Reception

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Welcome to Reception!

 Please read the sections of the website below for details about what we are learning about in the different areas of the curriculum this half term. We hope you enjoy reading our class page, where topic, literacy and mathematics information will be updated ready for the start of each half-term and the Reception blog will be updated fortnightly on a Friday. As always, there will be lots of photographs uploaded after all the exciting activities and events we get up to!

The Reception team for this year will be:

 Mrs Swift ( Assistant Headteacher and Early Years Leader) - Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday

Miss Duggleby- Letheren- Alternate Wednesday afternoons, Thursday and Friday

Mrs Wilson (Teaching assistant) - Monday all day, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday mornings

Mrs Bolton (Teaching assistant) - Monday- Friday mornings and Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday all day

Mrs Wilson (Learning support assistant)- Monday to Friday

Mrs Questa- (HLTA)- Monday afternoon (covering Mrs Swift's leadership time) 

Mr Seaton

Mrs Swift is the Early Years Leader and will be teaching on Monday and Tuesday all day and Wednesday morning and every other Wednesday afternoon. Miss Duggleby- Letheren teaches every other Wednesday afternoon, Thursday and Friday. Mrs Wilson is the teaching assistant every morning and Monday afternoon. Mrs Bolton is the teaching assistant in our class every morning and Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday afternoons, her focus will be on developing language and communication with the children in the different areas of learning, doing focused learning with the children and small group interventions. On Monday afternoons Mrs Swift is out of class doing lots of exciting leadership jobs for Reception and the whole school and so Mrs Questa will be teaching Music on this afternoon. This may seem a complicated schedule at first with lots of new names, but the children soon know who is teaching them and on which days. Sometimes there may be reasons that Mrs Swift and Miss Duggleby - Letheren need to be out of class for some extra time due to training or carrying out different roles across school, so we may change days occasionally or there may be another member of staff teaching the children. If this is the case, we will always talk to the children about it so they know who will be teaching them.

Welcome to Autumn 1

Happy September! We are so excited to start the new school year and get to know you and your children! We had such a lovely week in July when the children came in for their transition days, the children amazed us with their maturity and independence and how well they played with the resources in the classroom, we can't wait to build on these skills over the course of this year. 

During the first week of the school term ( Wednesday 2nd September - Friday 4th September) the children will be coming into school for half days and will need to be collected after their lunch at 1pm. The children will start school on different days, (please see letters from school for your child's start date) by staggering the children's start date it means that the children can come into school in smaller groups, this will enable us to really get to know your children, it will also mean that it is less overwhelming for the children on their first day and there will be room for you to bring your child into school and get them settled. If it is your child's first day at school then please arrive at 9.15am and come into the classroom with your child. After this you should arrive at school for 8.50am, the bell will ring in the playground and the children should line up outside Reception and come into school independently. The doors to Reception will close at 8.55am, so if you arrive after this time then you need to enter school via the school office.

Our PE day for this half term will be Friday - so please come in PE kit on this day.

Our PE lessons will start on Friday 11th September, once the children are all in full time. There is no need to come in PE kit before this date.

 First Week

Over the course of the first week of term when the children are in half days we will be carrying out lots of observations on the children playing. Observations of play are the primary method of assessment in Early Years, these observations will enable us to make baseline assessments on the children. We use these observations and assessments to plan learning that suits the needs of your child and helps them to make progress. We will also be teaching your children about routines of the school day.  We will be focusing on organising and putting on our belongings independently, tidying up our learning resources, lining up at playtimes and how to take it in turns to speak when we are having whole class discussions. The children will also be learning to recognise their own names during our self registration. They will be learning how to choose their own lunch.

Second Week 

The children start school full time during the second week of term ( Monday 7th September) During this week we will continue to observe the children playing and will also do some very short 1:1 assessments with the children to inform our observations and help build up a full picture of your child's development,

This week we also will be starting our Little Wandle Phonics Lessons!

We will also be reading our Zones of Regulation books and thinking about feelings and emotions.

Our Zones of Regulation books are-

Ruby's Worry

Bea's Bad Day

Hanna Asks for Help

Ravi's Roar

The Zones of Regulation is a programme we use to help children understand and talk about their emotions and feelings. It teaches children that all emotions are okay and gives them simple strategies to help them recognise how they are feeling and choose what might help them feel ready to learn.

Children learn about four different Zones, which are represented by colours:

• 🔵 Blue Zone – feeling tired, sad, worried, or low in energy.
• 🟢 Green Zone – feeling calm, happy, focused, and ready to learn.
• 🟡 Yellow Zone – feeling excited, frustrated, nervous, or unsettled.
• 🔴 Red Zone – feeling very angry, overwhelmed, or out of control.

The aim is not for children to stay in the Green Zone all the time. Every Zone is okay, and we all experience different Zones throughout the day. Instead, children learn to recognise their emotions and develop strategies to manage them safely and appropriately.

