What a wonderful autumn term we have had. We can’t believe it is over already! A HUGE thank you for all your support and kind words this term, and the incredibly generous gifts. It has been an absolute pleasure teaching your children this term and we can’t wait to get started again in January.

The children enjoyed making festive biscuits this week and eating them! They also had a go at making collage wreaths.

No handwriting this week, we will continue with handwriting in the New Year.

We have completed the first Red Word assessment and sent them home for you to review. Please don’t worry if your child has been absent, we will see how they are getting on during the first week back. Over the holiday keep practising the words sent home so far. Try playing a game of splat: write the red words on to small pieces of card and put them on the floor. Say a word and encourage your child to spot it and splat it as fast as they can with a fish slice or wooden spoon!

We hope you all have a wonderful holiday, see you in the New Year!

Mrs Ghoul, Ms Johnson and Miss Rachel

The end of term is just around the corner and we have been busy making festive cards this week in Reception. The children learnt how to write a simple message in a card ready to send to a loved one.

The children have also finished off embellishing their jam jars. These will look beautiful on your tables and mantel pieces over the holiday with a tea light inside.

In Maths this week the children have been working with their Math partner to find one more than and one fewer than amounts to 10.

In Religious Education this week the children thought about what they learnt during their Nativity show about why Christmas is a special time for Christians.

This week in our relationship and health education lesson the children learnt about the different types of homes people live in. They talked to their partner about the type of home they live in and then we described our dream homes.

Homework: red words and handwriting

This week’s red words are:

Please also complete this week’s handwriting sheet:

Mrs Ghoul, Miss Johnson and Miss Rachel

What a fantastic week we have had in Reception! We hope that you enjoyed our Nativity and it got you in the mood for the festive season. We thought the children were fantastic. We were so proud of how well they all said their lines and remembered all the songs and dance moves.

This week in between rehearsals the children have been busy embellishing their salt dough ornaments and making a starts on decorating their jam jars.

Next week, the children will be making festive cards and learning to write a simple message inside. They will also be revisiting one more and more less within 10. We will also be completing the final Religious Education and Relationship and Health Education lessons of the term.

Homework: red words and handwriting

Please complete this week’s handwriting sheet s, f, o.

Red words

For homework please practise all of the Red Words we have learnt so far including this week’s new ones. This week’s red words are:

We would also like to make some jam jar luminaires so please send in a clean jam jar with no label next week. The jars with the wider tops work best so that a tea light can be easily lit and put inside.

Mrs Ghoul, Miss Johnson and Miss Rachel

It was wonderful to welcome so many of you into the classroom this week for our drop in morning. We hope you enjoyed exploring the classroom and having a look at some of the toys and resources we have.

In Maths this week we introduced the numbers nine and ten. The children found ways of representing the numbers using resources and objects from our classroom. Then they had a go at drawing pictures to represent the numbers they have learnt about in Reception so far.

In Literacy this week the children have been learning about lists. They used the skills they have been learning in phonics to read Old MacDonald’s list of animals he has on his farm. They learnt that each item on a list has its own line and they had a go at writing a list of animals they would like on their farm.

The children have been busy making salt dough ornaments which we will decorate next week and send home in time for the holiday to decorate your house with.

We would also like to make some jam jar luminaires so please send in a clean jam jar with no label next week. The jars with the wider tops work best so that a tea light can be easily lit and put inside.

In Religious Education we have been learning about how Christians prepare for Christmas and have been learning about ‘advent’ and how the church use candles to count down to the birth of baby Jesus. Next week the children will be making their own wreaths to decorate our classroom with.

This week in our relationship and health education lesson we read the beautiful book, ‘The great big book of families,’ by Mary Hoffman. The children enjoyed talking about who lives in their home with them and with a little bit of help were able to follow a key using different colours to represent the people who live or visit their homes often.

In Phonics this week the children have been grouped into four smaller groups. The children have been revisiting Set 1 sounds they are not yet secure with and some children have begun learning the Set 1 digraphs (2 letters, one sound).

