Category: Reception Blog

This week we will continue with our Spring topic and will be focusing on life cycles. The children will learn about the life cycles of a butterfly, frog and hen. The will understand how the process is a cycle and happens again over and over. When our and about encourage your child to look for signs of Spring and see if they can see any butterflies or frogs in the environment.

The children have all now been introduced to all of their set one sounds and many of them are learning their set two sounds. Continue to practice all of the sounds. These can be found at the front of the online reading book and your child has been sent home with a copy of all of the sounds. If you have misplaced the sounds then speak to your child’s class teacher so that they can print you off a new set. Continue to read and go through the sounds every night and remember to do the online activities on Oxford Owl if your child has log in details on the front of their diary. Below are some more blending activities for you to do with your child.

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/kt7qQb0O/rakiI09w

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/0B324Nge/orxunDVd

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/M6B6s559/yW4SjOmV

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/myUjkaAA/RIy6XiWW

This week the children will explore different representations of 9 and 10. As in previous blocks, the focus is on finding the representations rather than making them. they will match the verbal number names to numerals and quantities. The children will count to 10 using objects in different arrangements by touching each object as they count. They should recognise that the final number they say is the quantity in that set.

Key questions

• Where can you see 9/10?

• How many ways can you find 9/10?

• How many are there altogether?

The children are loving the resources in our creative area and are making some wonderful models. We are always in need of junk modelling materials. Please save us your recycling (no glass jars please) and send them in for the children to use in their model making.

Have a lovely week

The Reception Team

This week we will be looking at the story ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ to start our work on Spring. We will be focusing on growing and the children will plant their own bean to grow their own beanstalk. We will send these home in a few weeks for your child to continue looking after. Please send in photos of your child’s beanstalk as it continues to grow. We will be talking about the conditions needed to help a plant grow and will be discussing the changes to the seed as they grow.

Last week the children had a focus on oral hygiene. Your child was given a toothbrush and some information about how to keep their teeth healthy. Please ensure your child brushes their teeth every morning and every night before going to bed. We also talked about foods and drinks that are not good for our teeth and contribute towards decay. Please try to make healthy choices for your child and limit the amount of sugary foods and drinks that you give to them. Water bottles for school should only contain water as juice should only be drank with a meal. Please only send water in your child’s water bottle.

The majority of children now have log in details on the front of their diary for set activities/ books on Oxford owl. Please log in throughout the week to do these reading activities with your child. Once you have finished the book you can click on Fred the Frog to go back to all previous books read so that books can be reread over and over to help with your child’s reading fluency. Continue practising the letter sounds that have been sent home with your child since they started their reading journey in September and make 3, 4 and 5 sound words with them to develop their blending skills.

In Maths this week, the children are introduced to the concept of doubling and they learn that this means ‘twice as many’. They will be given opportunities to see a range of visual representations of doubles and to find them in patterns, in pictures and in arrangements of manipulatives. Books involving doubles are a good way to introduce this concept. It is important for children to build on this skill over time using smaller numbers first. You could prompt your child to notice doubles by playing games such as dominoes, where children can use their previous knowledge to match the same number of dots. Model finding doubles, for example, on a dice: “There are 3 here and 3 here, so double 3 makes 6!”

It has been lovely over the last week with the change in the weather. The children have loved being outside in the sunshine. Although the weather has improved we do still ask that your child brings a waterproof coat into school every day even if there is no rain forecasted. The weather often changes throughout the day and your child spends a good portion of the day outside. If their coat stays on their peg all day that’s fine but it means they have it if it becomes cold or wet.

Have a lovely week

The Reception Team

This week we will continue with our topic of people who help us with a particular focus on dentists. We will be talking about the importance of oral hygiene and the children will learn how to brush their teeth correctly. We ask that you support this at home by helping your child brush their teeth both in the morning and before bed- it is recommend that an adult supports brushing until a child is at least 7 years of age. The children will learn about the impact that a high sugar diet has on our teeth and will learn about foods and drinks that are healthy for our teeth and will help to prevent tooth decay. This would be a good time to book a dental appointment for your child to have their teeth checked. In discussions last week a number of children said they had never been to the dentist! It is really important that you have your child’s teeth checked every 6 months.

