Welcome to Snowdrop Class!
We hope you have had an amazing Summer, and are looking forward to a brand-new year at St Marks!
We are very excited to introduce you to our wonderful Reception class called ‘Snowdrop’.
This new school year, we will be learning and exploring a wide range of topics, such as travelling back in time and going on pre-historic adventures with Dinosaurs to embarking on intergalactic journeys into Space.
To begin the year, this Autumn term, Snowdrop Class will be focusing on the topic of ‘Magical Me’. At this time of the year, this topic supports our learners with their transitions from Nursery or Playgroup to Reception. The topic of ‘Magical Me’ allows the children and teachers to form positive relationships whilst learning and understanding how we learn and play. ‘Magical Me’ is a core topic which facilitates the ‘seven areas of learning’, particularly PSED (Personal, Social, Emotional Development), and CL (Communication and Language).
Throughout the school year, children in Snowdrop Class will be developing their independence, communication and cognitive abilities. Our children will encounter new experiences and develop both new and existing skills.
This year, your child is about to begin a very exciting journey and we are looking forward to getting to know all our new families and to welcome the children into our school family.
Communication & Language (C&L)
This is the first prime area of the seven areas of learning within the EYFS (Early Years Foundation Stage). At St. Marks’ we recognise the importance of communication, language and oracy.
During your child’s time in Reception, they will develop the skills to communicate effectively with others and be able to do so with confidence and ease. This term we will share a range of stories to establish a love of reading and a value of books. Children will be able to discuss with their peers the various stories they have been exploring. Upon exploring familiar texts, children will begin to develop their confidence when speaking to others. In relation, to our topic of ‘Magical Me’, your child will develop the tools to be able to confidently speak in front others, ask and answer ‘why’ and ‘how’ questions whilst heightening their thirst for knowledge.
Personal Social and Emotional Development (PSED)
This is the second prime area of the seven areas of learning. Similar to C&L, development in PSED is essential as this area incorporates and constructs the building blocks of future success in life.
Within the first term, the children will focus on ‘Personal Development’. Here the children will learn to understand who we are as individuals and what we can do for ourselves, including self-regulation. Additionally, children will develop their understanding and knowledge of how and why we look after ourselves. In the area of ‘Social Development’, the children will be learning about; how we come to understand ourselves in relation to others, how we make friends, understand the rules of society and behave towards others. In ‘Emotional Development’, Snowdrop Class will learn and begin to understand how we come to understand our own and others’ feelings and develop our ability to ‘stand in someone else’s shoes’ and see things from their point of view, which we refer to as empathy.
Physical Development (PD)
The final prime area of the EYFS is Physical Development (PD). This area is vital in a child’s all-round development. By doing so, this enables children to pursue happy, healthy and active lives.
This year, in Snowdrop Class, we will be supporting each child with both their gross and fine motor skills. The children will have access to many opportunities to develop new or existing skills through our continuous provision, throughout the school week. Children will also have a P.E lesson with our school’s sports coach, once a week.
This term, we will be learning how to use fine motor tools such as writing pencils and scissors. Children will begin to adapt their fine motor skills accordingly. It is in this term your child will become familiar with their dominant hand and pencil grip.
Alongside learning how to grip and cut using smaller tools, children will be developing their core strength, stability, balance, spatial awareness, co-ordination and agility. It is these gross motor skills which support the foundation for developing a healthy lifestyle and social and emotional well-being. This term we will be learning how to use sports equipment safely and competently.
Literacy
It is crucial for children to develop and explore their love for Literacy. In the EYFS, we believe that language comprehension begins at birth, which has become essential for early reading and writing. Likewise with language development, writing comprehension consists of transcription and composition. It is here at St Marks’, that children will be able to positively develop these skills with the correct support enabling your child to gain a positive outlook towards their learning.
Snowdrop Class will be learning through use of both fiction and non-fiction texts from around the world. Additionally, we will be enhancing the children’s learning by use of song, rhymes and poetry.
This term we will be looking at texts that relate to our topic, ‘Magical Me’. We will be listening to and hearing our initial sounds from our familiar environments and in familiar words. We will also begin to recognise and say aloud these initial sounds when presented using visuals such as flash cards and sound mats.
Mathematics
This year, Snowdrop Class will be developing a variety of mathematical skills and attributes. Children will learn to confidently count and develop a deeper understanding of each number to 10, the relationships between them and the patterns within those numbers. Together, we will explore shape, space and measurement. Alongside this, both inside and outside the classroom will be a variety of continuous provision for each child to independently access throughout the school day.
In the Autumn term, we will be exploring the use of objects and resources which support us when counting to 10. We will be matching quantity to number, understanding the arrays of a die and we will begin to identify and discuss 2D shapes, and patterns within our familiar environment.
Phonics
At St. Mark’s, we are committed to providing a strong foundation in early reading through the Systematic Synthetic Phonics (SSP) approach. We use the ‘FFT Success for All’ phonics scheme, a structured programme designed to teach phonics in a clear, consistent, and engaging manner, ensuring all children make progress at their own pace.
In the Autumn term, Snowdrop Class will be learning a total of 44 phonemes along with their corresponding graphemes. The children will focusing on blending and segmenting these sounds to be able to read and write words. By the end of Reception, most children will be confident in reading simple sentences and decoding short books.
Understanding the World (UtW)
‘Understanding the World’ is an area of learning where children begin to make sense of the world around them. This would be there physical world and their community. This Autumn term, children will be learning about the differences between people, how people can change over time, environmental changes and changes between the past and present.
In relation to our topic of ‘Magical Me’, the children will also be talking about being part of their own family and the school family, learning about routines, boundaries and developing a shared set of class rules and expectations. They will be encouraged to think about why we have rules and what happens if we don’t.
Expressive Art and Design (EAD)
In Reception we believe that children’s artistic and cultural awareness supports their imagination and creativity. It is essential that children have regular opportunities to engage with the Arts, enabling them to explore and play with a wide range of media and materials.
This term in Snowdrop Class, we will be learning a variety of songs, such as ‘Incy Wincy Spider’, ‘Hickory Dickory Dock’ to ‘Peter Rabbit Had a Fly upon His Nose’. The children will also begin to talk about their creations and give meaning to their mark-making. We will also explore a range of musical instruments and begin to explore the sounds and rhythm they can make in our weekly Music lessons led by Mr A.
We will also be using a variety of mediums such as, paint, collage materials; pastels and many more. As a part of our topic of ‘Magical Me’, we will also be creating self-portraits, which will involve looking at skin tone, eye colour and hair colour. Additionally, we will be looking at our immediate environments for inspiration, so be prepared for many Art galleries created by your child this year!