The second half of the term is well underway and we have been working on the story The Storm Whale by Benji Davies. It is a story about a lonely little boy, a whale washed up on the beach and a friendship that will change both their lives for ever. We have learnt the story and are now working on changing the story slightly, for example one child found a pig that had escaped a farm because someone had left the door of his pig sty open. Once we have finished working on this story we are going to be finding out more about real whales.
In Maths we finished our topic on halves and quarters where we spent several lessons finding halves and then we worked on finding quarters. The children enjoyed the practical sessions especially the one which involved pizza! They were slightly disappointed it wasn’t real! We have just started a new topic on position and direction, we will be looking at describing turns and positions.
In other subjects we have been talking about the Queen’s Jubilee and we have be looking at the features of palaces and castles. In science we have been looking at the different properties of materials.
The weather is warming up and our brains are on fire! We started this week by looking at the story of Little Red Riding Hood. Monday morning we headed to the nature area to find envelopes with puzzle pieces in. When we found them all we worked together in teams to put the puzzle together. We then had to think about what story we would be focusing on for the next couple of weeks.
Over the next couple of weeks we will be identifying the main characters, the setting and repetitive language. We will finish the unit by recounting the story.
In Maths we have started our summer work book and we are looking at counting in 10s, 5s and 2s. We have been making equal groups, adding equal groups and making simple arrays. We will then move on to division and making equal groups and sharing equally. Each of these units ends in solving word problems.
In other subjects we have been talking about herbivores, carnivores and omnivores and been able to recognize which animals come under these groups.
Finally, we are continuing to work hard in preparation for the Phonics Screening Check that is happening after half term. You should have received a letter that explains what the check is and what you can do to help at home. Please see the following website for resources to prepare the children for this:
What a great start to the summer term it has been for the children in Year 1. Everyone has been working their socks off.
In English we have begun our new topic of No-Bot Robot. Children will be learning the story and creating their own version over next few weeks. Ask your child to perform the story for you – they should be able to tell you it with the actions!
In Maths we are learning about capacity. The children will be exploring how to measure liquid and using containers and water to compare volumes.
Our new topic All About Animals has also kicked of this week and children have been learning about different types of animals. This has included learning some new words such as invertebrate, mammal and amphibian as wells as talking about more familiar words such as bird, fish and reptile. Please talk about these animals with the children and look out for different types of animals in books and stories.
Our computing links nicely with our Topic lessons as we are talking about sorting. In the coming weeks we will be using computer software to sort information into groups. Children are able to log onto PurpleMash at home, please speak to your child’s class teacher if you require a log in reminder.
Finally, we are working hard in preparation for the Phonics Screening Check in a few weeks. You should have received a letter that explains what the check is and what you can do to help at home. Please see the following website for resources to prepare the children for this:
We are offering a workshop to share some of the resources to help prepare. This will be taking place on Tuesday. Please check your emails for further details or contact the office for another letter.
This half term we have been very busy in Year 1. We have finished writing our stories for Handa’s Surprise and have now started looking at the story Handa’s Hen. We used this to get us thinking about animals and we have started to write a fact file about cats or rabbits. We have been looking at some exciting information about these animals. Did you know, a cat can sleep for up to 18 hours a day! We thought a lot about what a fact file and what it needs and we decided we could only write things which were true and about our chosen animal. We have really enjoyed learning about different animals!
We are truly becoming maths superstars in Year 1! We have been learning about length and height in our books. We have been looking at non-standard units of measure, such as cubes or hands but we have decided that these are not always the best thing to use because some people have much bigger hands than others. So, we are now looking at using rulers. We need to start at zero and see where the object finishes, it is very exciting!
In topic we have been working hard to name the different parts of a plant and explaining the different jobs they all do. We have also been looking at different landscapes such as flat land, hills, mountains and valleys. We have been able to walk around the school and we found a lot of hills! We decided that our school is on top of a hill and we can look down to see Asda.
The children in Year 1 have a lot to look forward to over the next few weeks:
We are going to go out on a school field and see how big a whale really is and find out if one can really swim in our bathtub!
In maths we will be looking at weights and how we measure these. We will also be looking at arrays and how these help us to learn multiplication.
In our topic we will be looking at different animals from around the world and making a new exciting project.
English
This week Year 1 have been writing their own version of Handa surprise. They selected different vegetables to replace the fruits from the original story and were also encouraged to change the animals to their own choice. By manipulating the story to what captivates their interest they have been able to successfully write their version of the story independently.