Today some children will bring home a Sound Blending Book. Please carefully read the letter which explains the reading process to you (the letter can also be found here).

Reading with your child at home – Reception 2024

Homework: red words and handwriting

This week’s red words are:

Please also complete this week’s handwriting sheet g, q and e.

Enjoy the Christmas fair and keep learning those lines!

Mrs Ghoul, Miss Johnson and Miss Rachel

In Maths this week we introduced the numbers six, seven and eight. The children found ways of representing the numbers using resources and objects from our classroom. At home please support your child by doing lots of counting out loud and counting objects. Begin by working within 10 to begin with and then challenge your child by counting out loud to 20 and beyond. Are they able to tell you what one more than and one less than is to 5 and then 10? Also encourage your child to spot and identify numerals in their environment such as: door numbers or number plates on vehicles.

This week we have continued to explore out topic: Celebrations. The children have been thinking about how they celebrate special events in their lives such as birthdays and Christmas and Eid. During choosing time the children then all drew pictures of a celebration and labelled the items in their pictures with the sounds they have been learning in Phonics.

In Religious Education we continued to learn about Christmas and the Nativity story. The children have all been allocated a part in our Nativity show and have been busy practising their songs. Please check your child’s bag for their line, which has been sent home today.

The children have enjoyed embellishing their angels for our RE display which we will send home in time for Christmas.

In our Health and Relationship lesson the children listened to a story about Harold the giraffe and how he shared his very long scarf with all his friends on a cold and windy day to cheer them up. Their friends had told them they were too tall, too short and too brightly coloured but Harold told his friends how special they all were. The children thought about how to be a good friend and shared some great ideas.

We have now completed our phonics assessments to see how the children are getting on with learning their sounds. On Monday we will begin our new phonics groups.

Homework: red words and handwriting

This week’s red words are:

We will now be sending home handwriting as well as red words each Friday. This is an important stage in your children’s learning. They begin to learn how to present their work neatly and clearly so that it can be read by others. Please take the time to read this information carefully so that you are able to help your child to get off to a good start with their writing.

In class the children have been practising writing on the line and are beginning to learn how to size their letters so that they fit between the lines. We are not aiming for the children to have tiny writing but please encourage your child to use the lines on the worksheet (sent home today). If you find this is too tricky for your child at this stage then please use a blank piece of paper for the time being. In class we have talked about how some letters start by almost touching the ceiling (the line above) and that some letters start in the middle of the two lines. We will also introduce how some letters have parts that hang down below the line. All letters must stand on the floor (the bottom line) and not float away. It is so important that children are writing letters with the correct formation as this is extremely difficult to fix once they have settled into a way of writing.

Children should also be encouraged to use a tripod grip. If children are not using the correct grip on the pencil (even if their letters look good) then they will experience fatigue much quicker than their peers, and may not be able to write for long periods of time when they are older.

Each week we will focus on a family of letters that are formed in similar ways. This week is the caterpillar family. The children have practised c, a and d. Please find the handwriting sheet in your child’s homework folder. There is also space for your child to practice writing their name.

We hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

Mrs Ghoul, Miss Johnson and Miss Rachel

It was wonderful to be able to meet with you during the parent consultations this week and discuss how your child is getting on so far in Reception. Thank you for your support with these meetings and for being so positive about your child’s experience of Reception so far.

This week the children have decorated their diva lamps. They have also had a go at making autumnal wrapped wool leaves and we were very busy finishing of our class Christmas card which will be on sale soon.

During maths this week the children have been looking at ‘one more’ and one fewer’ within 10.  We used the traditional story, ‘The Gingerbread Man,’ to explore one more than to 10. Then ‘Ten little pirates’ by Mike Brownlow to explore finding one fewer than to 10. We have also been looking at the composition of numbers 4 and 5.

In Religious Education we are learning why Christmas is special to Christians. This week we read the Nativity story to the children in preparation for beginning our Nativity rehearsals next week. The children had a go at sequencing the key events in the story and using the story vocabulary to retell the story.

