Hello!

This week in maths we have been learning about odd and even numbers. We started the week spotting the odd one out by grouping a selection of objects into pairs to see if there was an odd one out. If there was, then it was an odd number and if you could make pairs without an odd one then it was an even number! You could do this at home with pieces of fruit, marbles or anything up to the amount 20. We have also looked at spatial reasoning and the children have been creating small models using multilink for their friends to replicate. We have been using language such as on top, underneath, next to, behind, in front of. If you have blocks or Lego at home, you might like to try this game. Gather no more than 6 blocks for yourself and the identical blocks for your partner. Partner one makes a small tower or structure then partner 2 has to make the same one, looking carefully at the colours, shapes and position of the blocks. If you can do this easily, then create a barrier game where partner 2 can’t see the blocks. This time, partner 1 has to describe where they are eg put a blue block at the bottom then put two green blocks on top of that, then next to the top green block put a yellow block and underneath the yellow block put another blue block. Can partner 2 make an identical structure just by listening to instructions?

Over the next few weeks in maths we will be consolidating skills learnt throughout the year. Next week we will be reading ‘Harry and his Bucketful of Dinosaurs’ and using this as stimulus for finding how many more or how many fewer dinosaurs in the bucket. We will also read ‘Mr Gumpy’s Outing’ which will lead onto combining amounts to find a total. The story ‘How many legs?’ is another book we will use to inspire combining amounts. You could find out how many legs a group of your toys has, such as a teddy (2 legs), a toy dog (4 legs) and a toy octopus (8 legs). If you have any of these books at home you might like to read them this weekend. The children will also practise the skill of estimating and predicting and will do some measuring too.

This week in Understanding the World we have been learning about maps. We have been looking at a range of maps: interactive maps such as Google Earth, large floor maps, in books and even creating map jigsaws. The children have been learning about the features of maps and how we use them. We have also looked at how our world is made up, using terms such as town, city, country and continent. You may like to have a go singing this catchy song at home all about the continents of the world, shown in size order and also on a map: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6DSMZ8b3LE The children were very excited to go into their new Year 1 classrooms to map out the different features. They have also been learning how to program Beebots using simple directions. The children have created pathways and maps for the Beebots to move around. There is a super app called ‘Bee-bot’ which uses the same skills and can be downloaded free. This is a great way to practice coding, which is a skill that moves through your child’s time in school.

Next week we will be looking at instructional texts and will be learning about the features of a recipe in particular. We will be learning about how to make a jam sandwich and how to write instructions for this.

Just a reminder to apply suncream before school and make sure your child has their sunhat and water each day.

Thank you again for your continued support. Please feel free to continue to send any photos or videos of your child’s activities at home, as they really help to build a full picture of your child’s progress or experiences.

Have a lovely weekend!

The Reception Team