Exploring Seasonal Change

We have been observing seasonal changes in our local environment by taking walks around the village and comparing Autumn and Winter. We read Tree Full of Wonder by Anna Smithers, Sneezy the Snowman by Maureen Wright and Snow by Sam Usher, comparing the settings in the stories with what we noticed outdoors.
These walks encouraged the children to use their senses and think about how we adapt our clothing and lifestyles during winter.

Science – Animals and Habitats

In Science, we learnt to name and describe the physical features of animals and sort them into groups: mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish.
We also explored animal diets and learnt the meanings of carnivore, herbivore and omnivore – which led to lots of enthusiastic dinosaur discussions! Children enjoyed sharing interesting facts about pets and animals they had encountered outside school.

Art Enrichment Week – Every Picture Tells a Story

Our theme was ‘Every Picture Tells a Story’ and our focus artist was Quentin Blake.
We practised sketching animals using his style, following online tutorials and using the website Line of Action for quick 30-second sketches. The children noticed great improvement in their confidence and drawing skills throughout the week.

We visited Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, where we learnt about the stories behind different paintings, including artwork inspired by fairytales.

Using salt dough, the children brought one of their sketches to life as a 3D sculpture by rolling, pinching and shaping before painting their finished work. Families were invited to view our creations at a gallery exhibition in the school hall.

We also explored artists Karen Hurley (button art) and Romuald Hazoumè (recycled sculptures) and created our own inspired pieces.

English

Year 1 focused on spelling, punctuation and grammar, including:

• Noun suffix –s

• Prefix un–

• Singular and plural nouns

• Past and present tense verbs

• Capital letters for days of the week

Reception children practised writing sounds, words and simple sentences using the phonemes learnt in phonics.

Both year groups enjoyed listening to key texts such as Uncle Bobby’s Wedding, Pippin Paints a Portrait and Freddie and the Fairy, which inspired story writing and discussions.

Maths

Reception worked on numbers to 8, counting forwards and backwards, finding one more and one less, understanding doubles and representing numbers through songs, stories and practical resources such as Handa’s Surprise.

Year 1 focused on number bonds to 10 and understanding teen numbers as one group of ten and some more. They solved problems in different ways to apply their learning.

Computing

The children learnt about algorithms and the importance of giving clear, step-by-step instructions. They practised being “robots”, guiding each other safely around the room before using sequences of commands on the interactive board to open and play Maths games.

RE

In RE, we explored places that are special to believers. We visited the church and watched videos of baptisms. We also learnt about synagogues as important places for Jewish communities. Children shared their own special places and explained why they are meaningful.

Music

We have focused on listening and responding to the 'beat' of a song, tapping and feeling the beat as we begin to sing and play percussion instruments in time. We used percussion to create sound, representing different animal noises and movements. We changed the tempo as we sang along to the actions of them. We also listened to Carnival of the Animals and Flight of the Bumblebee, using them to inspire our own stories.

Science Investigation

As scientists, we carried out a fair test to find the best roofing material for cereal box houses. We used our knowledge of materials and their properties, made predictions, tested fairly and discussed what we had learnt from our results.

PHSE

We have been thinking about our health and wellbeing, and our safety and the changing body. We have all been part of discussions relating to our units of learning, including awareness of allergies and what can happen if people are allergic to something, knowing what a stranger is and having an understanding of the jobs adults do and how they can help us, both in and out of school.

We celebrated Mental Health week and thought about where we belong, drawing places and groups that we feel we belong to and valued. 

We also welcomed Mr Finnamore, our Bath Spa University trainee teacher, who will be supporting the children with their learning over the coming months.