This week was Anti-bullying week. The theme was: ‘Choose respect’. We discussed what bullying is. The children learnt that unkind words and teasing make people feel very sad and it is important to tell an adult if someone is physically hurting them or using unkind words towards them. The children learnt that being respectful means being kind to everyone and they thought of ways they can be kind to each other.

In Phonics this week we have learnt the sounds z and x. We will now assess the children and organise them into smaller groups.

z – Zig, Zag, Zig

x – Down the arm and leg and repeat the other side

Homework

We will now be sending home Red Words each Friday. This week’s red words are:

Red Words are words that your child will need to learn off by heart. Learning to read these common words will help your child when they begin reading and writing sentences.

It is a good idea to display these words in your home such as on the fridge or in your child’s bedroom and review them as many times as possible during the week with your child.

Try playing a game of splat the red word with a wooden spoon or hunting for the red words as you read a picture book to your child.

Your child will need to be able to read and write them by the end of their Reception Year.

Next week we will send home handwriting.

We hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

Mrs Ghoul, Miss Johnson and Miss Rachel

It’s been a busy and creative start to the second half of our Autumn term. We have been reading, ‘Pumpkin Soup’ by Helen Cooper and the children have enjoyed making ‘Silly Soup’ with objects that rhyme. Some children have had a go at writing a list of ingredients for their silly soup using the sounds they have learnt in their phonics lessons. We have also been learning about Bonfire Night and  the Hindu festival of light, Diwali. We read, ‘Rama and Sita the story of Diwali,’ by Malachy Doyle and the children enjoyed making Diva lamps using clay which they will bring home once we have decorated them.

During maths, the children have been learning to sort different representations of 4 and 5. They have been doing lots of subitising to 5 and learnt how to use a five frame with double sided counters to begin exploring composition to 4 and 5. Below is the link to a free White Rose Math app which has excellent subitising activities to 5 which you can use to consolidate your child’s learning at home.  We have also been learning about positional language.

White Rose Maths app

In Religious Education we are learning why Christmas is special to Christians and thought about how families prepare for new babies. The children learnt that a long time ago some people were getting ready for a new baby to be born, baby Jesus. They learnt that Christians believe this baby was God’s son and God had sent messages to tell people that the baby would be born.

In our Health and Relationship lesson we began our new topic, ‘Valuing difference’. The children shared their likes and dislikes and we found that there are lots of differences as well as similarities in our class. During choosing time children had the opportunity to draw a picture of their favourite hobby and we made a class pictograph then discussed the findings.

In Phonics this week we have learnt the sounds y and w.

y – Down and horn, up a horn and curl under the head

w – Down, up, down, up

Next week are our parent meetings. Please make sure you have booked an appointment with us.

We hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

Mrs Ghoul, Miss Johnson and Miss Rachel

This week the children have had lots of fun making and eating delicious bread. They learnt to always wash their hands before preparing food and to try to keep their hands out of their mouths and noses! They took turns to stir the dry and wet ingredients and have a go at kneading the dough. Everyone was surprised to see how much the bread had risen when they returned from lunch, ready to be kneaded a second time and shaped into rolls.

We also took advantage of the beautiful autumnal leaves falling around Shepherd’s Bush to make autumnal crowns with the children. We will have a go at framing some of the autumnal leaves after half term using the cereal boxes you have sent in. Thank you.

In Maths this week the children have been exploring the mass and capacity of objects. They enjoyed comparing the mass of different objects using the balance scales. They also had lots of fun comparing the capacity of the three bear’s porridge bowls and their cups.

This week was Black Voices Week at St Stephen’s. The children learnt about Lilian Bader, one of the first Black women to join the British Armed Forces. Early in her career she was made to leave the armed forces as her father was not born in the UK. Later in her life Lilian returned to the British Armed Forces and worked for the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force. To remember her we decided to make toilet roll aeroplanes and fly them around our Early Years garden.

