27.1.15- Writing a recipe, missing number sentences and number bonds to 20.

This week in Year 1 we are carrying on writing our pancake recipes from the story of Mr Wolf's Pancakes.

 

 

All of the children have been writing this on the computer on either word or purplemash. The focus has been on using openers such as First, next, then. They need to make sure all of the instructions are numbered, they start a new line for each instruction and they have the important verbs in the instructions that tell the reader what to do (mix, stir whisk).

 

 

In maths we have been trying to grasp missing number sentences such as 7+ ? = 15. Today we recapped on our number bonds, in particular  to 20. It would be good to see some maths home learning where the children have been practicing this.

 

This week we have a number of maths morning jobs which the children seem to settle quickly to in the morning. This is a great time for them to show us some independent work and also a time for them to talk and work with their friends.

 

Tomorrow we have the Year 8 sports leaders coming in for a PE session. I will hopefully blog some pictures of this tomorrow.

27.1.15- First Forest School session for Spring and Winter

This afternoon was the first Forest School session for Spring and Winter group. I was really impressed with how wrapped up they all were! The children were so excited after hearing from their friends some of the activities they may do.

 We started the session with meeting Freya (the puppet) from the era of The Croods and playing a favourite game of ours. We then searched the area for tinder so that we could light the fire.

 

 Before lighting the fire we had to learn the skill of making a spark. A few of the children were anxious about making the sparks but once we talked through the safety aspects and showed them in small groups how to make it they all had a go.

 

 We were experimenting what would light the best out of the range of tinder we had such as silver birch bark, 'old mans beard', cotton wool and bulrush. After finding out that cotton wool lit the fastest we lit the fire.

 

 

The children learnt the rules of the fire circle and how they need to walk around the back of the logs instead of walking through it.

 

We used our senses to investigate what happens to rosemary when that is placed on the fire.

 

Nearer the end of our session we cooked popcorn on the fire and used our sight, hearing and taste sense to see it pop and cook.

 

 

At the end of the session we teach the children how important it is to put out the fire slowly and safely.

 

 

22.1.15- Forest school. Last time for this group.

Apologies for not blogging about Forest School on Tuesday. We had a fantastic time outside in the roundhouse area. We started off our session with some warm apple juice.

 

 

 

Then we used our sense of smell and touch with some bay leaves feeling how smooth they are and seeing what happens when they are put on the fire.

 

 

 

Next we explored our outside area to see what we could make some musical instruments with. There was a wide range of materials that the children chose to use. If the children wanted some larger pieces of green wood then they had to cut it!

 

 

 

Some children even whittled their green wood using peelers and knives.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maddy and I were so impressed with the children's skills and willingness to learn. Some of the children even discovered the ice and made an ice piano!

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was this groups last session of Forest School this term.

 

 

 I hope they have all came home and told you about what they have been up to. If you want to see some more of the pictures we do have a board in our classroom.

19.1.15- Is the Wolf really big and bad?

This week we in Year 1 we will be looking at the book:
 

We will be comparing the Wolf in this story to the well known Big Bad Wolf in traditional tales. We will also be answering questions such as; Why won't anybody help Mr Wolf?

 

 

Year 1 will be using the story to learn about how to use exclamation marks in their work.

As well as this we will also be cooking some pancakes so that the children can then write the perfect pancake recipe.

 

Thank you to everyone that has offered to help with sewing on Wednesday and Thursday we have had a few offers which is great! It is the last Forest School for group one tomorrow. Please make sure we have lots of warm layers, home trousers, jumpers, gloves, hats and a coat. A few children were cold last week we really do need the children to have extra warm clothes.

 

Thank you for your support

 

Year 1 team

19.1.15- Last weeks maths learning and WOW writing award.

In Maths last week we were learning about how to colour in 1/2 and 1/4 of a shape. The children were also learning how to share a number of objects by half. I wonder at home can your child share maybe some food or some toys between two and four?

 

 

We have also been looking at time. We have been looking at where the hands are when the time reads O'clock and half past, we linked this to our knowledge of fractions (half a circle).

 

This week we are really focussing hard on our addition and subtraction skills. We will be looking at how we solve missing number sentences and also number bonds within 20.

 

It is fantastic to see so much home learning coming in to school. I have particularly enjoyed seeing the pieces of work where the children have focussed on their writing targets. All of the children seem motivated to achieve this and are regularly looking at this during Literacy.

 

 A massive WELL DONE to Charlotte who received the Year 1 WOW writing award for her neat cursive writing and being able to use because in a sentence.  

15.1.15- Any helpers for sewing please?

This term in DT we are making hand puppets. The children have designed their own puppets and how they want to join their felt together. Lots of children have chosen sewing. Are there any sewers out there that could help us in Year 1 on a Wednesday from 1.30 for an hour or so and a Thursday from 2.30pm? We would really appreciate the support.

 

Also we are on the hunt for old wellies. Maybe your child has grown out of them or they have a whole in? We want to use them for some art work in our Jigsaw sessions so if you do have some please can we have them.

 

Thank you from the Year 1 team.

Waste Wizard competition!

