Hello and welcome to Year One

Our doors will be open at 8.45am. They close at 9.05 (if you arrive after this time you will need to take your child to the school office)

The school day will finish at 3.15 pm.

Here is some information to answer some of the questions you might have:

Which staff are in the Year One Team?

• Class 1G – Miss Gray & Mrs Hermansen, Mrs Moss, Ms Dawson & Mrs Stockton
• Class 1W – Mrs Wakefield, Miss Edge, Mrs Wess, Mrs Hart        (we have a lot of part-time staff this year)
• Plus you may also see Mrs Potter & Mrs Bishop & Mrs Quarterman or Mrs Goodwin (who cover PPA time)

What do I need to bring to school every day?

• Your bookbag and reading diary – We will be checking how many times you read at home so that we can reward you with reading certificates for each time you complete 10 reads at home.

(Reading is a vitally important skill for your child to progress at school. It is both the responsibility of the Year One team during school hours and also your responsibility as parents at home. Please read at least 3 times a week with your child.(See information below about our Monster Phonic e-books).

• Snack – You will need to bring a healthy snack for the morning – fruit, yoghurt, cereal bar.
• Water bottle – with your name on.

What day is PE?

PE will take place on Monday afternoon (although we find it best if PE kits are left in school each term – and washed in the holidays)

You will need to bring your PE kit in to school in a named bag. As a whole school we are keeping to a strict form of PE kit this year which must be as follows:

• A grey or white t-shirt  
• Black shorts, leggings or jogging pants
• Black pumps or trainers

Please write your child’s name on each item of PE kit. Please be aware that we will be following up on any children who do not have the correct PE kit or have not brought it.

No earrings on a PE day please.

What will we learn?

We have three main topics throughout the year. 

Term 1 - Dinosaurs  

Term 2 - London

Term 3 - Kenya

See our Termly Curriculum overviews below for more details.

Homework/Reading

In Year 1 we don't set specific homework, as our focus is on Reading. It is so important that we spend as much time as possible, in school and at home on developing the children's phonic knowledge and supporting them in using these phonemes (letter sounds) to segment (sound out) and blend them together to read unknown words. The children also need to recognise some "tricky" words on sight that do not follow the usual phonic spelling patterns. See below for a list of these Common Exception words the children are expected to know in Year 1. 

In School we use the Monster Phonic Reading Scheme for our Guided Reading sessions, as well as teaching daily phonic sessions using the Monster Phonic website Monster Phonics.

In your child's reading diary the adult that reads with them in school will write in the name of book they have read in school as well as which "stage" and book number it is. (after three Guided Reading sessions). This book has been carefuly matched to your child's current reading level. You can log on to the Monster Phonic website - for free, on a tablet, phone or computer (see guidance below) and read this same book online.  Please listen to them read the book and remember to give them lots of praise, if they can't read a word, read it to them. After they have finished, talk about the book together and see if they can answer the questions. Please then sign & date your child's reading diary so we know they have read at home. We encourage you to read on three seperate occasions throughout the week - children will be rewarded with stickers and certificates for reading at home. In addition they will also visit Mrs Jones (Principal) and receive a free book to keep at home when they reach our 10, 20, 50 & 100 stars, and then every 50 reads after that! The children love sharing how well they are doing with Mrs Jones.

The children are also invited to choose a book at the same level to take home for additional practice, but this will be a book they have not read in school so will not be familiar with. In additon we also have sharing books in class that the children can select from. In order to encourage your child to become a life long reader, it is important that they learn to read for pleasure. These are books which they have chosen for you to enjoy together. Please remember that you shouldn't expect your child to read these alone. Read it to or with them. Discuss the pictures, enjoy the story, predict what might happen next, use different voices for the characters, and explore the facts in a non fiction book. The main thing is that you have fun!

Please click on the Monster Phonics Parents Log in below for details of how to log in to the website. Then click on the  E-Books Parents Guide document below to sign up for the free ebooks to support your child at home.