The children all started in their new phonic groups last week. They will continue to recap on any gaps they may have with sounds and will learn new phonic sounds when ready. Once your child has learned all of the set one sounds with special friends they will be working on blending those sounds in 3 and 4 sound words such as sh-o-p, s-t-o-p etc. Use the letter sound flashcards that have been sent home with your child to make 3 then 4 sound words and see if they can do special friend i.e. sh, fred talk i.e. sh-o-p read the word i.e. shop. Those children who are competent with this are now learning set 2 sounds and these will be sent home with your child. Continue to read the book or ditty sheets that your child brings home on a Friday and don’t forget to log on to Oxford owl if your child has log in details on the front of their diary. There are some videos to watch for extra phonic practise.

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/Y0P08aZV/hVJs6iRi

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/pFSrZn0T/8ezRzON5

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/7FfXyBGe/PS7ssREv

This week, the children will consolidate their understanding of the composition of numbers by investigating the numbers within 7 and 8. Composing and de-composing numbers involves the children investigating part–part–whole relations, e.g. seeing that 7 can be made of 5 and 2. The children will deepen their understanding of a whole being made up of smaller parts through games and practical experiences, such as investigating the number of ducks on a pond. They will begin to recognise that numbers can be made by combining parts in different ways, and will be encouraged to make links by considering similarities and differences in the various ways of making 7 and 8. A key focus will be on partitioning 7 and 8 (splitting it into parts) and thinking about the missing part.

It is world book day on Thursday 6th March. Children can come in dressed as a book character. Please do not go to additional expense for a costume. A blue dress and headband would make a Matilda costume, a blue T-Shirt and bandage around the head would make a good Mr Bump costume or children can just come in wearing pyjamas for the polar express or bring their favourite bedtime reading book. If struggling for a costume please speak to a member of the Reception team.

Have a lovely week

The Reception Team

Welcome back from the half term break. We hope you had a lovely break and the children had the opportunity to rest. We have a busy half term ahead and will be moving the children’s learning forward. All of the rules should now be embedded and the children will be expected to show increased independence. Please encourage this at home so we are working together and have the same expectations. We will be reminding the children of our school values of Respect, Responsibility, Resilience and Kindness and will be expecting this in everything they do.

This week we are beginning our topic on People who help us. The children will be learning about different jobs in our community and what their role entails. We will be talking about how these people help us and how they are important to society. The children will act out roles and be involved in a range of activities to help support their learning. Talk to your child about the people that help them and discuss who they should speak to if they need help with different problems.

The children will move into their new phonics group this week following on from their assessments before the half term break. The children will either be learning new sounds or consolidating the sounds already taught with a focus on reading CCVC or CVCC words. With your sound cards at home practise reading these words e.g. stop, chimp etc. Your child will bring their new reading book or activity home on Friday. Remember if your child has log in details for Oxford owl then they can click on Fred Frog and reread any of their past books. Below are some more videos to help practise blending.

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/j9z7dU96/SUVSQAgw

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/7sJ8oKrj/VAyjykyR

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/3nkAiMVk/4IHjodaz

This week, the children will continue to engage with activities that draw attention to the purpose of counting – to find out ‘how many’ objects there are. The children will also revisit the concept of cardinality – the idea that the last number in the count tells us how many things there are altogether. They will continue to be provided with opportunities to hear, join in with and develop their knowledge of the counting sequence and to become secure enough with their counting skills to be able to count out a set of objects from a larger set, remembering the ‘stopping number’ and knowing that this means they have selected the correct number. A key focus this week will be to consolidate the ‘stable order principle’ – rehearsing the order of the first 10 numbers and understanding that the position that each number holds in our number sequence does not change. While working with numbers to 10, the children will develop their understanding of the ordinal aspect by consolidating their understanding that each number has a value of ‘1 more’ than the previous number

