Reception Summer 2 Curriculum Information

In the second part of the summer term, we will be reading books linked to our English lessons, our class reading times and our Early Years curriculum.

Our theme this half term is ‘Let’s Explore!’ In English we read a book called ‘Penguins’ by Anne Schreiber, a National Geographic book for Kids. In this book we waddle along with the penguins and learn a wealth of information about them. It is full of amazing photographs and many fascinating penguin facts. We write our own non-fiction penguin reports with the information we collect.

Another book ‘One Day on our Blue Planet…in the Antarctic – (Penguin) by Ella Bailey.’ In this book we follow the journey of a chick, a baby penguin in the Antarctic. We find out about life in the Antarctic and what happens as the chick grows into an adult penguin. The penguin chick has self-belief, one of our school values, as it learns to look after itself.

Next, we read a book called ‘Handa's Surprise’ by Eileen Browne. This book is set in Kenya, a very different environment to the Antarctic. We will ‘explore’ the Kenyan landscape, animals and fruits as a little girl called Akeyo visits her friend who lives in a neighbouring village. Using some of the delicious fruits from Akeyo’s basket we follow a set of instructions to make fruit kebabs, yummy!

Another book is ‘We All Went on Safari: A Counting Journey Through Tanzania’ by Laurie Krebs. In this book we ‘explore’ the grasslands of Tanzania as we go on a counting adventure. As we turn each page, we encounter more animals along with movement and rhythm of its rhyming text.   

As we learn about ‘Past and Present’ we read an Usborne book about ‘St George and the Dragon.’ This is a retelling of the legend with magical illustrations, a fire-breathing dragon, a princess and a knight! We also share the book ‘The Story of Robin Hood by Rob Lloyd Jones.’ This is another retelling of a Legend – Robin Hood. The character Jack calls upon Robin Hood to help him get his dad out of the castle. Will he succeed? In both legends we talk about courage, another of our school values, and how we stand up for something we believe in.

Our poetry book this half term is by Michael Rosen, his book of ‘Nonsense Poems.’ Poetry full of silliness and laughter, and a joy to share. We will select our favourites and retell them together.

Finally, our class book is ‘The Sheep Pig’ by Dick King Smith. A charming story about an orphaned piglet called Babe who is adopted by a sheepdog called Fly. Babe wanted to be a sheepdog! We follow his story, his antics and capers as he becomes the Sheep Pig!

Looking forward to sharing so many amazing books!

Reception Summer 1 Curriculum Information

Welcome to the first part of the summer term. We have more fantastic books to share this term. The books are linked to our English lessons, our class reading times and our learning linked to ‘Knowledge and Understanding of the World.’

We have our trip to Bowthorpe Farm during the first week. Farmer George takes us around his farm, introducing us to his animals and their babies, machines and the surrounding crops. We are sharing a book about a farm called ‘A Year on Adam's Farm’ by Adam Henson. This links to previous learning about the seasons as we go on a journey with Adam on his farm. This interactive book is packed full of information about life on a farm, the origins of food and amazing facts about farm animals.  

One of our English books is ‘The Rainbow Fish’ by Marcus Pfister. This story is about a fish who is one of a kind and has sparkly, shimmering scales. All the other fish want to be beautiful just like the Rainbow Fish This story links to our school values of compassion and acceptance as the Rainbow Fish learns to share, valuing friendship and the happiness it brings.  

Alongside this book we think about the importance of looking after our oceans. Understanding the impact of pollution and how we can make a difference! Discussing rubbish, plastics, recycling… This links to another school value – responsibility and how we are in charge of the choices we make.

We have a hands on ‘Creative Learning Workshop’ this term called ‘Beside the Sea.’ We have the opportunity to explore and find out about artefacts. This session bringing learning to life!

Another book is ‘David Attenborough -Little People Big Dreams’ by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara and Mikyo Noh. Being the ‘Attenborough’ class, this is an opportunity to find out even more about David Attenborough and significant events in his life. We will reflect on more of our school values, self-belief and respect, as we learn about how David informs us about our planet and how we need to look after it.

Our next English book is ‘What We’ll Build’ by Oliver Jeffers. This book is about a father and daughter, looking after each other and keeping each other safe. Like the characters in the story, we will talk about dreams and aspirations that we have in our own lives. The book also makes links to our planet and how we need to take care of it.

This half term we will share poems by Michael Rosen from his book of ‘Nonsense Poems.’ Poems full of silliness to enjoy and recite together.

