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Dear Parents,
Welcome back, we hope you had a brilliant summer holidays. During our first few weeks, we will be settling into our new classroom and getting to know one another. This will include: agreeing on the class rules, circle time discussions and working with different groups of children. Our topic for this term will be ‘Remember Remember The Great Fire of London’. We will explore what happened, when events occurred and why they happened. This will include looking at sources, making bread, using maps, exploring materials; and singing songs about London.
Knowledge and Understanding of the World
DT: Designing a house, making bread.
ICT: Handling data, e-safety, looking at technology in our lives.
RE: Writing class prayers, exploring Bible stories and preparing for the Harvest festival.
Science: Comparing and looking at the uses of everyday materials.
Geography: Using maps and globes, exploring human and physical features of London, comparing old and new maps.
History: Placing the events of the Fire of London in chronological order, exploring sources from the time, comparing photos and finding out about famous people from the time.
Communication, Language and Literacy
Labels, lists and captions: using images of the Great Fire of London.
Poetry: Writing descriptively, using the senses to write sentences.
Diary Writing: Exploring Samuel Pepys Diary, writing eyewitness accounts.
Newspaper Reports: Role play interviews, understanding the layout of newspapers, writing own reports.
Story writing: Writing own versions of an experience in the fire.
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
- New beginnings – creating class rules
- Pupil Voice – learning to express views and opinions
- Setting goals and reflecting on dealing with feelings
Problem Solving, Reasoning and Numeracy
- Number and place value
- Counting Number bonds
- Addition Subtraction
- Measures (including Money)
- Length
- Geometry
- Shape
- Symmetry
- Statistics
- Pictograms/
- tally charts
- Times tables
Creative Development
Music: Singing London and Harvest Festival songs, creating a soundscape of the Great Fire of London.
Dance: Working as a class to create a Harvest Festival dance.
Home Learning
This term’s home learning project is to create a model of a London building from 1666. Our plan is to join everyone’s houses together and burn them in a controlled environment so the children can understand how the fire spread. This could be made out of paper or cardboard based materials. The children will have the opportunity to share their building with the class and we will take a photograph of it before burning them. Please can these be brought in by Friday 14th October at the very latest.
| Reading | Please read with your child regularly, even if it is just for 5 minutes. It is really important that the children bring their book bags, yellow reading record and their reading book into school every day. When reading with your child please acknowledge the fact that the book has been read by signing and dating in the yellow reading record, or you may like to add a positive or helpful comment in the reading diary. |
| Spelling | Spelling homework involves an activity sheet that will be sent home every week. Please can your child complete and bring back the following Tuesday. High frequency words should be read and spelt correctly by the end of year 2. Year 1 need to continue to practice their phonic sounds. It will be helpful for children to use www.phonicsplay.co.uk There are lots of games to play which support phonics learning e.g. Obb and Bob is a game they can play. |
| Maths | Please complete the maths homework – sent home every other week in maths books. Year 2 - Times tables – please support your child to learn their x10, x2 x5, x3 times tables so that they know them off by heart, backwards, and at any point can tell you the answer e.g. 6 x 5 = |
Key questions to ask your child at home
Can you tell me about the Great Fire of London? Where did The Great Fire of London start? What was the plague? How did the fire spread? Who was Samuel Pepys? How do we know about the fire? What materials are there in your home?
Can you sing a song about London?
Useful Websites
- www.ictgames.co.uk and www.topmarks.co.uk for Literacy and Maths games.
- www.phonicsplay.co.uk Phase 3-5 games, blending sounds and words.
Topic Websites
- http://www.fireoflondon.org.uk/game
- http://www.schoolsliaison.org.uk/kids/aston/ks1/firelondon/greatfire.htm
Reminders
- Please can you make sure your child brings in a water bottle, a sun hat and their book bags each day.
- Can the children please always have a coat in school particularly as the British weather is unpredictable.
- Please can your child bring their PE kit every day. This can be left on their peg. Mr Watson teaches the PE session.
- Forest School – The children will need a forest kit in school including long trousers and a top covering their arms and waterproofs. Please can all children have a set of wellington boots in school at all times, this is so we can use the field and outside areas when it is wet and muddy. The date of this is to be confirmed.
- Share Learning – if the children would like to share something from home with the class, it needs to be linked to the topic, their learning in school or a personal achievement.
- Cursive Script – please can you encourage your child to write with joined up handwriting. They are learning this in school.
- We will be changing reading books 3 times a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to come and ask. If you need to speak to me, I am on the playground every day at 8:45am.
Thank you for your support. We are looking forward to an exciting term ahead
Miss Moore