Where in the world ARE We?

Hello and welcome to Year 1! We are all very excited about the year ahead and ready to kick start our topic 'Where are we in the world?'

Throughout the topic, children will be learning about maps and atlases, as well as learning more about where we are in this big, wonderful world that we live in.

Keep checking back to see all the fun learning happening in Year 1!

READING IN YEAR ONE

As you are aware, reading is so vital for children's development at this Key Stage as it reinforces their understanding of the phonics they will and have been taught so far. To ensure children are exposed to as much reading as possible, we do as that you read with your child 5 times a week (one house point for each read!). Please be advised your child will be read with by the Class Teacher or Teaching Assistant at least once a week. 

• Book-band books - children are encouraged to independently change their reading books when they are confident reading and understood its content. Please place your child's book bag in the 'Change Reading Books' box in the morning and the Teacher or Teaching Assistant will ensure their book is changed. Children will be assessed in order to move up book bands at least once a Term.  
• Bookmarks - children will be given bookmarks to enable them to keep their place in their reading books. There are also prompts on the bookmarks to help you at home with questions and activities you can do with your child to extend their understanding of the text. 
• Library - the school library is available to children and as a class we will try to visit once a week. Children are allowed to take home a maximum of 2 books that can be anything of their choice.
• Reading Challenge - In addition to daily reading, reading challenges will be going home for you to with your child this term - these include activities such as 'Can you draw a picture of your favourite book character?' 
• Caught Reading Photo Challenge - where is the coolest place you've read a book? We are looking for the best pictures of you reading in amazing spaces, adults included! More information to follow...Any questions, please do let me know.

TIMES TABLES ROCKSTAR DAY

The children all loved dressing up and unleashing their inner rock stars for our Rock Star day! They had fun using the iPads and practising their skills with number bonds using the app 'Hit the Button'. Some were so good they even showed off their skills in the times table challenges!

Tobogganing and orienteering

We had a wonderful day over at Mendip Outdoor Pursuits and loved experiencing the two different activities. The children loved going up and down the tobogganing slope and many surprised themselves by being brave and going all the way from the very top! The children also took part in an orienteering activity that got them to think about maps. They were shown how to read a map and decipher the symbols before going off in small groups to complete a number of challenges. Overall, the children had a fab day and understandably were very tired afterwards! 

Weston Woods

As part of our topic, we ventured out of the school grounds to Weston Woods and thankfully it stayed dry! We walked to the woods from school and took the opportunity to take our newly found knowledge of plants and trees out in the field. It also gave us an opportunity to look at our local area and locate where we were on maps. Once in the woods, we went on a tree and plant hunt to see what we could find. We looked to see if we could identify the different trees by looking more closely at their leaves. We also discussed which trees were deciduous and evergreen and how we could tell as well as keeping an eye out for the local wildlife. Mr Doutre was also kind enough to show us King Alfred's cakes that were once used by people to make fires whilst living out in the woods. We really enjoyed our day out in the woods. Thank you to all the mums and dads for coming to help!