Thursday, 14th November 2024
Our high flyers this week have demonstrated all of our school’s learning powers.
In maths lessons, we have been using number lines and bead strings to support with subtraction. We have also been finding fewer and more than numbers up to 10. The children greatly enjoyed writing their stories about the Snow Dragon this week.
Reading awards
Congratulations to the children who have achieved reading awards this week… Thank you for your commitment to your reading.
Fine Motor Skill Activities
The children participate in a variety of activities to enable them to build strength in their hands, which supports the development of handwriting. They enjoy dough gym, lacing activities and many more activities.
For relaxation we enjoy Scratch Yoga. You can find a variety of yoga activities by following this link: scratch garden yoga – YouTube
ICT
In computers the children have been using algorithms this week to complete their maze adventures. This topic certainly has captivated our learners!
Geography
In geography, we have been examining villages, towns and cities. We have looked at the countries which make up the UK as well as the countries that share the island of Borneo. We also identified our two local towns, Seria and Kuala Belait, drawing on our experiences of our October trip to V-Plaza.
Christmas Nativity
Our Christmas Nativity is on Friday 6th December at 1030hrs. We hope you will be able to join us then. The children are going to be trying on costumes next week. We will update if they need any other clothing for their costumes.
Notices
Tuesday – Swimming
Thursday – PE and library
Friday, 8th November 2024
In maths, the children have been working hard on developing their subtraction skills. They have really enjoyed using our maths bead strings to help them to subtract numbers along with the crossing out method of subtraction. We use White Rose Education to support children’s learning in maths. The website has free workbooks that can be printed to support your child’s learning. If you are interested these resources can be found here.
In our computing lessons the children have been working their way around mazes proving that they are ‘Maze Explorers’! This week saw them extend their learning by incorporating algorithms in their maze activities.
English
Our core text in English remains The Snow Dragon. It is an enthralling adventure story which has captivated our learners. Here is a good version of the story that you can watch with your child at home – https://youtu.be/TUXtL6PNKLQ?si=w1DqghArupGtpfff . This week we looked at descriptive adjectives in the story; we looked at the children’s comprehension of key events and we produced some impressive pictorial story maps which reflected the children’s understanding.
For Information: School Trip
In a few weeks’ time we will be visiting the post office so the children can post their letters to Father Christmas. Our trip is pencilled in for Thursday 5th of December. We will send out a letter with the information in due course.
Reading Awards
Congratulations to Dolphin reading prize winners. Fantastic to see home reading continue throughout this autumn term. Next week the Turtle reading award winners will receive their prizes!
Notices
Tuesday – Swimming is cancelled on Tuesday 12th December due to lack of lifeguard availability. Please can children come with their PE kits as we can replace the swim session with a PE session.
Thursday – PE and library
Halloween Discos Thanks
Hornbill House Point Trophy Term 1.1
Please find below the total number of house points received by each house team during the first half term this year. House points are awarded in recognition of each child’s hard work, particularly focussing on the school’s learning powers of: Reflection, Communication, Creativity, Courage, Curiosity, Exploration, Energy and Resilience.
Congratulations to every child for their contribution towards these totals!
Friday, 1st November 2024
In maths the children have been working hard on developing their addition skills. They have really enjoyed using our maths bead strings to add numbers together!
In our computing lessons the children have been working their way around mazes proving that they are ‘Maze Explorers’!
English
Our core text in English is The Snow Dragon. It is an enthralling adventure story which has captivated our learners. Here is a good version of the story that you can watch with your child at home – https://youtu.be/TUXtL6PNKLQ?si=w1DqghArupGtpfff . Over the next few weeks this story will inspire the children as the write their own adventure narratives.
In our continuous provision area, the children have enjoyed a variety of activities this week. Some of their favourite activities this week have been writing Halloween spells, learning about Tihar, making Diya lights and mehndi patterns. Additionally, the role play area, which is currently a castle has been popular with the children role playing as kings and queens. We now have dragon costumes in the role play area.
