Knutsford School Welcome to Year Reception

Staff Class teachers: Miss Griffiths (Birch) & Mrs Baldwin (Lime) TAs: Mrs Monahan (Birch) & Miss Pounds (Lime) Intervention TA: Mrs Kanji PPA staff: Mrs Wellock (Birch) & Mrs Hill (Lime) MSAs: Mrs David, Miss Dunne & Mr Massally Your child may also come into contact with the following members of staff who work across the school: Mrs Hutchinson (Inclusion Coordinator) Mrs McConnon (Inclusion Support Worker) Mrs Jain (EAL teaching assistant) Mrs Tunwell (fine and gross motor skills teaching assistant)

Daily routines The children should arrive by 8.55am each day and, when the whistle blows, line up on the infant playground. If your child is late they will need to sign in at the office so they can be registered. At the end of the day the children will be seen out of their classroom door. All infant children are provided with a free healthy snack. In Reception we have ‘rolling snack’ several times a week between 10.00 - 10.45. We will be asking for parent helpers to assist with this. Lunchtime is at 12.00 – 1.00

Topics The main topics the children will be learning about are: Each half term you will receive a curriculum newsletter which outlines what we are aiming to teach in each subject. Previously we have had a dress up day in Spring 1, gone on a mini beast hunt to Knutsford playing fields in Spring 2 and visited Woburn Safari Park in Summer 1. Autumn 1 Magical Me Autumn 2 Celebrations Spring 1 Space/Traditional tales Spring 2 Mini beasts Summer 1 Animals Summer 2 Around the World

PE We have PE on Thursday (indoor) and Friday (outdoor) PE kits should be in school every day in case of unavoidable changes to the timetable. Children will be put into their houses before Christmas and we will let you know which colour t-shirt they will need to have. Siblings will be in the same house so coloured t-shirts can be worn straight away. The main focus of PE each term is as follows: Autumn 1 Gymnastics / Bean bags Autumn 2 Dance / Ball skills Spring 1 Gymnastics / Hoops and Quoits Spring 2 Dance / Athletics Summer 1 Summer 2 Gymnastics / Games

Reading Reading is the key to success in many areas of the curriculum and we give it a high priority. For the first half term we hear the children read individually (once a week). This will alternate between class teachers and the TAs. All children start by reading books without words to develop their story telling, prediction and comprehension skills. After October half term the children will have guided reading sessions once a week where we look at a book in more depth as a group. ‘Quick as a Click’ words are checked on your child’s reading day. These will be changed when your child can read them fluently. The reading book your child takes home will be changed weekly, please sign their reading record to show it has been read. On Fridays children can choose a ‘shared book’. This is for you to read to them.

Book Bingo At the beginning of this half term a book bingo sheet will be glued into the front of the children’s Reading Records. Using the children’s reading book and shared book you can tick the different categories when they have been read. This is to encourage the children to read a wider variety of texts. It will be changed at the beginning of each half term, if the previous one has been completed.

Home learning Reception Home Learning consists of – Reading book, Quick as a Click Words and Phonic flashcards. Flashcards will be given out on a Friday, showing the sounds your child has learnt that week. The flashcards can be used to build words and also segment to read.

School uniform We expect all children to wear the correct school uniform at all times, including for PE: http://www.knutsford.herts.sch.uk/parent-info/school-uniform/ All items should be clearly marked with your child’s name. Lost property! We endeavour to return named items but most items in lost property are not named.

E-safety E-safety is of paramount importance in today’s world and it forms an ongoing theme in our computing curriculum in each year group. The e-safety codes we use with the children, along with other information you may find useful, can be viewed on the school website. http://www.knutsford.herts.sch.uk/children-learning/e-safety/ Please be aware of what your child accesses on computers, tables and phones at home. Unless you have the appropriate controls in place your child will be able to access more than cute kitten videos on You Tube.

Communication Communication is a two way process. Please do not hesitate to talk to us if you have any queries or concerns and we will do our very best to help in any way we can. And vice-versa, we will contact you if we have any queries or concerns regarding your child’s learning or behaviour. How to contact us: Note to school with child Mornings (for very quick messages) After school Leave a message with admin staff and we will contact you Parent teacher consultation evenings

Parental help Do you have any spare time? We are always looking for parents to come in and help, preferably on a regular basis. If you have half an hour to spare you could hear children read. Have a chat with the class teacher if you would like to offer regular help. Letters for rolling snack will go home tomorrow. If you are able to help once or regularly please fill in the form and return. Parental help is subject to satisfactory DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) checks being carried out. Further information is available from Mrs Allnutt in the school office.

Magic moments We want to celebrate the successes your child has had at school and at home. If your child has a ‘magic moment’ please send in a photo/certificate/ medal for our board. This could be of a special event, completing a challenge or moving onto a different stage in a club.

Being independent When we change into PE kits for the first time it usually takes at least 30 minutes! Please practise the following with your child: Putting clothes that are inside out the correct way (sleeves) Putting a coat on and doing it up (zips) Dressing and undressing

Tapestry Please comment on your child’s observations. We’d love to see your child’s learning at home, please add your own observations. If you have not changed your password please do so.

Questions?