Class 1 Curriculum News
Spring Term 2015
Welcome to Class One! We hope you had an enjoyable Christmas break. Mrs Harris will
continue to teach Class 1 every Monday and Tuesday Morning while Miss Claxton will teach
the children from Tuesday afternoon to Friday. Mrs Brown is the teaching assistant in
Class One and works with year one pupils for two days a week. We are also very lucky to
have Mrs May and Miss Lambert supporting in Class One.
For English we are continuing with our programme devised by Ruth Miskin called Read Write
Inc. This is primarily for Key Stage 1 and the children are assessed and placed into ability
groups. These groups are assessed approximately every six weeks and changes made
accordingly. As the name implies, it is an inclusive English programme which we hope will
continue to improve our writing standards.
In Maths we are working from the new National Curriculum. We have recently purchased
Abacus, a Maths scheme which will support us in following the new National Curriculum. It
offers a wide range of exciting activities and resources as well as a bank of Maths ICT games.
This term we will be covering counting, partitioning and calculating, securing number facts,
understanding shape, handling data and measures.
We are topic based to cover subjects like Geography, History, Art and D.T. However, Science,
Music, R.E., I.C.T., P.S.H.E. and P.E. will still be taught as stand-alone subjects. The topic for
this term is The Great Fire of London. Children will listen to the story of The Great Fire of
London and consider special possessions they would save from a fire. Children will locate
London on a map and will identify the 4 countries within the United Kingdom. We are also
planning a school trip to a local fire station.
P.E this term takes place on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Miss Claxton will teach dance on a
Tuesday in the hall. On Wednesdays a P.E teacher from Lacon will teach the children Games.
Games is outdoors but with the unpredictable weather it’s a good idea to have a named indoor
kit in school if needed. Could this be a time to remind you to please put names in all of your
children’s clothes.
In Science this term the children will be studying the different parts of flowering plants and
their functions. They will also be investigating the conditions affecting plant growth and
plants as living things and how water is transported in plants. We will also be learning about
plant life cycles, in particular how seeds are formed, dispersed and germinate.
The children will find out facts about the Sun from a variety of resources and observe its
apparent movement across the sky. They will also investigate how shadows change during the
day. The children will also learn about the 4 seasons and varied day length.
They will also describe the weather associated with each season and the changes this brings.
The children will learn this through story, art, songs and mime.
In R.E we will be studying Christianity and focusing on Baptism. The children will learn the
|Bible story of John the Baptist and reflect on christenings today. The children will visit the
church and learn about the font, and we are also hoping to stage a mock christening with the
children and the vicar.
In P.S.H.E. lessons, the children will follow a variety of themes. The scheme is from SEAL.
This term the theme is Going for Goals. The music topic for this term is called ‘What’s the
score’. This topic allows children to explore musical instruments and symbols as well as
learning some new songs.
The children will have a stand-alone ICT lesson on Friday afternoons. Children will use the
laptops, digital cameras, sound recorders and a variety of other technologies in school to
develop their ICT skills. Children will learn how to take photographs using a digital camera
and edit photographs using Picasa. Children will also be creating their own animations using the
Flux Animation Programme. Children will also apply the ICT skills taught during other
curriculum areas.
Miss Claxton will set a Read Write Inc homework every Thursday, due in for the following
Thursday. Mrs Harris will set a Maths homework every Tuesday to be completed for the
following Tuesday. If children have completed it before it is due then they are encouraged to
hand it in to be marked. All homework reinforces work completed in class and should be
enjoyable.
Children should bring their reading book bags to school every day. They will be listened to
once during the week and this will be recorded in their reading diary by Miss Claxton, Mrs
Harris or Mrs Brown. Please note children will be heard most days during Read Write Inc
lessons but this will not be recorded in children’s reading diaries. Reading should be done as
often as possible at home if only for a few minutes. We expect children to read books at
least twice at home before changing them. The second reading of a book is important for
children’s confidence, understanding of the book and fluency when reading.
We always appreciate having parents helping with reading and topic work during the
afternoons. Please come and see us if you have any free time and would like to help in any way.
We have lots of positive reward systems for good behaviour and many exciting activities
planned. If you need to come and see us, please contact the office to make an appointment as
mornings are usually hectic. We look forward to a super Spring term!
Many Thanks,
Miss Claxton and Mrs Harris