Week beginning 4th March

Hello Year One,

The children settled in quickly after the holiday and have been working hard all week.
For maths we have been problem solving. In English we have been looking at the journey our mail takes and the children have been writing letters, thank you cards and invitations.
We have been looking at seasons again in Science, but this time with a focus on the weather.
The children enjoyed thinking about the school community in our RE lesson, with many of them recognising that people have to do many jobs to enable the school to run smoothly.

Today was pyjama day and this caused great excitement and they had a lot of fun.

I have given the children spellings to learn at home and at school next week. They will receive the spellings on a Friday and the following Friday they will have the test for those spellings. There are three groups for the spellings and I will post them on the blog each week. Remember there is also a copy in your child's book bag.

Group One  


I
no
the

Group Two

she
we
me
he

Group Three

said
have
like
do
some
come

I am working through the lists of tricky words and high frequency words for each phase in the phonics scheme.

This term we will be learning:

Maths

We will continue with problem solving for another week. Following this we will be focussing on measures, money and counting in 2, 5s and 10s.

English

We are currently focussing on post and letter writing. I have some great books which the children are enjoying. These include 'Here Comes Mr Postmouse' and 'Meercat Mail.' The children also love the 'Jolly Postman' stories.
We are using these books as an inspiration for writing. Next week we will be writing a letter. We will also be learning how to write reports and will spend two weeks focusing on poetry.

Science

Our focus this term is Seasons again, but this time with an emphasis on the weather and how the changes in the seasons affect our lives and the natural environment.

RE

We have been learning about baptism and I do hope to take the children to the local church so that they can see where babies are baptised and hopefully hear more about the meaning of baptism.
We will move on to The Easter Story and the children will use a story board to sequence this story.

ART

The children will be learning about the artist Claude Monet. We have already started this topic. They will be using chalk pastels and water colour paints to recreate the style and focus of impressionism.

DT

The project is going well. The homes that the children have made are amazing. It also great for the rest of the family to get involved and as the children talk about their  structures they are proud to explain who in their families did the different parts.
The children explain the materials they used, where they got the materials, how they made the structure and which parts they contributed to. They explain which parts of the project were challenging and they have learned about finer detail by seeing the tiny additions added to create authenticity.
We are all looking forward to the rest of the homes to arrive.

Next Thursday is World Book Day and I have already heard the children planning which character they would like to come to school as. They can bring the book that the character belongs to into school because we spend some time discussing this.

Our class theme will be 'Alice In Wonderland. ' I have already started to read the story and they are enjoying every moment! We will be role playing the story and this will include a 'Mad Hatter's' tea party. We will be using fine bone china and a teapot to create authenticity. I will provide some fruit for the party. If you do not want your child to have the fruit please let me know.

I hope everyone has a happy weekend.

Ms Davis

Week ending 15th February 2019

Dear Year One,

We have had an exciting week at school. Some more 'home projects' have come into school and it is great to see the variety of materials chosen to build them. The detail is amazing and I know a lot of effort has gone into this project. The children feel so proud of their achievements and love the fact that other members of their families have worked on the project with them.
We were sad to say goodbye to Mrs Wells this week. She sent you a message:

Thank you all very much for the lovely flowers and generous gift card. Your children have been wonderful and it has been a pleasure to help teach them and see their confidence grow.
Wishing you all the very best and thank you once again.

Jan Wells x

There will be a few changes after half term. The children will be given spellings on a weekly basis. The spellings will be given on the Friday of each week and they will have a week to learn them at home and school.

The children will be able to use the school library and will be bringing a library book of their choice home on a weekly basis. The book must be returned the following week. I will update you on which day of the week this will be.

I will be writing a blog in the holidays to update you on plans for the second half of this term.
I hope you all have a restful and happy week and I look forward to seeing you on Monday 25th February.

Many thanks
YDavis

Week beginning 11th February 2019

Hello Everyone,

We have had a busy week completing lots of projects. The children created giant sculptures outside to complete the work we have been covering. We will have a display of this project ready for Open Evening.
The children have been learning to write instructions and this work will continue next week. We have been focusing on writing in sentences and the presentation of their English work.
We have new maths equipment which the children have been learning to use. They have been learning different ways to add and subtract by regrouping to ten.
Thank you for the Victorian house India. This is perfect for our project in history at the moment. We are learning about the style and features of Victorian homes.

Next Week

Maths

The children will be subtracting 1-digit numbers from numbers between 10 and 20. They will be regrouping using tens frames and bead strings.

English

We will be continuing to learn how to read, write and follow instructions. They will be using flow charts and learning the difference between commands and requests.