In our Relationship and Health Education lesson we continued to explore different feelings and how they might help someone at school who looks sad.

In Phonics this week we learnt the sounds r, j, v. The formation rhymes for each sound are below.

r – Down the robots back and curl over their arm

j– Down Jack’s body, curl and dot

v – Down a wing, up a wing

A big THANK YOU to Obukohwo who visited our class with her father to talk about his life and to read the story, ‘Femi the fox and a pot of jollof.’ Everyone was quite keen to taste the delicious jollof rice. Recipe below if you are keen to give it a try!

We hope everyone has a lovely half term.

Mrs Ghoul, Miss Johnson and Miss Rachel

In Literacy the children listened to the story, ‘Oi Frog!’ by Kes Gray and identified the rhyming words. Then during choosing time they had the chance to find matching pairs of rhyming objects. The children made rhyming books with the rhyming pairs they found and had a go at identifying the initial sound for each object. We will continue with rhyme next term, please read lots of books with rhyme to your child at home.

In Maths this week the children have been looking at ways to compare, match and sort objects. We also began comparing objects by the length, height and mass.

Today was Show Racism the Red Card day at St Stephen’s. In Reception we began the day by exploring similarities and differences and the children learnt that they should be kind and caring to everyone. We finished off the day by watching, ‘The Smeds and the Smoos,’ by Julia Donaldson.

In our Relationship and Health Education lesson we explored feelings. The children enjoyed listening to the story, ‘Marvin gets MAD,’ by Joseph Theobold. They learnt that it is normal to feel cross sometimes and we thought of different ways to calm down when feeling cross.

In RE the children continued to think about feelings. They listened to the story ‘The drama llama,’ by Rachel Morrisroe. The children learnt that it is important to talk about their worries with an adult and this will help them to feel less worried. The children also learnt that Christians believe God loves everyone and that their faith helps them with their worries.

In Phonics this week we learnt the sounds e, l and h. The formation rhymes for each sound are below.

e – Lift off the top and scoop out the egg

l – Down the long leg

h – Down the head to the hooves and over his back

Please bring in empty cereal boxes for Monday as next week we will be making autumn picture frames with the children.

We hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

Mrs Ghoul, Miss Johnson and Miss Rachel

In Maths this week we introduced the numbers 2, 3, 4 and 5. The children learnt lots of different ways to represent these numbers such as unifix cubes, pictures and numicon. They have enjoyed listening to number songs by Jack Hartman. They then had a go at drawing pictures to represent the numbers from 1-5. Next week the children will be learning to sort objects in different ways, recognise and continue repeating patterns and they will also begin exploring size and mass.

In Literacy this week we have been reading ‘The enormous turnip’. We have continued to discuss how lots of stories are made up of a beginning (where the story setting is introduced), a middle (where there is a problem) and the end of a story (where there is often a resolution to the problem). The children then role played the story. During this activity we encouraged the children to talk about the story and recall the key events. Next week, we will be reading the book ‘Oi Frog!’ and other rhyming books by the author Kes Gray. We will be encouraging the children to identify the rhyming words.

In our Relationships and health lesson this week the children have been exploring the different members of staff at St Stephen’s they can go to for help throughout the school day. For World Mental Health Day on Thursday the children listened to the story, Augustin and his smile. They thought about all the things that made Augustin feel happy again and then thought about some of the things that make them feel happy. We then enjoyed a good dance to some of the children’s favourite songs!

During our RE lesson, the children shared the photos you have sent in and talked about what makes their family unique. It was lovely to find out more about the children in our class. The photos that have been sent in are now on display in class with beautiful self-portraits the children have painted.

In Phonics this week we learnt the sounds u, b and f. The formation rhymes for each sound are below:

u – down and under, up to the top and draw the puddle

b – down the laces to the heel, round the toe

f – down the stem, and draw the leaves

We hope everyone has a lovely restful weekend.

