April 2023

Dear Parents and Carers,

All the children have settled very well back into our daily routine after their Easter Holidays. 

Here is some information detailing our curriculum for the summer term. 

In English our focus will be on learning phonics and developing language and communication skills, with an emphasis on listening, speaking, signing and using PODD books. Our main stories are ‘The Old Lady who swallowed the Fly’ and ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’. This term children will also look at Poetry – focusing on rhyming words and alliteration. 

In Mathematics the children will be working on the following skills:  Counting reliably to at least 10 objects, reading, writing and ordering numbers, identifying numerals from 1 – 10, estimating the number of objects & checking by counting, identifying 1 more/1 less to 10-20, using ‘more’ & ‘less’ to compare two numbers, adding two single digit numbers and subtracting by ‘taking away’ from a group of objects.  We will also explore and talk about weight, capacity and time.

Our Science topic of the term is ‘Plants’. Children will learn about the parts of a plant, explore the garden, discover a range of plants, plant seeds and bulbs and learning key vocabulary e.g. seed, root, stem, leaf, flower, bud, compost, soil, air, water, light. Children will explore using their senses some common garden plants and trees. We will find out how plants need water, light and a suitable temperature to grow and stay healthy. Children will observe that seeds grow into mature plants. 

In Art and Design lessons the children will explore structures by constructing a windmill.

In PSHE there will be a strong emphasis on personal, social and emotional development. We will be reading stories, using rhymes, playing games and singing songs with links to our topics: ‘Families’ and ‘Different types of relationships’ including Healthy and Unhealthy relationships.

During P.E sessions we will focus on individual physical development and expression, including dance, swimming and Yoga taught by specialist teachers.

Humanities - In the first half of the term, we will have History and we will learn about the dinosaurs and fossils.  In R.E. lessons children will explore special stories which will lead us to talk about and explore special books for Christians and Muslims e.g. Bible, Koran. This term we will be making the most of the outside environment.  We will have regular sessions in our garden planting bulbs, seeds, flowers. We plan to make trips to the local park and the local pond. There will be lots of opportunities to encourage the children to interact with their peers and express themselves through free choice activities, music, art and ICT based sessions. 

In Computing the children will learn how to follow instructions and begin to experiment with BeeBots.

Thank you in advance for your support. We look forward to discussing your child’s progress at their PSP’s (Personal Support Plans) and Annual Review meetings.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any queries.

Anna and Panda Class Team.