Mark Making!

Our Monday passed very merrily, in a cloud of white smoke, after Mrs Black cracked out the bread flour... We have been learning all about the numbers 1-4: how they look when written, how each can be made, how they relate to the number before/after them, different ways to represent them etc. This exercise was all about working the muscles in our arms and hands, and getting used to using our hands and fingers to mark-make. We saw some great number formation and have since been able to spot so many of these numerals in our learning environment!

Once Upon A Bedtime...

As I sit down this weekend to get things ready for our Parent and Carer's Phonics/Reading Meeting on Thursday, I have just come across this article by Sally Weale, written for the Guardian yesterday. Very fitting!

Anything BUT a Cardboard Box

Parents may have noticed the recent influx of 'junk' into the role play area. Fret not, I do not have a second job in packaging and removals... Rather, the want to give the children broader possibilities to their play, and to make their experiences more open-ended. Give the class a shop or space-ship, and they will (after some adult modelling) use it as a shop or a spaceship; give them some tubes, boxes, fabric and inspiration, and the role-play area changes several times a day, from boat to stage to castle to hospital...

We have had some wonderful, language-rich play taking place and the children are enjoying taking ownership of their learning environment!

Read On. Get On

We will be holding a phonics meeting later in the term to explain how we teach phonics at Shire Oak... But if you are after some useful tips, there are some great suggestions at readongeton!!

Planting Bulbs

Reception loved the story of 'Mouse Finds a Seed' so much that they all wanted to plant a seed of their own! Without further ado, we had a great afternoon of outdoor learning, each planting our own Autumn bulb to take home and take care of, just like Mouse. The children all know what the bulb needs to help it grow, and I can't wait to see some photos of shoots and flowers! ...Or why not document the plant's growth in a diary, complete with illustrations?!

PS - In case parents were wondering, the bulbs are tulips!

Exploring Clay!

After using clay in the classroom to create with, the children were fascinated by how it felt in their hands, and how the clay changed when it became wet. Come the afternoon, we took this one step further, exploring how it felt between our toes and under our feet! The children had some wonderful adjectives to describe the clay, and enjoyed sharing the experience with new friends!

Welcome to our blog!

Welcome to the new Reception blog. Browse these pages to see what we have been up to each week, indoors and out! I hope you enjoy reading it and sharing your it with your child; it would be great to hear from you too, so do please add comments as and when you fancy!