PRE-RECEPTION
This Week
This week, the children have continued to settle well into their new routines and are beginning to understand the rules and boundaries of our setting. They particularly enjoyed their specialist lessons and had a wonderful time at Forest School.
During Forest School, we talked about the key rules, including: “no pick, no lick”, “don’t cross the boundaries” and “never walk through the basecamp”. Additionally, the children also loved joining in with the game “1, 2, 3, come to me!”.
Next Week
Next week, since we have now completed our baseline assessments, we will begin teaching Maths and Phase 1 Phonics. In Maths, we will be exploring colours, starting with red, yellow and blue. The children will name the colours, sort and match objects and extend their thinking through ‘odd one out’ activities. Similarly, in Phonics, we will be focusing on developing phonological awareness, helping children ‘tune into sound’. This is an essential foundation for writing: once children can hear different phonemes (sounds) in words, they will later be able to write short words as they learn the corresponding graphemes (written sounds).
RECEPTION
We have had a busy and exciting week in Reception! The children have settled in brilliantly and we have now begun our daily Maths, Literacy, and Phonics lessons.
Literacy
As part of our topic ‘Ourselves’, the children were invited to bring in their favourite toy to share with the class. We have been encouraging them to stand up and talk about their toy, which helps them to develop their speaking and listening skills. Adults modelled how to ask questions and listen carefully to the answers. It was wonderful to see so many confident children sharing their stories.
Maths
This week, in Maths, we began our new module: ‘Match, Sort and Compare’. We started by exploring how to match items, discussing why they match. We then moved on to identifying similarities and differences, and how we can sort objects into groups based on different criteria.
Phonics
In addition, we began our first Phonics sessions this week and have introduced the phonemes: s, a, t, and p. We are also beginning to write these sounds.
Expressive Arts and Design
Furthermore, as part of our ‘Ourselves’ topic, the children became artists and created their own self-portraits. They used mirrors to observe and discuss their facial features before drawing them in pencil and painting them. We explored different paintbrushes and the kinds of strokes each one creates. Their fantastic masterpieces are now proudly displayed in our classroom!
Our Top Ten Books
Finally, as part of our Creative Literacy Explorer Programme, we use a set of carefully chosen texts to foster a love of reading. Our Reception top ten books are:
- Rosie’s Walk – Pat Hutchins
- Peace at Last – Jill Murphy
- Owl Babies – Martin Waddell
- We’re Going on a Bear Hunt – Michael Rosen & Helen Oxenbury
- Mr Gumpy’s Outing – John Burningham
- Handa’s Surprise – Eileen Browne
- The Gruffalo – Julia Donaldson & Axel Scheffler
- Duck in the Truck – Jez Alborough
- Look Up! – Nathan Bryon
- On the Way Home – Jill Murphy
These stories are read regularly in class to help the children become familiar with language patterns, characters, and story structure.
Find out more information about Early Years.
