Reception

The children in Reception have had a brilliant start to the new year and settled back well into our classroom routines.

 

This half term our topic is ‘Traditional Tales’ and our first story was the Gingerbread man. This inspired so many interesting learning activities including: threading and decorating a Gingerbread man, role play baking in the home corner, cutting out a playdough Gingerbread man, building bridges for the Gingerbread man to cross over the river with different construction materials and retelling the story using puppets. The children made boats and rafts for the Gingerbread man to cross over the river, and we even tested them to see if they would float. This also inspired us to explore floating and sinking with different objects. Our favourite activity was cooking where everyone made a real Gingerbread man with dough and we baked them in the oven. The children enjoyed decorating them and took them home to eat. They were delicious!

 

As the spring term continues, children in Reception will embark on a rich and engaging learning journey centred around two overarching themes: ‘Traditional Tales’ and ‘Things that Grow’. These themes will be woven into various activities and experiences across the seven areas of learning as defined by the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).

 

Through Traditional Tales, children will explore emotions, relationships, and empathy by connecting with characters and their experiences.

In Things that Grow, students will understand the responsibility of caring for plants, understanding the growth process, and collaborating in activities such as gardening.

 

Traditional Tales will provide opportunities for children to enhance their vocabulary, communication skills, and understanding of narrative structures through storytelling and role-playing. Things that Grow will involve discussions about the life cycle of plants, using descriptive and scientific language to articulate observations, and engaging in group conversations during collaborative activities.

 

Traditional Tales will involve physical activities such as re-enacting stories and developing fine motor skills through related craft activities. We will also be learning to play ball games. Things that Grow will incorporate hands-on experiences like planting seeds, caring for plants, and engaging in outdoor activities to promote gross and fine motor skills development. We will also be learning a gymnastic routine.

 

Traditional Tales will foster a love for reading, with children exploring a variety of classic stories, recognising familiar words, and beginning to create their own simple sentences about the characters and the story. Things that Grow will provide opportunities for literacy development through labelling plants and reading informational texts about growth and nature.

 

During the Spring term, Reception children will focus on key topics such as: numbers up to 10, mass, capacity, length, height, time, and 3D shapes. Our curriculum emphasizes a mastery approach, guiding children through interactive and hands-on activities to develop a solid understanding of mathematical concepts. Through games, practical explorations, and age-appropriate tasks, children will engage with numbers, measurements, and shapes, fostering a strong foundation in mathematical skills.

 

Traditional Tales will introduce children to different cultures and historical aspects embedded in classic stories, fostering an appreciation for diversity and history. Things that Grow will encourage exploration of the natural world, understanding the life cycle of plants, and recognizing the impact of seasons on growth.

 

Traditional Tales will inspire creativity through activities such as creating illustrations, learning traditional rhymes, and engaging in imaginative play. Things that Grow will involve artistic expression, with children creating nature-inspired art, exploring different textures, and learning about how to reuse materials to create art.

After our incredible class assembly at the end of the Spring term, we can’t believe that it is the Summer term already. Our year in Reception has gone quickly and is now drawing to a close. We have had a brilliant year so far and now we’re preparing for the transition and move up to Key Stage 1. We are definitely ready for the next stage in our school careers.

 

In the Summer term, children in Reception will be focusing on two key themes, ‘Dinosaurs’ and ‘Around the World’. These themes will be woven into various activities and experiences across the seven areas of learning as defined by the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). This term will also include our class trip to Knebworth House and, finally, Sports Day. Sports Day is one of the most exciting days on the Manland calendar and the children are already preparing for this. I’m sure they will have an amazing time!

 

In PSHE we will cover the following topics, ‘Relationships’ and ‘Changing Me’. We will explore our changing bodies and emotions over the term. We will learn about the names for different body parts and how to resolve disagreements between friends.

 

Throughout the term, children will have a range of opportunities to develop their communication. We encourage the children to share about their home lives and every week there is opportunity to discuss the life of Gerry the Giraffe who goes home with a different class mate each week. 

 

We will be learning dinosaur dances and experimenting with different forms of movement. We will also practise our track and field skills, ready for Sports Day. Every child will take part in at least one race and a range of field activities such as throwing and kicking.

We are reading a range of texts throughout the term, and have started with the book, ‘Stomp, Dinosaur, Stomp’. We are solidifying the writing and reading skills we have learned throughout the year and adding the final touches to our writing such as capital letters, finger spaces and full stops.

 

Over the Summer term, we will solidify our understanding of numbers up to 20. We will practise sharing and grouping numbers, manipulating and reorganising them and start to introduce the number stories told through addition and subtraction.

 

Dinosaurs offers a rich opportunity for developing our understanding of the natural world. We will discuss how dinosaurs lived a very long time ago and how there were no people alive at the same time as the dinosaurs. We will discuss how the world has changed since the time of the dinosaurs and how we know about them today thanks to fossils. We will also consider our own lives and the lives of those around the world.

 

During our final term of Expressive Art and Design, we will consolidate the skills we have built throughout the year. We will experiment with junk modelling, making dinosaur skeletons out of pasta and silhouettes. We will also revisit the self-portraits we made at the start of the year, and see if we can make another even better portrait now our art skills have developed. We will practise singing a range of songs and rhymes together as an ensemble and children will be encouraged to sing on their own too.

 

Traditional Tales will foster a love for reading, with children exploring a variety of classic stories, recognizing familiar words, and perhaps even beginning to create their own simple narratives.

 

Things that Grow will provide opportunities for literacy development through labelling plants and reading informational texts about growth and nature.

 

During the Spring term, Reception students will follow the White Rose curriculum in Mathematics, focusing on key topics such as numbers up to 10, mass, capacity, length, height, time, and 3D shapes. The curriculum emphasizes a mastery approach, guiding children through interactive and hands-on activities to develop a solid understanding of mathematical concepts. Through games, practical explorations, and age-appropriate tasks, children will engage with numbers, measurements, and shapes, fostering a strong foundation in mathematical skills.

 

Traditional Tales will introduce children to different cultures and historical aspects embedded in classic stories, fostering an appreciation for diversity and history.

 

Things that Grow will encourage exploration of the natural world, understanding the life cycle of plants, and recognizing the impact of seasons on growth.

 

Traditional Tales will inspire creativity through activities such as creating illustrations, learning traditional rhymes, and engaging in imaginative play.

 

Things that Grow will involve artistic expression, with children creating nature-inspired art, exploring different textures, and learning about how to reuse materials to create art.