We use White Rose Education to support your child’s learning in maths. The website has free workbooks that can be printed to support your child’s learning. If you are interested these resources can be found here.
Notices
Tuesday – Swimming
Thursday – PE and library
Friday, 18th October 2024
High Flyers
Our high flyers have shown great confidence, energy and enthusiasm to their learning.
Our Week
In maths the children have been working hard on their number bonds. The children have been learning about how to be systematic. In English lessons we have been continuing to learn about recounts.
In our computing lessons the children have been making pictograms and have linked this to their learning in Science about the seasons.
V-Plaza Trip
Our trip to V-Plaza was both educational and enjoyable. The views of the Belait River were spectacular, enabling us to gain a deeper understanding of the physical features and human features present in Kuala Belait. What a way to bring our geography curriculum to life! At the end of a busy morning’s work, where the children completed two activities linked to their surroundings, we enjoyed a sumptuous lunch of pizza, fries and delicious sandwiches. A truly memorable Thursday morning! We even had the pleasure of meeting DCS Head Ms Beverly Martin and Mr Rowley Bucknill, DCS Assistant Chief Educational Officer, during the course of our visit.
Notices
Swimming is on Tuesday.
PE is on Thursday.
Library is on Thursday.
Parent’s Evening Tuesday 29th October and Wednesday 30th October 2024 – Please ensure you have made an appointment.
Halloween Party Thursday 31st October (After school) – See the letter that came home.
Friday, 11th October 2024
High Flyers
Our highflyers have shown great curiosity and courage in their lessons.
It has been a great week, this week. The children have been working hard to learn about using the past tense and to recognise the features of a recount. They have been using time words e.g. first, next, after, lastly to retell events. Following our next school trip (to V- Plaza), the children will be writing their own recounts.
Our lessons in maths have been learning about number sentences. The children have learned about the ‘plus’ (+) symbol and the ‘is equal to’ symbol (=) . The children have also learned about the different structures number sentences can have.
e.g. 5 = 4 + 1
5 = 1 + 4
4 + 1 = 5
1 + 4 = 5
V- Plaza Trip
Our trip to V-plaza on Wednesday is sure to be an enjoyable and educational experience. The children look forward to making geographical observations and this will support the lessons we will deliver in class over the next few weeks. Additionally, a delicious lunch in the riverside café is included. If you have not returned the permission slip long with the suggested $6 contribution, please can I ask you to please share by Tuesday the 15th October.
Happy Dashain
We wish you a Happy Dashain for those celebrating! May this Dashain bring you all happiness, good health, and success in everything you do!
Science
We are approaching the end of our Science unit about the different seasons. The children have impressed us with their understanding and knowledge.
Some of our key vocabulary for this topic is listed below for your information:
- season
- summer
- autumn
- winter
- spring
- change
- leaves
- harvest
- baby animals
- hibernate
- festival
- flowers
Notices
Swimming on is cancelled on Tuesday 15th 0ctober 2024. Your child should come to school in their PE kit.
Wednesday- Our school trip.
PE is on Thursday.
Library is on Thursday.
Friday, 4th October 2024
High Flyers
Our highflyers have shown great reflection skills in their learning as well as energy in all subjects.
Next week, we are finishing our instructions on how to make a compass and beginning to learn about recounts. This week in maths the children played games when learning about the part whole model.
Next week in maths, the children are continuing to learn all about the part whole model and number bonds to 5 and then 10.
In Science lessons, the children have been learning all about the seasonal changes and the different types of weather that can occur.
Notices
Swimming on Tuesday. Your child should come to school in their swimwear and should bring their PE in their bag for afterwards.
PE is on Thursday.
Library is on Thursday.
INSET DAY Friday 11th October 2024 – NO school for the children.