Science

It will be our last week investigating materials. We will be exploring materials that are used for building.

RE

The children will be using role play to learn about Baptism.

History

Next week we will be exploring the objects used in Victorian homes.

Art

The children will be drawing Victorian homes, developing their skills with shading.

There is a Sharing Assembly on Monday and there will be eight children from Year One taking part. Letters are sent home a week before a Sharing Assembly.

The next two Sharing Assemblies will be;

1st April 2019

Nicole Kamana
Lila Huseyin
Jayce Manzi
Julia Sibanda
India Knappett-Shillinglaw
Leah Prime
Isabelle Brignull
Ethan Oncel

20th May 2019

Dilvin Erin
Anvika Mushini
Georgia Wood
Max Ralph
Albie Thompson
Nedas Venckus
Eloise Foley
Maya Fachini




It will be Open Afternoon on Wednesday from 3pm until 4.30pm. I look forward to seeing you then.
Ms Davis

Week beginning 4th February 2019

Hello Year One,

We have had an interesting and very different week! The snow brought so much fun and laughter. It was great to see the children enjoy the weather.

We really enjoyed our walk to the woods and the snowfall was an added bonus. The children returned from the walk and drew designs of the sculpture they wanted to make. The results are impressive.

There will be a display of this project up in the class room before half term. You will be able to see it at 'open afternoon.'

NEXT WEEK

Maths

We will be working on numbers to twenty, using tens frames. The children are learning how to re-group numbers to make it easier to add and subtract. They will be learning how to count back from 20 to zero. 

English

Next week we will begin a two week project on 'instructions.' The children will be learning to write instructions and follow instructions. 

History

The children will be researching 'Victorian Homes' next week. They will be looking for differences and similarities between our homes today and homes from The Victorian Period. We will be looking at old photos and the children will decide whether they would like to live in a Victorian home.

ART

We will be continuing our work on sculpture as the children will work in groups to produce a large model outside. We collected some large sticks and I have a large box, but if anyone has any natural items such as tree stumps etc they will be gladly received.

Science

We will be continuing to group materials according to their properties.

PSHE

The children will be thinking about something they wish to achieve and the steps they need to take in order to reach their goals.

Many thanks to all the friends and parents that accompanied us on our walk to the woods. 

Congratulations to Nathan as he has completed his home project and was proud to share his model bedroom with the class.

I hope that the children who have been unwell are feeling better. 

Ms Davis

Week beginning 28th January 2019

Hello All,

We have had a busy and productive week. The children have been learning the days of the week, months of the year and seasons.
 For English we completed our work on the book 'The Last Noo-Noo.'
On Wednesday the children planted magic seeds outside as they wanted to grow trees of their choice. We had a great variety, from chocolate trees to footballer trees! They wrote a story about their trees growing and producing their favourite things. They all enjoyed this and produced interesting and funny tales!
In science we were increasing our scientific vocabulary, by describing different materials.
The children continued their work on different homes and this week we looked at the features of houses.

Thank you for a great response of helpers for our walk to the woods on Thursday 31st January. All those who have already replied are welcome to come. We won't need any more.

Please could you ensure that your child comes to school with a reading book and record card every day. It is so important that we hear them reading as often as we can.

NEXT WEEK

Maths

We will be working with number next week as the children learn different strategies to add to ten or twenty.

English

The children will be writing poems around the theme of colour next week. If anyone has any swatches of material coloured orange, red, green, yellow, blue or purple I would be really grateful for them. We will be looking at items of different colours and creating poems which describe them.

Science

Next week we will move on to grouping materials. The children will be grouping them as either metal, wood, plastic or fabric.

History

I hope the home projects are underway now. As soon as they are completed they can be brought into school. It is better for us to receive them gradually.
Next week we will be looking at homes of the past.

ART

Our walk is on Thursday when we will be collecting a variety of natural items such as sticks, leaves, pebbles etc to create into sculptures when we return.

PSHE

I will read ' I'm Going On A Bear Hunt.' We will discuss the obstacles the family came up against and make a class story about the obstacles we have overcome since the beginning of the school year.

I wish you all a happy and restful weekend.
Ms Davis

Week beginning 21st January 2019

Hello Year One,

We have had a busy week studying length, height, mass and speed in maths, different activities taken from the book 'The Last Noo-Noo' by Jill Murphy and investigating the properties of materials in science.
We have also been looking at the work of famous artists, particularly Andy Goldsworthy as he is well-known for his amazing work in sculpture. We began this project by creating sculptures from plasticine. The children really enjoyed this activity and were so proud of their work.

