Hello everyone,

In English this week, the children continued working on the story Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers. They created amazing similes to describe the huge wave the characters encountered on their journey to Antarctica. The children also explored the conjunctions ‘but’ and ‘and’, using them to extend and improve their sentences. Today, they discovered a lost husky in the classroom and created ‘Lost’ posters, using adjectives to describe its appearance and explain how it might be feeling.

In Maths, the children completed their unit on fractions. They used practical resources to find halves and quarters of quantities, making sure that the groups were equal. We then began a new topic on position and direction. The children explored quarter, half, three-quarter and whole turns in a practical way. They also thought carefully about how the appearance of different shapes changes when particular turns are made.

In Art, the children really enjoyed using the techniques of rolling, folding and scrunching paper to create a 3D “Tree of Life”. We were so impressed with their imaginative ideas, as well as their focus and attention to detail.

Today was also our final swimming session. The children have thoroughly enjoyed their weekly lessons and have made fantastic progress over the past four weeks. Well done, Year 1, for showing such enthusiasm and determination throughout!

Next Week

Maths – The children will be using language such as left, right, forwards, backwards, above, and below, and will explore ordinal numbers.

English – The children will plan and write their own ‘lost and found’ style story.

History – The children will compare and contrast three major time periods.

Science – The children will learn about what plants need to grow well.

Art – The children will plan and create a paper spider sculpture.

RE – The children will learn about the story of the Good Samaritan.

Spellings for next Friday’s test

Group 1: bird, shirt, skirt, first, out, about, cloud, found

Tricky words: one, two

Group 2: boy, joy, toy, enjoy

Tricky word: the

Wishing you all fantastic weekend.

The Year 1 Team

 Hello everyone,

We’ve had a lovely week of learning in Year 1!

The children have been busy planning and writing their Antarctica animals fact files. They included all the key features of a fact file and wrote about what the animals look like, what they eat, fun facts, and information about their babies. Their work has been very interesting, and they showed great enthusiasm for the topic.

In Maths, the children have been learning about halves and quarters. They have been recognising and finding half and a quarter of shapes and quantities, using practical resources such as counters and objects to support their understanding. We have also been encouraging them to explain their thinking using mathematical language.

In History, the children really enjoyed learning about Queen Victoria’s reign. They explored what life was like during Victorian times and were particularly fascinated to learn about the lives of Victorian children, including their schooling, work, and daily routines.

Well done to everyone for a fantastic week of learning!

Next Week

Maths – The children will finish their topic on fractions and begin a new topic on position and direction. They will learn to describe movement and turns, using language such as left, right, forwards and backwards.

English – The children will be learning about similes and how to use them to describe size and shape. They will also practise using the conjunctions and, so, but and because to write compound sentences, and use adjectives to describe characters in more detail.

Art – The children will apply their paper shaping skills to create imaginative tree sculptures.

History – The children will learn about the life of Queen Elizabeth I and begin to understand why she is a significant historical figure.

Science – The children will describe and name the different parts of a plant and explore what each part does.

PSHE – The children will be creating ‘Incredible Me’ posters to celebrate their individuality and strengths.

Spellings for next Friday’s test:

Group 1: saw, paw, claw, yawn, blue, clue, glue, true

 Tricky words: any, many

Group 2: saw, paw, jaw, draw

Tricky word: me

Wishing you all a wonderful Bank Holiday weekend.

The Year 1 Team

 Hello everyone,

The children had a wonderful time celebrating Spanish Day yesterday! They thoroughly enjoyed the Spanish-style lunch and especially loved their Flamenco dance lesson in the afternoon. We hope you enjoy looking through the photos below.

In English, we have continued our work based on Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers. The children have been working hard on writing thoughtful letters of advice to the boy in the story, suggesting kind ways he could help the lost penguin. They also created clear and helpful instructions on how to support someone who is lost. It has been lovely to see their creativity and effort in their writing.

In Phonics, we are revising Phase 5 sounds and tricky words in preparation for the Phonics Screening Check in June. The children are building confidence with alternative spellings and recognising tricky words that don’t always follow usual phonetic patterns. To support this, spellings for this half term will focus on Phase 5 sounds and tricky words.