Mrs Ghoul, Ms Johnson and Miss Rachel

The children enjoyed their first St Stephen’s Church school service on Wednesday and it was lovely to see so many parents and carers able to come along and celebrate Harvest with our school community. In RE this week the children learnt that Harvest Festival is a time for Christians to give thanks to God. They thought about what they are thankful for and shared their ideas with the class.

In Maths, we have been learning how to count efficiently. The children learnt that it is always best to put objects in a line first, to touch and count each object only once, to stop when they have counted the last object, to count slowly and to always ‘check it’ by counting the group of objects twice. Ask your child to teach you how ‘to do good counting’ at home. We also introduced the concept of ‘Zero’ this week and the children have been learning that ‘zero’ means ‘nothing’ and not to use it when counting objects. They enjoyed listening to ‘Zero Zero Superhero’ a number song you can find on YouTube as well as lots of other number songs and rhymes to practise their rote counting. We then moved on to introducing number 1. The children learnt lots of different ways to represent the number such as using unifix cubes, pictures or numicon.

In Literacy this week we have been reading, ‘The Little Red Hen’. We discussed how stories are made up of a beginning (where the story setting and characters are introduced), a middle (where there is a problem) and the end of a story (where there is often a resolution to the problem). The children then sequenced the story by cutting out pictures and sticking them in the correct order. During this activity we encouraged the children to talk about the story and recall the key events. The children enjoyed making bread dough in the water tray and playing with the dough during choosing time. Next week we will continue exploring traditional stories and sequencing key events using the story, ‘The enormous turnip.’

In our Relationships and health lesson this week the children have been exploring who in our communities they can go to for help. We will continue with our discussion next week looking more closely at the different members of staff at school.

In Phonics this week we learnt the sounds o, c and k.

The formation rhymes for each sound are below:

o – All around the orange

c – Curl around the caterpillar

k – Down the kangaroo’s body, tail and leg

An important message

For gymnastics the children remove their jumper/PE sweater/cardigan/PE hoodie. Many of the children are struggling to take off their hoodies and PE sweaters themselves as they are a little tight. Please consider getting a bigger size or using the school v neck jumper or cardigan instead on Friday for gymnastics.

World Mental Health Day

Next Thursday 10^th October is World Mental Health Day. It is a non-school uniform day. We would like the children to choose something yellow (it does not have to be a complete yellow outfit!). A donation can be made to YoungMinds via the link on ParentMail.

We hope everyone has a lovely, restful weekend.

Mrs Ghoul, Ms Johnson and Miss Rachel

It’s been a very wet week here in Reception. The children are settling well, beginning to work as a team and are becoming familiar with their daily routines. We have continued with our circle time games to get to know each other better. We have been reading lots of number themed books during snack time and at the end of the day and singing lots of number themed songs. This week the children have also been showing us how well they can write their names for their learning folders where we store lots of the learning they do in school. The children enjoyed their first Spanish lesson with Ms Johnson.

In Phonics this week we learnt the sounds n, p and g. The formation rhymes for this week’s sounds are below:

n – Down Nicky and over the net

p – Down the plait and over the pirate’s face

g – Round her face, down her hair, give her a curl

In our Relationships and health lesson this week the children have been talking about the special people they spend time with outside of school. They have begun drawing family portraits to display in our classroom.

In RE the children thought about all the incredible natural wonders in our world and had the opportunity to paint pictures of natural things that ‘wow’ them such as a beautiful beach or tall mountains.

Homework: Your family

We would like you to share a photo with us that represents your family’s heritage. Please send it to us by email and write a sentence or two about it. The children will share their photos with the class this term and talk about their family. We will then create a display in class.

Have a lovely weekend.

Mrs Ghoul and Ms Johnson

We have had a wonderfully sunny week in Reception and the children have enjoyed lots of choosing in our Early Years garden. The children are settling well and becoming familiar with their daily routines.

This week we read the story, ‘Mouse Paint’ by Ellen Stoll Walsh and the children learnt how to mix primary colours to make secondary colours. There were opportunities’ during choosing time to have a go at some colour mixing.

