We had lots of fun finding out about Roald Dahl and exploring what we could learn from his story “The Giraffe, Pelly and Me”.
Mrs Ethell
Year 1 Class Page
Welcome To
The Year 1 team can’t wait to see you all back at school and welcome everyone to their Year 1 classes. We are excited to begin all the fun new learning and experiences we have planned for your school year ahead.
Here you will find information about what your child has been learning in Year 1 and how you can help them at home. This page will be updated with information about current and future topics.
What does your child need for Year 1?
- A school uniform and shoes
- A school water bottle
- A coat suitable for the day’s likely weather
- A pair of wellies
- A PE kit and set of spare clothes in a soft bag to hang on their peg.
- A school satchel and / or school book bag for their Homework book, Reading Books, Reading Log and Reading for Enjoyment Book
- A smile!
Please label all of your child’s belongings with their name.
What are we learning this term?
Autumn Curriculum
English
We will begin our term by reading ‘Whatever Next’ by Jill Murphy which is a lovely story about a bear’s imaginative journey to the moon. The children will be encouraged to use their own imagination in role playing their own journey to the moon! The children will learn about writing for different purposes; composing and writing lists and questions and simple phrases and sentences to show the beginning, middle and ending of a story.
Later in the term the children will be reading ‘Beegu’ by Alexis Deacon which is a fictional story about an alien lost on Earth. They will use ‘Talk for Writing’ strategies to retell the story and then work together to create our own lost alien story using a story map.
Click on the book cover to listen to the story.
In all their writing children will be actively encouraged to use their phonics using segmenting to spell out words and begin to say words and sentences out loud in preparation for writing sentences.
We will also be learning to read and spell Common Exception Words. These are words we will read and write LOTS but that don’t follow the phonic sounds we have learned so far.
Follow the links below for resources to inform parents and support this learning at home.
28 ways to practice Spelling at home
There will also be a focus on developing pencil control and a good writing position to support handwriting as the children practise the essential pencil strokes they will need for correct letter formation of lower case letters.
Find more information about Guided and Home Reading towards the bottom of the page.
Maths
This term we will be following the school’s maths scheme, Power Maths to focus on the following objectives: –
Unit 1: Numbers to 10
- We will be working on children’s ability to recognise, represent and manipulate numbers to ten. Children will sort and group objects using different criteria. They will learn to recognise and count different representations of numbers to 10 and use a tens frame to structure and reason counting.
- We will be using vocabulary such as ‘digit’ and writing number names as words. As we count forwards and backwards, we will be using ‘one more’ as a way to describe a number increasing and ‘one less’ for a number decreasing.
- Children will use these skills to compare and order numbers to 10 using concrete and pictorial representations to support their reasoning. They will be introduced to ordinal numbers (First, second….) and use a number track to count ‘one more’ and ‘one less’.
Unit 2: Part-Whole within 10
- This is one of the most important units of work to teach in maths. Children who have a solid grasp of numbers to 10 are able to apply this knowledge to so many other areas, including numbers to 20, numbers to 50 and beyond, and addition and subtraction.
- Children will be taught how to partition numbers to 10 using part-whole model
- Children will use this knowledge of part-whole model to begin writing number sentences. Like in the above example 5+4=9 They will explore number sentences in detail to explore number facts 5+4=9 is equal to 4+5=9 is equal to 9=5+4 is equal to 9=4+5
- This work helps to secure number bonds to 10. During this unit, children begin to build this to number bonds to 20.
- They will learn symbols > more than, < less than and = equal
Unit 3 & 4: Addition and subtraction within 10
- This unit focuses on number bonds within 10 and number bonds to 10. Children will be introduced to formal addition through the idea of ‘count all’ and ‘count on’ strategies. A ‘count all’ strategy is when all parts are added together to make a whole. A ‘count on’ strategy asks children to start with a number and count on.
- Children will be introduced to the key language of subtraction and a range of scenarios in which subtraction takes place.
- Children will model each of these situations using concrete and pictorial representations: taking away cubes, crossing out pictures and counting back on a number-line.
Follow the links below for games and activities to support this learning at home.
https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/5-7-years/counting
https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/for-home/kids-activities/fun-maths-games-and-activities/
Science
The Science topic this term will be’ Identifying Materials.’
