Welcome to Year 1.
Our Teachers are Mrs Jennings, Mrs O’Sullivan and Miss Reynolds. Our Teaching Assistants are Mrs Scott, Mrs Kohli and Mrs Middleton
Jul 082026
Save the planet!
In topic this week we have learnt about climate change, what causes it and how humans can try and reduce climate change. The children came up with some fantastic ideas before doing some additional research together. The children then made their own posters to demonstrate the different ways humans can help to stop climate change.
We then learnt about the different parts of a tree, their functions and made comparisons to flowers. We then looked at Deciduous and Evergreen trees, including different types and then we made comparisons. Towards the end of the week we read the story ‘We Planted a Tree’ ‘by Diane Muldrow. The story details the changes that happen to trees and how the world, humans and animals benefit from trees.
In Maths we have been recapping counting in 2s, 5s and 10s to 100. We had a look at the repeating patterns when skip counting. To practise our counting we have been using resources such as 100 bead strings, 100s squares and a range of games. In Maths we have also introduced ‘place value cards’ which are a visual maths manipulative that helps the children to physically build and deconstruction multi-digit numbers. The children enjoyed exploring these and making their own numbers in their Discovery Time.
In Phonics we have spent time recapping our most recent alternative spellings. We have been identifying sounds within words using sound buttons and bars before reading. We have also been writing labels and captions.
Key Points
- On Thursday 9th July the children will have their transition morning into Year 2.
- On Thursday 9th July the school will be open from 5pm-7pm for opening evening
Jun 262026
Hot, hot, hot!
Hi everyone.
What a week!
Firstly, thank you for the generous and much appreciated gifts of two tower fans for the classrooms. Your children have been amazing, coping with extreme temperatures and doing their very best. We’re all looking forward to cooler temperatures next week.
In Phonics, we have been looking at more alternative spellings : i – ee- police, ough – oa- doughnut, our – ur – journey, re- ur – centre.
In Science, we started the week by thinking about the steps we took to plant our seeds and the different ways we can look after them. The children have really enjoyed coming into school each morning and checking on their plants’ growth! We have started to look at different types of flowers and how they can be common garden plants or wildflowers. Later in the week, we looked at the different parts of plants and their functions.
In Maths, we have focused on adding key benchmark numbers to a blank numberling e.g. starting with 0 and 20, adding 10 half way and then 5 and 15. We then gave the children numbers to 20 in different forms to have a go at placing them in the correct place along the number line.
On Wednesday, the children visited Year 4 and had a go at the interactive game they had created on the computing programme ‘scratch’. The children had a lot of fun playing and meeting new buddies!
In PE we are continuing to focus on ball skills, including throwing and catching with a partner and ball control when using a tennis racket.
Key Points
- Please bring in some junk modelling as we get through the resources very quickly!
- Please name all clothing including summer hats and jumpers.
- If you can help with our visit to the field on the 3rd July please let one of the Year 1 teachers know.
We are so incredibly proud of how well the children have coped with the heat at school this week!
Have a lovely weekend 🙂
Jun 202026
Flora and Fauna continued!
Hi everyone,
As part of our Art Topic and Science Topic we have been looking closely at wildflowers. We have used our observations to create flora and fauna artwork using paints and black marker pens. These will be on display on the boards in the corridor next week. They all did a great job!
Our Drawing Club text this week was Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. This is the funny story of Floyd, who gets his kite stuck in a tree branch. In a desperate bid to get it down, he begins throwing all sorts of random objects up into the tree—only for every single one of them to get stuck too! The children drew and described their own trees. They then came up with some imaginative ideas for what else Floyd could toss into the branches.
In Phonics, we have been looking at more alternative spellings : wh – h – whole ie – ee – believe o – oo – to u – w- penguin.
The children had a fantastic time out on the field for their PE lesson this week. We focused on improving our ball skills, practising our aiming, rolling, and balancing. Everyone showed great determination.
Thank you for your continued support.
The Year 1 team
Jun 122026
Flora and Fauna
Hi everyone,
Our Art Topic will be over the next couple of weeks. The children will study different flora and fauna and create detailed pencil drawings of different wildflowers and use their fingerprints to create minibeasts. They will use the skills learned to create flora and fauna artwork using paints and black marker pens.
In Maths, the children have looked at a fraction of a shape – halving and quartering. The children had a variety of shapes to fold, working out whether they could be folded into halves and quarters. They then sorted the shapes into categories. The children understood that each part had to be equal.
