Dear Parents,

This week we have been focusing on what we might find on a farm- be it machinery, plants or animals. The children are getting excited about our trip and we are starting to talk about expectations about what we will see, what activities we will do and the behaviour we show when we are outside of school. In maths, some of us have started subtraction using our knowledge of number bonds to take away. We have been using objects to help us with this and understanding the different ways we can take away: counting back on a number line, removing object, writing a number sentence (e.g. 5 – 3 = 2) and crossing out objects to name but a few. If you would like to do some simple subtraction with your child using the crossing out and counting method, here is an extra activity.

In phonics, most of the children have been learning the remainder of their set 2 sounds and some have starting an introduction to set 3 sounds. The children are trying really hard to recall their newly learnt ‘special friends’ (e.g. /ar/or/ir/), but some are still finding independent writing tricky. Please do find some opportunities to practise at home and remember they don’t have to get things exactly right (some have only been writing less than a year!). If the children are using their sounds to spell and you can decipher it- they are doing their very best. Even just mark making is a great sign that they are getting excited about writing. Asking your child to make the shopping list, getting them to write invitations to a ‘party’, creating place labels for dinner time, writing secret notes to each other, getting them to read your simple silly sentence like a teacher- all help with the writing process. Please don’t be too concerned if they are mirror writing or writing back to front, just gently remind them about which was our writing goes (the same as we read) and get them to try again (a little arrow often helps).

Next week, we will continue to talk about farms and our trip; preparing the children as best as we can, as well as talking through any worries with them. We will also be looking at the environment around us and how we can care for the living things in it. We are very excited to be having some bee keepers in to visit us (the bees will be contained) as it is World Bee Day on Monday 20th. We will be making bees, talking about what bees do and how they are one of the most important creatures on our planet. Please do advise us of any phobias or allergies before this (on Tuesday). We will also be visiting the Year 1 classrooms, next week, and having a little explore/ play in a new environment to start to familiarise the children with their classrooms in September.

After half term, we will have our Theme week focus of Jobs. In Kites we will be looking at jobs that entail  ‘Who we call when we need help/ in an emergency’. If you know of someone who may help us with this by coming in to school for a quick Q & A session- we would be very grateful. Let us know at the end of school, or email through to the office. Examples are : life-saving, life-boats, police, firemen, paramedics, vets, plumbers, gas engineers, locksmith etc..

Challenge: This week’s challenge for SHOW AND TELL is to create a picture or poster to show how to care for living things. It could be a poster saying ‘Don’t squish spiders’ or a photo of a bug hotel you have created.

Reminders: Please remember hats for children need to be worn now the weather is getting hotter. Named bottles for water are also needed.                                                                          PE is now outside, so children require running shoes every Thursday – especially as we now practising for Sports Day. They will not be able to take part without appropriate footwear.  PE kits DO need to be provided from home please; black/ navy shorts, light blue/ white t-shirts and trainers. If you need help obtaining any of these items, please let us know.

Forest camp– children are getting quite hot in their uniform. If you could provide a light cotton pair of trousers and light long sleeve to go under kit, it means they are protected if they do need to take off a layer.

Dates: 

Bucklebury Farm: Thursday 23rd May, be in school at 8:30am

Sports Day: June 25th – Time to be confirmed

Summer Fair:  June 29th

Thank you for your continued support and have a lovely weekend!

The Kites Team.