• Reading and Writing
• Maths help

Welcome to Reception Class!

A happy place to learn, play, explore and shine!

Class Teacher - Mrs Keating

Teaching Assistant - Mrs Murphy

Learning support: Mrs Chu

We really are excited to begin this incredible journey together with your children. Starting ‘big school’ is a hugely important milestone in your child’s life, and here at St Gabriel’s, we are keen to develop strong relationships with our children, but also with you-the parents/carers! We have two members of staff working with your children this year-myself as class teacher and Mrs Murphy (class Teaching Assistant) You will see us collecting and releasing the children each day.

Magical Me

Our main focus for the first half term of the Autumn term in Reception will be the topic ‘Magical Me’. Each week the children will enjoy a different story from which the learning activities will be based. We will be thinking about who is in their family; how they are the same and different; looking after themselves; their body; their feelings and their friendships.

Celebrations

During the second half term, our topic will be about ‘Celebrations’. The children will be learning about: bonfire night, Remembrance Sunday, Diwali, Hanukkah and Christmas.

Religion

Our topics in Religion, across the Autumn term, will be ‘Creation and Covenant’ and ‘Prophecy and Promise’. These will be taught in a child friendly way, exploring ideas through discussion and engaging, practical tasks.

Writing

Throughout the year, there will be a strong emphasis on building up finger strength for writing, using a variety of activities, for example, using scissors for cutting, using a range of mark making materials, using small construction and other fine motor control resources. Any activity of this type strengthens the hands and fingers and is essential for the development of good pencil control and handwriting.  Doing these activities at home is very beneficial in helping your child to write. Early in September, we will be starting ‘dough disco’ which the children (and adults!) absolutely love.

Reading and Literacy

In Literacy, the children will be learning the sounds of the alphabet. We will be learning these sounds in our phonics lessons through the ‘Little Wandle’ phonics programme. More information will be sent out soon regarding how you can support your child with their phonics and reading. The children will also learn to form the letters correctly, ensuring they use the correct pencil grip.  As we move through the term, we will progress to using these sounds for spelling and sounding out simple words. 

In Reception, we develop a love of reading and writing through a book-based approach. Each week begins by introducing new vocabulary from our focus story, with actions added to help children embed and remember new words. Throughout the week, we revisit this vocabulary and explore the story in greater depth through rich book talk, discussing characters, feelings, settings, and key events. This naturally leads into a writing opportunity, where I model the process and children then have a go themselves. Across the year, children’s writing develops from early pencil control and letter formation, towards writing short captions and then dictated sentences using finger spaces and full stops. By the end of the year, children continue to develop their writing through dictated sentences, applying key skills such as sentence structure, finger spaces, and full stops. They are also encouraged to take increasing ownership by making guided choices, such as adding words and details of their own, while continuing to build confidence and focus on quality over quantity.

Maths

In maths, we will be following the NCETM Mastering Number programme and using White Rose to supplement ‘Space, Shape and Measure.’ We will be finding, subitising and representing numbers to 5; identifying 1 more and 1 less; and understanding how we make numbers to 5.  We will also be learning about circles, triangles, and shapes with 4 sides. Alongside this, the children will begin to learn number formation through a programme called ‘Ten Town,’ which is a fun and engaging way to teach shapes of numbers through characters such as ‘King One’, ‘Tommy Two’ and ‘Thelma Three’.

Sharing books

Early in the Autumn term, all children will start to bring home ‘Sharing Books’. This is a similar idea to a Library book as they can choose the books they bring, and they are for you to spend time reading together. We will then begin our small group reading lessons and the children will start to bring home books from these sessions to share with you at home too. Further information regarding this will be released in the first few weeks of the Autumn term.

After the school day

I have always valued the importance of honest and open communication with parents/carers. It is really important that you feel you can come to us with any questions you may have or just to have a little catch up at the end of the school day. Please never feel that any question/concern is too minor to share. If you are worried about anything at all, never hesitate to come forward. All that we ask is for you to kindly wait until the class are dismissed safely at the end of the school day, so we can give you our full attention.

Blue Book Bags

Blue book bags will need to be purchased for school. These book bags are for any letters we need to send home, and then eventually for reading books and reading records. Please encourage your child to carry their water bottle separately as we have previously had spillages that have ruined their books!

Water Bottles

If you are able to provide your child with a plastic water bottle, that would be much appreciated. Please ensure the water bottle is leak proof, named and filled only with water-this is really important. Children are encouraged to access their water bottles independently throughout the day, so make sure they have had a little practice opening and closing them carefully over the summer holidays.

Snacks

School provides a fruit snack mid-morning for our children which they can access from our ‘rolling snack’ table.  The children are also offered milk or water to drink each day. They do not need to bring a snack in from home in September as they are encouraged to have a piece of fruit from school.

PE Kits

As it currently stands, our PE days will be a Monday and a Thursday afternoon, which our fabulous ASM staff lead for our children. Children will need to bring their PE kit in a clearly labelled bag, with all individual items labelled with their name. Further details about PE uniform can be found on our school website. (Please note that PE days may change once next year’s timetable is finalised; we will let you know if there are any changes.)

We will, of course, support children in the early stages as they learn to get changed for PE, but we work towards developing independence as quickly as possible. This helps children build confidence and means we can maximise the time they have to enjoy their learning across the curriculum. We would encourage you to practise dressing and undressing at home — fastening buttons, zips, and managing clothing independently are wonderful ways to develop fine motor skills and confidence. Please refer to our Uniform Policy on the school website to ensure your child comes to school in the correct uniform.

Class Webpage/Class Dojo

Please check the Class Dojo page regularly. Information will be added here, and on the website, as we progress through the year. I will also post photographs and reminders on Class Dojo.  A link to join the Reception class will be sent to you, if you are not already linked through the Pre-School.

Spare Pants and Socks

It is unlikely they will be needed, but please keep a spare pair of socks, spare trousers/skirt and pants in a named plastic bag inside your child’s blue book bag in case of any accidents. 

Learning outside in all weathers!

In Reception, we spend a great deal of time exploring and learning outside in our lovely outdoor area. Please ensure children bring a coat to school every day and hats/gloves in colder weather. If you could also send a pair of named wellies into school, which can stay in school all year round, that would be much appreciated. Sometimes, September blesses us with beautiful sunshine, so please send in a sun hat and a labelled bottle of sun cream should you feel your child will need it. Please remember to label everything (even shoes!)

I really am excited to begin this wonderful journey with your children and can’t wait to see how much they grow and develop this year.