In this unit children will identify and name common types of materials including:- wood, metal, plastic, rubber, fur, towelling, nylon, wool, sponge, cotton wool, paper, card, brick, ceramics, rock and some liquids and powdered solids.
They will label, collect and group together objects made from the same material. They will state that different objects can be manufactured from the same materials. They will investigate why some materials are unsuitable for some objects and provide reasons for this.
During the unit children will be working scientifically to investigate the properties of different liquids. They will also investigate which materials are good to wrap and protect a hollow chocolate object being sent through the post.
Each pupil will get their own discovery education username and password. This has a range of fun resources that covers the whole of the curriculum.
Follow the links below for games and activities to support this learning at home.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks1/science/
https://www.discoveryeducation.com/
Topic (History, Geography and Design Technology)
5..4..3..2..1..BLAST OFF! The theme of our topic work for the Autumn term is ‘Space’. We will be learning about our own places in Space and peoples’ exploration of places beyond our own planet into outer space! We will investigate what Earth looks like from Space using Google Earth and explore how people watch the stars. We will be documenting significant events and developments in Space exploration using a timeline. We will find out how astronauts like Mae Jemison and Neil Armstrong, Tim Peake and Helen Sharman were significant in their contribution to Space Exploration. We will investigate the Apollo Moon landing using historical sources to find out.
We will be investigating, designing and making space buggies, rockets and rovers while exploring and building simple mechanisms such as wheels and axels. We will practise different joining techniques and use a variety of reusable and reclaimed materials to create the chassis and bodies of our space vehicles. Finally we will use different techniques to decorate our creations and evaluate what we have done.
Follow the links below for websites to support this learning at home.
http://www.esa.int/kids/en/home
www.sciencekids.co.nz/space.html
www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/topics/space
The Arts
The first focus for our Arts lessons in Autumn is Poetry. Linking with our PHSE work ‘Being Me’ we will work towards writing and performing a poem in response to the question ‘Who are you?’ We will explore words and poetry then write our own poem to perform for our grown-ups at a Poetry Presentation.
In the seconds theme for our Arts lessons we will be looking at a selection of artworks by artists such as Henri Matisse and Piet Mondrain. We will use these artworks to help us explore different ways to use line, pattern and colour in both paper based and digital art.
RE
During this term we will be learning all about people who are Christians and finding out about what they believe through stories in the Bible. We will also be celebrating Harvest this year and attend a special whole school service at St. Mary’s Church.
Computing
The children will be following the ‘Teach Computing’ scheme of work and learning about computing systems and networks. During this unit, the children will about technology in the classroom and how to use it, developing keyboard, trackpad and mouse skills and how to use a computer responsibly.
PE
The children will be following the Primary PE Passport Curriculum which our Kick-start team will help us deliver this term. This term we will be learning key fundamental movement skills and how to play invasion games .
Our days for PE this term are Wednesday & Friday.
Please make sure that PE kits are always in school on these days. We monitor having the correct PE kit available when needed as part of our Assertive Mentoring Scheme and it will be reported on in your child’s termly report.
PSHE
Our school follows a scheme called Jigsaw and this term our Year 1 children will complete a unit called ‘Being me in my world’ which celebrates all the qualities that makes people unique. Children will get lots of opportunities to discuss and share what is good about themselves and how they want to grow in the coming year ahead. Later in the term children will complete a unit called ‘Celebrating Difference’. Children will explore accepting others are may be different to them, learning to include everyone and problem solve conflict. They will also learn about bullying and how to help themselves and others if it happens.
Music
We will be exploring a unit called ‘Hey You!’ using the school’s music scheme, Charanga. We will listen and appraise a range of Hip Hop songs such as:- Hey You! by Joanna Mangona, Me, Myself And I by De La Soul, Fresh Prince Of Bel Air by Will Smith and It’s Like That by Run DMC. They will also play a range of games to find the pulse, rhythm and pace using their voices and either use recorders or glockenspiels to accompany a piece of music.
Home / School Learning
Homework
In Year 1 homework will be given out every Friday and expected back every Wednesday. Children will receive either a maths or a reading task based on what we’ve been learning in class and they will choose a piece from the Space Homework Menu (one piece per week in any order they wish).
