Chilthorne Domer Church School
Together we Love, we Aim High and we Celebrate!
Miss Dare supports our class throughout the week.
Ash Class is where our EYFS (Reception) children learn all about school life and enjoy exploring and playing. Mrs Carter teaches the beginning of the week and Mrs Stradling teaches the end of the week. We are very lucky to have the support of Miss Dare every day of the week, along with Mrs Budden on a Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon to help us with our learning.
This term we will be using the theme 'What is the Past?' to find out all about what is 'now' and what is in the 'past'. We will explore timelines of our life and timelines of our year in school so far.
In our Literacy sessions, we will be exploring exciting adventure stories that feature dragons, as well as winter poetry! During Spring 2, we will use our story telling skills to retell lots of lovely traditional tales using story maps, puppets and props.
As lambing season approaches, Mr and Mrs Luscombe have kindly said we can visit their farm on a welly walk, as well as watch baby chicks hatch in an incubator within the school.
It is going to be a great term, full of lots of fun!
Our PE days are on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Our Christian Values for this term are:
Spring 1: Perseverance
Spring 2: Justice
Best wishes,
The Ash Class Team
Ash Class were extremely lucky to venture out on a welly walk to visit some ewes and their lambs this morning. Our Chair of Governors always provides this first hand experience for our children and we are so very grateful.
This week the children have begun to look at the different parts of a plant e.g. roots, stem, leaves, petals and seeds. They also had the chance to plant some sunflowers!
The children in Ash Class have been learning about the traditional tale 'The Three Little Pigs.' As part of their learning, they had the challenge to visit the forest area and try to build a house for the pigs to live in. They had so much fun!
The children in Ash Class had a wonderful time designing a pancake topping of their choice before using the ingredients to make their design come to life!
Please find attached our curriculum newsletter and curriculum map, which will inform you about what is happening in Ash Class this term.
Autumn Term Curriculum Newsletter and Curriculum Map
Useful Websites to Support Your Child's Learning at Home
Below are some of our favourite games in Ash Class. Please visit the sites to support your child's learning at home.
Topmarks: www.topmarks.co.uk
We use this website to support our learning with maths. It has lots of wonderful games and can direct you to lots of other websites within it as well.
Our favourite games to play are listed below.
Reception Children:
Underwater Counting
Children count the number of items in the ocean and select the matching numeral.
Caterpillar Ordering
Children can order numbers to 10, then 20 and work up to 100, through the different levels.
Place Value Basketball
This is where the children need to think about which number is being represented e.g. how many tend and how many ones. The children can start at the first level with numbers to 20 and then move up to numbers to 100 if they so wish.
Shape Pattern Train:
Children can complete repeating patterns - adding on the next shape.
Toy Shop Money:
Children should make amounts, counting in 1p coins.
Year 1 Children:
Place Value Basketball
This is where the children need to think about which number is being represented e.g. how many tens and how many ones. The children can start at the first level working to numbers to 20 and move up to numbers to 100.
Caterpillar Ordering:
The children can order their numbers to 100, placing the tiles in order. They can also sequence the numbers in 2s.
Shape Pattern Train:
Children should complete the repeating pattern, changing 1, 2 or 3 components at one time.
Toy Shop Money:
Children should make amounts using 1p coins, 2p coins, 5p coins and 10p coins.
Mental Maths Train:
Children can find the answer, following an addition and subtraction calculation.
Phonics Play: www.phonicsplay.co.uk
Reception Children: In class, we have been focusing on Phase 2,3 and 4 in our phonics sessions. We have also begun to look into split digraphs and alternative ways of writing a sound in Phase 5.
Year 1 Children: In class, we still revisit Phase 3 and 4 to help us consolidate our phonic knowledge, as well as playing the games for Phase 5 where our main learning takes place.
We use the free games in school and these are our favourite ones to help us develop our learning:
Buried Treasure
Picnic on Pluto
Dragon's Den
Pick a Picture
You will notice that some words are 'alien' (pseudo) words. These encourage the children to practise their phonic skills and ensure they have a secure understanding of them, rather than recognising them through sight. It is important that children are immersed with 'real' and 'pseudo' words.