Autumn 1

The children have settled in beautifully and are becoming familiar with the rules and routines of our new setting. They are also building relationships with both staff and their new friends.

Our first topic, “This is Me!”, has helped the children learn about the different parts of their bodies and what makes each of us unique. They created wonderful self-portraits and enjoyed talking about the people in their families.

The children were very enthusiastic when sharing information about their families, talking about who is in their family, whether they are big or small, which country they come from, and what their home language is. They also loved exploring globes and world maps to find where they and their friends come from.

We also learned about birthdays and why they are special to us. The children wrote shopping lists for party food and decorations, made birthday cards, counted candles for different cakes, and enjoyed making birthday cakes at the play dough table and in the mud kitchen. They discovered how birthdays are celebrated in other countries and learned to say Happy Birthday in their home languages.

Just before half term, we explored the season of Autumn. The children went on an autumn walk, collected natural treasures, and used leaves and sticks to create beautiful seasonal collages.

Autumn Term 2 

In Autumn 2, we learned about different modes of transport. We travelled around the world and visited a range of countries. We looked at the globe and maps and began our journey on a double decker bus in London.

We then flew by plane to Poland, where we located the country on both the globe and the map and learned about Warsaw, the capital city, as well as famous Polish dishes.

Our next journey was by train to India, where we learned about the culture and well known foods. We discussed how life there differs from England and Poland. We also explored different forms of transport, noting that the buses were similar in size to those in Poland but were white and blue and decorated with flowered garlands.

From there, we travelled by boat to South East Asia, to the Philippines, where we learned about the culture and traditional clothing.

Next, we travelled around Africa on foot to learn about the country of Ghana. We were very fortunate to examine Ghanaian artefacts and clothing, and we created beautiful African patterns.

After completing our Transport Around the World topic, we learned about Advent and Christmas and presented our first Nativity performance.

        

      

 

Maths

In Maths, we learned numbers from 1 to 5, practised finding one more than a given number, and explored number lines and 3D shapes.

PSHE

In our PSHE lessons, we explored the topic Who Are We? We discussed the activities we enjoy, how to make friends, and different emotions, including happiness, excitement, anger, sadness and worry. We also talked about how to look after our bodies. We were introduced to the important PANTS rule as a way to keep ourselves safe. We learned about body parts, personal hygiene, and how to keep our bodies healthy.

Religious Education

In RE, we learned about Creation and Covenant. We understand that God made our beautiful world and everything in it, and that God made and loves each of us. We discussed our families as a gift from God and began to understand that God invites us to join His family, and that we should care for ourselves and one another.

We then learned about Prophecy and Promise. In this topic, we heard how God chose Mary and that she said yes to God. We created an Advent wreath and learned that Advent is a time of preparation for Christmas. We listened to the Christmas story and recognise that Jesus was born in a stable. We acted out the story and explored the crib as a special tradition used to retell it. We learned that the shepherds visited Jesus and discussed how different cultures celebrate Christmas.

 

Spring Term

This term, we have been learning about People Who Help Us, focusing on the important roles they play in keeping us safe and healthy. We began by learning about doctors and nurses. We enjoyed a visit from Dr Gerry, who told us about her important work in the hospital. We learned many new words, including thermometer, stethoscope, blood pressure monitor, otoscope, reflex hammer, syringe, bandages and pulse. We used this vocabulary in our role play area when it was transformed into the OLOV Surgery.

We then learned about dental health and the role of the dentist. We practised the correct way to brush our teeth. Next, we discussed postal workers, who help us by delivering letters, cards and parcels. We wrote letters to our parents and visited the local post office to send them home.

The final weeks of the Spring term were very busy, as our role play area became a hairdressing salon and everyone took part in creating new hairstyles, ready for half term.

             

Mathematics

In Maths, we focused on the rapid recognition of up to three objects without counting them individually (subitising). We also practised reciting numbers beyond five, matching one number to each item in order (1–5), and showing finger numbers up to five.

Religious Education

Our topic was Galilee to Jerusalem. We learned about the visit of the Magi, how Jesus welcomed the little children, and how He blessed them. We visited our church and learned to pray the Glory Be.

        

PSHE

In PSHE, we learned about places that are important to us and how to stay safe in them. We discussed what rules are and how they help to keep us safe and happy, recognising that different places have different rules.

We were introduced to online safety and learned that we should always ask an adult before using a computer or going online. We had a very good discussion about travelling safely, especially holding hands and crossing the road carefully.

We also learned how to behave appropriately with different people. We discussed strangers and understood that we should not approach, hug or talk to strangers without a trusted adult such as a parent or carer present. As part of our People Who Help Us topic, we learned about ‘safer strangers’, who are people we may not know personally but who have a duty to help us, such as uniformed workers in public places. We know that we can ask them for help if we are lost, hurt or worried.

 

 

​​​​​​