Follow the link below to see the Homework Menu
Topic\Year 1\Space Homework – Autumn 2023
Children are encouraged to be as creative as they wish and can choose how to present their homework so if they have published something using an iPad, tablet or computer please email it to us! F.A.O. Mrs. Ethell & Miss Richards year1@corrie.tameside.sch.uk
Please make sure that completed Homework is brought into school on these days. We monitor Homework as part of our Assertive Mentoring Scheme and it will be reported on in your child’s termly report.
GREEN – On time by Wednesday
YELLOW – Late by Friday
RED – No homework completed that week
Guided Reading and Home Reading
Please encourage a love of reading at home and share stories together as often as you can. It is the most important and long lasting contribution parents can make to their child’s early learning and fundamental to successful lifelong learning and wellbeing.
Follow the link below to find lots of advice, support, free online stories and activities suitable for Year 1 children learning to read.
Each Year 1 child will be given two reading books every week to share and practise reading with their adult at home. In addition, they will choose a book to bring home for the week from our class library reading for enjoyment collection. They will also be given a log in to access their own online account for the online reading program Reading Eggs.
The first book will be a ‘phonic reading book’ also referred to as their ‘Read To You Book’ which children will have already been worked on with their teachers during Guided Reading in class. The text will be linked to the phonics phase and sounds that your child will be learning in school. It is important that you listen as your child reads this book to you as often as possible during the week so that they become secure and confident using the focus phonemes to decode words when reading.
The second reading book will be from the Oxford Reading Tree range (Biff, Kipper, Chip and Floppy). This is to be used as a ‘Read To Me Book’ which is a book that you read to your child as you look at the text together. The aim is to familiarise children with high frequency or common exception words that are not always decodable. These books will contain some decodable words so that your child can begin to read with you as they become more familiar with the text.
The third book is a ‘reading for enjoyment book’. These are ‘real’ books rather than School Reading Scheme books. They are books matched to children’s interest level rather that their reading level. They include picture books and often text which engage children well despite being beyond the level at which they can decode for themselves. They are therefore intended to be read aloud by or shared with an adult (as a bedtime story for example).
We will also provide you with access to a fun online reading program called Reading Eggs. There are lots of stories, games and activities to have a go at. As they move through the levels, they are awarded with reading certificates which we check weekly, print off in school and celebrate in class. This has proven to be a great motivator for children as they become proud and confident readers.
Reading Eggs login details are stuck inside your child’s Reading Log.
We ask that you read with your child as often as possible (a minimum of twice weekly in line with school policy). Do this in frequent short sessions (5 to 10 minutes depending on how long your child can maintain focus and motivation).
Please always sign and date in their Reading Log on each separate occasion you read with your child. We will check reading records and change reading books every Wednesday but will not know they have completed their reading if they are not signed and dated. New reading books will be sent out on Friday along with other Homework. We monitor Home Reading as part of our Assertive Mentoring Scheme and it will be reported on in your child’s termly report.
GREEN – Both reading books (Read To You and Read To Me) completed at least twice
by Wednesday (evidenced by parent sign and date each time in Reading Log.
YELLOW – Reading complete but books returned late by Friday
RED – Book not returned / not signed and dated in Reading Log that week
Welcome to Year 1’s Spring Term
Welcome to Year 1’s Spring Term!
Take a look at what we’ll be exploring this term……
English
We will begin our Spring term by exploring Non-Fiction texts using the theme of Dinosaurs as a focus. We will be learning about the structure of simple Who? Which? What? Why? When? and Where? Questions. We will compose our own questions which can be answered using the class encyclopedia which will be our writing outcome for the half term. Our texts for the half term include: First Dinosaur Encyclopedia: A First Reference Book for Children (DK First Reference), Dinosaurs (DK) and the All About Dinosaurs series by Daniel Nunn. We will use these texts to identify features of Non-fiction such as contents, headings, captions and labelled diagrams.
In the second half of the Spring term we continue our Dinosaur theme looking at Narrative and Poetry texts. Using the story ‘Dinosaurs and All That Rubbish’ by Michael Foreman we will explore how authors use setting descriptions to engage readers in stories and continue to build on our understanding of the structure of stories. We will write our own stories using Dinosaurs and All That Rubbish as our model.