 

In our school assembly today, we were visited by Kirsten Juniper from the Dorset Waste Partnership. She set the children the challenge of entering another special recycling competition. The children were asked to make a “Wizard” out of any items that can be recycled (excluding glass) to try to win a fabulous “Eco Pack Prize”.

The children should bring their recycled Wizards to school by no later than Friday 6^th February. I will be judging the Year One entries and announcing the winners at a special assembly that we will be having (on the 6^th February).

Some of the winners will then be sent on Kirsten to be entered in the next stages of the competition.

I look forward to seeing all of the wizards and remember they need to be made by you (the children) adults can help with the tricky parts. Kirsten did say that they can be decorated with glitter paint etc.

Letters will be coming home tomorrow with all the information in.

13.1.15- Sharing playdough in half and the second Forest School session

Thank you to everyone that came to the information session, I hope that you found it useful. If you were unable to make it then all the information will be in the newsletter on Friday.

Year 1 have been working really hard this week on sharing objects in to half. They needed to make sure that half of the play dough was equal to the other and so used the balance scales to check.

 

In Literacy we have started to think of interesting openers to traditional tales. We have been using our story map to help us write connectives.

Forest school was this afternoon. I hope that the children are coming home and telling you all about activities that we get up to? I hope we will see some home learning about something that the children have learnt or something they enjoyed?

This afternoon we have lit a fire, made popcorn, played games, made some knives using wood the children cut, made a broom also with wood and willow that was cut.

 

 

 

We now have a forest school board where we will try and add some new pictures each week.

11.1.15- Parent information reminder and lots of information about our first week back!

Firstly I just wanted to remind everyone that it is the Year 1 parent information session this Tuesday from 9am in the school hall.

This week we have been so busy learning about the new topics that we will be covering in this part of the spring term. In Maths this week the children have had to put their thinking caps on and try and solve problems and explain to us how to solve the problem.

During the last part of the week we have been looking at how we can tell how many Tens (T) are in a number and how many Ones (1's). Most of the children did find this a tricky concept but with lots of practice breaking down numbers using place value cards and numicon most can understand how to tell. Not only that, they now understand that for example in the number 27 there are two lots of ten and the two is not a two but a twenty.

 

This week we have started our Geography topic of The Gambia. We will be revisiting Fatou and her family. This week we looked at Fatou's compound and there is there. The children thought of so many great and inquisitive questions to do with the pictures we were looking at.

 

 

We have also started our DT project this week where the children will be designing, making and evaluating a hand puppet. This week the children worked with Mrs Hall to look at existing puppets and what materials they are made from.

 

In Literacy we have started looking at Traditional Tales, in particular Little Red Riding Hood. All of Year 1 can now retell the story using a story map. On Friday we had to use our imagination when we 'hot seated' some of the characters from the story. Year 1 worked really hard to think of some brilliant questions to ask Little Red Riding Hood, The Wolf and The Woodcutter. We will be delving in to the story in much more detail next week!

 

 

 

6.1.15- First Forest School session

Thank you to everyone that bought in extra clothes, wellies and waterproofs for Forest school today. It was so fantastic to be outside all afternoon. Next week I would suggest that all children do have extra layers and gloves as it can get cold. We will be having a fire next week though so should be a bit warmer. For the next two weeks the following children will be doing forest school: Layla, Amalia, Lewis, Oliver, Scarlett, Poppy, Alfie, Faye, Jamie, Charlotte, Frank, Avril, Oona, Andrew and Noah, so they will need their extra clothes in bags. The rest of the class will not need them until 27th January when they will start their 3 weeks of Forest school. At the moment the other half of the class will be working with Mr Treble who teaches PE within DASP.

 

We all learnt so much at Forest school today. We pretended that we lived in the same time as the 'Croods' (100,000 BC) and looked at flint tools, made a spark with a fire steal and took the bark off silver birch so that we can use it to light our fire next week. The children learnt the importance of staying out side of the fire circle and also played some fun games such as mammoth, mammoth saber tooth tiger!

 

We will soon have a display of our Forest School experiences but in the meantime here are a selection of the photos from this afternoon.

 

 

 

 

4.1.15- The start of the Spring term is here...

Happy New Year to you all. I hope you had an exciting, fun filled holiday and are ready to start the new school term! Thank you again for all the kind gifts they were all lovely.

Just a reminder this term we will be starting our Forest School on a Tuesday afternoon (half the class at a time). So please send in wellies, waterproofs and maybe an extra jumper on Tuesdays. If you send these in a labelled plastic bag this would be very helpful as they can be hung on the children's pegs.

In Literacy this term we are beginning to look at Traditional tales. Our work on this will also give us inspiration in our DT lessons where the children will be making puppets. In maths this week we will be looking at how we solve problems and looking at hundred squares.

Next week on Tuesday (13th) just after 9am is the Year 1 information session in the hall where I will tell you in more detail what we will be up to this term and answer any questions you may have.

We will be continuing our focus on handwriting and I really look forward to seeing lots of home learning this term showing how neat the childrens writing is becoming.

See you all tomorrow!

Mrs Thorpe