Reception - Oak

To support your child throughout the school day, please ensure they bring the following items to school each day: 

· A book bag

· A water bottle (water only please)

In addition, we kindly ask that the following items are brought into school at the start of the term and can remain at school for your child to use when needed:

· A pair of wellington boots

· An all-in-one puddle suit

· A spare set of spare clothes, including underwear, all clearly named in a small bag

PLEASE ENSURE THAT ALL ITEMS ARE CLEARLY LABELLED.

The school day

8:45-9:00

Gates open and children are brought to the classroom by parents

11:45-13:00

Lunch

13:00

Afternoon session begins

15:15

Children are collected from the classroom

We produce a weekly newsletter detailing what your child will be learning the following week. This also contains any upcoming dates for your diary, homework and news. This is sent via tapestry each week.

 

Children in reception have an earlier sitting in the dinner hall than the older children. Parents have the option of sending a healthy packed lunch or ordering a school meal.

All children in reception are entitled to free school meals.

A menu for school meals will be sent home detailing the choices available. 

At St Peter and St Paul, we recognise families as the first and most important educators of their children. We aim to celebrate and build upon all that your child has learnt before joining us at school. 

Please share with staff your child’s particular interests at home and feel free to chat with us about any concerns you might have.

Reception Books

Your child will be bringing books home for you to share and enjoy together. They will benefit enormously from just 10 minutes a day sitting together talking about the book, looking at the words and pictures and saying what they like or dislike about the story.

All children need a book bag and if you wish to purchase a fabric book bag with the school logo. These are available to order on the school website.

Clothing

Due to the very practical nature of the Foundation Stage Curriculum, your child will be taking part in a variety of creative activities involving paint, glue, water and other messy materials. Whilst we always try to ensure that children wear aprons for messy play, accidents do happen!

Please make sure your child keeps a spare pair of underwear, socks, trousers/skirt and top at school. These can be brought in at the beginning of the year and left at the school in case of accidents. (These do not need to be uniform).

School uniform is available to order on our website.

Outdoor Learning Area

Our outdoor area is an extension of the classroom, and we are very fortunate to have this excellent learning resource. We use this space for developing all areas of learning, as well as the obvious physical ones.

In the winter, children will need to bring wellington boots and a warm coat – as we go outside, whatever the weather!

We make full use of the outdoors, so children will need an all-in-one waterproof suit, as well as a hat and sunscreen when the weather is warm.

What is the Early Years Foundation Stage?

The Early Years Foundation Stage sets standards for the learning, development and care of your child from birth to 5 years old.

It provides children with the secure foundations they need for their future learning. It builds on the learning that children will have already gained from their families.

At our school we aim to ensure that our children benefit from learning experiences of the highest quality. We believe that play is young children’s work and the key to their learning. As our children feel safe, secure, valued and supported in their play by adults who care about them, we hope that they will go on to become independent and enthusiastic learners.

There are 7 areas of learning covered by the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Curriculum.

These are divided into three prime areas and four specific areas.

The prime areas are:

• Communication and Language
• Physical development
• Personal, Social and Emotional Development

The specific areas are:

• Literacy
• Mathematics
• Understanding the World
• Expressive Arts and Design

Communication and Language

Children will be given lots of opportunities to develop speaking and listening skills, one-to-one, in small groups and as a class.

In a range of situations such as circle time and storytelling, children learn to listen attentively and respond with relevant comments. We also encourage our children to be inquisitive and ask and answer questions in response to stories we share.

They will show understanding of instructions and learn to express themselves clearly and effectively when speaking one to one or in a group.

Physical Development

This area of learning helps improve children’s skills of coordination, control, manipulation and movement.

In the classroom, it can be seen through activities to develop hand-eye coordination, such as mark-making, playing with puzzles, threading, sewing, and playing with clay and play dough.

Our children have free access to the outdoor area where there are opportunities for climbing, scrambling, balancing and riding wheeled toys.

Children are encouraged to recognise the importance of exercise and a healthy diet and how to keep healthy and safe. They manage their own personal hygiene, and dress and toilet independently.

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

Children will be helped to develop a positive attitude and sense of well-being. They will be able to make friendships with others, learn to be self-confident and to tell the difference between right and wrong.

We encourage the children to be as independent as possible in selecting activities and taking care of resources and equipment. We aim to foster respect and understanding amongst the children by making class rules, circle time and opportunities for paired and group work.

Literacy

Children will learn to speak, listen and communicate. They will be encouraged to share books and to begin to become readers, writers and storytellers in their own right.

They will be given opportunities to hear and re-tell stories, using big books, puppets, storyboards and story sacks. All children’s early attempts at mark-making are valued and take place with a variety of resources, both indoors and outdoors.

Phonics

Children will have daily phonics sessions and will learn to read and write through a variety of activities promoting these skills. We follow the Phonics Bug Scheme for teaching phonics.

Reception children are encouraged to take their books home every night to practise reading and to share stories with their families.

Mathematics

Children will begin to become comfortable with numbers for counting, to recognise numerals and to begin to add and subtract in practical ways. They will use mathematical language to compare size, shapes and quantities. They will discover ways of solving practical problems and recognising patterns and connections.

Children will learn through lots of games and practical activities using maths apparatus. Also, through activities such as cooking, playing in the sand, water and with construction.

Understanding the World

Children are encouraged to explore and find out about the world around them. They will build with different materials and learn about everyday technology. They will find out about past events in their lives and in their families’ lives. They will learn to understand their own culture and to understand and respect the cultures and beliefs of others.

Inside and outside the classroom, children are given lots of opportunities to experience, explore and investigate objects in a scientific way.

We aim to make the most of all the opportunities available in our outdoor area, so that our children can experience different types of weather and environments for themselves.

Expressive Arts and Design

We believe that creativity is fundamental to successful learning. This area of the curriculum includes art, music, dance, role-play and imaginative play.

Children will be encouraged to express their individual ideas through a wide range of activities, such as painting, collage, construction, singing and playing musical instruments, role-play and imaginative play.

Assessment

Whilst in reception, your child will have an electronic Learning Journey, in which we record progress and achievement over the whole of the Foundation Stage.

We welcome parents’ contributions to these as we recognise that lots of important moments happen at home.

You will be invited in for parents’ evenings in both the Autumn and Spring terms to share your child’s learning journey and discuss their progress.

We look forward to welcoming your child to reception at St Peter and St Paul’s, and we hope that their first learning experiences at school will be happy, productive and, above all FUN!