This week's message
Hello Reception families. Happy Friday! It’s been another wonderful week in Reception, with the beautiful Autumn sun giving us plenty of opportunities for outdoor play. One particular highlight has been the children creating an outdoor library which led to reading galore! Reading for pleasure is such a wonderful thing and is something we try to promote regularly – we were so pleased to see the children bring this into their play. It also demonstrates how children draw on their home experiences when playing imaginatively and shows how those little trips to the park, the library, the supermarket etc help to expand their minds, build their vocabulary, spark their imaginations and enhance their collaborative play.
Well done children, we are very proud of you.
English
This week, we have learnt two new sounds, h as in hat and b as in bone. Be careful when saying these not to over pronounce so that they become longer ‘huh’ or ‘buh’, try to ensure you are saying the shortest, purest form of the sound. The children have also started reading Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain. This will be feeding into our learning in Understanding the World, as the children will be learning about people’s lives in rural and urban environments in the UK and Kenya – learning about similarities and differences between their own and other children’s way of life.
Maths
In maths, we continue to learn about composition of number to 5. We have been practicing subitising to 5, which means the ability to instantly recognise how many objects are in a group without having to count.
So for example, you could hold up 4 fingers or shoe 4 dots, can your child say 4 straight away?
Art
Create a Textured Rubbings Collage!
Get ready for a fun autumn craft activity! Start by heading outside to collect colourful autumn leaves, then dry them at home. Once they’re ready, use the leaves to create a characterful lion-face garland! The leaves will make the lion’s mane, and you can get as creative as you like. This is a great way to celebrate the season, use your imagination, and make something amazing with nature’s help!
Ready, Steady, Reception
Your child’s first year at ‘big school’ is an exciting time. We’ve put together a list of our 5 top tips to help make the transition from home or nursery to Reception a little easier.
1. Talk! It might sound simple, but making time for back and forth conversations in your home language is one of the most beneficial things you can do to prepare your child for Reception. Helping them to be more confident sharing their thoughts and opinions, as well as listening to those of others, prepares them to make friends – something they will be doing lots of!
2. Self care. Does your child know how to go to the toilet on their own? Are they confident in how to wash their hands after? Can they take their jumper off on their own or put their coat on? These little acts of independence will help your child to grow in confidence and see themselves as school ready.
3. Get physical! As well as all the incredible benefits to our physical and mental health that outside play provides, did you know that mastering the monkey bars can help your child to write? Crawling, climbing, swinging and jumping help build the muscles your child needs to be a strong, confident writer. If you fancy an adventure a little further afield, we recommend Highgate Woods – it’s at the end of the Northern Line and has a wonderful adventure playground and huge woodland that is perfect for taking a picnic and playing all day!
4. Read! Sharing stories helps to spark a child’s curiosity for and understanding of the world around them. It builds their imagination, vocabulary, listening skills and knowledge of stories. Reading with your child every day helps them see the world from different points of view and to access the learning across the curriculum. It is essential!
5. Sing! A good repertoire or songs and rhymes not only sets the foundations for learning music, it also helps children to be better at reading and writing.
On their first day, your child will need:
⁃ labelled school uniform – including shoes (no laces please!)
⁃ a backpack
⁃ a labelled plastic/metal water bottle
⁃ spare school uniform (including socks and underwear)
⁃ their ‘All About Me ‘poster to decorate our classroom walls!
Why not watch these films of our Reception team reading some stories!