In Reception, we use age-appropriate language, stories, activities, visuals and discussion to help children build their emotional vocabulary and develop the skills they need to regulate their emotions.

We encourage families to use the same language at home, as this can help children talk about their feelings and understand what strategies might help them.

Third Week 

This week we will teach the children about the RESPECT code and our 12 Christian Values through the use of stories. See the topic section for more details!

During the first few weeks of term Mrs Swift will also be completing the Reception Baseline Assessment. The RBA became statutory in schools in September 2021. It is an activity-based assessment of pupils’ starting points in:

• language, communication and literacy
• mathematics

The RBA is a short task-based assessment. Children use practical resources and an Ipad to complete these tasks and teachers record the results on a laptop, computer or tablet. It is not used to label or track individual pupils. Schools are required to carry out the assessment within the first 6 weeks of pupils starting reception. More information will be sent out once the children have started school.

Learning this half term

This half term the children will be looking at what we need to become a superhero learner. Their learning will be based on the RESPECT code and our Christian Values. The Early Years Foundation Stage also has ' Characteristics of Effective learning' which are central to all learning in Reception. These Characteristics of Effective learning will be reported on at the end of the year. As a school we believe that these characteristics underpin all learning and it is extremely important that children learn and develop these skills to create a life long love of learning. At the bottom of this page are links to all three documents, please take the time during your child's first few weeks at school to familiarise yourself with the language we use as a school when talking about the skills we need to learn as the children will be using lots of words from these documents in everyday life!

 We understand that your child starting school for the first time can be overwhelming and that there is a lot of information to take in! If you have any questions in the meantime please email or ring the school office and myself or Miss Duggleby - Letheren can arrange a time to ring you back. 

We absolutely love what we do and we cannot wait to begin the year with your children and help them develop a life long love of learning.

The team in Reception believe that the classroom is the third teacher and so we spend lots of time setting out the areas of provision and we can't wait for you to start exploring them! We believe that the there should be the same types of provision both indoors and outdoors so that your child can learn in the environment that suits them best. Our provision promotes choice, independence and cooperation it is organised in a way that enables children to develop key communication, language, literacy and mathematical skills at every opportunity, whether this be independently or with scaffolding from an adult.

We believe that learning in Early Years is a partnership between home and school. We really value your input into your children's learning and see parents as partners in this. You know your children the best and you will be able to tell us lots about their learning and development outside of school, which really helps us to build up a full and rounded picture of the children. With this in mind, our classroom door is always open. Any queries that you may have are hugely valued, so please do not hesitate to contact any member of the school team and we will be happy to arrange a meeting. We use tapestry all the time to update you with your child's learning and you can also update us with any exciting things you have been doing or key milestones in your child's development that you would like us to be aware of. We also use Tapestry to send out reminders and information, so it is useful to download the app on your phone or check the website regularly. 

Please click on the boxes below for details of what we will be learning this half term.

Our Learning Journey this half term-  We are Superheroes

 Wk bg 31.08.26: Why is it important for superheroes to understand and talk about how they feel?- This week we will be looking at Zones of Regulation and the different stories associated with each zone will be talking about emotions and thinking about why it is important to talk about how we feel. This week will have a PSED and C&L focus. We will be learning lots of new vocabulary relating to feelings and emotions.

Green Zone- Hanna asks for help- focused, calm, happy

Blue Zone- Bea's bad day- poorly, sad, tired

Yellow Zone- silly, excited, frustrated, worried

Red Zone- Ravi's Roar- angry, scared, over excited 

Wk bg 7.09.26: What rules and routines do I need to become a superhero learner? This is a RESPECT code themed week. We will start by learning about what the words in the RESPECT code mean, we will then learn about the 12 Christian values that form part of the RESPECT code. We will work in groups to create RESPECT code superhero learners by drawing a large person and painting them. We will then think about when we may have displayed that particular RESPECT code trait. In order to help the children learn about the 12 Christian values we will be reading lots of books. If you have some of these at home you can read them and talk about the values. This week will be a PSED and C &L focus.

The Selfish Crocodile-  compassion, courage, forgiveness and friendship

Giraffes can't Dance- generosity, perseverance and respect

Hare and the Tortoise- perseverance

The Smartest Giant in Town- generosity

The Boy who cried Wolf- trust and truth

Amazing Grace- justice

The Good Mood Hunt- thankfulness

The Prodigal Son- forgiveness

The Good Samaritan- service

The Lion Inside- Courage

Key Vocabulary 

resilience, equality, service, positivity, empathy, choices, togetherness, friendship, compassion, generosity, justice, perseverance, courage, trust, thankfulness, respect, forgiveness, truthfulness

Areas of Learning and Phonics, Reading and Writing

This half term we will be covering  Phase 2 of Little Wandle- see the phonics section of the website for more detail on this.

We will send out weekly tapestry updates on what we will be covering.

We will start our 'three reads' which will focus on vocabulary and initial sounds

More information will be given at the Little Wandle Phonics Evening