Spring Term 2016

Happy Easter!

Wow! This term has been the quickest term ever but we have crammed so much into each week. The children have been bubbling with inspiring ideas leading us to learn about lots of wonderful things. Our class highlights have been learning about Space and our visits from the potato bus and our fluffy friends.

Next term...

In Maths we will be focusing on the skill to count in 1's and 10's to 100 and counting on a given number to 20. We will be learning how to solve simple addition and subtraction number sentences. Our work on 2D and 3D shape will continue. The children will learn to use language such as corner, edge and face.

In Phonics we will continue to develop our reading and writing skills.

Theresa's group will be independently reading non-fiction books and writing their own sentences using different writing frames e.g. lists and posters.

Amie's group will be moving onto red ditty books, this is very exciting. The children will also be taught the skill to hold a sentence and then write it independently.

Kelly and Anne's group will be moving onto green story books. In their writing they will be encouraged to write a sentence given to them but then to think of their own! Capital letters will also be taught.

We will wait for the children to inspire us with their interests to see what topics we may cover. I have a little feeling that lots of outdoor activities will take place e.g. planting seeds/bulbs and water investigations!

W/C 14 March

What a busy week, full of fantastic learning experiences.

We are learning all about animals. We have even had some furry visitors. First we met x2 Guinea pigs then we met x3 Rabbits. The children learned all about how to take care of these pets. It was hard work. The children loved meeting the animals but please remember everyone a pet is for life not just Easter!

 Not only have we had visitors from our furry friends but we also had a surprise visit from the Branston Potato bus. The children loved this experience. On the bus we had the opportunity to dig and sort the potatoes, learn how the potatoes get from the field to the shop and we even helped to make potato wedges. They were very yummy! 

It is amazing what you can do on a double decker bus!

W/C 7th March

In our maths this week we have focused on 2D and 3D shapes. We have explored shape through a variety of different activities. We have loved being a Magician and saying the magic words to blow up our 2D shapes... "Abracadabra, blow me up!"  Did you know a Sphere is made up of circles?

We have also enjoyed rolling and sliding 3D shapes down our ramps and then sorting them into groups.

Can you find any 3D shapes around your home? Ask you child what shape their sandwiches are.  We have learnt that Maltesers are Spheres and Bourbon biscuits are Cuboids!

Beegu has continued to be of interest this week. Look at our writing... 

 W/C 1st March

We have continued to learn about planets in the solar system. Did you know there are dwarf planets too?

We are making our own planets from papier mâché we are going to hang them in our classroom.

IPads are very popular today look at all the fun we are having.

Today we are going to write about the planet Mars? What do you know about Mars?

We listened to the story of Beegu the alien who crash landed to earth. We made  Beegu from play doh. 

W/C 22nd February

Welcome back to the new term ahead.  

We have had lots of fun this week learning about the Solar System inspired by our interest in Star Wars. We have been writing on black paper with white chalk to create our own Space writing. In Literacy we read the story of 'Man on the Moon' and focused our writing on this story. In the art area we have designed and built rocket launches using junk modelling materials. We identified about the 3D shapes used.

The science area has been very popular this week. We explored water saturation using coloured water, pipettes, sponges and kitchen towel. We investigated colour mixing, absorption and pattern making through these simple materials!

Next week we will continue with our Solar System work...

W/C 8th February

Happy Chinese New Year!

This week we have celebrated Chinese New Year. We have learnt how children and their families prepare and celebrate this festival. The children have used this knowledge and linked it to their play. Some of the children built 'Chinese parties' in the block area and decorated them with red and gold materials. Maddie and Lucas could tell me it was for 'good luck.'

The highlight of our week was eating Chinese food. We tasted egg fried rice, Chow Mein noodles and prawn crackers. The food was delicious. To finish off, some of the children performed a 'Dragon dance!'

W/C 25th January

Minecraft has been very popular this week. We have designed our own Minecraft figures and created them using unifix cubes and lego. We recognised that Minecraft figures are made up of cubes and cuboids. Using this knowledge we have printed our own Minecraft figures in the art area using different shape blocks. We also did our maths through Minecraft and explored addition using unifix cubes. 

W/C 18th January 2016

"Run run as fast as you can...you can't catch me I'm the Gingerbread Man!"

Watch out Reception parents, we have a Gingerbread Man on the loose. One cheeky little man jumped out the oven whilst we were checking to see if they were cooked. 

The children have been very excited by this and the mission this week has been to catch him! We created our own Gingerbread Man traps using junk modelling materials. We also created posters to make everyone else aware that there was a Gingerbread Man on the loose!

Keep a look out and please let us know if you happen to see him!

W/C 11th January 2016

To infinity and beyond...

Buzz Lightyear and Woody have landed in our classroom this week. The children have been involved in lots of learning around these lovable characters. Our favourite activity has been to design and create our own Mr. Potato head. We used potatoes, blueberries, shredded cabbage and peppers to represent the different body parts. We also used our phonic knowledge to label the body parts on our plans.

We have also extended our art skills by using pastels and watercolours to draw and paint Buzz Lightyear.

W/C 4th January 2016

Our first week back has been very busy. Following on from our interests last term, we have been learning about flowers.So far, we have focused on the skill of observational drawings and paintings. We have used paint, pastels and chalks to draw what we can see infront of us.

We have also investigated real flowers by disecting them and using magnifying glasses to look closely at them. Some of the children have even used the petals to create their own perfume.

Before Christmas, we were lucky enough to go and see 'Jack and the Beanstalk' Pantomime in Boston. To follow on from this we have focused our Literacy on this story. It has been lovely to hear the children re-tell the story using props and puppets.We have even created our own story books!