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Autumn 1 Topic: All About Me

We would like to extend a very warm welcome to all of our new Reception children and their families. We hope you have had a wonderful summer and are looking forward to an exciting year ahead. Starting school is a very special milestone, and we are delighted to begin this learning journey together.

Our first topic, All About Me, will help the children settle into school life while learning more about themselves and the people around them. During this half term, we will focus on building positive relationships, developing confidence and becoming familiar with our classroom routines and expectations. The children will spend time exploring both our indoor and outdoor learning environments and discovering all the exciting opportunities available to them.

As part of our learning, we will be exploring our bodies, senses and how we grow and change. We will enjoy talking about our families, friends, hobbies and interests, celebrating the things that make each of us unique. Through discussions, stories and activities, we will also learn about respecting and appreciating the similarities and differences we see in others.

Creativity will play an important role in our topic. The children will have opportunities to express themselves through a variety of art and craft activities, including creating self-portraits and exploring different artistic materials. We will also enjoy singing a range of songs, including welcome and good morning songs, as well as music linked to our learning theme.

Literacy

In Literacy, we will share a variety of stories, rhymes and non-fiction texts linked to our topic. The children will begin to develop their early reading and writing skills by learning to recognise and write their own names, as well as the names of family members and friends. We will also focus on listening carefully to sounds in words and identifying initial sounds. Alongside this, the children will begin their phonics journey and learn a range of new letter sounds and actions.

Mathematics

In Mathematics, we will develop our early number skills through practical, hands-on activities and games. The children will explore numbers to 5 in depth, learning to recognise, count, compare and represent numbers in different ways. We will also investigate matching, sorting and grouping objects, comparing quantities and creating simple patterns.

How You Can Support Learning at Home

Parents and carers play a vital role in supporting children's learning. Here are some simple ways you can help at home:

• Encourage your child to talk about themselves, their family, friends and favourite activities.
• Practise recognising and writing their first name using pencils, crayons, paint or even finger writing in sand or shaving foam.
• Read stories together every day and discuss the characters, events and illustrations.
• Play listening games to help your child recognise sounds in the environment and identify the first sound in familiar words.
• Sing nursery rhymes and songs together to develop language and listening skills.
• Count everyday objects such as toys, steps, pieces of fruit or cars on a journey.
• Look for numbers in the environment and practise recognising numbers to 5.
• Explore simple sorting and pattern-making activities using household objects, toys or natural materials.

We are very excited about the wonderful learning opportunities ahead and look forward to watching the children grow in confidence, independence and curiosity throughout their first term in Reception. We can't wait to share their achievements with you!

Mrs Grindey and Mrs Orr

Key Information

PE day – Monday (Please send your child to school in their PE Kit for the day)

Book changing day – Wednesday

 

Books we will be reading this half-term...