7.11.25

9.00-10.30

7.11.25

13.40 -15.10

7.11.25

9.00-10.30

7.11.25

13.40-15.10

10.12.25

9.00am start

10.12.25

9.40am start

9.12.25

9.00am start

9.12.25

9.40am start

Reception Space Celebrations

To celebrate our Space Learning Challenge this term we will be having different events going on throughout the last week of school before the half term break.

In preparation, your child could:

• learn a space fact to share with the class
• bring in a space book – non-fiction
• bring in a space story – fiction
• draw/paint a space picture to show the class

These things can brought in from Monday 20^th October. Please make sure your child’s name is on any books, pictures etc.

In class we will make the week special for the children, reflect on our learning about space and end the week by having an astronaut training session, to celebrate their first term at school.  

PSED/RSHE Lesson 

In our RSHE/ PSED lesson (6.10.25) we discussed the NSPCC’s PANTS rules.

These are designed to teach pupils how to stay safe from sexual abuse, without giving explicit information or telling scary stories or even using the term “sexual abuse”. We will start the lesson by introducing the children to a character called Pantosaurus.

We  showed them this clip:

NSPCC Pantosaurus (2 mins)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SzbMEVYiyg&t=120s

This is a film featuring NSPCC’s  friendly mascot Pantosaurus.

His catchy song covers the main points of PANTS and  introduce the topic to the children.

In the lesson, children will learn about the ‘PANTS’ acrostic, which stands for:

• Privates are private.
• Always remember your body belongs to you.
• No means no.
• Talk about secrets that upset you.
• Speak up, someone can help.

The lesson is fully age-appropriate.

The Talk PANTS campaign helps teachers and parents of 4-11 year-olds keep their children safe from abuse.

Like the Green Cross Code, it takes a potentially tricky subject and gives teachers and parents the tools to talk about it in an engaging and age-appropriate way.

Cooking & Gardening

We are proud to offer all pupils the opportunity to take part in cooking sessions during the school day. These sessions take place in the School House kitchen and are led by the class teacher.

Fresh ingredients from our school garden are used wherever possible, helping children learn about food, nutrition, and sustainability.

To support this programme, we ask for a voluntary annual contribution of £13.00, which covers the cost of additional ingredients for the full school year (September 2025 – July 2026).

• To contribute, please log into your MCAS account
• The fee can be found in the Clubs section and added to your basket

Your support helps us continue offering this valuable hands-on learning experience. Thank you!

Healthy Snacks

To help keep energy levels up and minds focused, we encourage pupils to bring a healthy snack for break time.

Great options include:

• Fresh fruit or vegetables
• Plain rice cakes or crackers
• A small pot of dried fruit
• Cheese cubes or yoghurt (in a cool pack)

Please do not send sweets, chocolate, crisps, or fizzy drinks. Let’s work together to support healthy habits and happy learning!

Capturing 'Wow moments' at home

We value contributions from parents/carers of moments of achievement that have happened outside of school.   If you observe your child achieving something new or wonderful, then let one of the Reception team know by sending in a photo with a note or just singing their praises.  The wow moments are stuck in your child’s learning journey and support assessments throughout the year.  Feel free to send in as many as you would like, parents/carers usually complete a page of wow moments each half term. 

Reading Books, Key Words, Home Learning and Book Bags

At Fielding, we follow the Read Write Inc programme.

The type of ‘book’ your child receives will depend on their phonics knowledge.

• Some children will focus on learning the sounds of the alphabet.

• Some children will receive a sound blending book to help develop their blending skills.

• Some children will receive a book called ‘My Phonics Book’. A letter will be sent home with information of how this works.

• Some children will receive a reading book.

In addition to this, your child will choose their own picture book.

Your child is not expected to read this book. This book is to be shared with an adult for enjoyment and to help develop a child's comprehension skills.

All books will be changed once a week.

Please make sure your child brings their book bag to school every day.

Help your child to get into this routine.

Inside their book bag please make sure that you always have:

• picture book
• reading book
• reading record

Please look through the reading record, there is lots of useful information inside.

Please sign the reading record every week and write a comment about how your child is progressing with their reading.

Book Bags

Book bags will be going home on Monday 22^nd September.

Your child must bring their book bag to school every day.

Please make sure that you always have the following inside your child’s book bag:

• picture book
• reading book
• reading record

When you collect your child at the end of the day, please check that your child has their book bag with them.

Home Learning

Home Learning is linked to our phonics lessons; It is sent home on a Friday.

Please help your child to do the activity at home.

Please keep the home learning at home, do not send it back to school, it is for you to keep at home.

If you have any further questions, please talk to your class teacher.

Phonics

Sounds we have learnt so far:

w/c: 15.9.25 - m, a, s, d

w/c: 22.9.25 - t, i, n, p

w/c: 29.9.25 - g, o, c, k

w/c: 6.10.25 - u, b, f, e

w/c: 13.10.25 - l, h, r, j, v

w/c: 20.10.25 - y, w, z, x

English

Week commencing:  20.10.25

We continue reading  a range of non-fiction books about space in our English lessons. 

We will be learning how non-fiction books can help us find out information.

