Welcome to an exciting new year in The Little Conkers’ class. We are very happy to welcome all of our new children.  

Our topic this term is ‘ Marvellous Me.’ We will be learning, talking and sharing things  all about ourselves. We will talk about what we, our friends and our families enjoy doing and build up a strong, positive sense of self. We will be sharing our favourite toys, games,  books and stories and enjoy acting them out; role playing characters and making up shows.  We will also be discovering what we are all brilliant at and what  our special talents are. It will be so much fun.  

A Holistic overview  accompanies this letter with further details of our learning this term.

Below is some information regarding the organisation of the class which I hope will help you have a smooth and productive year. If you are unsure about anything or have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask myself after school or email Mrs Hill in the office.

Staffing

Miss Crombleholme will be teaching in The Little Conkers’ Class  every day. Mr Swann will teach  P.E on a Thursday afternoon and Mrs Rudder will lead the Outdoor Learning sessions on a Friday afternoon. 

P.E

The children will enjoy physical activities every day of the week as part of their daily routine.  They also  have a timetabled P.E slot on a Thursday afternoon, so will need to come to school dressed in their P.E  kits on that day. They will stay in their kit all day. During the Autumn and Winter please bear in mind that they will be playing outside throughout the day and they may be cold so jogging bottoms may be more suitable. Please could you ensure that ALL ITEMS OF CLOTHING THAT COME INTO SCHOOL ARE LABELLED.  

Spare Clothes

Please bring in a spare set of clothes, in a named bag, that can be left at school and used to change into if your child gets wet or dirty. This will be sent home to be washed and any items replaced at the end of each term. Please come and check their spare clothes bag intermittently throughout the term.

Reading Books.

When your child is ready they will receive reading books from The Pearson Reading Scheme. These will be in line with their phonics learning each week. They may sometimes be given books from different stages to support their phonic awareness and develop their reading confidence.  PLEASE try and read through books multiple times each week. Current advice is that your child should be able to independently read 80% of a book before it is changed. This level of repetition develops confidence and ensures your child keeps up with the learning in class. Please sign, date and comment on their reading in their Reading Records every time as this will assist in when I change the books. Books will only be changed when they have been shared multiple times at home and a parent has signed in their diary.  

  Reception children will receive reading books by the end of the first  term.  

Please could you support your child by trying to listen to them read every week day. It doesn’t need to be for a long time, 5-10 minutes is adequate. When children read frequently it really helps them develop and improve.

Homework

When deemed appropriate you child will receive Home Learning Challenges that will last for the term. Later in the school year they will receive sound cards to practise and  key words to learn to read .

Weekend Diary

This week children will be given a  ‘Weekend Diary’ homework book. This is to be completed each weekend and returned to school on a Monday morning. Please  could they draw a picture and write about something they have done over the weekend. Please encourage your child to draw their own pictures. In the early days, you scribe what they have drawn but from October they will be learning letters and sounds so I would like them to start trying to write what they have done. This will start with just the beginning letters of a word but will soon develop to include the end and middle sounds of words too.  These diaries become a wonderful record of their progress over the year.

Star of the Day

Each day, I will pick one child to be the ‘Star of the Day.’ They will get to pick one of the Star Bears to take home, keep for a night and then return the day after. I will choose the star by thinking about who has shone and tried really  hard in their work, with their friendships, or in their behaviour that day.

Water Bottles

The children can bring a water bottle into class each day. Please could they contain WATER not juice as juice stains and causes more problems when spilt.  Please ensure it is clearly labelled.

Outdoor Learning sessions will be on a Friday afternoon, starting on the 19th of September. A letter will be sent out with more details soon. On Forest School days,  please send your child into school dressed casually with clothes that they are comfortable in. They can bring waterproof overalls in a named bag to be put on in the afternoon.     

Reception Parents Meeting

I will be holding a Parents meeting on Wednesday 8^th October at 3.15- 4pm, in our classroom, to explain how we teach your child phonics, reading, writing and Maths in the Early Years.  Children can stay on after school with you or be collected.

Finally, thank you so much for spending the time to read this letter. I know it is long but hopefully it will help you understand the running of the class a little better. If you have any questions on any of the above, or anything else, please do not hesitate to speak to me after school.

We are all very excited about the coming year and the superb learning opportunities the children will have. Thank you in advance for your help and support in enabling your child to learn to their full potential.

Kind regards

Miss Crombleholme