - remember to hold up the correct number of 'Fred Fingers' to match the word (your grown up will help you with this) and to pinch each sound. Practising reading 'red' words will really help too and you could have a go at spelling them, using look/cover/write/check. Please see the example sheet on spelling sent home.

Other fun ideas:

* Can you make an Easter Bonnet? Use all your wonderful joining skills and creativity, that you normally use in school in our Creation Station!

* Make some Easter eggs out of scrunched up paper or play dough or anything else! Hide them around your garden or house for an Easter Egg Hunt for your grown ups! Can you write clues to help them find the eggs? Use your sound mat (given out at the Autumn term parent's evening) to help with your writing. Have fun!

* Make your own paper Easter eggs. Practice cutting skills with different lines/shapes to cut over. When you have 2 halves you could use them to match capital and lower case letters or work on alphabetical ordering. Or you could use them as a number bonds matching game.

Please click on the sunflower icon for our Summer term overview.