We will look at the features of a non-fiction text:

• headings
• labels
• diagrams
• contents page
• glossary

We will talk about the difference between a fiction and a non-fiction book:

• fiction books are made up stories
• non-fiction books contain facts and information.

The children will learn some space facts.

We will start the week by asking ‘What is Space?’

• Space is outside the Earth’s atmosphere.
• Space is very far away from Earth.
• It takes a long time to travel there.
• There is no sunlight in space, which means it is dark.
• There is no air in space, which means it is silent.
• It is also very cold in space.

We will learn about the solar system.

• There are 8 planets near our sun. This group of planets is called our solar system.

The children will draw the solar system and label it.

When writing, we will focus on the initial sound of a word.

To support the children, we will emphasise and exaggerate the initial sound of a word. This will help children to hear it more easily.

Your child needs to be able to link the letters and sounds in order to write.

For example:

When writing the word ‘sun’, we will emphasise the ‘s’ in sun.

Your child must know the sound ‘s’ makes, know what ‘s’ looks like and how to write the letter ‘s’.

Some children are not able to link some of the letters and sounds yet, therefore the teacher will model how to write the letters.

We will then learn about the sun.

For example:

• The sun is a star.
• The sun is a big ball of gas.
• It is 93 million miles from earth!

We will then go on to learn some facts about the eight planets:

• Mercury
• Venus
• Earth
• Mars
• Jupiter
• Saturn
• Uranus
• Neptune

In each lesson we will:

• Do a daily review of facts learnt so far
• Ask children questions about space – Can you share some facts?
• Check for understanding? Do they understand the vocabulary? e.g. solar system, sun, space.

We will look at the glossary in the space books to help us with this.

• Present new material in small steps – just a few new facts each day!
• Use the ' I do, We do, You do' and encourage some independent practice.

The children enjoy becoming knowledgeable about space and being able to share facts with each other.

Supporting your child at home:

Talk about the difference between a fiction and non-fiction book.

Look through any books you may have at home and sort them into fiction and non-fiction.

Remind the children that fiction books are made up stories and non-fiction books contain facts and information.

Help your child to learn some space facts and encourage them to share their new knowledge with their teachers and friends at school.

Can your child link all the letters and sounds?

Check and find out!

Say a sound, can your child write the correct letter?

Is your child forming the letter correctly?

This is an important skill. Practice this regularly every week with your child. Have an alphabet chart in front of your child that they can refer to just as we have in the classroom.

Next week in English:

We will be learning about the seasons.

Maths

Week commencing: 20.10.25 & 3.11.25

In maths we are learning about patterns. (These lessons will continue after half term.)

Seeking and exploring patterns is at the heart of mathematics.

Developing an awareness of pattern helps young children to notice and understand mathematical relationships.

We will look at a range of patterns and learn that a pattern must repeat.

Children need the opportunity to see a pattern, to talk about what they can see, and to continue a pattern. At first, they will do this one item at a time, e.g. red cube, blue cube, red cube…verbalising the pattern helps.

As children progress from copying patterns to continuing patterns, they can be challenged to change the sample pattern or to create their own.

A range of objects can be provided for children to decide what the features of the pattern are going to be.

Patterns can involve different aspects and modes such as sounds, words or actions: some children will need suggestions, while others will think of their own.

As children construct the patterns, we will ensure they have opportunities to:

• repeat the unit at least three times (big bear, small bear; big bear, small bear; big bear, small bear). This is to ensure the child can sustain the pattern

• make a specified pattern, e.g. ‘Can you do a green, yellow pattern?’ This is to ensure the child can apply their pattern understanding

• choose their own rule, e.g. ‘I am going to make a big, small pattern.’ This is to ensure the child can identify pattern features/rules/criteria

• choose their own actions or sounds, e.g. clap, stamp… This is to help children generalise the idea of pattern.

In class we will:

• talk about patterns
• copy patterns
• continue a pattern
• spot the mistake in a pattern and correct it
• make up our own patterns

The children will make their own repeating patterns using a range of resources:

e.g. cubes, animal counters, bears, dinosaur counters, peg boards, 2D shapes etc.

At first children find it easier to focus on colour patterns e.g. red, blue, red, blue. Some children will be able to move on from this and will use other criteria such as shape, size, object, actions etc.

The children will draw patterns and some may record a pattern they have made.

The children must be able to talk about their pattern and say what comes next.

We will play games such as:

• Can you work out the pattern?
• Can you spot the mistake?

We will also look at more complex patterns

e.g. ABBABB/ blue, blue, red, blue, blue, red.

Supporting your child at home:

Look for patterns at home and the environment for example on: clothes, duvet covers, carpets, tiles etc. 

Can your child  make/draw a pattern and explain how it repeats?

Use natural materials to make a pattern and explore autumn at the same time!

3D Shapes

Some children need more time to learn about 3D shapes.

Your class teacher will let you know if your child needs more support with this.

Please help your child to name some shapes.

Focus on: cone, cylinder and sphere. These tend to be the easiest for children to talk about.

The children must use shape vocabulary to describe a shape.

For example:

• a cube has 6 faces
• a cylinder can roll
• a sphere has no edges
• a cone has one vertex

Key 3D shape vocabulary:

• solid
• faces
• vertices
• vertex
• edges

Next week in maths:

We will continue learning about patterns.