Welcome to year 1
The year ahead provides a wonderful variety of exciting learning opportunities for your child as they begin the next part of their school journey.
Class teachers:
1F Charlotte Forster (Year Group Lead) Lucy Jukes (student teacher)
1T Lindsay Turner (Assistant Head for Phase 2)
1M Jill Manning (PSHE Lead)
Teacher emails:
cforster@wimbledonpark.merton.sch.uk
lturner@wimbledonpark.merton.sch.uk
jmanning@wimbledonpark.merton.sch.uk
Support staff:
TA: Ada (across whole year group on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings and Monday afternoon)
LSAs: Mrs Roberts (am), Miss Savva (pm), Maggie (pm), Mrs Mallison (pm) and Miss Taylor (Monday and Tuesday pm)
The transition from Reception to Year 1 is an exciting but significant step for children. It is completely normal for some children to feel a little overwhelmed by the more formal approach to learning in Year 1, but as they settle into the routines, the children begin to take a more independent approach to their learning. Please be assured all staff in Year 1 are experienced in providing support and guidance to help them settle.
Learning in Year 1:
English is based on a ‘core text’, which is used to inspire and aid the children’s writing. Continuing from Reception, the children are taught phonics based on the ‘Read Write Inc’ (RWI) scheme of work. This is a structured reading and writing systematic synthetic phonic programme.
Our maths lessons support and consolidate children’s existing knowledge of mathematical concepts. The aim is mastery in mathematics through exploring concepts in greater depth and being able to reason and problem solve in different contexts. To achieve this, we teach new learning by building on prior knowledge through microscopic steps.
Children will have Music and French once a week, which is taught by our specialist teachers.
The wider curriculum units can be found on the curriculum section of the website.
Reading:
Reading is a key priority in year 1. Recently, we have invested in a new scheme of reading books which have been carefully chosen to marry with the systematic synthetic teaching of Phonics. Your child will receive weekly phonic sound sheets to complete as homework as well as two focus sound reading books. A free choice book will be sent home to enjoy over the weekend. We feel that it is important that reading books are sent home for you to enjoy with your child. Research has found that adults modelling reading around the home and sharing high quality texts sets your child up to be a confident, lifelong reader.
Just like in Reception, we encourage you to write in the reading record each time that you have read with your child. Each class teacher will be keeping a log of your child’s reading progress in a separate folder at school. A stamp will be put in their reading record to show when they have read with an adult.
Read Write Inc. sound sheets will be sent home on the same day that the sound is taught to further consolidate their learning.
A focus sound book will be sent home on a Monday and swapped for an alternative sound book on the Wednesday of each week.
A free choice book will be sent home on a Friday.
Books MUST be returned BEFORE a second book is sent home.
More information will be provided at the ‘Meet the Teacher’ on the 12th September and more specific information around how Phonics is taught and the new book system, on the 4th October. Please await further communication for details about these events.
If you would like access to more books, please sign up to Oxford Owl where you can access free eBooks - please create your own free account, we do not have a login to provide for you: https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/for-home/find-a-book/library-page/
When reading with your child, we will be focusing on decoding and blending of sounds as well as their comprehension. We encourage that you take the time to ask your child questions to gauge their level of understanding of the book.
Home Learning:
For the Autumn term, reading will be the main focus for your child’s home learning. As noted above, each week your child will receive two sound sheets as well as two focus sound books and a free choice book. We will also be sending home 4 focus red words (non-decodable words) for the children to practise reading by sight. These words are taken from the Year 1 Common Exception Word reading list and are expected to be able to read and spell these words by the end of Year 1.
Book swap day: Monday, Wednesday and Friday
In the Spring term, we will begin to send home Maths and SPaG (Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar) quizzes, on alternate weeks as well as a few Topic quiz style questions. These are designed to consolidate learning to aid quick recall.
We will be sending home these quizzes in a home learning folder for your child to complete.
PE:
PE is taught by AMSA each week.
1F and 1M will have PE on Thursday and Friday morning
1T will have PE on a Wednesday afternoon
Please ensure your child wears their named PE kit on their PE days and that spare shoes and socks are in their bags.
Afternoons:
For the Autumn term, to aid transition from Reception, Year 1 children will have structured outside time to help with their social interactions and provide a break from their classroom learning.
Afternoon snack:
Please provide a fruit or vegetable snack for your child to eat mid-afternoon, fresh or dried fruit is fine. Please note that we are a nut free school. We find their energy dips in the afternoon and that a healthy snack is just what they need to keep them going through to the end of the school day.
Many thanks,
The Year 1 team