In addition to poetry, we will spend time learning about William Shakespeare and find out about one of his books ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream.’ We will venture into enchanting forests, meet Queens and fairies. With magic and lots of tricks along the way!

As we learn about growing, we read the book ‘The Tiny Seed’ by Eric Carl. In this book we find out about plants, growing and life cycles. This story takes us on the journey of a seed, showing us how the seed travels before it lands and grow into a beautiful flower.

Another book we read with a growing theme is ‘Jack and the Beanstalk by Richard Walker. This is a retelling of a traditional tale; the children will love joining in with the repetition. Watching with amazement as magic beans grow into a magical beanstalk. We will grow our own beanstalks as we learn about what happens to a seed when it grows and what a plant needs to grow.

Finally, our class book is ‘The Sheep Pig’ by Dick King Smith. A charming story about an orphaned piglet called Babe who is adopted by a sheepdog called Fly. Babe wanted to be a sheepdog! We follow his story, his antics and capers as he becomes the Sheep Pig!

Looking forward to sharing so many amazing books!

Reception Spring Term 2 Curriculum Information

Welcome to the second part of the spring term. More amazing books to share from our ‘reading curriculum.’ The books are linked to our English lessons, our class reading times and our learning linked to ‘Knowledge and Understanding of the World.’

Our English book this term is ‘All Aboard the London Bus’ by Patricia Toht. We go on a bus tour of London with a family and explore many landmarks. We learn all about the sights of London through poetry and rhyme. Through drama we will go on our own tour, give our own tickets to the bus driver, stopping at each landmark as we celebrate London and recite poems.

Another book that enriches our curriculum is ‘Little Elizabeth: The Young Princess Who Became Queen’ by Valerie Wilding. We find out about a young and brave Princess who grew up to become our Queen. This story will help us to learn out about the life of Queen Elizabeth II and her amazing legacy. We will fondly remember the Queen and also begin to learn about the coronation of our new king, her son King Charles III.

Alongside learning about Kings and Queens we are finding out about important people in our community. We are arranging visits from our local Fire Service and Community Police. We also plan to visit Melton Vineyard and Storehouse to find out how they support our local community.

Our next book is ‘Zog and the Flying Doctors’ by Julia Donaldson. This story links to our learning about Kings and Queens and people who help us. The characters show courage and perseverance in all they do, these are values we share at school. The book takes us on an enchanting journey with princesses, knights and an 'air ambulance', Zog the flying dragon! As we discuss jobs such as being a doctor we will share our aspirations about the jobs we would like when we grow up.

As we continue to learn about London we will read ‘Paddington and the Grand Tour’ by Michael Bond. What a bear Paddington is, he is full of courage and self-belief, two of our school values. In this book we go on a day out in London, revisiting landmarks from our previous book. Paddington sets off for the day to see the sights of London and he ends up leading the tour!    

This half term we also learn about ‘Life Cycles.’ In the book ‘Nature’s Tiny Miracle: The Bee – journey of a bee from plant to plant’ by Patricia Hegarty we find out about the life cycle of a bee. The illustrations in this book are magical! In this peek-through picture book we go on a journey with a bee and learn about its special job.  

Our class read is ‘George’s Marvellous Medicine’ by Roald Dahl. This is an exciting story; George creates a magic medicine to give to his grumpy grandma. What will he put into his potion? What will happen to grandma? In the outdoor classroom we make some of our own potions…Hubble Bubble here we go!

So many wonderful books to share this half term!

Reception Spring Term 1 Curriculum Information

Welcome to the first part of the spring term, our theme is ‘Adventures!’ We will be reading books linked to our English lessons, to our whole class reading times and our curriculum learning ‘Understanding the World.’

We begin with a book in English called ‘Rosie’s Walk’ by Pat Hutchins. We go on a journey with Rosie the hen as she travels around the barnyard. The farm is in the middle of the countryside and every morning she wakes up feeling optimistic and curious, some of our school values, as she goes on her daily walk around the farm. As she goes on her daily adventures, she is followed by a sly fox who is extremely hungry! Rosie is unaware she is being followed by the fox and as we eagerly turn each page, we can’t wait to see what happens. Thankfully the fox is so busy thinking about his breakfast he doesn’t look where he is going! 

Our next book ‘Tree -Seasons Come, Seasons Go’ by Patricia Hegarty links with ‘Understanding of the World’ as we learn about the seasons. In this book we are invited by an owl to explore and learn about the seasons. The detailed artwork captures the life cycle of a tree as it changes through the spring, summer autumn and winter. We will explore the seasons in our school environment as we go on a ‘Winter Walk’ using our senses to find signs of Winter!