School Trip
Next week we will be sending out a letter about a school trip to V-Plaza on Wednesday October 16th. The trip will support our delivery of the Year 1 geography curriculum focussing on map reading skills and physical features – as the view from V-Plaza is exceptional. The trip will include a lovely lunch in the riverside restaurant.
Mile-A-Thon
Friday, 27th September 2024
High Flyers
Our highflyers have shown great listening skills and reflection on their learning.
Our Week:
In maths the children are comparing numbers and learning about greater than and less than.
In English we have been working on instructions. We looked and discussed the features together and followed instructions on how to make a compass. If you have time a great way to reinforce this is to follow a recipe at home with your child.
In Science lessons, the children investigated which materials were waterproof and what properties were best for an umbrella.
In geography, we reflected on our trip to Seria Park and we identified the human and physical features we observed. We also discussed how the park’s facilities could be improved!
Reading
Thank you for your continued support with reading at home. We have been delighted with the reading we have heard in school. Here are some of the children who received reading awards below. Fantastic reading, well done!
Dashain Picnic
Parents and carers will be warmly welcomed to our school site from midday to collect their child from the classroom and then have a picnic within our lovely school grounds. If you would like to pack some lunch to share as a family along with a picnic blanket or chairs, we would love to see you! If you are able to attend, your child will not need to bring a separate lunch with them – they can join you for the picnic as their lunch that day. You will need to enter the school site through the main entrance and then travel to Turtle or Dolphin classes to collect your child from either Mrs Donald or Mr Leahy. When you collect your child, you will be asked if you would like to take your child home with you directly at the end of the school day, following the picnic, or if your child will return to class with their teacher at the end of the picnic.
Notices
Swimming is cancelled on Tuesday. Your child should come to school in their PE kit.
PE is on Thursday.
Library is a Thursday.
Dashain Picnic – 12 o’clock Friday 4th October 2024
Friday, 20th September 2024
High Flyers
Our highflyers this week have shown great curiosity in their learning, by asking lots of interesting questions. Well done!
Next week, we are finishing our acrostic poems in English and moving onto instructional writing. You can support your child at home by using time connectives when giving them instructions e.g first, next, after, before, later etc
In maths the children are beginning to compare numbers and to use the greater than and less than symbols. In ICT lessons, the children are working on purplemash to create weather pictures. In geography the children will be reflecting on their learning on the trip by making 3D maps of Seria Park.
Our Trip to Seria Park
Thankfully the weather was good for Friday’s trip to Seria park after the disappointment of last week’s rain enforced cancellation. The children had a wonderful time as we explored the park’s human and physical features. We also discussed the compass directions and the children all used compasses to identify where North, South, East and West were. The children also had a chance to explore their favourite human feature in the park – The Oil Rig Play Ground!
Our second school trip is in the planning stages at the moment. We hope to visit V-Plaza hotel roof terrace – again to support our geography curriculum. More details will be provided in the next few weeks.
Reading
Thank you for your continued support with reading at home. We have been delighted with the reading we have heard in school. Look out for the reading awards following soon.
Independence and swimming
In Year 1, your child is expected to be able to change themselves after swimming. This involves drying themselves and independently putting on all clothing. Although adults will encourage the children, they should be able to manage this task on their own. If this is an area that your child needs to develop, please support your child by expecting them to dress and undress independently at home. Please follow this link to a useful guide to support developing independent dressing skills developed by NHS Borders here.
Notices
Swimming is on Tuesday.
PE is on Thursday.
Library is on Thursday.
Please ensure your child has spare clothes in their bag. Next week in Science the children are testing to see if different materials are waterproof, so spare clothes may be needed!
Friday, 13th September 2024
High Flyers
Our high flyers have shown great confidence, energy and enthusiasm to their learning.
This week the children have been doing lots of counting in maths and have been matching the numerals to the words. In Science the children have been learning all about the four seasons and in particular about the animals that are born in springtime. Additionally, the children have been working hard to improve their fine motor skills and have produced great work in phonics!