Have a lovely week

The Reception Team

This week we are focusing on the story ‘Aliens Love Underpants’. We will read and sequence the story and will also identify the rhyming words in the story. We will design our own underpants and will write a letter to the aliens. Throughout the week we will do different challenges based around the story such as making our own rocket and naming an alien. We will also be doing some pants work where we talk about how our pants are private and we should not be silly with our pants. This would be a great time to talk to your child about keeping their pant area private.

This week the children will be assessed on all of the sounds they have been taught so far and how well they are doing with their blending of sounds to read words. The results will then be used to see if children are ready to move on to the next stage of the reading scheme or whether they need further consolidation on what they have already learned. Continue to practice the sounds and go through the activities sent home with your child. There are also some blending activities below to provide further practice.

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/hrM7p9EE/aG1dSzLL

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/gXFWynDz/3nkWfs1N

The comparison of quantities is something that children begin to do as babies. When comparing, children notice attributes and begin to understand differences and similarities. The activities this week will focus on further developing this innate skill as the children are encouraged to focus exclusively on the numerosity of sets, without being diverted by colour, shape or size. They will then be encouraged to notice when quantities are equal or unequal, and will begin to consider how they can manipulate the number of objects in 2 sets to make them equal. Language is a key focus and adults will reinforce the language of ‘more than’, ‘fewer than’ and ‘an equal number’ to describe how many objects there are in each set. ‘Fewer than’ is used rather than ‘less than’, as the focus is on countable things.

Over the last few weeks we have had a few children using inappropriate language. The staff have spoken to all of the children explaining how these words shouldn’t be used by children and should never be used in school. Please talk to your child about the use of inappropriate words and how they need to make the right choice and not use language they know they should not use. Please also be mindful of the language that you use when around your child as they listen to everything that is said and like to emulate what their parents say. Your help would be greatly appreciated with this matter.

Have a lovely week,

The Reception Team

This week we will be focusing on the story of ‘The Three Billy Goats Gruff’. The children will be hearing the story, sequencing the story, acting it out as well as creating our own story based on the Three Billy Goats Gruff. Across the week the children will be involved in a range of activities that focus on the story and will be trying to build their own bridges for the goats to go over. Talk about the story with your child. Can they retell the story? Encourage them to use different voices for the different characters. maybe have a look at any other traditional tales you may have at home and compare the stories. Do any of the other stories have 3 main characters?

Please continue to regularly go through all of the sounds that have been sent home with your child. Put the sounds together to make CVC (consonant, vowel, consonant)words for them to blend and read. If your child is confident with CVC words then move on to words containing CCVC or CVCC words such as ‘stop’ and ‘tuft’. Below are some more blending videos that your child can try to support their blending skills.

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/Apcc4vdV/rhorbGkx

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/3k4aLMBr/h7gWvVsK

In Maths this week, the children will continue to engage with activities that develop their understanding of composition, or the numbers within numbers. A key focus will be on exploring ways to represent numbers using the Hungarian number pattern (die pattern). These key representations will help to underline the ‘5-ness’ of 5, and provide structures that will support exploration of its composition and its relationships with other numbers. The children will secure their understanding of the pairs of numbers that make 5, and then use double dice frames to begin to explore 6 and 7 as numbers that are composed of ‘5 and a bit’. When the children can compose and flexibly decompose numbers mentally, they will become more fluent in their knowledge of number bonds and will be able to use these to become efficient when calculating in Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.

This week is Children’s Mental Health week. Across the school children will be involved in activities related to their own mental health. In Reception we will be focusing on the emotion of ‘Joy’ and will be discussing all the ways that we can find joy to help us feel happy and what to do if we are not very happy. This a great time to check in with your own child and see how they are feeling. Take time to sit together away from technology and any other distractions and ask them what makes them feel joyful and what you can do to help them feel joy in their life.

