Yew Class

Welcome to Yew Class

Dear Parents
Firstly, please ensure that all your child’s possessions are named, including water bottles. The amount of clothing etc. that we have in lost property is unbelievable and we spend a silly amount of time looking for kit that has not been named – please help!
Please read our Curriculum Map here to find out about all the different topics we will cover during the year.
Year 1 children from Spruce class will cover reading, phonics, spelling, writing and maths with Mrs Stephenson each morning (see the Spruce class curriculum map). In the afternoon, Year 1 children will join in with the same topics and subject areas as Yew class
English:
Our English lessons will often be linked to our topics. We will be building on work done in Spruce class by consolidating the use of capital letters and full stops and moving on to writing sentences which include the conjunctions ‘and’ and ‘but’. We will be learning how to use more description in sentences. Your child will receive new spellings weekly in a spelling book, which should show the date when they will be tested. Please practise the learning of spellings on scrap paper and keep the book in your child’s reading wallet so it is accessible to school and home.
Reading:
To help your child’s reading, it is important that they are encouraged to read for at least 5 minutes each day.  This may not always be possible, but will give your child the best chance of reaching the reading levels we are expecting by the end of Year 2. Please record this in their reading diaries so that we can have an on-going record of your child’s progress. We aim to change the books each day, but this is not always possible.  It is shown to be beneficial to read a book twice, so do not hesitate to have a re-read if the books have not been changed. Book wallets must come to school each day.
 Maths:
Throughout the year, we will be exploring all areas of Maths, however to start with there will be a focus on place value and calculations.
 Home learning:
Reading – for an enjoyable session of at least 5 minutes each day.
Spellings – a list will be sent home most weeks with the date of the test included. Please practise spellings on scrap paper, not in the book. Thank you.
Homework may increase as the year progresses and a list of homework tasks will be sent to you once the children have settled fully.
PE:
Thank you to everyone who sent your child with their named PE kit at the beginning of term. PE will be on Tuesdays and usually Thursdays, which will include some lessons outside. Please can you continue to ensure your child has their PE kit in school throughout the week, as the weather sometimes dictates when PE lessons might happen!  PE kit includes: Shorts and a T-shirt for inside. Trainers, jogging bottoms and a long-sleeved sports top are needed for outside.
If you have some spare time and would like to help out in the classroom or in other areas of the school, please come and see me as we always value help from parents. Thank you to those parents who have already volunteered.
If you have any concerns, even if you think it may be nothing, please do not hesitate to pop in and see me. A conversation usually clears things up quickly!
Mrs Livesey