Another book helping us to learn about the world around us is ‘Winter Sleep: A Hibernation Story’ by Sean Taylor. This is an enchanting book that explores an adventure shared by a child and their grandma. It is winter and many animals have hibernated! In this fascinating book we can see under the ground as we take a sneaky peak at the animals that are hibernating! With this book we will explore another or our school values ‘curiosity’ as we learn facts about hibernation.

Another book we share is ‘The Tale of Peter Rabbit’ by Beatrix Potter. This book brings out the sense of adventure in all of us! We will explore different emotions as Peter Rabbit mischievously visits Mr McGregor’s Garden. Run Peter, run! In addition to the story, we will also find out about the author Beatrix Potter. As we learn about the ‘Past and Present’ in our curriculum we will be asking questions to find out about Beatrix Potter. ‘Who is she? and ‘What was her life like?’

Our next English book is ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ by Maurice Sendak. This story is about a boy named Max. Max loves to dress up and has a ‘wild’ imagination where amazing things happen. We will discuss our school values of ‘courage’ and ‘compassion’ as we follow Max as he meets the ‘wild things.’ They admire Max and he becomes the king of the ‘wild things.’ We will use this story as a stimulus to create our own ‘wild adventures!’

As part of our outdoor learning, we are sharing the book ‘The Bear Hunt’ by Michael Rosen. A family set off on an amazing adventure. The rhythm and movement of the language used brings the journey to life. As we turn each page and join in, we become part of the story. With curiosity and creativity, we splash in the river, squelch in the mud and swirl in the snowstorm before arriving at the gloomy cave. Finally with courage we meet the bear!

Our poetry book this half term is ‘Poems Out Loud’ by Laurie Stansfield & Various Poets. Poems to share and enjoy together as we learn about a variety of poems by different poets. We will recite favourite our poems and perform them together.

As we continue with our theme ‘adventures’, we explore space and our planet Earth in our learning about ‘The Natural World.’ In the book ‘Look Up’ by Nathan Bryon we meet the character Rocket, she loves science and space and wants to be an astronaut! This story is inspirational, and you just won’t be able to stop yourself from looking up at the stars and wanting to know more!

Another book linked to ‘Space’ is ‘Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth’ by Oliver Jeffers. This book explores our planet and the world we live in. Helping us to understand the wonders of the Earth, how it is changing and how we need to care for it.

Finally, our class book ‘The Night Gardener’ by Terry Fan is enchanting. The main character William and his town are transformed by a night gardener. Trees are sculptured into owls and much, much more. The town transforms and changes.

This term we have additional books from the Learning Library about ‘Seasons and the Weather.’ There are fiction and non-fiction books adding knowledge and information to our learning.

Looking forward to sharing so many amazing books!

Reception Autumn Term 2 Curriculum Information

Welcome to the second part of the autumn term. We begin with a book called ‘The Best Diwali Ever’ by Sonali Shah. In this enchanting book we find out how Arianna plans to make this the best Diwali ever! As we eagerly read each page, we find out about what Diwali is and how it is celebrated. This will be part of our Diwali afternoon along with singing, dancing and making many sparkly decorations.

 In English we start with the story ‘Jack and the Jelly Beanstalk’ by Rachael Mortimer. This is a traditional tale with a twist! Jack and his mum are heart-broken when they have to sell Daisy their cow. On his way home Jack is drawn into a the most amazing, sweet shop and is mesmerised by a jar of glittering, magical jellybeans. After spending all his money, he takes them home! We think about our school values of courage and curiosity as Jack takes us on an adventure in the clouds as the jellybeans grow into a gigantic jelly beanstalk.    

We will also be reading a book called ‘Dinosaur Bones’ by Bob Barner. This book makes curriculum links with ‘The Natural World.’ This book ‘roars and stomps’ with dinosaur bones and fossils that can be found in museums. The author brings these piles of bones to life as we find out facts about dinosaurs!

Another book is ‘How to Grow a Dinosaur’ by Caryl Hart. Albie, the little boy in the story has amazing adventures! He plants seeds with his mum and overnight they grow into dinosaurs of different shapes and sizes. Imagination and creativity ooze from this book, helping us to create and tell our own dinosaur stories.

In addition to our dinosaur books, we have a ‘Dinosaur Project Box’ in school from the learning library. First-hand experiences with so much to explore and find out. Alongside this we have a ‘Dinosaur Art Session’ we are so excited!

