6th September 2021
Dear Parents and Carers,
Welcome to year 1!
I hope that your child enjoys their return to school and settles easily into their new class. Year 1 is all about having a go at new things: trying new skills and building confidence, independence and resilience. I have taught in Year 1 before and really enjoy the magic of children discovering all of the skills that they have; learning to read and write with confidence and imagination, manipulating numbers and both asking and answering big questions. I am looking forward to getting to know the children and helping them to develop their individual skills.
I am a great believer that education is a partnership between school and home so I welcome good communication with parents, support and advice about your child’s welfare and schooling. I really appreciate all of the hard work that you do with daily reading and homework and know how hard it is to fit in with family commitments.
We have a range of interesting topics lined up, starting on our own doorstep with “What’s in our square mile?” We will be investigating different types of buildings, learning how to read and make maps and finding out what is in our village. I hope that we will be able to go out on a range of local walks and visits as well as having visitors into class. If you work in the village, keep an allotment locally, are in the construction trade, provide a service, or have a special interest in our village then please get in touch as we would love to have you in class. If you are able to help out on visits then please let me know. Proposed dates are below but I can be flexible on local visits.
I will be sending weekly letters and any other communications via Classdojo. If you need to see me in person then please let me know and we can arrange a time to meet on Teams or catch up in person. We will be holding parental consultations later in the term and I will send out details once I have them.
Pupils may bring in a named water bottle each day, which will be kept in class for children to access whenever they wish.
Fruit may be brought in for a morning snack and will be put into a tray ready for break.
Milk will also be available each morning break.
Please let me know if you child has any allergies or medical needs that I should be aware of, or if your child uses an asthma pump.
Gym will be on Tuesday afternoon and pupils should come into school wearing their kit to minimise changing times and keep us Covid compliant. PE kit should consist of a plain white t-shirt and navy or black shorts or joggers.
We will be working outside as much as we can, and so please send in a coat most days. (I hate getting caught out by the weather!)
Reading books will be sent home for you and your child to read together. Please encourage them to fill in their sections of the journal and please let me know if you feel that the level needs adjusting, if you would like any advice or if you have any suggestions for supporting reading at home.
I will be sending home a homework menu and homework book. The tasks are designed to encourage your child to have more control over their homework and does not need to be returned until the end of term. It also allows you to schedule the work around your family commitments and is intended to make homework less stressful for families. If however, this is not the case for you, please get in touch.
Also coming home is a note of your child’s Hwb password (which you may want to use for homework or to access Teams) and their Reading Eggs login details. Reading Eggs may be accessed as often as you like at home and has been a regular feature of the work in Reception, so the pupils should have a good awareness of what they need to do. We will be having a weekly session in class as well.
Please make sure that coats and jumpers are named as the lost property box makes me cry!
I believe that the source of all good literacy is oracy, and so this term we will be working on our speaking and listening skills. Part of this is to learn stories, rhymes and songs off by heart. In school we will be using traditional stories as told by Pie Corbett which incorporate repetition, rhythm and gesture to help pupils learn well loved tales. We are also starting a rhyme and poem book which will be sent home for you to contribute to as a family if you wish.
As long as the regulations don’t change I will be starting our Welsh Mascot during the first few weeks. The aim is for you to show the mascot a little of Mumbles and then to support your child in some simple writing about what they have done and play some of the simple Welsh activities included in the pack. Each child will bring the bag home on a Friday and should return it the following Wednesday so I can put it through the wash!
Provisional Dates
14.9 Village walk : What types of houses and homes can we see around Mumbles? (9.30 – 11.00)
21.9 Village walk: Shopping in Mumbles (9.30 – 11.00)
28.9 Village walk: exploring around the castle
4.10 virtual workshop followed by practical session of an old fashioned washday (save your smelly socks)
5.10 Village Walk: Old and new
12.10 Village walk: sound walk or tram walk
WC 18.10: village walk: What’s on the pier?
WC 8.11: Village walk: All Saints Church
If you would like to come with us on any of these visits, or if you are able to help on a different day then please get in touch.
I hope this helps to set the scene!
With best wishes
Debbie W
