Year 1

Welcome to Year 1

Autumn 2 2023

Welcome back after the October break!  Gosh last half term was so busy!  Therefore,  I do hope you have had chance to relax and enjoy time with your family and friends. This half term will be lots of fun and I am looking forward to the new topics we are going to learn. 

As part of our school expectations, we will continue to remind pupils of our school values of Respect, Good Manners, Patience, Perseverance and Honesty and they will continue to earn Dojo points for good behaviour, attitudes and effort. Your child’s homework grid will be sent home at the beginning of the term and will focus on reading, spelling, phonics and learning the 2, 5 and 10 times tables.  Homework books will be given out on a Friday and will need to be handed in by the following Wednesday at the latest. PE lessons will take place on a Thursday afternoons. Please ensure that your child has their PE kit each week, and is not wearing earrings on PE days.

Homework:

Please encourage your child to complete their homework each week.  Homework is given out on a Friday and is expected to be completed and returned no later than the following Wednesday.  We do encourage adults to support with homework so as to develop your child's understanding of skills and strategies to fulfil the task.  

It is important that your child learns to practice their phonic sounds as this will support their blending skills for reading and with spelling.  It is crucial that you read with your child as much as possible at home to support their phonics and also their understanding of different texts. I must impress on you the importance of your child reading regularly as this supports their development in  their oracy and writing skills also.  It is vital that they learn their weekly vocabulary as this is linked to the book they will be reading in class the following week.  All pupils  have usernames and logins for Purple Mash - these can be found at the front of their reading diaries. There will be online homework for them to complete this half-term. 

PE:

PE will take place on a Thursday afternoon. Please ensure your child comes to school in their full P.E kit - Yellow P.E shirt with the school's logo, black joggers or shorts or leggings, black pumps and their school green sweatshirt. Also make sure that your child has their earrings removed or covered by plasters from home on this day. 

English:

In English this half term, our theme is  'Fire! Fire!' We will start by exploring poetry and developing our knowledge of different forms of poems.  We will be looking at poetic language techniques, such as repetition and patterns to support oral re-telling.  We will discuss and evaluate poetry; being able to say what we like and dislike about a poem.  We will then write our own poem around the theme for this half term, making connections with our History and DT subjects.  Next, we will look at stories with a repetitive theme.  The book we will be reading will be 'Zog' by Julia Donaldson.  We will focus on characterisation and themes and the use of repetition and patterns in the text.  We will use the Talk 4 Writing approach to retell, innovate then invent our own story based on the original. Finally, we will be reading and exploring non-fiction texts.  We shall be learning about the key features of a non-fiction texts and using our phonic and blending knowledge to read and extract information we find interesting out of a text. We will learn about the structure of non-fiction books. Finally, we will write a piece of non-fiction which relates to our theme. 

 * Phonics will continue throughout the day and there are some links in the website star for you to support your child at home.

Maths:

This half term we will begin by exploring position and direction, focusing on positional language using ordinal numbers for positions up to 10.  We will name the positions in a queue, for example,1st, 2nd, 3rd etc., plus learn our left and right positions.  Then we move on to focus on counting, comparing and ordering numbers up to 20.  We will learn the digits and number words; being able to order and sequence numbers in ascending and descending order.  We will Use our counting knowledge to count 1 more or  1 less using number sentences up to 20.  Finally we will progress to adding and subtracting numbers up to 20, using number sentences and  part - part  whole.  We will continue with our 5 a-day  maths activities and challenges using concrete maths resources to help with our problem solving.   We will be also using maths knowledge to focus on our 2, 5 and 10 times tables, plus developing our understanding of halving and doubling.  

Science:

This half term we are continuing to focus on animals.  Discovering what animals need to survive and  their differing habitats.  We will be exploring the skill of classification and will be venturing out of the classroom to have an animal hunt. Towards the end of the half term we will be designing and researching our own fact file about an animal.   We will also be learning about the seasons with a focus on describing features of autumn and winter.

History:

Our topic this term is 'Fire Fire'.  Our  History focus will be 'The Great Fire of London'. We will recognise the distinction between  past and present; finding similarities and differences during the Great Fire of London, 1666, to life today.  We will focus on events and people during this period and the changes that occurred to the landscape, and the lives of people, before and after the fire.  We will note key individuals who were significant at this time, for example, Samuel Pepys.  Pupils will  develop their research and enquiry skills, asking and answering questions they wish to know about the fire and life during this period.  Pupils will then produce their own researched piece of writing to demonstrate their understanding and a written diary entry from the point of view of a child during the Caroline era.  

DT:

In DT we will be learning about moving pictures. Pupils will explore different types of books which have moving parts - generating our own questions about what it is we want to learn and explore further.    We will look at the different mechanisms which allow movement on the page and then plan and design a historical moving picture which will link to our theme of 'Fire Fire'.  We will be able to select from different tools and materials needed for our design.  Finally, we will evaluate our own work and that of others.    

PSHE

In PSHE this half term we will be focusing on 'Healthy Lifestyles'.  The pupils will learn what constitutes a healthy life style and how we maintain one. Focusing on the benefits of eating a healthy diet,  physical activity, rest, weight and dental health. Pupils will also be taught how we make informed choices which will improve their lifestyle and wellbeing.  There will be a focus on the importance of maintaining good personal hygiene; thinking about how diseases and germs spread.  We will also continue to focus on mental health and wellbeing, discussing feelings and how we can express them. 

If you have any concerns, do not hesitate to discuss these with us at the beginning or end of the school day or arrange an appointment through the school office. Myself and the other members of the Year 1 team are really looking forward to an exciting and fun half term! 

 As always, we all hope that you stay healthy, safe and happy!

From all the staff in Year 1. 

Miss Woodhouse - Class Teacher

Mrs Haji- Teaching Assistant

Mrs Maqsood- Special Support Assistant

Mrs Rohel- Volunteer Student