In Poetry we will use the books Dinosaur Roar by Henrietta and Paul Stickland plus Dinosaur Stomp and Mad About Dinosaurs by Giles Andreae and David Wojtowycz. We will learn some poetry to perform, explore rhyme, rhythm and alliteration. We will be making collections of descriptive language to use in our own performance poems.
HFW to Read and Spell in Year 1
Maths
Using the school’s Power Maths Scheme during the Spring Term we will focus on the following objectives: –
Addition within 20
In this unit, children choose the most appropriate addition strategies by thinking about the numbers involved in the calculations. It is a vital unit, as understanding how to add by crossing a 10 is very important for later addition strategies, including the formal methods introduced in Key Stage 2. Within this unit, children progress from using a counting strategy to using known number bonds to derive answers to additions, including adding the ones separately from the ten, and also when to add by bridging 10. This unit forms the foundation for understanding efficient and effective calculation strategies throughout the rest of Key Stage 1 and into Key Stage 2, and children will also be making decisions about when to apply different approaches, which is a very important mathematical thinking skill.
This unit is important because it is one of the many building blocks for developing fluency. Children will have learned about subtraction before, but only within 10. This unit is a good chance to revise previously taught methods and move on from them to a range of efficient subtraction strategies.
Numbers to 50
This unit focuses on interpreting, ordering and comparing numbers to 50. A strong understanding of numbers to 50, including their place value and relative sizes, will enable children to extend their calculation skills and number knowledge to larger numbers and to an increasing range of situations. Children will also be introduced to counting in multiples of 2 and 5, and will be encouraged to notice that multiples of 2 end in 0, 2, 4, 6 or 8 and that multiples of 5 end in 0 or 5. At the end of the unit, children solve word problems for the fi rst time, by identifying the number sentences that relate to the problems. This is an important step and allows children to build on their prior knowledge of the number system, addition and subtraction.
Introducing length and height
This unit focuses on comparing and measuring the height and length of objects using non-standard and standard units of measure. Children will learn how to accurately compare and measure and will understand the importance of aligning starting points. Children will draw on their knowledge of number, particularly ordering and comparing numbers. Children will also learn the relationship between number lines and scales on a ruler and use this understanding to calculate differences in length. Children will use key language such as longer, longest, shorter, shortest, taller and tallest when comparing length and height.
https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/5-7-years/counting
https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/for-home/kids-activities/fun-maths-games-and-activities/
Science
The Science topics this term will be:
Parts of Animals
Children will learn about their senses and how they use them to describe the world. Children will identify and name the basic external parts of the human body and recognise the functions of some body parts, including the sense organs. Children will describe and compare common animals, and will recognise and name a variety of animals and their body parts. They will construct and label a map of the human body and will draw comparisons between human and animal body parts. They will consider how to treat other people and living things with care and respect. At the end of the unit, children will create a song which compares the functions of various animals’ body parts. Investigative work in this unit focuses on exploring the senses, observing and communicating ideas about their own body parts and those of animals, and recording their ideas in diagrams.
Types of Animals.
Children will observe and recognise some simple characteristics of animals. They will learn that animals are similar to each other in some ways and different in other ways. They will begin to start grouping animals by the key features of their appearance. To support the work in this unit we will be visiting to Blackpool Zoo, where the children can experience live animals first hand. Children swill also have the opportunity to explore and observe animals at first hand in their school grounds. They will work towards creating a plan of a zoo environment incorporating different types of animals in their design. Working scientifically, children will have the opportunity of observing and classifying animals in the local environment and beyond. They will classify animals that are mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians or fish using simple observable features. They will record data, with help, in charts and tables and use these to answer questions.
Each pupil will get their own discovery education username and password. This has a range of fun resources that covers the whole of the curriculum.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks1/science/
https://www.discoveryeducation.com/
Topic
We will be learning all about Dinosaurs this term! We will think about where ‘The Age of the Dinosaurs’ fits in with Our World History, using a timeline to sequence and order events. We will be learning what evidence humans have collected that Dinosaurs existed and what we know about them as a result. We will explore the life of Victorian fossil hunter Mary Anning and recognise the significant contribution she made to our understanding of creatures before humans. To familiarise ourselves with countries and continents we will ask Where have dinosaur fossils been found? Has the Earth always looked like this? We will compare Pangea and modern day Continents. In Art we will explore printing including prints made with handmade clay blocks and in DT we will use textiles to make dinosaur creations.
