A busy first week back!
This week has been really busy!
We made Rangoli patterns and Diwas to celebrate Diwali.
The children are really enjoying their roleplay area which we have turned into an Indian restaurant!
This week’s learning
Phonics
We are continuing to learn letters and their sounds. This week’s letters are e,u,r and we are learning the ‘tricky words’ to and the.
Most children are now bringing home a book with words. The children will be able to read these books as they only contain words with the phonemes we have learnt. They also have a word book containing words to blend. We will send new words home to add to the book each week.
Please read with your child and practise blending each day. Keep the reading book and reading record book in your child’s bookbag so we can read with your child and change their book.
Please ask if you have any questions about reading and phonics.
Maths
This week we will be learning all about the number 5 and building on their understanding of composition by decomposing numbers by investigating the composition of 3, 4 and 5. Composing and de-composing numbers involves the children investigating part–part–whole relations, e.g. seeing that 3 can be composed of 1 and 2. Through practical experience, they will consolidate their understanding of a whole being made up of smaller parts. They will begin to recognise that numbers can be made by combining parts in different ways.
Don’t forget our Maths Presentation on Tuesday. This session will give you some guidance on how we teach Maths in Reception and how you can support your child at home.
The session starts at 6pm and will last around 20-25 minutes. There will be a question and answer session at the end of around 5-10 minutes.
Please ask if you have not received the details of the meeting.
Welcome back!
We hope you had a great half-term break!
This term our themes will be ‘Light and Dark’ and ‘It’s magic’.
Phonics
We are continuing to learn letters and their sounds. This week’s letters are e, u,r,h. We will also learn the first ‘tricky words'(words that are not phonetic)- the, to.
Please keep practising these phonemes and using them to blend(read) and segment(spell).
Maths
The session will start at 6 pm and last around 20-25 minutes, plus there will be a question and answer session at the end of around 5-10 minutes.
The link to this zoom session will be emailed to all parents and carers after the half term break. If you do not receive a link, please contact the school office before Tuesday 09 November.
Rugby roadshow
As part of our partnership with White Rose Rugby and Moortown Rugby Club, here is an invite to a free rugby event, just for our pupils, taking place after half term on Wednesday 3rd November. White Rose Rugby have been working with classes for curriculum PE and also delivering the Thursday after-school club.
We hope you can take up this opportunity for a fun evening at Moortown Rugby Club.
This week in Reception
I can’t believe we have reached the end of the first half term in Reception.
The children have settled well and made new friends. They are enjoying learning and particularly look forward to PE and phonics!
Phonics
This week we will be learning the next set of phonemes g,o,c,k and practising blending and reading words, including the high frequency word and.
Maths
In maths, we are continuing to investigate small numbers 1,2 and 3 and subitising (say the amount, don’t count).
The children will compare sets of objects and say which has more and which has fewer. They will be encouraged to answer in a full sentence.
____has more/fewer than______.
Remember to send any questions and ‘wow’ moments to moortownreception@spherefederation.org
Have a great half-term break!
Ready to learn
The children have really impressed us with how quickly they have settled and their eagerness to learn. They are loving their phonics sessions!
Last week we went on a walk around school and drew maps. The children talked about their journey to school and where they lived. We looked at maps of Moortown and tried to spot school and Moortown Park.
Reading
All the children have been given a reading book. Please keep this book in their bookbag for reading at school. We will change their book once a week.
Settling and ready to learn
This week we began learning phonics and the children were all excited and eager to learn.
Thank you to everyone who attended the Phonics meeting last week. We hope you found it useful. If you would like a copy of the slides we used, please let us know.
Phonics
Your child will have brought a book home with the first four sounds. Please practise these. We will learn the next set this week and send the letters home for you to stick in the book.
Reading
We will begin sending reading books home this week. Please read with your child and comment in the reading record book. We will change books once a week and may read with your child often throughout the week. Please keep the book in their bookbag.
Maths
We are continuing to learn about the number 1 and taking part in sorting and matching activities.
The children will be learning to subitise. This means recognising a small number of objects without counting them.
If you have any questions or want to share those ‘wow’ moments please email.
moortownreception@spherefederation.org
A busy week in Reception
Our first full week in Reception has been a busy one. We have been making friends, learning new routines and exploring the classroom.
Phonics
This week we will begin learning letters and their sounds to read and write simple words.
During this phase children will learn their first 19 phonemes:
- Set 1: s a t p
- Set 2: i n m d
- Set 3: g o c k
- Set 4: ck (as in duck) e u r
- Set 5: h b l f ff (as in puff) ll (as in hill) ss (as in hiss)
They will use these phonemes to read and spell simple “consonant-vowel-consonant” (CVC) words: sat, tap, dig, duck, rug, puff, hill, hiss
Early Reading
The session will start at 6pm and last around 20-25 minutes, plus there will be a questions and answer session at the end of around 5-10 minutes.
The link to this zoom session will be emailed to all parents and carers on Monday 27th September. If you do not receive a link and would like to attend please contact the school office.
Bookbags
We will begin sending phonemes and reading books home this week. Please make sure your child brings their bookbag to school every day.
Your child will be bringing a class library book home each week in a separate bag. Please return this every Thursday for your child to choose a different one.
Don’t forget to email any ‘wow’ moments.
www.moortownreception@spherefederation.org
Bike to School week and Let’s ride
Biking and scooting are one of the ways we encourage children to actively travel to and from school and next week we’ll be taking part in Bike to School Week (with Sustrans and the Bikeability Trust). We are pleased to be part of this UK-wide event, encouraging families to cycle, or scoot, to school. It’s a great opportunity to celebrate active school journeys and the positive impact it has on children’s health and wellbeing – as well as the environment.
Bike and scooter storage facilities are available by the side of the Year 4 classroom.
Also, taking place this weekend is the free Let’s Ride session held locally at the Brownlee Centre.
This free family community event is ideal for the whole family to enjoy cycling in a safe and friendly space. At the Leeds Brownlee Centre, Bodington Playing Fields, you can ride at your own pace as many times as you like with volunteers on hand to chat all things cycling.
Sign up for the event here.
A fantastic start!
We have had a fantastic start to the year with all the children settling really well into their new school. There have been lots of smiles and laughter and very few tears!
Thank you for helping with this and preparing your child for this exciting time.
Workshops
Thank you to everyone who has attended our recent Zoom sessions to help you support your child at home. Watch the phonics session and the Early Years introduction. (And apologies for the distracting cursor in the latter – maybe that’s a nervous habit of Mr Roundtree!
The next workshop will be on Tuesday 28 September at 6pm. This reading workshop will explain how we teach reading in Reception and how you can help at home.
PE
PE will begin the week beginning 20 September. Your child should come to school in their PE kit on Wednesday and Friday.
Isolation learning
This will be emailed to you each week and is only for those children who are having to isolate because of COVID.
A few other things
Please make sure your child brings a water bottle and bookbag to school every day. You may want to send a change of clothes for your child which can be left at school.
If you have any questions or concerns please let us know. We are also keen to hear of any ‘wow’ moments, achievements and interests your child has.
moortownreception@spherefederation.org
Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA)
The Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA) is statutory for all schools from September 2021.
It is a short, interactive and practical assessment of your child’s early
literacy, communication, language and mathematics skills when they begin
school, using materials that most children of your child’s age will be familiar with.
All Reception children will be participating in the reception baseline assessment (RBA) within the first 6 weeks of starting school.
The purpose of the assessment is to provide the starting point for a new measure that will help parents understand how well schools support their pupils to progress between reception and year 6 / the end of key stage 2.
For further information about the RBA, please see this guide.