Have a lovely week,

The Reception Team

This week we will continue with our topic of winter with a focus on story structure. The children will be hearing the story ‘The Snow Queen’ and will be thinking about the characters, setting and plot. They will sequence the story and will also help to retell the story using a story map designed together. We will then use the ideas to help us map out our own winter story and use the map to tell the story. Encourage your child to retell stories that they are familiar with. It is a great way for your child to think about a story and to begin to understand story structure. You could also encourage your child to change parts of the story. They could maybe suggest a different ending or could retell their own similar story with different characters or a different problem or adventure.

The children are all working really well in their new phonic groups. They are now beginning to apply the sounds they have learned when not only reading but also writing. We are working hard on writing words and simple captions. The children are learning how to use their Fred fingers to help them spell out words that they wish to write. Below are some videos that you could watch and join in with, with your child to help them with their spelling of words using the sounds they know.

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/gqMspnp3/aiGeRcQI

https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/72cTMbte/ueWbgxNV

This week, the children will continue to engage with activities that draw attention to the purpose of counting – to find out ‘how many’ objects there are. The children will also revisit the concept of cardinality – that the last number in the count tells us how many things there are ALTOGETHER. They will continue to be provided with opportunities to hear, join in with and develop their knowledge of the counting sequence.

A key focus this week will be the stable order principle – rehearsing the order of the first 5 numbers and understanding that the position each number holds in our number sequence does not change. While continuing to work with numbers to 5, the children will develop their understanding of the ordinal aspect by investigating the difference in value of consecutive whole numbers. They will spend time discovering that each number has a value of 1 more than the previous number. Using blocks and squares to order quantities from 1 to 5 will help to embed this key understanding.

Although, linguistically, they bear little relation to our number names in English, the children will hear ordinal numbers (first, second, etc.) alongside these ordering activities and as part of classroom routines. Using representations of quantity alongside these ordinal numbers will help to embed understanding.

To conclude our topic on winter we will be celebrating with a ‘Frozen’ day on Friday 24th January 2025. This is a day where the children can come into school wearing something the depicts frost/ ice/ winter. This could be something as simple as wearing winter colours, sparkles or ‘Frozen’ dressing up clothes, from the film. Feel free to express the term ‘frozen’ however you wish. Please do not go out and buy anything special, coming to school dressed in blue would be more than okay. If you are struggling please speak to a member of the team and we will help with an outfit. We will have different Frozen themed activities across the day and look forward to seeing all the children in their chilly frosty outfits.

Have a wonderful week,

The Reception Team

Last week we started on our topic of winter. The children went on a winter walk and explored signs of winter. This week we will continue with our work on winter with a focus on the changing season and how winter is different to the other three seasons. The children will be identifying differences with a focus on dressing for the weather. Please ensure your child comes into school dressed for the cold weather. They need to wear a warm waterproof coat (raincoats are not warm enough), a hat and a pair of gloves. Your child should be able to put all of these on by themselves. We encourage the children to then put their gloves in their coat pocket and their hat in their coat sleeve so that everything is kept together when they need it and decreases the risk of them loosing things. The children were lucky enough last week to get out and explore the frosty ground. Talk about the weather with your child especially in the morning when the frost and ice is evident and the temperature is significantly colder to help support the discussions we are having in school.

The children have now spent a few days in their new phonics groups. They are all working very hard and making great progress with their reading. If your child comes home with log in details on the front of their diary then please make sure you log in each week to get your child to read the book set on line and do the quiz linked to their reading. You can reread the online book by clicking on Fred the Frog. Your child will also bring home a book bag book that is linked to the book read in class that week. Encourage your child to read this several times until they can read it fluently. Remember to sign the diary every time you hear your child read. If your child is still not ready for a book yet then please go through the activities outlined in your child’s reading diary and continue to practice their letter sounds. Thank you for all the support in helping your child on their reading journey.

