Year 1 – Spring Term 2015

5^th January 2015

Dear Parents/ Carers,

I hope you have had a restful Christmas break and are revived and refreshed for the spring term. Firstly Mrs Woollard, Mrs Fox and I would like to say thank-you so much for all the generous, thoughtful and personal cards and gifts which are very much appreciated.

In English this half term we will be focusing on stories with predictable phrasing, number poems and writing a report. In addition to English all children in Key Stage 1 will continue to participate in the daily ‘Read, Write, Inc.’ scheme. Reading books will continue to be changed on a Tuesday and Friday and library books will be changed on a Thursday.

In Maths during the first half term we will be starting with number and place value, doubling and halving, addition and subtraction and number bonds to 20 then moving on to shape, space and measure and time. In order for you to be able to support your child at home we will continue to send home maths challenge cards which will be reviewed on a Wednesday. Thank you to those parents who come in and help with the maths cards.

In Geography we will be continuing our topic of the ‘Seasons and Weather’, which we will be focusing on winter, the arctic and deserts and extreme weather.

In Science Mrs Woollard will begin by focusing on humans, naming simple body parts and senses and making comparisons with other animals. We will be learning about caring for pets and how types of animals are grouped. We will identify and examine animals found in the local environment.

In History we will be learning about our local history focusing on the life and influence of St Alban. The highlight of this unit will be a visit to St Albans Cathedral to experience the St Alban trail and take part in a stained glass window workshop. The trip will take place on Tuesday 20^st January 2015, further details and permissions to follow. Parent volunteers who are able to accompany us are needed so if you are able and free please speak to myself or Mrs. Fox.

In computing the children will be discovering turtles and other devices and understanding the use of algorithms. In art we will be learning about Aboriginal art and we will be making our own pots and dot pictures.

In Design and Technology we will be learning about how houses are made and then use simple methods and techniques to design and make our own. We will also be linking this in to our weather topic and look at how homes differ around the world to suit different weather types and climates.

In RE we will be learning about belonging and baptism and this will link in with our visit to St Albans Cathedral.

For this term P.E. lessons will take place on a Thursday and Friday, however, it is advisable to retain kits in school at all times in case of non timetabled sessions.

Show and tell will continue to be on a rota basis on a Wednesday; this is an opportunity to allow   more time for the children telling to share something interesting with their friends but also for those friends to develop their thinking and enquiry skills and ask questions and become involved in discussions. Last term the children showed that a lot of thought, consideration and support from home had gone into their show and tell and I would like to support and maximise this.

The rota for the term is as follows:-

We hope your children continue to have a happy time in Year 1 if you have any questions or concerns please feel free to speak to myself or Mrs Fox.

Yours sincerely,

Mrs Elaine Dawson