Year 1

This term, as part of our history and geography learning about our local area, we will answer the question 'Where do I live and what is it like?'. We will start by looking into the local area's human and physical features, building on what the children have learnt in Reception. This will also involve map work where the children will learn to read a simple key and a trip to their local area. In the second part of the term, we will look at how Chantry has changed over the last 70 years, focusing on how the shops and shopping have changed. 

In English, we will be working hard in our Little Wandle phonics and reading lessons. At the start of Year 1, we will briefly recap the Phase 3 and 4 sounds that the children have learnt in Reception before moving on to Phase 5 which they will learn up till Christmas. On this page, all the sounds are shown to help you support your child https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents/  We will use our daily phonics learning in our reading lessons. Each week we will focus on decoding a text, reading with prosody and understanding what we have read. We will reread lots to support us in becoming strong, fluent readers. Alongside this, we will share many stories and books and just generally enjoy reading! 

During English lessons, books are always at the very heart of our learning. We will use a range of texts including Funny Bones, Percy the Park Keeper and Jack and the Beanstalk. Our main focus is on independent sentence writing including capital letters, using sounds, finger spaces and full stops. We will also learn how to read our work aloud, form letters carefully and edit work to make it the best it can be. 

In our maths lessons, we are focusing on securely understanding the numbers 0-10. We look at addition and subtraction and ordering numbers. We are also looking at 2D and 3D shapes this term, including triangles, circles, squares, rectangles, cuboids, cubes, pyramids, cylinders, spheres and cones. Alongside our daily maths, we will complete number skills which will include subitising numbers to 10, using tens frames and applying this to real-life stories e.g. I have 5 paint brushes. Two are clean and 3 are dirty. Can you write an equation to match this? 2 + 3 = 5 or 5 - 3 = 2

As part of our science this term, we will be looking at seasonal changes as well as identifying different types of animals including amphibians, reptiles, fish, mammals and birds. In PSHE, we will be looking at economic well-being and citizenship including the importance of money and rules. In RE, we will be looking at how and why Christians are baptised and do good deeds or Mitzvot as part of our learning about Judaism. Our computing unit will involve identifying the different parts of desktop and laptop computers before moving on to develop our basic computer skills. We are also looking forward to getting our creativity skills flowing as we make puppets and explore mark-making. As part of PE, we will be developing our teamwork skills and looking at moving to different rhythms.

In year 1, we expect the children to read at home 4 times a week to achieve their reading awards (bronze, silver and gold) and there will also be a maths sheet for the children to complete.

PE is on Thursday and Friday every week. Please send children to school wearing their PE kit.

The library is on Thursday. Please send their library book in with them so they can return it and choose a new one.

In the summer term, as part of our geography learning, we will be answering the question, ‘Where is better - Felixstowe beach or Ipswich?’. To begin with, we will look at the human (manmade) and physical (natural) features of Felixstowe. We will then move on to name and locate the seven continents https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzqdDdxr9VI and five oceans https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6BE4VcYngQ - here are the links to some helpful songs we listen to. Following on from this the children will then learn which countries make up the United Kingdom and which seas and oceans surround the UK. As part of our RE learning, we will be looking at the Jewish Sabbath and why Christians pray and worship God. In PSHE we will look at the ‘Wider World’ and our part to play in it considering how we can help the environment. Within computing, we will be building on our word processing skills and use paint to insert objects, redo and undo as well as selecting our brush type and colour. 

In DT, we will be constructing windmills and making moving story books (recapping mechanisms including axles and sliders).  As part of art, we will be looking at craft and design. In this unit we will be learning to tie knots and weave materials. In science, we will continue to look at plants but focusing on trees and recognising and naming some different trees. We will be learning the difference between evergreen and deciduous trees. Then we will move onto everyday materials and understand what objects are made from as well as what the best materials object should be made out of. 

In Maths this term, we are building on our knowledge from what we have learnt so far in Year 1 by learning about place value to 100, addition and subtractions as well as money. We will learn about multiplication and division and will be counting in tens, fives and twos. When we look at fractions, we will be finding half and quarter of shapes, objects and a quantity (number). We will also be looking at time and reading clocks for o’clock, half past, quarter past and quarter to. 

Number skills will focus on strategies that continue the children's understanding of smaller numbers within 10 and just above, such as number neighbours (spot the difference), 7 tree and 9 square, 10 and a bit and strategy selections.

During phonics sessions, we will continue our learning on all phase 5 sounds and alternative pronunciations. We will do lots of growing the code where the children will have the opportunity to practise and review all of the different pronunciations that they have learnt. Our learning of tricky words will continue- the children know so many now! We will also be applying phonics skills in sentence writing during lessons. Reading is so very important to us in Year 1 and we will continue to work hard in our reading lessons.  The children will continue to develop their decoding, fluency and understanding of the phonetically decodable books we read in class whilst also sharing lovely stories, poems, nonfiction books and the books the children bring in from home - this has been so lovely! We will continue to talk about books and authors and encourage a love of reading and books. 

During English, we will use a range of texts including The Storm whale, The last wolf and a range of instructions to support instruction writing.  The children will continue to consolidate their use of capital letters, full stops and finger spaces in their independent writing.We will be there working on the children developing fluent and consistent handwriting. It’s so important that those basic skills are embedded in Year 1, ready for Year 2 and beyond!