Sadly, our Geography field trip to Seria was cancelled due to inclement weather conditions. We have rescheduled for Friday, 20th September.
House Teams
The children are given house points for showing the learning powers. There has been amazing courage shown this week!
Reminders
Daily reading at home is vital to support your child’s progress in reading and writing. Please continue to sign the front of the reading diary and the back for the reading awards. Your child should bring their reading folder to school every day.
Notices
Swimming is on Tuesday.
PE is on Thursday.
Library is on Thursday.
Friday, 6th September 2024
Our highflyers have impressed us with their communication skills. They have shown great listening skills and have been attentive learning partners.
The children in Year 1 have been working hard creating poetry about the weather in English and counting in Maths. Our swimming lessons began this week and the children participated with energy. Within our PSHE (Personal, Social, Health education) lessons we have been discussing how to make someone feel special and ensuring the children all feel valued within the classroom. Our classrooms are beginning to take shape and the children have created some beautiful work for display.
Your child will come home with a letter about our upcoming trip. Please sign and return in your child’s reading folder on Monday.
Reminders
Reading
Daily reading at home is vital to support your child’s progress in reading and writing. Please continue to sign the front of the reading diary and the back for the reading awards. Your child should bring their reading folder to school every day.
Your child was given a library book on Thursday which is our library day. Please ensure they return their library book next Thursday.
Healthy Snacks
The school provides fruit. Please ensure that you are providing your child with a balanced lunch and another snack with healthy foods to support their growth and wellbeing.
Independence and swimming
In Year 1, your child is expected to be able to change themselves after swimming. This involves drying themselves and independently putting on all clothing. Although adults will encourage and support the children, they should be able to manage this task on their own. If this is an area that your child needs to develop, please support your child by giving them the opportunity to practice dressing and undressing independently at home.
Notices
Swimming is on Tuesday.
PE is on Thursday.
Library is on Thursday.
Trip to Seria Park is on Friday, 13th September 2024.
Year 1 PE
Welcome to Year 1
The children have had a fantastic start to Year 1 and have impressed us with their kindness, energy and enthusiasm.
Home Learning Support
Reading Please help your child to rehearse their reading skills by reading together daily. Please record this with a signature and comment in their reading diary.
Maths The other area of learning that we would really like to encourage families to support at home is their Maths learning. The best way to support your child with their work in maths is through
Modelling and using maths in their everyday life, through activities such as cooking or shopping. Your conversations can also really help children to learn – perhaps you could talk about the days of the week and then ask questions, for example:
- Today is Monday, what day is it tomorrow?
- I need two clothes pegs for this item of washing and one more for this sock, how many pegs do I need altogether?
- Counting objects together. Once your child is able to do this confidently, count in steps, for example 2, 4, 6, 8… 5,10,15… 10, 20, 30 etc
- Playing maths related games or singing maths related songs.
More information will follow about maths and phonics at a later date.
Communication
For children travelling by bus, please remember to inform the bus supervisor of any bus cancellations.
Each morning your child’s reading record will be checked, please feel free to add messages there if you are not able to speak to us in the morning or contact the school office if your message is urgent.
PE/ Swimming
Your child’s PE day is on a Thursday. They should come to school in their PE kit, wearing trainers.
Swimming is on a Tuesday morning – Your child should come to school with their swimwear on with either their PE kit or school uniform to change into afterwards. Please ensure they have their towel and underwear in their bag as well.
We politely request that your child does not wear any jewellery on their PE and swimming days.
Library
Our Library day is Thursday. On this day, your child will be issued a new library book. Please ensure that on this day your child returns their old library book.
Other
Building on their personal, social and emotional skills learnt in FS2, please encourage your child to dress independently, including learning the important skill of putting on and doing up their own shoes.
Your child has a snack and lunch break at school. They are provided with fresh fruit during snack time.
Please ensure your child has a spare set of labelled clothes in their bag. Occasionally, learning can be messy!
Thanks for your support.
Year 1 Team
