What a wonderful week we’ve had in Reception as we completed our  topic on Transport! This week, we focused on London — its landmarks, ways of getting around the city, and all the exciting things you might see if you visited.

The children absolutely loved exploring our capital city! We listened to the story Miles in London, which took us on a journey through the bustling streets and iconic sights. The children were fascinated by the different ways people travel around London — from the underground trains to red double-decker buses!

We then turned into little tour guides, labelling famous London landmarks such as:

• Big Ben

• The London Eye

• Tower Bridge

• Buckingham Palace

Using their creative skills, the children built a giant Big Ben outdoors using bricks and created other amazing landmarks using junk modelling materials. Their attention to detail and teamwork were incredible! Each child wrote a postcard describing what they saw and enjoyed on their “visit”.

On Friday, we celebrated the end of our topic with a very special treat — jam sandwiches! The children had a go at making their own jam sandwiches. Beforehand, they sequenced the instructions and discussed what we needed to do first, next and last. Not only was this delicious fun, but it was also a fantastic way to build on their language and understanding of instructions.

This week in Phonics, we’ve been revising Phase 3 phonemes and tricky words that we’ve learned throughout the year. The children have been working hard to recognise these sounds in words, blend them for reading, and use them in their writing. We’ve sent home a list of the specific sounds and tricky words your child needs to practise. Please take a few minutes each day to go through these together. Try to focus on both reading and spelling the words.

In Maths this week, we continued learning about subtraction. The children have been using practical resources like counters and cubes, as well as drawing their own pictures to help them solve simple take-away problems. It’s been brilliant to see them becoming more confident with numbers and explaining their thinking.

In our Religion lessons, we read a story about Jesus’ disciples and how they shared the Good News about Him with others. We then thought about what we know about Jesus and what we would tell someone who had never heard of Him before. It was lovely to hear the children remembering stories from earlier in the year — they talked about Jesus’ kindness, His miracles, and the importance of love. I was so proud of their thoughtful responses!

Wishing you all a restful half term!

Mrs Carey and The Early Years Team.

This week, we read The Naughty Bus. The children made their own buses, they made road maps with buses on, they made pictures with lots of different vehicles and they painted road signs. The children thought about where they would like to travel to on a bus and wrote sentences.

In Maths, we have been adding. The children have been using counters and tens frames to answer addition questions. We have been solving word problems by using the vocabulary – first, then and now. First there were 4 people on the bus, then 2 people got on. Now there are 6 people.

On Thursday, we celebrated VE Day. The children made medals for the soldiers and coloured in flags. In the afternoon, we had a party with our Year 6 partners. We ate biscuits, had a drink then we played hopscotch and noughts and crosses.

We listened to the story about the Holy Spirit coming down to the disciples. We acted it out. The children made hats to show the flames on the disciples and they had fun blow painting flames.

This term we have been learning about travelling on different transport then we will be learning about London. Please send in a photograph of your child visiting a place in London or travelling on a train, plane or a bus.

On Friday afternoon, the children joined the May Procession and place flowers around Mary. The children were respectful and sang beautifully.

Have a wonderful weekend

Mrs Carey and The Early Years Team