Summer term 1

Along with longer summer days ahead we have lots of exciting learning opportunities planned for the Reception class children, including looking after some small creatures!

The overall theme of this half term will be  How does it grow? It includes learning about plants and growing vegetables, minibeasts, life cycles and ourselves. Making healthy food choices and keeping fit will also be a focus on how to grow up well.

In phonics we will continue to consolidate the digraphs and trigraphs within phase 3 and use these within longer and more complex words of phase 4. Thank you so much for your tremendous support with home reading each day, please keep this up as it is so helpful to your child's overall progress. This half term I intend to send home some spelling patterns and high frequency words for the children to learn each week as well. This can form part of your home learning routine. Please help your child to write the words with good letter formation. In class, we will assess how the children can write and use the words within a sentence. There will also be spelling challenges to see if the children are able to spot the pattern and use the rules in unfamiliar words too!

Our Literacy learning will focus on developing greater levels of independence in reading and writing. We will be making notes and writing observations of our seeds and caterpillars by keeping a diary. We will write our version of a traditional tale and explore poems and stories about plants.

Our key texts are,

Mad About Minibeasts

Oliver’s Vegetables

The Enormous Turnip

Caterpillar Diary

In Communication and Language tasks we will be encouraging the children to speak at greater length about a topic of their choosing. The children will speak in full sentences using new vocabulary and answer questions from their friends. Each child will have a turn to bring home a 'chatter box' (which is essentially an empty sandwich box!) and fill it with something they can talk to a friend about in school. They will bring this back to school and the talking can start! Please do not send in any precious items or anything of value. A photograph, small toy, found objects or tickets from places you have visited all provide great opportunities for the children to remember something special to them and be able to talk about it freely with confidence.

In Maths our learning will focus on the topics of 

Numbers to 20 and beyond,

How many now?

Manipulate, compose and decompose,

Sharing and grouping

We will be...

Building numbers beyond 10.

Counting patterns beyond 10.

Adding more. Taking away.

Exploring spatial reasoning – compose and decompose.

In RE our theme is 'To the Ends of the Earth' where we will begin to understand that Jesus rose from the dead and how we can experience the joy of Easter. We will learn about the special message of peace that Jesus gave to his disciples and how he went back to his Father in heaven at the Ascension. We will also learn about the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and the role of our parish church as a familiy and community.

Our learning through Understanding the World will form a major part of this half terms work. We will be looking after some caterpillars and hopefully seeing them transform into butterflies. We will also be planting salad crops and using them to make a healthy lunch.

In Expressive Arts and Design we will be looking at making patterns and textures on paper and using these to create our own collage pictures. We will look at the illustrations of Eric Carle and 'The Snail' by Henri Matisse.

In music we will learn some new songs including 'Big Bear Funk'! We will play along with percussion instruments, keeping in time with the music.

Our PE and Physical Activity learning will based around the stories of 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar' and  'Jack and the Beanstalk'. Skills of jumping, travelling, rolling and climbing will be especially developed through these themes.

Our Personal, Social and Emotional learning will focus on us growing and changing. We will continue to explore our own relationships with the wider world and how we can contribute to our community through service to others and working for the common good. 

As ever, this curriculum plan provides an insight into the range and scope of learning that helps young St John’s pupils thrive. It is a flexible framework that allows us to respond directly to the needs, motivations and interests of our Reception class. We also provide opportunities for the children to lead their own learning alongside us as adults. 

Spring term 2

This half term we focus on the question of 'How old is it?' and we will be looking at everyday objects and toys from the past. We will be investigating with a 'hands on' approach and look forward to creating our own class museum! Of course, we are also taking part in Lent activities in preparation for the great celebration of Easter too.

In our Phonic learning we will continue to consolidate our learning of phase 3 sounds while exploring words using double letters, longer words and words with two or more digraphs. We will look at words ending with -ing and -s. Please continue to listen to your child read everyday and share stories together too. I will continue to send home the 'key words' for your child to develop fluency and these will include the tricky words which are also to be found in your child's reading diary.

The key texts we are using this half term include

The Runaway Pancake

Old Bear

Little People Big Dreams -historical figure.

Dinosaur Roar!

In Literacy sessions we will develop our handwriting and ability to write a simple sentence. We will write a pancake recipe, labels and captions for our museum exhibits and create a class guidebook for our museum. 

Soon it will be World Book Day and we will dress up as characters from our favourite stories or books. There is also a challenge to send in a 'story in a shoe box' which we are looking forward to sharing.

Our Communication and Language skills will be developed by asking questions and listening carefully to the answers with increasing attention to details. We will also continue to work on having a conversation, waiting for our turn to speak and responding appropriately to what has been said by someone else.

In Maths our learning will focus on the theme of  Building 9 and 10 and Explore 3D shapes. We will be...

Comparing numbers to 10.

Bonds to 10.

