Personal and Social Development

This is a key area for work at the beginning of the Reception year. We will be placing great emphasis on settling your child into school. Their feeling of security and happiness in their school is of vital importance to their academic progress, and familiarity with their surroundings and the school routine, is one way of achieving this. We will also be focusing on social skills, such as co-operation and the ability to share and play with others.

Communication, Language and Literacy

Each week we will focus on a different book which will be the basis of the learning about words, sentences and grammar and learning in other areas of the curriculum. This term the children will be continuing to learn the phonetic sounds of the alphabet through a variety of practical and engaging activities. Children will be encouraged to hear, recognise and form the sounds in preparations for reading, writing and spelling. Talk will be encouraged and valued and given a high profile. Children will share their weekend news regularly in a verbal format. You can help your child by talking to them about their day and focusing on sounds in their talk. You can help them as they begin to recognise sounds in their environment e.g. P for parking or the S at the beginning of Sainsbury's, etc.

Mathematical Development

The children's learning in Maths will be aimed at developing their counting skills and knowledge of the number system through a range of rhymes, songs and hands-on tasks. Children will be encouraged to recognise and form numbers. Maths work will also cover identifying a range of 2D and 3D shapes and developing concepts related to measures, size and time. You can help your child by counting everyday objects as the opportunity arises e.g. when shopping, putting away toys or climbing stairs. In fact, count anything and everything! Matching skills can be developed by pairing socks, putting cutlery away in the correct tray and tins in the cupboard that belong together.

Knowledge and Understanding of the World

We will be approaching this area of the curriculum through our topics Colours, Ourselves and Christmas. Children will be encouraged to explore the world around them using their senses and use questions and answers to further their understanding. They will be encouraged to develop a variety of practical skills such as cutting and sticking, gluing, constructing, investigating and observing. They will have the opportunity to develop their ICT skills using computers, tape recorders and remote control toys in both formal and informal situations.

Physical Development

This term PE includes gymnastics, swimming, ballet and music and movement. The aim is to develop all aspects of your child's control of their body. This includes both gross and fine motor skills. The children will be given ample opportunities to explore our extensive outdoor learning environment. In formal PE sessions children will learn basic gymnastic movements and begin to express themselves through dance as well as recognising the changes that happen to their body when they are active. As part of swimming sessions children will become more water confident and efficient at moving through the water.

Creative Development

This term children will express their ideas and emotions through role play, small world, art and music. Sometimes this will be Teacher directed and at other times will be child initiated. Children will have many opportunities to engage in music making and singing through formal music lessons, assemblies and classroom activities. Children will regularly listen to Mrs Love play her flute. Through the termly topics children will experiment with colours and shape using a range of materials to create pictures, patterns and models.

Music

The term will begin with the children revisiting and learning new action songs and playing percussion instruments. Listening skills will be developed further through musical games to which they will invite their teddy bears. They will learn and practice new songs for our Harvest Festival and Christmas Nativity.

It is emphasised that the above is offered as a guide only, and the school retains the flexibility to adapt its schemes of work to the needs of the individual or the class.