Welcome to Swallows class page

Ms Sarwar, Miss Gray, Miss Pearce and Mrs Welsh

Things to Remember:

• PE is on Tuesday and Wednesday. Please ensure your child wears their PE kit to school.

• Homework and spellings are given out on Friday and should be handed in by the next Friday.

• Spelling tests will be completed on Fridays and scores written in their folders.

Reading

We encourage you to continue reading with your child as often as possible—just a few minutes each day can make a big difference. Each time you read at home, please remember to sign or tick your child’s reading diary (adding a short comment if you can).

To motivate and celebrate regular reading, children will earn a stamp every time they read at home. These stamps build up towards rewards, with children working their way through Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum levels. At each stage they will receive a prize, with the rewards becoming more exciting as they progress. Consistent reading will not only support your child’s learning but also give them the chance to achieve the top-level prize from Mrs Lewis.

Spellings

Your child will receive their spellings on Monday. Please take some time to practise these together at home, as this will support their learning in school. The spellings are key words that children are expected to be able to read and spell by the end of Year 2 (Key Stage 1).

Numbots

Your child will have their Numbots login in front of their reading record. This online game supports children's mathematical skills and we recommend playing at home if possible. The children also have the opportunity to play in school. 

Play Numbots 

Online games to support learning

Hit the button - practice number bonds to 5, 10, 20, and 100.

https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/hit-the-button 

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What we are learning this term

English

In English this half term, the children will be diving into the world of traditional tales with a fun twist! We’ll be reading Little Red Riding Hood by Mara Alperin and Little Red Reading Hood by Lucy Rowland, looking at how authors can put a creative spin on a well-known story. The children will then have the chance to become authors themselves, planning and writing their own traditional tale with a twist. They will also be practising their descriptive writing skills by creating vivid character descriptions, with the wolf taking centre stage. This is a fantastic opportunity for the children to build their confidence, imagination, and love of storytelling.

Maths

In Maths this half term, the children will be developing their understanding of numbers up to 100. They will begin by counting, grouping, and recognising tens and ones, before moving on to using place value charts and partitioning numbers in different ways. The children will also practise writing numbers in words and in expanded form, as well as working with number lines to estimate, compare, and order numbers. Along the way, they will strengthen their counting skills by learning to count in 2s, 3s, 5s, and 10s. These lessons will give the children a solid foundation in place value, helping them to become more confident and flexible with numbers.

Science

In Science this half term, the children will be learning about Animals, including Humans, following the National Curriculum objectives for this unit. They will explore how humans and animals have basic needs for survival, such as food, water, and air, and learn about the importance of exercise, nutrition, and hygiene for keeping healthy. The children will also investigate the similarities and differences between animals, including how they grow and change over time. This unit will help them to build curiosity about the natural world while developing their scientific knowledge and enquiry skills.

Phonics

The children are taught discrete phonics lessons everyday following the Twinkl Phonics program which is a DfE approved programme.  We teach the children the sounds in order for them to read and write with increasing proficiency. At the end of Year 1 the children completed a Phonics Screening Check which is a legal requirement for each child. They will apply their phonics knowledge to read 40 words, 20 of which are real and 20 which are not (we call these alien words).

In Year 2, we will continue to build on children's phonics knowledge from reception and year 1. Children will have lessons tailored to meet their individual needs and next steps.

There is more information about the Phonics Screening Check here: 

https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/home/reading-owl/expert-help/the-year-1-phonics-screening-check

Here is an overview of our phonics programme. We will be recapping level 3 and teaching levels 4-6 in year 2, depending on the children's level.

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Common Exception Words

We will be teaching the children how to spell these common exception words by the end of year 2.

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