We have also introduced the zones of regulation with the children. We have read lots of stories about feelings. The children thought about ways to calm down so that they are ready to learn and play.

In Phonics this week we learnt the sounds d, t and i.

The formation rhymes for this week’s sounds are below:

d – round the dinosaur’s back, up his neck and down to his feet.

t – down the tower, across the tower

i – down the insect’s body and dot for the head

In our Relationships and Health lesson this week we have been discussing all the things which make us special. We have been looking at the many ways we are similar and also celebrating the ways we are unique. The children really enjoyed their circle time and were keen to share their thoughts.

During R.E this week we have been learning about how Christian’s believe the world began and the children have been thinking about different beginnings, such as a new day or the beginning of a story. Next week, we will thinking about how wonderful the natural world is. The children will have the opportunity in class to draw and paint pictures of natural things that ‘wow’ them such as a beautiful beach or tall mountains.

Homework: Your family

We would like you to share a photo with us that represents your family’s heritage. Please send it to us by email and write a sentence or two about it. The children will share their photos with the class this term and talk about their family. We will then create a display in class.

Our class poem

Each half term each class at St Stephen’s has a poem to learn. Our first poem is by Alan Milne our class author. It is called, ‘Us Two’ and it is a poem about friendship. The children have listened to and talked about the poem. We will focus on learning just the first verse.

Important reminders

We are finding lots of jumpers and cardigans that have not been named. Please make sure that you do name all of your child’s uniform this weekend including their water bottle.

We hope everyone has a lovely restful weekend.

Mrs Ghoul and Ms Johnson

Well done to all of the children for completing their first full week in Reception. We are so impressed with how well they are adjusting to life at St Stephen’s. You may notice that they are more tired than usual and will require a little more rest this weekend.

This week the children have done a fabulous job getting to know everyone, finding their way around the Early Years and beginning to learn their new routines. They had their first P.E. lesson with Mr Blair, their first music lesson with Ms Rachel and their first Gymnastics session with Fiona and Sharon. They also had a library session with Mrs Pereira. The children will take home their first library book next Monday. The children also enjoyed their first buddy reading session with Year 6. Each week on a Thursday the children spend time in either the Year 6 classroom or their Reception classroom enjoying stories from the school library with a Year 6 buddy.

This week we have been busy painting self-portraits to display in class. The children have enjoyed looking in a mirror and describing themselves. We also agreed some simple class rules to make our classrooms safe and enjoyable places to be. The children enjoyed playing some games and singing some songs to learn and remember each other’s names.

We have begun our Phonics lessons and introduced the sounds m, a, and s.

Thank you to everyone who attended our Phonics presentation this week. We have posted the Phonics presentation on our class page for you to refer to. There is also a link to a video to aid you with the pronunciation of each sound and a short guide on sound blending.

In our Religious Education lesson (R.E.) this week we began our first unit, ‘Who made the wonderful world?’ The children listened to the story ‘Dogger’ by Shirley Hughes and the children shared with the class things that are precious to them and why.

In our Relationship and Health Education lesson this week we began our first unit, ‘All about me.’ The children thought about some of their favourite things and shared them with the class. We considered how there are things that are the same about us and things that are different. The children were introduced to Harold our giraffe that helps us learn during these lessons.

If you have not yet sent us a family photo then please try to do this before Monday.

We sometimes notice that during the 2^nd and 3^rd week of school some of the children will get a little more tired, possibly teary and definitely more aware that Reception is a full time thing now. Please try not to worry. We will let you know if any of the children are upset when in school and find that this stage is short lived. Please do let us know if you have any big concerns though as we are more than happy to chat.

Uniform and personal belongings

• Please make sure that all of your child’s personal belongings are labelled including shoes and water bottles.
• Short sleeved white shirts are best as the long sleeved ones get mucky as they are difficult for the children to pull up.
• If your child is wearing a summer shirt then they do not need to wear the school tie.
• If your child is wearing a white shirt then they do need to wear the school tie.

We hope you all have a lovely weekend.

Mrs Ghoul and Ms Johnson