This week, the children will use their perceptual subitising skills (seeing the quantity without counting) in increasingly complex arrangements, moving from dots in a line and arrangements of 2, to a focus on standard dice arrangements. For larger quantities, the children will begin to use skills of conceptual subitising, beginning to quickly see the sub-groups within these larger numbers. A key focus will be on developing skills of visualising; the children will be encouraged to look carefully at arrangements of dots and then to close their eyes and explain what they saw. Using spatial language to describe sub-groups within these arrangements will deepen the children’s understanding of part–whole relations and allow them to further consider composition (the numbers within numbers).
They will also be encouraged to continue representing quantities in different ways, including by showing amounts on 1 hand ‘all at once’. There will also be a new focus on the symbolic representation of number and the children will work on their recognition of numerals to 5, matching numerals to correct quantities in various games.
Towards the end of the week, the children will use a number track (with numbers placed in equal spaces in ascending order) to play dice-based games. Playing games with dice will consolidate the children’s understanding of the stable order of numbers and allow them to link the numbers on a track to the quantities on a die.

If you have any photos of your child enjoying the winter weather then please send them into us on RMT@coundon.coventry.sch.uk or RCG@coundondon.coventry.sch.uk

Have a wonderful week

The Reception team

Our Nativity rehearsals are well underway and the children are very excited to perform to you at the end of the week. They have been working hard at learning the songs and should have brought home their lines if they have any to learn. We will have a focus on the Nativity story this week to reinforce what the children have been rehearsing and give them the opportunity to link the story with their play. The children will be involved in a range of activities across the week and will learn why the story is important to Christians around the world. We understand that some of our families do not celebrate Christmas but like the other religious celebrations we look at throughout the year it is important for children to understand that different cultures have different celebrations. We want our children to be accepting of others and their beliefs and to learn that it is fine for people to have different beliefs to our own. We hope you agree and if your child wishes to talk about another religion or celebration to your own, then you answer any questions they may have in a respectful way.

We all had a wonderful day at Ash End Children’s farm. The children had a lot of fun and got fully involved in all of the activities. They were very brave feeding and touching the animals and saw a wide range of farm animals in their natural habitat. The children helped to act out the Christmas story and had a great time visiting Father Christmas and telling him what they wanted for Christmas. Hopefully your child told you all about the visit and you have had a chance to look through the sample of photos of what we got up to through out the day on the Friday Focus. The children were all very well behaved and listened very well to the farmer guides. We had a lot of tired children on the way home with a few even falling asleep!

This week we will be assessing the children on what they have learned over the last 6 weeks. The children will then be put into their new groups ready for January. Please continue to practise the sounds your child has brought home and reading the 3 and 4 letter words. We will not be sending a reading book home over the Christmas break but continue to practise the sounds and words as often as you can.

This week, the children will build on their understanding of the composition of numbers by investigating the composition of 3, 4 and 5. Composing and de-composing numbers involves the children investigating part–part–whole relations, e.g. seeing that 3 can be composed of 1 and 2. Through practical experience, they will consolidate their understanding of a whole being made up of smaller parts. They will begin to recognise that numbers can be made by combining parts in different ways. A key focus will be the spatial arrangements that can be made with different combinations of the same number of objects.

This week Reception will be going on a walk to the post box on Southbank Road to post the letters that they wrote last week, to Father Christmas. We will be walking down in our classes, talking about what we see in the local area as we walk. We will send our letters on their way with a song and hoping that they reach Father Christmas before the big day. If you do not want your child to take part in this activity then please let your child’s teacher know.

We are looking forward to seeing you all at the Christmas Nativity this week. If you do not yet have your tickets then please speak to the office staff. Entrance is by ticket only.

Have a lovely week,

The Reception Team