Religious Education

This week in RE, we focused on Ash Wednesday and Shrove Tuesday. The children learned about the significance of Ash Wednesday, why we receive ashes, and how it marks the beginning of Lent. We also explored the traditions of Shrove Tuesday and why people eat pancakes before the Lenten season.

The children enjoyed discussing ways they could show kindness and reflection during Lent, thinking about small promises they could make to help others.

Home Learning Task: Talk to your child about Ash Wednesday and Shrove Tuesday. Ask them to share what they have learned and discuss ways your family can prepare for Lent together.

Phonics

This week in phonics, we have been consolidating previously learned sounds while introducing new words and exploring their meanings through reading and writing activities. Our main focus has been on digraphs and trigraphs, (which are two or three letter that make one sounds) ensuring that children can confidently recognise and use them in their reading and writing.

The children have been practising words with:
📖 er, air, ai, igh, oa, ear
🔠 Examples: bigger, chair, shimmer, muffin, chatter, rubbish, comic, timid

We explored new vocabulary such as:
✨ Shimmer – To sparkle or shine (e.g. The stars shimmered in the night sky).
🥊 Boxer – Someone who does the sport of boxing.
📏 Pattern – A set of repeated shapes, marks, or colours.
🍞 Muffin – A small cake (or a flat, round bread that can be toasted).

To deepen their learning, children worked on:
✍️ Blending longer words (e.g. fantastic, helmet, habit).
📝 Sentence building using their new sounds and tricky words.
 

Home Learning Task

Encourage your child to practise blending longer words at home. You can:
🔹 Play "I spy" with words that contain our focus sounds.
🔹 Ask your child to build sentences using words like bigger, shimmer, or muffin.
🔹 Read simple sentences together, spotting the new digraphs and trigraphs.

Communication, Language and Literacy

This week, the children have continued their exploration of traditional tales, focusing on Goldilocks and the Three Bears. They sequenced the story, discussed how the characters might have felt, and reflected on Goldilocks’ actions. They even thought about how the story could be retold with a different twist!

Next week, we will be introducing a new traditional tale—though we’re keeping it a surprise for now!

Home Learning Task: Read Goldilocks and the Three Bears with your child. Talk about the events in the story and how the characters might have felt.

Here is a link to the story if you are not familiar with it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjIE-Sl-qKY

Maths

In Maths, we have been learning about doubling. The children explored what doubling means, used practical methods to visualise the concept, and then applied their learning through problem-solving activities.

We will continue to reinforce this next week to deepen their understanding.

Home Learning Task: Encourage your child to explore doubling at home with objects like toys or food. For example, "If we have 2 apples and we double them, how many do we have in total?

Here is a fun song to help learn doubles

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jOzhiACB68

Important Information

• If you have any boxes or finished kitchen roll please can you bring them in to school. We will use them as part of our Deign and Technology learning over the next few weeks.
• On Wednesday 12^th March it is our Class photos. Please ensure your child is wearing the correct uniform on that day.
• Don’t froget to buy your tickets for the Reception Easter Disco on Thursday 3^rd April. Tickets are £5. The disco runs from 3.30pm-4.30pm. On the day of the disco the children will be able to wear their own clothes so hey are ready to party after school!

Many Thanks- The Reception Team