Welcome to Reception!
Now that your child has started school, we thought it might be useful to share the information below. If there are ever any questions, please feel welcome to ask a member of the team or drop a note on Tapestry.
Routines
At the start of the day, we encourage the children to be as independent as possible, by carrying in their belongings and putting them away. The children experience whole class carpet sessions, small group activities, story times and choosing time (indoors and outdoors). As part of our Literacy during the first half term we will be using our imagination to make up new stories and we will also be using the stories The Three Little Pigs and The Gigantic Turnip. As part of Understanding the World we will be learning about what makes people special. We will also introduce the children to PE and running on the track as part of their physical education.
Food and drink
Please send your child in with a named water bottle as they are allowed to drink from these throughout the day. Bottles must only contain water. For those parents who have requested, milk is provided. Reception children are provided with a morning snack of fruit and then have their lunch 11.30-12.30.
Reading
Once a week your child will bring a reading book home (usually without any words to begin with) and a yellow reading record book. Picture books provide the opportunity for your child to describe the characters and setting, discuss what might be happening and what might happen next. Encourage your child to use the phrases ‘Once upon a time’, ‘One day’, ‘Unfortunately’, ‘Luckily’ and ‘Finally’ during their retelling. Please fill in your child’s yellow reading record book and we will then be able to send a new book home. We encourage children to re-read their book daily before returning it, to develop fluency and confidence. Spending time reading at home is extremely valuable and will help your child to make progress faster. Please try and make reading with your child part of your daily routine.
Library books
We also have a class set of library books which your child will be able to choose from on a Friday. This picture book is for you to read to your child and they will keep it until the next Friday. When they return their book they will be able to choose another book to take home. We hope that sharing lots of books will help to develop a love of reading.
Phonics
At Dunalley we use the scheme Read Write Inc. to teach phonics. When we begin our lessons we will introduce a new sound each day and send home a yellow phonics exercise book with the sound they have learnt. Your child will benefit from sharing these sounds with an adult at home and having a go at writing the letter too. They may also enjoy spotting objects around their home which begin with their new sound.
Maths
During Reception we aim to build the strong foundations required to excel in maths with a deep focus on the numbers 1-10, how they are made up and addition and subtraction facts within 10. We use Numicon as a resource to support our maths learning and you can purchase this from Amazon if you would like to have a set at home. We also watch Numberblocks episodes, which can be found on BBC iPlayer at home.
PE
Although children are not required to change for PE at school, they do have to put waterproofs and wellies on and being able to dress and undress independently is an important skill to develop. Please encourage your child to dress and undress themselves at home and learn to put on their shoes independently. Please avoid school shoes with laces until your child can do them up.
Activities
We strive to provide the children with opportunities to learn in both the indoor and outdoor environment. We like to go outside even though it is sometimes wet and muddy. Therefore, please send your child in with named waterproofs and a pair of named wellies.
Collecting your child
In order to ensure your child’s safety we only let the children out as we see the parent/carer who is collecting them. As we are still getting to know you, this may take a little time at the beginning of the term, so please bear with us. If your child is going home with someone other than yourself, you must always let us know who will be collecting them, as otherwise we will be unable to let them go (unless they have been named as an approved person to collect on your forms to the office). If it is an emergency situation, please phone the school office.
Inhalers
If your child is asthmatic, please ensure that you bring in a named inhaler to be kept at school.
Please name everything that your child wears or brings to school. It would be useful if you could also name their shoes, as many of the children have the same ones. Please also put some spare trousers, pants and socks in a labelled bag.
We hope this helps you understand a little more about Reception and we look forward to getting to know you and your child. We use Tapestry as a key part of our communication, so please make sure you check this regularly and feel free to comment and like the posts we send, as well as adding some of your own as we love to see what the children get up to outside of school and celebrate this with their peers.
Thank you for your support!
Miss Underwood and Miss Richards
Class Teachers
Mrs Garrett, Mrs Hall and Mrs Musto. (Mrs Perrett is also with us on Wed PM and Fri PM)
Teaching Partners
Mrs Flood covers PPA time in RU on Wed PM. Mrs Garrett covers PPA on Wed PM in RR.