Math’s
Year 1 have been learning about place value to 50 and started to compare numbers using symbols. Children are encouraged to use the key languages when reading a number sentence focused around comparing such as; greater than, less than, equal to.
Science
The scientists in Year 1 have been busy learning about the plants. Children had the opportunity to share what they already know before learning about what plants needs in order to grow. Our Scientist were also given the chance to explore around the school and investigate the different plants they see. During their walk children create a plant bracelet and learnt that we need to take care of our environment.
Topic
This week for topic, children in Year 1 were learning about different compass points to follow set directions.
World Book Day
It was World Book Day on Thursday 3rd of March and it was incredible to see all the children excited to have an amazing day. Children had the chance to create their own corner bookmarker and create their villain character.
Over the next couple of weeks
The children in Year 1 have a lot to look forward to over the next few weeks:
* We are going to be working on creating fact files for different animals such as cats, dogs etc.
* In Math’s, we will be continuing our focus around numbers to 50. We are applying this knowledge when subtracting and adding.
* In Science, we will be exploring the different features of a plant.
* In Topic, we will be looking at valleys.
English
In Year 1 we have explored the story called Handa’s surprise. This week children shared examples of adjectives to describe the fruits and the animals. After the half term, the children will independently write the story and share what they have learnt.
We completed some observational drawings of the fruit in the story:
Maths
In Maths, children were highlighting the keyword when solving subtraction word problems and using different methods to solve the calculations.
Other subjects On Tuesday it was internet Safety Day, we read the story of Digiduck and the Magic Castle. We discussed about the importance of keeping password and personal information private. We encourage all parents to talk to their child about the importance of being safe online. Check out the video below…
Topic
We have completed our learning about houses and homes. Children have showcased their learning regarding this concept. They spoken about the different homes around the world and compared homes to the past.
Next term we will be starting a new topic: Gardeners World where we will be learning about plants and trees and noticing their features. In English, we will continue with Handa’s Surprise where children will plan and write their own version of the story.
We hope all of the children and their families have a great half term holiday and we look forward to seeing everyone again in the Summer term.
This week, Year 1 have been captivated by the story ‘How to Catch a Star’. The children received a star in a box and they had to write about how they would look after this precious belonging and how they might launch it back into the sky. The children activated some very hard thinking about ways they could catch a star and what items they could use to catch it with. They have really enjoyed reading this amazing text!
The story can be found here, why not watch it at home? The children might even be able to write their own version of the story:
The magic mathematicians in Year 1 have been learning about Subtraction and exploring different ways of writing subtraction number sentences.
The scientists in Year 1 have been busy learning about the 5 senses. The children have been developing their speaking and listening skills by talking about taste and have tasted different foods. They have thought about the things they like, such as chocolate, and the things that they dislike such as lemon. The vocabulary they are using has been exceptional.
The children were inspired recently when a dinosaur visited and made a mess in the Year 1 shared area. Mr White filmed the dinosaur arriving in school on the playground. The children then had to think about how they would get the egg back to where it came from. This was an excellent stimulus for some amazing writing and learning.
Some children in Year 1 have loved using the Chromebooks for in their computing lessons. They have been learning how to scroll, click and navigate the internet.
The children in Year 1 have a lot to look forward to over the next few weeks:
* A travelling, magic carpet is coming into school and the children will be writing about this.
* In maths, we will be continuing our work on subtraction and find one less that a number.
* In Science, we will be taking a walk to Wigmore Valley Park to explore our senses. Please remember your Wellie Boots and rain coat on the day your child’s class is going.
* In Topic next week we will be learning about the continents of the world.
The following pictures show some amazing and exceptional learning that has been taking place in the 3 different classes. Well done to the children for achieving their personal best.
Year 1 have been working on sentence structure, the hook for this was a monster had escaped and we had to think of ways of catching him. We came up with sentences such as: Find a cage. Put pizza in the cage. Cover the cage with blankets.
A dinosaur came into our shared area and made a big mess, he was looking for his eggs. The children had to follow the clues to firstly work out who had made the mess and then find the eggs. We wrote a letter to Mr Johnston explaining that we thought it was a dinosaur who made the mess because he was looking for his eggs.
Next term we will be working on instructional language and they will write a set of instructions on how to catch a star. In other subjects we will be finding out about Guy Fawkes and why we remember him, in maths we will be looking at addition and subtraction and 2 and 3d shapes. We will be learning the names and their features.
