Year 1

Welcome to Year 1!

                       
1S are Mrs Sian and Mrs Willis      
1HG are Mrs Hartley, Miss Gutteridge and Mrs Khan

What a busy Autumn term we've had! We are so proud of our pupils for settling in so well in Year 1 and taking on the new challenges with great responsibility and determination. The information below outlines our learning from the last term.

Science:

In science, the children have been learning about looking after animals. They enjoyed having a vet role-play in the classroom. The children identified and named a variety of common animals including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. They did lots of fair testing of their own senses. They will be observing how weather affects seasonal change during the summer term. We love Science!

Computing:

In this unit, the pupils took on the role of the robot-pirate and gave instructions to their peers to get to the treasure.  The pupils were encouraged to use the technical vocabulary, such as the programmer, algorithm and programming.  In our follow up lessons,  the children will program a toy to move around a map to find buried treasure. They will start by thinking of algorithms for their routes, then input these as stored programs for the robot. Our next computing topic is called ‘We are painters’. This unit will particularly engage children who love the illustrations in the books they read. It is a great opportunity for the children to work creatively. We are really looking forward to it.

History:

In Autumn 2, we looked at our local history and discovered some amazing facts about Bartley Green. We also had a visit from the Woodgate Valley firefighters, where we learnt about the history of the fire station.  We also learnt about the people in Cheelo village in Zambia and how important water is to the world. This was part of our Black History Month. During Spring 1, we will be learning about WW1.

Geography:

Last term, we looked at the geography of where we live, our place in the UK and the wider world. We identified the four nations of the UK and their capital cities. The pupils enjoyed learning about the 7 continents of the world and explored their place in Europe. This term, we will be learning about the key geographical features of the Antarctic environment. We will be looking at how the penguins adapt to this harsh unique environment.  We love penguins!

Religious Education:

This year the children have learned that rules keep them safe and healthy. They have thought about their family roots. They know where they belong and they know the people who love and care for them. The pupils have focused on remembrance, talking about loss and grief. The children know the Nativity story and they enjoyed visiting a school to experience ‘Christmas Through the Keyhole’. 

Physical Education:

In our P.E. sessions, the children have learned and participated in team games. They have improved their catching and throwing skills, developed their balancing skills and explored different ways of moving. They have a weekly session with a sports coach.

Art:

The children have used a range of mediums in Art this year, including pencil, paint, pastel and collage. They have drawn a self-portrait. They have looked at patterns in nature and can identify different animal prints. They have created art using shape and African patterns. The pupils collected autumn leaves, conkers, sycamore seeds and mini pine cones to create a seasonal collage.

Music:

Music has been delivered by our music specialist Mr Ranger.  Thank you Mr Ranger! The children have enjoyed playing and performing together, using their voices and playing percussion instruments to accompany their songs. Through our music scheme, the children are developing their evaluation skills of various styles of music, such as rap and pop.

Design and Technology:

As part of their D.T. work, the children will be learning how to cook eggs. We will be observing the changes and making our own egg cookbook. In textiles we will be sewing/weaving our own Easter cards.

PSHE:

The children have discussed about feeling special and safe in their class. They know that they are a valued member of their class. They have discussed achievements that they are proud of and how they contribute to the class as a whole. They are learning about how they are different and similar to their friends. The pupils have set simple goals and can identify their successes.

Monthly Blog

Pyjamarama day 

On Friday 7th June we celebrated this day by wearing our pyjamas to school and even the teachers joined in! 

At home we had to record our bedtime stories on a special bookmark.

We had our final bedtime story in school.

Everyone had lots of fun.

World book day

It was World Book day this month and the Book Fayre visited our school. 

We had a story session and the theme was India. We heard a story, played instruments and sang a traditional Indian song. Some of us even got to dress up!

Red nose day

We celebrated Red Nose Day!

We wore a red item of clothing to raise money for Comic Relief and of course our red noses too!!

Coming up in the Spring Term….

Our first English theme is Traditional Tales. We will start with Hansel and Gretel. The children will be writing character and setting descriptions. We’ll look at the features and key characters of traditional tales and work towards writing our own story in the same style.

Try reading some of these traditional Tales over the Christmas Holiday:

Cinderella

Snow White

The Three Little Pigs

Little Red Riding Hood

Thumbelina

Goldilocks And The Three Bears

In maths we will be telling the time and learning the days of the week. We will also be continuing with our basic maths skills of addition, subtraction, counting and the 2 times table.

We will be starting our ‘New Life’ topic which will include our work with the living eggs that will be arriving in school in the spring term. We will be dancing in PE and learning how to move to a rhythm and make different shapes with our bodies.

Year 1 will also be performing the KS1 Easter Production. We will be learning lines, songs and dances.

Autumn Term

December

November

Children in need

We raised lots of money by having a non uniform day and wearing our Pudsey clothes and accessories.

October

Black History Month

As part of Black History month Year 1 have been discussing the story 'Zahra'.

September

The Great Fire of London Workshop

On Friday 21st September the Freshwater Theatre Company joined us for a workshop all about the Great Fire of London. We found out all about life in London at the time, how the fire started and spread and how Samuel Pepys wrote a diary.

We acted out a London street scene to see what it was like to live in London at that time,  including shop keepers, factory workers, children and even horses!

We're Going On A Bear Hunt!

We have been role playing the story using bear masks and props. We have made houses for the family to hide from the bear and re-enacting the story with grass, mud, leaves and water. We enjoyed singing the Bear Hunt song and doing all of the actions. Ask us to show you!!

Jack And The Beanstalk

We have been reading Jack and the Beanstalk. We have imagined what the magic beans could have turned into...maybe a monster, or a magical flower, or an orange tree! We have used old cardboard boxes to design and create a castle for the giant..."Fee Fi Fo Fum!!

Helpful Information

PE kits

Our PE sessions are held on a Monday and Tuesday.

Due to Health and Safety reasons, children who do not come to school with the correct PE kit will not be able to participate in PE lessons.

Please ensure that your child's PE kit is in school every day as occasionally we may have to change our day or are offered an extra session. 

Our PE kit is a red t-shirt, black shorts and trainers.

Please make sure that long hair is tied back for safety reasons.

Phonics

Please visit the Phonics area of this website to see some videos of your children showing you how to say the sounds and how to form their letters correctly.