In Maths, the children have been exploring equal groups and learning about arrays and doubles. They have enjoyed applying their understanding through practical activities and hands-on resources.

In History, the children enjoyed learning about the life of Queen Victoria. They explored her life, family, and many responsibilities, and were particularly interested in finding out about Buckingham Palace and its many rooms.

Next Week

Maths – The children will begin a new topic on fractions. They will recognise and find a half of an object or shape, and a half of a quantity.

English – The children will create a fact file about Antarctic creatures.

Art – As part of their new topic, ‘Sculpture and 3D: Paper Play’, the children will shape paper to create 3D drawings.

History – The children will learn about the life of Queen Elizabeth I.

Science – The children will plant a variety of seeds, vegetables, and fruits.

PSHE – They will explore friendships and what makes a good friend.

RE – The children will discuss and write about books that are special to them.

Spellings for next Friday’s test:

Group 1: like, time, prize, slide, home, woke, note, stone,

Tricky words: were, here

Group 2: sea, seat, read, heap

Tricky word: was

Reminder

Phonics Home Learning

A letter was emailed this week in regards to the Phonics Screening Test that takes place in June. To get the children used to the format, I will be sending home a weekly practice sheet for them to complete at home. This involves simply asking your child to add the sound buttons on each word (real and nonsense) and allowing them to read the words. I do not need you to send the sheets back to school; please keep them at home and use them to look back over. Thank you for your continued support.

Phonics Booster

For those children who have received a Phonic Booster letter, these 20-minute sessions will begin on Tuesday 28th April, running from 8:20–8:45am.

Mrs Blatch or I will meet the children at the front office. Please ensure that the reply slip is returned next week.

Quiz Night Saturday 9th May

Get your thinking caps ready for our PTA Quiz Night on Saturday 9th May 2026! It promises to be a fantastic evening of fun, laughter and a little bit of healthy rivalry. It would be brilliant to see as many of you there as possible—whether you're in it to win it or just in it for the laughs!

Wishing you all a restful and enjoyable weekend.

The Year 1 Team

 Hello everyone,

It was wonderful to welcome the children back after the Easter break and to hear all about their adventures. They were especially excited to see the return of the swimming pool in the Key Stage 2 playground! All of the children had the opportunity to swim this week and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

In English, we began a new unit based on the lovely story Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers. The children were intrigued by a ‘lost’ penguin that appeared in Year 1 and came up with some fantastic questions about it. They also created excellent lists of adjectives to describe how the penguin might be feeling.

In Phonics, the children have been revising Phase 5 sounds and tricky words, continuing to build their confidence and fluency.

In Maths, we started a new topic on multiplication and division. The children practised counting in 2s, 5s and 10s, and explored how to recognise and make equal groups. They particularly enjoyed using counters to help them understand these concepts.

In History, we introduced our new topic on famous queens. This week, the children learned about the life of Queen Elizabeth II and showed great interest in her story.

It has been a fantastic first week back, and the children have worked incredibly hard. Well done, Year 1!

Next Week

Maths – The children will be learning to add equal groups, create arrays, make doubles, and form equal groups through grouping and sharing.

English – The children will explore the use of past tense verbs to retell a story. They will also write a letter of advice to the boy in the story and create a set of instructions on how to help someone who is lost.

Art – As part of their new topic, ‘Sculpture and 3D: Paper Play’, the children will explore making tube towers.

History – The children will learn about the life of Queen Victoria.

Science – The children will identify and name common plants during a nature walk around the school.

PSHE – The children will draw and label a picture of their family.

RE – The children will learn about sacred books and why they are special.

Spellings for next Friday’s test:

Group 1: day, play, tray, stay, sea, bead, read, heap

Tricky words: one, two

Group 2: day, play, tray, stay

Tricky word: you

Reminder

Quiz Night Saturday 9th May

Get your thinking caps ready for our PTA Quiz Night on Saturday 9th May 2026! It promises to be a fantastic evening of fun, laughter and a little bit of healthy rivalry. It would be brilliant to see as many of you there as possible—whether you're in it to win it or just in it for the laughs!

Wishing you all a restful and enjoyable weekend.

The Year 1 Team