We are Little Treasures
Years 1 and 2
Autumn 2015
Our topic this term covers aspects of the design and technology, music, science
and PSHCE curriculum in a way that we hope will give children an engaging and
motivating context in which to learn. The areas we have planned to cover each
week are outlined in this leaflet, but within this framework there is considerable
flexibility to allow teachers the chance to spend more time on particular areas for
consolidation or extension, and for children to develop their own interests.
If you have any resources, expertise or think you can help develop this topic in
any way, please let us know. We value parental involvement in our school and
appreciate your support.
The Big Question!
We are continuing our use of a BIG QUESTION which links into the topic. This will
allow children to explore, learn, think deeply and refer back to the big question:
How would a pirate create a healthy lunch?
In addition to this, we will use the children’s ideas and lines of enquiry such as ‘Can we
build a pirate ship?’, ‘What can we eat to keep ourselves really healthy?’ and ‘Why do
pirates wear eye patches?’
1st-4th September: The Big Launch
In the first few days back after the holidays, we will be launching our new topic and
exploring some of the children’s questions and suggestions.
On Friday 4th
September, we will have a pirate dressing up day and treasure hunt. The children
will find coins with letters on and use them to spell secret pirate words.
1st-18th September: Songs at Sea!
The children will practising to be pirates by learning the names of the Oceans and
locating these on a world map. We will also be learning some pirate songs and the
children will add their own actions and create a musical score for the song. They will
also play instruments to accompany their singing.
14th September- 5th October: A Pirate’s Life for Me – Healthy Eating
We will be thinking about what makes a healthy lunch. The children will design a
healthy meal for a pirate and then visit ASDA to buy the ingredients. All of this
culminates in a picnic where we will eat our picnic lunches and sing a pirate song that we
have been learning. We hope to invite parents and carers to this event. More details to
follow.
Other activities:
-The children will have some discrete ICT lessons on coding in line with the new
National Curriculum.
-We are also looking forward to our annual visit from the ‘Life Bus’ and towards the
end of the half-term, the children will enjoy a visit from a pantomime company.
Homework
 All children will have a reading book at their level and a library book that they have
chosen, which may or may not be at their level. (Library books will usually be changed
once at week.)
 Most children will bring home a list of spellings each week that they have been
learning in their phonics group. They will need to practise these words throughout
the week (a few minutes each day is best) for a written spelling quiz on Mondays.
Spelling books must be in school on Mondays.
 The children will also be asked to complete additional tasks at home which will link
directly to, and support, work being covered in the classroom.
 It is recommended that your child reads at home every day. Please write a
comment in their reading diary to indicate how well they read, how much they
read and any problems that they may have had. Reading books and diaries need
to be in school every day.
Mathematics
For maths, the biggest focus in the National Curriculum is on number.
Most children in Year 1 will be working on:
-counting, reading and writing numbers to 100;
-counting in different multiples including ones, twos, fives and tens;
-saying one more and one less;
-identifying using objects and pictures and using the vocabulary of: equal to; more
than; less than (fewer); most; least;
-adding and subtracting 1-digit and 2-digit numbers to 20 (9 + 9, 18 - 9), including zero;
- adding three 1-digit numbers (e.g. 3+6+7);
- recalling and using number bonds and related subtraction facts within 20 (e.g. 6+4,
16+4).
Most children in Year 2 will be working on:
-reading and writing numbers to 100 and beyond in numerals and in words;
-recognising the place value of each digit in a 2-digit number (tens, ones);
-counting in steps of 2, 3, 5 and 10;
-comparing and ordering numbers from 0 up to 100;
-arranging, reading and writing numbers in increasing and decreasing order;
-solving problems using place value and number facts;
-rapidly recalling and using addition and subtraction facts to 20 (e.g. (17+3, 13+5)
-adding and subtracting numbers mentally including: a 2-digit number and ones (33-6)
and a 2-digit number and tens (46+20);
-recognising that addition can be done in any order and subtraction cannot.
English
Performance Poetry:
In the National curriculum, there is a focus on learning poetry by heart. In the first
half-term, we will be holding a performance poetry competition. Children will be given
time in class to select and start practising their poem but they will need to do some
practice at home as well, especially if they want to go through to the finals for the
chance to win some exciting prizes!
Y1 Labels, Lists and captions:
Children will hunt for labels and captions in the classroom and school environment and
they will create their own by hand and using a computer. This unit will culminate with
children creating a book linked to our topic on Fire! Fire! about fire engines and fire
fighters with labels and or captions working in a group or independently.
Y1 Instructions: The children will hear oral instructions and practise giving and
following oral instructions. They will learn how to follow simple written instructions and
look at the features of written instructions. The teacher and children will write a set
of instructions together and then the children will write their own simple instructions.
Y2 Classical Poetry: The children will listen to and learn a variety of classical poetry
including The Owl and the Pussy Cat and the Sound Collector. The will explore some of
the more challenging language in this genre of poetry. The children will also have the
opportunity to create their own poems based on some of the poems that they have
been learning.
Y2 Stories with familiar settings: Children read and tell a selection of stories. They
will learn to retell stories in pairs focusing on the sequence of events and specific
story phrases which they can then use in their own writing. They identify the
characters and use role-play to retell the story considering a character’s thoughts and
feelings and explore different courses of action. The children will describe a character
considering their appearance and personality. As the unit continues, they will develop
their ability to plan and write their own stories.
We hope you have found this information useful. If you have any questions
or comments about the information on this sheet, then please contact your
child’s teacher, who will do their best to help.