We are Year 1 at St Columba’s, happy to meet you. Take a look at the exciting things we are learning about.
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Knowledge mats provide information about the topic we will be learning in each subject. There is key vocabulary that the children will be learning and using, along with the ‘sticky knowledge’. The ‘sticky knowledge is the main learning that the children will know by the end of the topic. Knowledge mats will be sent home at the start of each topic. These will help you support your child’s learning at home. Talk to your child about their learning and use the knowledge mats to ensure they are using the correct vocabulary and learning that important ‘sticky knowledge’. We hope you enjoy the journey with us through Year 1.
This half term our learning challenge question is, why are iPads more fun than my grandparents’ old toys? Below is our key knowledge mat which outlines the key vocabulary and knowledge your child will learn throughout the half term.
This half term in maths we will be learning about Fractions. Below is our key knowledge mat which outlines the key vocabulary and knowledge your child will learn throughout the half term.
This half term in science our focus question is which materials should Vlad use to build his house? Below is our key knowledge mat which outlines the key vocabulary and knowledge your child will learn throughout the half term.
This half term in RE we will be learning about Miracles. Below is our key knowledge mat which outlines the key vocabulary and knowledge your child will learn throughout the half term.
In year 1 we cover a wide range of subjects. On a morning we always start our day with a collective worship. In this time we come together to thank God for his gifts to us and we read a story from our class bible and think about what it can teach us. Children are encouraged to take an active role in delivering our class worships so we often ask them to participate in a variety of different ways. We usually end our worship by singing a hymn or performing a liturgical dance, year 1 really enjoy this.
Every morning we teach phonics, maths, English and the children read. During the afternoons we cover science, music, PE, history, geography, art, DT, computing, SMSC and RE. All of these subjects are important however in year 1 we do put an extra emphasis on reading and phonics to ensure that children have these essential skills at the very start of their school life.
PE is on a Friday. The children need to come to school in their PE kit on this day.
For PE the children should wear their house colour polo shirt, black trousers and black trainers.
In year 1 the children read at school everyday. This is because at this early stage in their reading development, practice is key. The children re read the same book to develop their fluency and confidence and we ask that you do the same at home. On a Friday the children will have their book changed. Please read some of this book every night. Once you have read it all, start reading it again. You will notice they start to read faster and more confidently. As they do, their understanding of the story they have read will also increase. At this stage start to talk about what is happening in the story and why. What do you think will happen next? This will also increase their pleasure of reading and develop important comprehension skills. As well as the children practicing their reading at home, we also encourage you to read to them. Children love to be read to from books they are not able to read themselves yet. This is a great way to develop your child’s vocabulary and enjoyment of books, as well as understanding and communication skills.
At St Columba’s Catholic Primary school we follow the government approve phonics program of Little Wandle. Phonics is taught in year 1 every morning however phonics comes into everything we do. In every subject there is reading and writing therefore the children are constantly using and learning phonics throughout the day. Phonics are the sounds (phonemes) that the letters make in words. They have already learnt the first 4 phases of phonics whilst in Reception. In year 1 we develop these skills further. In Autumn 1 we will recap phase 3 and 4, before progressing onto phase 5 in November. In phase 5 we learn the different ways some phonemes are spelt. We call this ‘growing the code’. Below are all the different ways we will learn to spell the phonemes we learnt in Reception. Please practice these at home to encourage fluency.
As well as learning the phonemes in words, we also learn tricky words. These are words that we can not decode using the phonemes we have learnt in that phase. Tricky words should be read fluently (without sounding out). Children should be able to read all the phase 2, 3 and 4 tricky words by the time they start year 1. They should then be able to read all the phase 5 tricky words by the end of year 1. Practice these words regularly to increase fluence of reading.
PINE
Mrs Dawson – Class Teacher
Mrs Robinson – Teaching Assistant
BEECH
Miss Oakland – Class Teacher
Mrs Khan – Teaching Assistant
