We’ve sprung into Spring 2 with great excitement for the term ahead! Outside, the sun has been shining and we’ve been noticing the first signs of the new season.
Pancake Day
On Shrove Tuesday, the children made pancakes. They learnt how to follow the steps of a recipe and check a list of ingredients. They followed the kitchen hygiene and safety rules. They had lots of fun mixing the ingredients and of course, tasting their creation!
The Train Ride
This half term is called Let’s Go! We’re starting with a focus on transport. This week, we’ve been reading The Train Ride by June Crebbin.
This story is about things that are seen out of the window, on a train journey. We noticed that the rhythm of the book’s repeated/rhyming lines start fast and repetitive (much like the sound of a train chugging along a track) and then as the train approaches the station, the lines become longer and the pace slows down until the train reaches is destination. Destination is our ‘word of the week’.
We’ve been discussing journeys that we have been on, either on trains or other modes of transport and what destinations we were going to. We’ve been writing about what we might see out of the train window.
Historical links
We looked at pictures of the early steam locomotive- Robert Stephenson’s Rocket. We compared it to the trains we use today.
In the discovery area, we’ve been ordering images of trains from oldest to newest. We’ve also been looking at historical pictures of Scholes Train Station.
Maths: Comparison
We’ve been comparing groups of objects and toys, saying which has more and which has fewer. We’ve been using our mathematical reasoning to explain why size, colour and other factors do not matter when comparing ‘how many’. Here is an example of a conversation from a maths lesson this week:
The teacher had asked a child to share some toys with them, from a basket. In this instance, both the teacher and child had 4 toys each.
Child 1: Oh, you both have the same…it’s equal!
Teacher: Actually, this toy is my favourite. This toy means so much more to me than any of those others because I really like it, so I think I have more.
Child 2: No, it doesn’t matter about any of that! It doesn’t matter how much you love it or if it’s bigger, it just matters about how many.
Child 3: The quantity!
In the classroom, children have been making 6 using Numicon frames.
Phonics
Spring 2 week 1 has been a review of phase 3 sounds: ai, ee, igh, oa, oo, ar, or, ur, oo, ow, oi, ear, in words and sentences. We review tricky words daily.
Tricky words can be just that-tricky! We’ve previously introduced a few fun games you can play at home to practice tricky words. Here’s another you could try.
Roll and Read
You will need a die for this game. You may wish to print the boards or display them on a screen.
- Roll the die
- Count the spots, match to the correct row
- Choose a word to read on the row
- Cover the word when read correctly
- Repeat
Who will be the first to complete a row?
PE
We are excited to continue having both swimming and Foot-Tech on Wednesdays this half term. If it is your child’s swimming week, they may have both swimming and a Foot-tech session that afternoon. Please ensure that they are wearing PE kit, rather than school uniform. This must include suitable PE footwear.
Here is another reminder of the swimming dates:
Rainbow Class- 22 Feb, 8 Mar, 22 Mar
Sunshine Class- 1 Mar, 15 Mar, 29 Mar
These dates are also stuck to your child’s classroom door or window to view whenever needed.
We will also continue to have PE on Fridays. This half term we are developing ball skills and counter-balancing in pairs.
Poetry Picnic
Each week we will be learning a new poem. We will recite this poem each day. By saying the poem out loud, we can focus on the sounds and rhythm of each word or line. We talk to the children about how this can help us become better readers. This week’s poem is Pancakes by Christina Rossetti
We talk about how a poem sometimes has rhyming words and sometimes doesn’t. Can your child tell you the rhyming words in this week’s poem? We also talk about how a poem can have a fast rhythm or a slow rhythm. Can your child re-tell this week’s poem to you?
Reminders and Messages
Shoe Box: Please send a named, empty shoe box into school from Monday 27 February. This is for a special creative activity in the classroom.
World Book Day 2023: Relax and Read – Thursday 02 March Please join us in the classroom for an extended drop-off time (8.40-9.20) where you can relax and read books with your child. Throughout the day, we’ll have World Book Day themed activities. We’d also like your child to share their favourite book with their friends. Please send your child into school with their favourite book and please ensure the book is named. As stated on the school calendar, this is not a dressing-up year. Thank you.
Half-term sponsored maths challenge: Please remember to return your sponsored maths challenge forms by Friday 03 March 2023.
the sounds that –ed makes:
Some of the children recognised the illustrations, knowing that the author also wrote The Very Hungry Caterpillar
“4 is made of 2 and 2; Double 2 is 4”
