3, 2, 1 DODGEBALL!
Well done to the Year 5 dodgeball team, managed by Mr Gledhill, who came third in the East Leeds heats this week. They were fiercely competitive and showed a real team work spirit. Lots of the photos are blurred because they were running around so fast!
Year 1 Bikeability – success!
The Year 1 children have had some balance bike and then pedal bike training (with no stabilisers) this week, deliverd by the Leeds Bikeability Team. By the end of the week 38 out of 45 children (a whopping 84% ) can now ride their bikes! Everyone worked really hard; persevering, showing resilience and determination. Well done – we are very proud of you!
Wish List and Nursery fund
Wish List
We have a ‘wish list‘ board in Nursery (near the signing in sheets on the red display board) where we will add post-it notes with items on that we are hoping to collect. These might range from free things that you have at home already (such as recycling materials and magazines) or could be small items that we would like to use to enhance our provision (such as pound shop items, baking ingredients or topical items like pumpkins or Christmas decorations). If you are able to help contribute or have an item at home, please remove the post it note from the wish list and bring in the item as soon as you can. We really appreciate all donations, however big or small!
Nursery Fund
If you wish to contribute, but would prefer to donate loose change instead, we have a money box next to the signing in sheet. These donations really help us out when it’s time to buy little extras to enable us to follow children’s interests each week. Last week, we bought some little owls and new owl books to go with the children’s current interest in owls.
Golden Star
Well done to our most recent Golden Star.
Home Link – Is there Room on the Broom?
After the Halloween Disco on Friday, we’re sure that children will be talking about witches, wizards and pumpkins next week! We have created a new small world area in the Rainbow Room based on one of our favourite stories, ‘Room on the Broom’. For this week’s Home Link activity, please enjoy reading the story at home together. If you don’t have a copy, you could visit the library or watch a video clip of the story online.
Talk about the story together. What’s your favourite part?
If you’re feeling creative, there are a few fun activities on the Julia Donaldson website; you could make your own mini broomstick, wand or bake some magic star biscuits.
Phonics
Over the last few weeks, we have introduced children to some letter sounds. So far, we have learnt Ss Aa Tt Pp Ii Nn Mm Dd Oo Gg and Cc. You can watch and sing along to the jolly phonics videos at home.
The children have enjoyed…
- matching objects to their initial sounds e.g. n – net,
- practising their letter formation for writing,
- and segmenting and blending CVC words.
Challenge – 3 bricks
Can your child practise their letter formation at home? Can your child tell you the initial sounds of a selection of objects? Can your child segment and blend the sounds in the words below?
cat dog cot mat tap
Please email any pictures/quotes from your child. This will support us in our assessment by providing evidence towards the Moving and Handling and Reading strands of the EYFS.
Children begin to form recognisable letters. Children hear the initial sounds in words. Children begin to segment and blend CVC words.
Twit Twoo!
Children were keen to learn about our feathery friends this week. We listened to many stories about owls and enjoyed re-telling ‘Owl Babies’ in our small world area. Some children were beginning to join in with the repeated refrains in the story, especially the phrase “I want my mummy!” We used this story to talk about missing our own family whilst learning at Nursery. Being able to separate from a carer and talking about family is part of the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum. It is included in the prime area Personal, Social, Emotional Development and is part of Understanding the World.
We’ve been creative with loose parts this week too; children have enjoyed creating owl faces both inside and outside. In the creative area, children really concentrated for extended periods of time carefully whilst carefully selecting the dried peas, lentils and pasta to create owls with eyes and beaks. This was a very fiddly activity and was a great way to help children practise using a pincer grip.
Outside, we collected autumn leaves and twigs and used the contents of our autumn bags to create larger pictures on the floor. Some children helped to make an owl with large sticks for wings and leaves for feathers and another child created Santa. If you look carefully, you will be able to see his eyes and a beard of leaves and conkers!
Following other interests this week, we moved some wild animals to our sensory area where they are now happily stomping in ‘mud’ (cornflour gloop). Children were intrigued by the texture and feel of the mud. It was cold and wet but could also be runny. It took some children a while to explore, dipping in a finger at first and then their whole hands!
Reminders
- Friday (25.10.19) is a training day so school, including Nursery, will be closed.
- Please sign up for a Parent’s consultation appointment if you haven’t already.
Harvest assembly
We were amazed at how much food and toiletries we managed to collect for St George’s Crypt. Thank you for your contribution.
Keeping safe on bikes – Year 1 bike training
The bikeability training is going well – even in the rain! Lots of children have moved from balance bikes to pedal bikes and are proud to be riding them without stabilisers. Our trainer, Danny, is really pleased with the behaviour and progress of the children.
Ridiculous Rhyme Show
We had a great time watching (and joining in with) the Ridiculous Rhyme Show today.
We laughed, danced, sang and thought about which words rhyme and how to make a rhyme.