3D shape.

Pattern.

We will also spend some time consolidating the terms mathematical learning as a whole.

In RE our theme is 'Desert to Garden' which includes important learning about Lent and Easter. During Lent we will think about Jesus' journey to the cross and the joy we feel at his resurrection at the wonderful celebration of Easter. Our Lent promise will help us prepare for the celebration by choosing from giving something up, doing something extra for others and saying more prayers. We will be joining in with the school fundraising activities at this time too.

Our learning through Understanding the World will focus on the similarities and differences between now and the past through personal and family history as well as investigating historical figures.

We will be making chocolate Easter nest cakes to celebrate the seasonal festivals too. We will also recognise the changes of the season into Spring - we are looking forward to seeing the bulbs we planted in Autumn begin to flower!

In Expressive Arts and Design we will be making greeting cards for both Mother's day and Easter. These will involve some textiles and making a simple 'pop up' mechanism. We are following the music theme of 'Our World' and where we will be singing traditional and new songs and rhymes as well as playing along with simple instruments to a steady beat. 

Our PE and physical activity sessions will focus on developing the ball skills of rolling, throwing and catching. We will also continue to develop a wide range of fine and gross motor skills through using our outdoor area of the classroom during continuous provision.

Our Personal, Social and Emotional learning will continue to  explore the individual’s relationship with others. Building on the understanding that we have been created out of love and for love.  We will learn how we take this calling into our family, friendships and relationships, and teaches strategies for developing healthy relationships and keeping safe.

Spring Term 1

Happy New Year and let's hope that 2024 will bring lots of learning and fun along along the way for our Reception class!

In a slight change to the long term overview published at the bottom of this page, I have decided to switch the theme of this terms learning. We will investigate the question of 'Who is my Hero?' first and this will enable us to enjoy stories about superhero's as well as learning about what makes a real life hero in our community.

If you are or know a police officer, doctor, dentist, nurse, firefighter, paramedic or indeed any other 'key worker' then please get in touch. Our children would love to learn about your job, ask you a few questions and learn about the superpowers you have to help look after and protect us! 

Key texts we will use will be

Supertato

People Who Help Us

Rapunzel

Visiting The Dentist

People Who Help Us Songs And Rhymes.

In phonics we will begin to learn the letters and sounds within the Little Wandle scheme Phase 3. These include some common digraphs and trigraphs such as ai, ee, igh, oa, oo, oo, ar, or, ur, ow, oi, ear, air, er.
We will also investigate words with double letters and longer words. We continue to learn the 'tricky words' which are included at the front of your child's reading diary and will gain greater speed and accuracy when reading and writing simple words and phrases. Please help your child with reading or phonic practice on a daily basis at home for 5 mins and make a note in their reading diary - your help and support is very much appreciated and makes a huge difference to your child's progress. 

In literacy we will continue to focus on developing correct letter formation and will encourage your child to write their own simple phrases. We will be creating superhero characters and using non-fiction texts to find out facts about real life hero's. We will ask questions and develop our 'good listening' even more.

In Mathematics we will be following the themes of Alive in 5! where we will consolidate our understanding of 0, compare numbers to 5, investigate the composition of numbers 4 and 5 and compare mass and capacity.

In Growing 6,7,8. We will investigate numbers 6,7,8 in depth, make pairs, combine 2 groups, look at length, height and time.

Our Religious Education learning will follow the topic of 'Galilee to Jerusalem' and we will hear about the visit of the Magi at Jesus' birth along with Bible storeis of Jesus blessing the little children and the feeding of the 5000. We will also learn the 'Glory Be' prayer and think about Jesus asks us all to show love and care to everyone in our world.

Our Personal, Social and Emotional learning will focus on how to keep ourselves safe and how to ask for help from a trusted grown up. We continue to learn about being a good friend and how to help others in need.

Our Physical Development work will continue to develop both fine and gross motor skills as well as balance and control of movement. We have some exciting learning in PE planned based on the story of Superworm - a modern day classic! 

Our learning on Understanding the World will help us understand the community of people around us and the role of the children themselves in helping our own society within the classroom and school.

The Expressive Arts and Design area of learning will focus on developing children's making skills using paper and tools such as scissors to create simple pop up pictures and moving images. Our music will follow a theme of 'Everyone!' where we will be learning new songs and using simple instruments to play along to a steady pulse.

As ever, our flexible curriculum allows us to follow the motivations and interests of the children and we will follow their lead and enthusiasms as they emerge!

Autumn Term 2

In this busy half term we will focus on the key question of 'What makes me happy?' and begin to explore the various celebrations and festivals that bring us joy. We will investigate the similarities and differences between us and others including comparing our own family traditions. We will also be exploring the range of emotions and feelings we have at special times.

Specific festivals we will look at will include; Bonfire night, Remembrance day, Diwali, Birthdays and Christmas.

