Welcome to Calder Class

Curriculum Autumn – My Wonderful Body Animals – Humans / Survival and Growth Health – How we grow and stay healthy Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole Spring – Fire! Fire! Living things and Habitats The Great Fire of London Summer – Explorers Plant Growth Neil Armstrong and Christopher Columbus

Uniform and extras! Please make sure that all your child’s clothes and belongings are named. Please try and encourage your child to NOT bring any extra ‘toys’ to school. Water bottles will be sent home every Friday for a wash. Please return them on a Monday.

P.E. Monday and Thursday afternoons Please leave P.E. kits in school all half term. We will send them home for washing at the end of each half term or earlier if they get muddy! P.E. kit – plain red t-shirt, navy blue shorts, black pumps Please include a spare pair of underwear and socks in their P.E. kit just in case of emergencies.

Parental Involvement We value the support you provide your child. Homework – to be completed by the child with parental encouragement and support Art activities that will help with their fine motor skills Drawing Cutting Threading Communication Talk about their day and what they have learnt Model good speaking and listening

Reading and Homework Expectations Please try and listen to your child read every day and sign their reading record. We encourage that your child also discusses their book either by recalling what they have read or answering questions. This could also be done throughout the book by encouraging your child to predict what might happen or talk about the main events/characters. Maths and phonics homework will be sent home on a Friday. Please return this on Wednesday. Along with a half termly homework project.

Writing Encourage opportunities for writing – such as letters to family or friends, shopping lists, notes or reminders, stories or poems. Practice writing their full name and address. Write together – be a good role model for writing. Remember that good readers become good writers and develop their letter formation! Identify good writing features when reading (vocabulary, sentence structure, punctuation). Show your appreciation, praise and encourage, even for small successes!

Reading Listening to your child read can take many forms: Focus developing an enjoyment and love of reading. Enjoy stories together – reading stories to your child is equally as important as listening to your child read. Read a little at a time but often, rather than rarely but for long periods of time! Talk about the story before, during and afterwards – discuss the plot, the characters, their feelings and actions, how it makes you feel, predict what will happen and encourage your child to have their own opinions. Look up definitions of words together – you could use a dictionary. All reading is valuable – it doesn’t have to be just stories. Reading can involve anything from fiction and non-fiction, poetry, newspapers, magazines, football programmes, TV guides. Visit the local library - it’s free!

Maths Play mental maths games including counting in different amounts, forwards and backwards. Look for numbers on street signs, car registrations and anywhere else. Play games involving numbers or logic, such as dominoes and card games. Encourage opportunities for telling the time – o’clock and half past. Encourage opportunities for counting coins and money – finding amounts or calculating change when shopping. Look for examples of 2D and 3D shapes around the home. Identify, weigh or measure quantities and amounts in the kitchen or in recipes.

Date for your Diary Friday 12th October Calder Class Assembly and Stay and Play

Do you have any questions? Thank you! Do you have any questions?