Next Week

Maths

We will be learning the days of the week, the months of the year and the seasons. The children will also be learning how to use a timetable.

English

We will be continuing to work from the book 'The Last Noo-Noo.' The children will be writing their own stories and designing and labelling a 'noo-noo snatcher.'

History

Our topic work will continue as we look at the types of homes people have and identify features of different homes.

ART

Weather permitting, we hope to take the children to the local woods to collect natural materials for their sculptures. If the weather is not good we will use the school grounds.

Science

We will continue to focus on materials. This week we will focus on why certain materials are used.

RE

Our lesson will be on 'community' this week and we will be discussing what this means to us. We will focus on the school community and how we work together.

After speaking to Mr Mills (regarding PE kit) I can confirm the children need:

• PE shorts
• PE t-shirt
• Trainers or plimsoles (preferably trainers)
• Track suit

I wish you all a restful and happy weekend.

Ms Davis

Week beginning 9th January 2019

Happy New Year,

I hope you all had a wonderful rest and a very happy Christmas.

We are excited to start the new term and have lots of new ideas.

English

This term we will working on contemporary fiction in English. We will be reading 'The Last Noo Noo' by Jill Murphy. Many activities will come from this story. We will be focusing on the key skills in reading and writing, using phonic knowledge to decode words from the story. We will be focusing on suffixes and writing in the past tense. The children will be writing their own story about a magic tree. We will be writing instructions and sorting phrases into questions, statements and demands.

Maths

We are starting the term by learning the language for height, mass and speed. We will be using scales to learn about balance. The children will be sequencing events, days of the week and months of the year. Our number work will include adding and subtracting one and two-digit numbers to twenty. The children will be focussed on learning their number bonds to 5, 10, 20 and 50.

Science

Our topic this term is 'materials.' We will be learning the features and properties of a variety of materials. We will be categorising materials according to different criteria. The children have a new water tray so that they can experiment with how water affects materials. We will be looking at what different materials are used for.

History

Our history project is 'Homes.' The children will be identifying and investigating a variety of homes today and in the past. We will be taking a walk around Potters Bar to look at the different types of housing. We will investigate similarities and differences between homes today and homes in past times. We will focus on Victorian housing. We will be learning about the features inside of homes.

ART

This term we will be focusing on sculpture and who creates it. We will investigate the materials and tools used for sculpture. We will be looking at the work of famous artists. Once we have a thorough background knowledge and understanding we will begin our own sculptures, from manmade and natural materials.

DT/Home Project

Our design and technology project will be carried out as a 'home learning' project. As we are studying homes in history, materials in science and sculptures in art it would be fitting to design a home. The children can do this using anything they like. Parents and friends can help them. They can use shoe boxes ( I have a few) or anything they feel is appropriate. They can design a home (flat, bungalow, house, caravan, tent) or just a room in a home. They will need to choose the materials they use carefully and give reasons for their choices. This is probably their first home learning project. They have until Easter to complete it, so there is no rush. The children can take their time collecting objects and materials that they feel will be useful in their project. Please come and talk to me about this if you need further information.

ICT

The children will be using the computer suite this term. We will be working on maths seeds and keyboard skills. We will continue to discuss e-safety. The children will be taking photographs and making videos.

RE

We will begin the term by reflecting on our families and our communities. I will be taking the children to the local church and we will focus on baptism as a ceremony. We will be learning how different religions pray and how symbols and special objects are used during prayer.

PSHE

Dreams and goals will be the feature of our PSHE lessons. As it is a new year we will reflect upon what we are happy with, what we would like to change and our goals for the future. We will discuss how it feels to be afraid to try something new and how we often have obstacles to overcome. The children will learn about positive attitudes and how this can affect our lives.


If you would like to discuss any of the above please come and see me either before or after school as I am usually available.

We have introduced a 'Feelings Traffic Lights' chart so that the children can move their name to indicate that they are feeling overwhelmed by something. Sometimes children don't want to tell a teacher immediately when they have an issue, so this is a good way of them indicating they need our help. They are very excited about the chart, but I am asking them not to over-use it, as it is there for difficult feelings that they need help with.

If your child needs a change of clothes during the school day and we have changed them, could you please return the items we have lent you, as we run out very quickly!

Please ensure that your child has a full PE kit in school. They need plimsoles for indoor PE, with shorts and a tee-shirt. For outdoor PE they need a track suit/jogging bottoms and sweatshirt. They also need outdoor shoes/trainers for these sessions.

Many thanks
Ms Davis