These are the 'key texts' we will share in depth during this half term...

Penguin

Diwali

The Jolly Christmas Postman

The Gingerbread Man

The Night Before Christmas

In phonics we will continue our formal learning of Phase 2 sounds. The children will learn how to blend these sounds together so they can begin to decode simple words and phrases for themselves when reading aloud. Please continue to complete the phonics homework we send home each week and listen to your child read each day, making a note in the reading diary. Please also keep on reading stories and sharing the school library books with your child.

In literacy we will be learning to correctly form letters when writing with a good pencil grip. We will write Christmas lists, a letter to Santa and greetings cards.

In Mathematics we will be learning through the themes of 'circles and triangles', '1,2,3,4,5' and 'shapes with 4 sides'.

We will also weigh and measure ingredients to bake our own Gingerbread recipe.

Our Religious Education sessions will be built around the theme of 'Prophecy and Promise'. Children will learn that Mary was chosen by God to be Jesus' mother and that she travelled with Joseph to Bethlehem. They will know that Jesus was born in a stable and laid in a manger and that shepherds visited Him. We will also learn about how Advent is a time to get ready for Christmas and undertand that Jesus came for the whole world.

In our Physical Education learning the children take part in physical activities both inside and outside the classroom daily through our continuous provision and use of the outdoor learning area. This helps develop co-ordination and control both in small movements (e.g. holding a pencil and using tools such as scissors) as well as larger whole-body movements. In this half term we will explore the creative aspects of dance led by a specialist teacher along the theme of 'celebrations'. We will also develop a range of fundamental movement skills along the theme of 'How to catch a star'.

In our learning in the area of Understanding the World we will explore the similarities and differences between different religious and cultural communities and celebrations. As the weather turns colder we will also explore the outdoors, experiencing frost and snow - hopefully! Followed by warm hot chocolate inside...all cosy!

Our learning within Expressive Arts and Design will focus on making art and craft objects that express various celebrations. We will make clay diva lamps and experiment with paint and media to create Christmas art. In music, we will be learning new songs for our Christmas Nativity performance. We are also looking forward to our visit to the Grundy Art Gallery where we will look at art works and take part in a practical workshop.

As ever, our flexible curriculum allows us to follow the motivations and interests of the children and we will follow their lead and enthusiasms as they emerge!

For a complete overview of the long term plan for the year please open the document at the bottom of this page for a summary of each half term.

  Autumn Term 1

Throughout Reception we follow the 'Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage' to shape our curriculum and learning experiences for children.

In the Autumn term 1 we focus on the key question of 'Who am I?' and this involves learning about the children as individuals and their families. It covers making new friends and thinking about themselves and other children around the world.

We celebrate Autumn and Harvest by exploring the school grounds to notice the changes in season, picking our home grown apples and making a crumble! Our visits to church also enable us to join in with simple acts of worship to thank God for our wonderful world and the fruits of the Harvest.

Reading and sharing books is a very important aspect of our learning and we have some key texts that we delve into in greater depth. These include,

Going to School

Lucy And Tom Go To School

When Grandad Was At School

I Like It When…

Little Red Hen

Traditional Nursery Rhymes

My World, Your World.

We also organise a family visit to Poulton library after school where we can share a special book together and join the library if you haven't already got a library card. We really hope you can attend and details will be shared with you about the event in due course.

In phonics we will be recapping on Phase 1 and starting formal learning of Phase 2 sounds.

In Mathematics we will be learning through a theme of 'Just Like Me' 

Where we will...

Match and sort.

Compare amounts.

Compare size, mass and Capacity.

Explore pattern.

Our Religious Education sessions will be built around the theme of 'God's World' and we will also be thinking about ourselves as part of God's beautiful creation where we are loved.

In our Physical Education learning the children take part in physical activities both inside and outside the classroom daily through our continuous provision and use of the outdoor learning area. This helps develop co-ordination and control both in small movements (e.g. holding a pencil and using tools such as scissors) as well as larger whole-body movements. Throughout the year children will develop fundamental movement skills of running, jumping, dancing, catching and throwing, hopping, skipping and climbing. We enjoy playing games and taking part in age-appropriate sports during our whole class PE time. In this first half term we will use the adventure playground area, balance bikes and parachute in particular.

In our learning in the area of Understanding the World we will explore the school grounds and plant bulbs for spring time flowering. We will also talk about the important people in our lives and the important experiences we share together.

While developing knowledge and skills in the area of Expressive Arts and Design we will be making self portraits using different media. We will explore the mark making of Jackson Pollock and how nature is used in the art work of Andy Goldsworthy. In music, we will be singing nursery rhymes and following the theme of 'Me!'.

Our flexible curriculum allows us to follow the motivations and interests of the children and we will follow their lead and enthusiasms as they emerge!

For a complete overview of the long term plan for the year please open the document below for a summary of each half term.