The Phonic assessments have been completed, the results have been sent off and we are awaiting confirmation of the pass rate for this year. You will be able to view your child’s mark in their end of year school report. They all did their very best, you should be very proud of them.
We hope to go to the field next Friday. A sign up sheet is in each classroom if you are free to help.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Jun 052026
Being Responsible
Welcome back!
It’s hard to believe the children are now in their last half term of Year 1.
This week, our PSHE topic is about being responsible. The children talked about the things they are responsible for now and how those responsibilities will change as they grow older. The children looked at different scenarios and discussed the best outcomes for each one and how irresponsible actions can cause accidents. we also talked about getting ready to move to Year 2 in September.
In Maths, the children have looked at fractions in the context of capacity. The children worked practically measuring water and working out a 1/2 and a 1/4 of the amounts. They found half of the lengths of pieces of string and looked at a clock face and how the minute hand can move through a quarter, half and three quarter turns.
Our Drawing Club text this week was The Story of the Little Mole (Who Knew it was None of his Business) by Werner Holzwarth. This is a story about poo which the children found hilarious . They wrote about ways the mole could clean up all the animal poo and created their own machines for the job.
Today, we had outdoor learning activities. The children went outside to do some watercolour painting of trees and flowers in the playground. They had fun completing orienteering challenges, where they had to instruct their partner from a starting point on a map to the finish using directional language.
Next week, the children will be completing their Phonics Screening Test. They have practised and are not put under any pressure, it’s seen as an opportunity for them to display their phonic knowledge.
Thank you for your continued support.
The Year 1 team
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May 172026
What time is it?
Hi everyone,
This week in Maths, we have been exploring the concept of time. We have looked at the difference between clockwise and anti-clockwise as well as quarter turns and half turns. As part of our learning, we have studied the features of a clock face and begun to read the time to o’clock as well as half past the hour.
In Drawing Club, we have enjoyed reading our new text, The Odd Egg by Emily Gravett. The children had fun describing the giant egg discovered by the main character, Duck, and inventing a machine for him to be able to observe what might be inside and then writing about it!
In Phonics, we have continued to revisit our Phase 5 sounds: oe, ew, ph and wh. We have read and written words as well as captions for pictures. Part of our work has been using sound buttons to help up decode unfamiliar words.
Our topic this week has been focused around Art and the study of the artist Emma Burleigh. The children have loved looking at her techniques for creating a watercolour picture and thoroughly enjoyed using the watercolour pans and brushes to try the different methods themselves.
Points to note
Our Sports Day takes place next Friday morning at 9:30 am at Normandy Field. Please send your child into school in their PE kit for the day.
We would be most grateful for any junk modelling items that you might have in your recycling bin!
Finally, we just wanted to say how amazing your children were on the school trip to the Natural History Museum. They had a great time looking at the wonderful dinosaur displays and taking part in the Stegosaurus workshop. We are collating the photographs from the day and will add them to next week’s blog.
Have a wonderful weekend!
May 082026
Past or present
In Phonics this week we have spent time recapping the phase 5 split digraphs e-e and a-e and the digraphs ey and au. We have been working on reading these sounds within words by adding sound buttons and sound bars to the words before we read. We have also spent time writing words and captions to match pictures.
In Maths this week we have been looking at sharing numbers up to 20 into groups of 2, 3, 4 and 5. We have had used different worded problems that the children have solved practically with cubes and whiteboards. We then introduced pictorial examples to the classes.
In Drawing club we have been reading a new text ‘Tiddler’ by Julia Donaldson. On the first day we described the under the sea classroom using our skills of suitable adjectives. On our adventure days we thought about ways of rescuing Tiddler from the net and how he could hide from a lurking shark.
In History we have been exploring transport in the past and present. The children have enjoyed observing and noticing changes through time for different methods of transport. It was so lovely to hear some of the children had been asking their family at home about transport they used when they were children.
Key Points
- Next Thursday 14th May is our school trip to the Natural History Museum. Please remember to send your child for school at 8:30am as the coach leaves at 8:45am. Children must all be wearing school uniform and if possible wear/bring a lightweight waterproof jacket. Children will also need a small named rucksack containing a packed lunch and a drink. Please do not pack anything with nuts.
- Please sign up to join us on ‘Field Friday’ trips, the forms are in each class.