In English we have a unit on poetry, a list poem about ‘Fireworks. As we generate words to describe the sounds and colours of an array of fireworks, we will create our own class poem.

Our class reading sessions include lots of traditional tales. These include ‘Little Red and the Hungry Lion’ by Alex T. Smith a variation on Little Red Riding Hood. As we think about our school values of self-belief and perseverance, Little Red outwits the lion as she meets giraffes, crocodiles and monkeys. In ‘Cinderella’ by Chloe Perkins the story is set in Mexico, with amazing, colourful illustrations capturing our imaginations. Then we have ‘Pinocchio’ by Katie Daynes. We go on another adventure as Pinocchio comes to life. As we look at toys from the past and present finding out about other toys made out of wood.

Our final English book is ‘Lost in the Toy Museum’ by David Lucas. This book takes us on another exciting adventure, this time it takes place in a museum! One night, when the museum is closed all the toys run off and hide. Bunting, an old toy cat is all alone and sets out to look for them. Bunting has lots of fun following clues to find them Alongside this we have another visit from the Learning Library who bring their ‘Travelling Toybox.’ We learn about new toys and toys from long ago in our curriculum learning about ‘Past and Present.’

We finish with the book ‘The Jolly Postman’ by Janet and Allan Ahlberg. This interactive book is full of rhyming word and humour as we follow the journey of the Jolly Postman. We will create our own ‘Jolly Post Office’ in the role play area, bringing together many characters from traditional tales such as Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Cinderella and the Big Bad Wolf! We will write letters, cards and invitations in our own Post Office.

So many books to share and learn about, so much to look forward to!

Reception Autumn 1 Curriculum Information

Welcome to the Autumn term! We start the year reading books linked to ‘Our Amazing Bodies.’ As we begin our first term at school we focus on building relationships and learning our school routines.

We begin with the book ‘Super Duper You!’ by Sophy Henn. This book is a rhyming picture book with delightful illustrations. We explore how amazing we all are and the aspirations we have as we grow up. The book makes links to our school value ‘self-belief’, as we talk about what we would love to do now and in the future!

As we learn about our amazing bodies, we read a book called ‘Funnybones’ by Allan and Janet Ahlberg. We learn about parts of the body, how we move about and about skeletons. We go on a journey with a family of skeletons as they go on a night-time adventure. This story is funny, full of repetition and you just have to join in!

Another book we read is called ‘The Velveteen Rabbit’ by Margery Williams. When the Velveteen Rabbit first arrives in the nursery, the other toys don’t want to talk to him. However, the Rabbit soon makes friends who tell him how toys can become 'real' if they are loved enough. The Velveteen Rabbit can’t wait for this to happen! This is a magical story exploring emotions, families, friendship and all the memories we make!

In English we are reading a book called ‘Perfectly Norman’ by Tom Percival. Norman is just like other children until one day to his amazement he grows a pair wings! This is an inspirational book about self-belief and being proud of who you are. In the creative area we will make pictures using a variety of collage materials to create our own wings!

As we learn about our incredible ‘senses’ we share the book ‘Listen’ by Gabi Snyder. In this book we tune in on one of the five senses ‘hearing’ and we follow a girl through her school day. She listens to noisy sounds…quiet sounds in the world around her. In class activities linked to ‘The Natural World’ we will explore and ask questions about all our senses.

In the book ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’ by Susanna Davidson we find out about the family of bears. In our learning about ‘Past and Present’ we talk about members of our family and people in the community. We will retell this story to each other in our outdoor classroom as we pretend to be the bears or Goldilocks.

The next book we read in English is a poem ‘How to make a Chocolate Mug Cake’ by Michael Rosen. We are using this poem as a stimulus for making a chocolate cake in a mug. Who loves chocolate cake? Do you? Michael Rosen does, it is his favourite treat! The poem is amazingly funny and full of funny noises and superb descriptive vocabulary. In our English lessons we will follow instructions and write our own to ‘make a chocolate cake in a mug!’ This book also links to science as we investigate changing states of matter experimenting with melting chocolate…yummy!

We have many more things planned this half term including a visit from the Learning Library to tell us all about toys from the past. They will bring in artefacts, toys from the past for us to find out about and explore. This session is hands on bringing learning to life as we play with the many toys they bring along!

Finally, our class novel this term is ‘The Owl who was afraid of the Dark’ by Jill Tomlinson. This book oozes so many of our school values…courage, curiosity, compassion and perseverance as Plop the Owl overcomes his fear of the dark. Mrs Barn Owl sends Plop out from his nest hole to find out about all kinds of dark and he realises that dark really is super!