RE
During this term we will be thinking about the question ‘What makes some places special?’ We will be investigation places of worship and why they are an important part of different faiths. We will also be looking at Spring Celebrations including Chinese New Year and Easter.
Computing
The children will be following the ‘Teach Computing’ scheme of work. During the Spring term the children will learn about:
Grouping Data and Labelling: counting, describing and grouping objects and using data to compare.
Moving a Robot: Giving commands, direction command sequences. Planning a simple program.
PE
The children will be following the Primary PE Passport Curriculum which our Kick-start team will help us deliver this term. Our focus this term is Gymnastics. We will be concentrating on the development of Balance and Movement skills and the performance of sequences using different apparatus.
PE will take place on Monday’s & Tuesday’s this term.
Please make sure that PE kits are in school every week because we monitor this as part of pupils’ Assertive Mentoring record.
PSHE
Our school follows a scheme called Jigsaw and this term our Year 1 children will complete the following units:
Dreams and Goals
Aspirations, how to achieve goals and understanding the emotions that go with this. Staying motivated when doing something challenging; Keep trying even when it is difficult; Working well with a partner or in a group; Having a positive attitude; Helping others to achieve their goals; Working hard to achieve their own dreams and goals.
Healthy Me
Being and keeping safe and healthy. Making a healthy choice; Rating a healthy, balanced diet; Being physically active; Keeping themselves and others safe; How to be a good friend and enjoy healthy friendships; Keeping calm and dealing with difficult situations.
Music
Using the familiar structure of our Charanga Music Scheme the children continue to build their experiences and skills to listen & appraise, play warm-up games and flexible skill games, improvise and compose.
Our Music in the first part of the Spring Term focuses on the song ‘In The Groove’ by Joanna Mangona – an easy-to-learn song that demonstrates different styles of music. In The Groove is a song that was specially written for classroom use to teach children about different styles of music. This is a very easy song to learn and has been arranged in six different styles; Blues, Baroque, Latin, Bhangra, Folk and Funk. Each week you will listen and learn a different style of In The Groove.
Guided and Home Reading
Each Year 1 child will be issued with two reading books per week to read at home. The first book will be a decodable phonics book which will be linked to the phonics phase and sounds that your child will be learning in school. The children will be familiar with this book as they will have used the book in several sessions at school before it is sent home. It is important that your child reads this book as often as possible during the week so that they become secure and confident using these phonemes to decode words when reading.
The second reading book will be from the Oxford Reading Tree range (Biff, Kipper, Chip and Floppy). The idea is that you read the book with your child as a way to familiarise them with high frequency or common exception words that are not always decodable.
We ask that you read with your child as often as possible and sign their reading record a minimum of twice weekly in line with school policy. We will collect and check reading records and reading books every Wednesday and return new books to you each Friday.
Please encourage a love of reading at home and share stories together as often as you can.
We will provide you with access to a fun online reading platform called Reading Eggs. There are lots of stories, games and activities to have a go at. As they move through the levels, they are awarded with reading certificates which we check weekly, print off in school and celebrate in class. This has proven to be a great motivator for children as they become proud and confident readers.
(We will attach Reading Eggs login details to the Homework & Reading Diary books) along with Google Classroom logins. Please ask a member of staff if you have any problems.)
Homework
In Year 1 homework will be given out every Friday and expected back every Wednesday. Children will receive a maths task based on what we’ve been learning in class and they will choose a piece from the Dinosaur homework menu.
Children are encouraged to be as creative as they wish and can choose how to present their homework so if they have published something using an iPad, tablet or computer please email it to us!
F.A.O. Mrs. Ethel & Miss. Richards year1@corrie.tameside.sch.uk
Don’t forget that your homework and reading are monitored as part of your Assertive Mentoring profile.
We monitor reading, homework and PE kits as part of our Assertive Mentoring Scheme.
On time by Wednesday – GREEN
Late by Friday – YELLOW
No homework or reading completed – RED