- Year 1 are going to be making dioramas to show human and physical features in London and Kenya. We would really appreciate lots of small junk modelling to create these.
- On Friday 15th May we will have a sports day rehearsal. Please make sure your children has trainers in school that they are able to run in
May 012026
Human or Physical Features?
Hi everyone,
This week in Drawing Club, we have been reading the text Are the Dinosaurs Dead, Dad? By Julie Middleton This book is about Dave and his dad. His dad takes him to the dinosaur museum, on his way round he sees the dinosaurs move and tells dad. Dad always replies ‘It’s just your imagination’. This is until dad gets a shock at the end of the story! The children drew and described the main character and wrote about how they would stop the T-Rex from eating Dave and dad.
In Maths, we have been working on scaling and finding what is meant by ‘twice as many’. The children played a doubling game with a partner using dice and cubes to consolidate their understanding and went on to use shapes to make patterns using the language ‘twice as many’. We progressed towards identifying what is ‘twice as long’ and worked practically using manipulatives within the classroom.
In Geography, the children explored human and physical features. They discussed, sorted and drew pictures to show their understanding.
In Phonics this week, we are continuing to review all of our Phase 5 sounds and have worked on our reading and spelling skills covering all our previously taught sounds with a focus on; a-e, e-e, i-e, o-e.
Well done to Aqua Class children, your assembly performance was amazing! We’re sure you are very proud of your children and hope you enjoyed seeing all they have learned.
Key points
- Please make sure your child has a full named PE kit in school.
- Please sign up to join us on ‘Field Friday’ trips, the forms are in each class.
- Year 1 are going to be making dioramas to show human and physical features in London and Kenya. We would really appreciate lots of small junk modelling to create these over the next 2 weeks.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Apr 272026
What do you know about the United Kingdom?
This week in Drawing Club, we have been reading the text Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers. The story is about a young boy who finds a penguin at his door.and thinking he is lost, embarks on a journey to return him to the South Pole only to find he is lonely. The children drew and described the boat they travelled in and went on to write questions to the character.
In Maths, the children have been finding maths in a picture and representing this as an array for the 2, 5 and 10 times tables. They have drawn arrays, written the associated number sentences as repeated addition and begun to look at how this links to multiplication.
In phonics, we have continued to review all the Phase 5 sounds. This has encompassed reading real and non-words containing the digraphs as well as writing sentences to help practise our spelling.
This week in our topic lessons we have been learning all about the United Kingdom. We have looked at the four different countries within the United Kingdom and the surrounding seas. We have then had a go at using Atlases to find out more information about the United Kingdom.
Well done to Sky class for their fantastic assembly! We are very proud of you and all the things you have been learning in Year 1.
Key points
- Please make sure your child has a full named PE kit in school.
- Aqua Class assembly is on the 1st May.
- Year 1 are going to be making dioramas to show human and physical features in London and Kenya. We would really appreciate lots of small junk modelling to create these over the next 2 weeks.
Mar 152026
Amelia Earhart
Hi everyone,
This week the children have loved our new topic all about Amelia Earhart! We started the week by reading the story ‘Little People, Big Dreams Amelia Earhart’ by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara. We then thought about why Amelia Earhart is such a significant person in history and wrote sentences to describe key events in her life. Towards the end of the week the children enjoyed hot seating Amelia Earhart and asking each other questions about her life.
In Maths this week we have developed our counting skills from counting in 1s to counting in multiples of 2, 5 and 10. We initially used skip counting so that pupils can hear the pattern in the number system. We have also looked at different ways of counting using mathematical manipulatives and 100s squares.
In Year 1 this week we have started Drawing Club, a new approach to teach English. This was created by a practitioner called Greg Bottrill and it brings the magic of story into the classroom. Drawing Club is a way to share skills including fine motor, early writing, vocabulary , maths and most importantly, imagination and excitement! Please check out our new classroom displays to see what Drawing Club is all about.
In Phonics we have covered the new sounds ce, se, gn, kn, wr and mb. We have been practising to read these new sounds within words and then writing captions to match pictures. We have also thought about when to use these sounds and alternative spellings.
Please check google classroom for the Phonics Screening presentation. The slides outline what the phonics screening check involves and how it will be carried out with the children. Please take some time to look through them, as they provide useful information about how the check works and ways you can support your child with their phonics at home.
Have a great weekend,
The Year One Team 🙂
