Essential Information for Parents of children in Class 2
Autumn 1
Dear Parents/Guardians,
First of all I hope you all had a wonderful summer holiday and children are now ready
and raring to begin their time in Class 2. As some of you may already be aware, my
summer holiday was pretty special this year as I got married!
married name at school so am now Mrs. Petryshyn.
I will be using my
The children may have already
informed you as we had a practice before the summer holiday on transition day. At the
beginning of each term I will send these letters to inform you of our current topics in
school and any important information you need to know. I am extremely excited to
start this academic year and endeavour to make your children feel happy and safe and
to give them positive learning experiences.
Lining up
When lining up with your children on the playground in the morning, could you please
ensure that you are standing on the left of your child so that there is a separate line of
children and parents. This enables teachers to see who is here and prevents children
getting separated from their line when walking into school. Thank you.
Timetable
Tuesday and Thursday – Children will have Computing.
Wednesday Mornings – Children will have PE with Mrs Petty and French with Mrs
Winter.
Thursday – Children will have PE with myself and on alternate Thursday’s we will have
Music with Mr Watts.
Reading

Children will be heard once every week by me, Mrs Llewellyn and Mrs Curwen on
a three week rotation, children will have set days when they are heard, however,
this can sometimes change with the demands of the timetable so please could
you ensure that children bring their reading books and diary every day.

Children will also complete a guided reading weekly programme of activities.

Please complete the reading diary, making comments at least once a week as a
form of communication to us about how you think your child is getting on at
home with their reading.
Basic number work

Children will be expected to know the 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 10 timetables by the end
of Year 2.

To recognise and be able to form all numbers to 100 and begin to work with
three and four digit numbers.

To add and subtract.
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To multiply and divide.
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To know the number bonds to 20 and 100.
Literacy
This half term children will be studying and creating their own:
 Recounts on their summer holiday.
 Stories which mimic significant authors. Our significant author is Roald Dahl
and we will be reading and working on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
making clear links to our Creative Curriculum lessons.
 Instructions.
 Poetry.
Children will also have separate handwriting lessons which will focus on joining letters
correctly and consistently. I would highly recommend frequently practising cursive
handwriting at home. I can provide a laminated handout which clearly shows the
children how to join letters correctly. If you would like a copy just let me know and I
will send one home with your child. Additional writing opportunities will also be
available to the children in guided reading.
Numeracy
During this term we will be focusing on:

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Counting, partitioning and calculating.
Securing number facts and understanding shape.
Handling data and measures.
Curriculum Overview – Autumn Term 1
Our topic for this half term in Class 2 is going to be ‘Class 2 and the Chocolate
Factory’. Within this topic, a range of subjects are going to be covered. As part of
this unit, I would like to take the children to the Cadbury Factory. Children will learn
about the history of the Cadbury family and chocolate, get to see where chocolate
comes from, packaging products and the processes of melting and cooling. It will be an
extremely worthwhile experience for the children and put our topic into a real life
context.
I am currently trying to organise this trip with the factory but before
booking, need to know how many places we need to book. I will send a separate letter
with details of potential dates and costs of the trip and coach as soon as possible.
Design Technology

Food – Children will be evaluating already existing chocolate products and will
use these to design and then make their own new flavour of chocolate. This will
involve designing the packaging for their new product, cutting and mixing
ingredients to create a new chocolate bar and then evaluating their new product.
Science

Changing Materials – Within this unit children will learn about some of the ways
materials can be changed and that heating can cause changes which produce
materials which are often useful and tasty (chocolate!).
Experimental and
investigative work in this unit focuses on thinking about what is expected to
happen, making and recording observations and comparisons and deciding
whether a test is fair.
History

This half term children will be learning about a local significant person. This
person is John Cadbury. Children will learn about John Cadbury and his family,
what he did, why he did it, the factory and how the factory has impacted upon
our local area.
PE

Gymnastics – Within this unit children will explore rolling, jumping, sequences
and space. Children will need a t-shirt, shorts and pumps as kit for this unit of
PE.
SEAL

New beginnings – Within this topic children will take part in discussions and
activities on:
o
Community.
o
Feelings.
o
Emotions.
o
Problems and how to solve them.
Contact Arrangements
If you have any concerns about your child’s education or wish to make me aware of
important issues then I am available to speak to you at a mutually convenient time after
school. I hope that you have found this letter helpful and informative and hope that, in
partnership, we can ensure that this is a very successful and happy school year!
Yours sincerely
Mrs. B Petryshyn