Cygnet Class

Teacher: Mrs Gabrielle Manzi

TAs : Mrs Michelle Rose and Miss Sophie Farmer

Welcome to Cygnet Class

Question: where can you…..?
  • discover, explore, imagine
  • build a pirate ship and sail across the Arctic ocean
  • hunt for fossils, buried treasure or both
  • escape the hot lava of an active volcano
  • dig, plant, grow and cook
  • travel to the moon in a homemade space ship
  • paint everyday, if you want to
  • dance freely, sing loudly
  • become a scientist or superhero, mathematician or engineer
…and, of course, learn to read and write your first words…….
Answer: in Cygnet class! – where children explore what it is like to be grown-up, and where grown-ups remember what it was like to be a child.

Cygnet Class is where the youngest children begin their time with us. The children in this class are Reception and  Year 1.  In Cygnet Class there is a mixture of play based learning and more formal teacher led learning. A particular favourite of the week is the Welly Walk, where the children go off site around the village and local area learning about their surroundings. Children in Cygnet class have daily phonics lessons and lots and lots of stories. They have many opportunities to explore their learning through hands- on experiences.

Cygnet Curriculum Overview Year A 2023

Spring Term 2024

What will we be learning about this term?

We will all be learning how to read and write through our daily phonics and reading lessons. Reception will be consolidating phase 3, with lots of practise in reading and writing. Year 1 will be learning all about alternative phonemes and graphemes in phase 5. Every child will have guided reading lessons and lots and lots of stories.

In our history topic this term we are finding out about the history of transport and asking the question: how has transport changed over time? We will be visiting Haynes Motor Museum to explore how cars have changed. We will be comparing the past with the present.

In Geography we will compare London with Long Sutton, learning all about how a city works and what it is like to live there.

In Science we will be learning about what scientists do and how they use different skills to find out about the world around us. We will use our senses to explore materials and their properties and we will be designing some experiments to find answers to our own scientific questions. We will also learn all about Winter and what happens in nature in the coldest time of the year. In the second half of the term we will learn about Spring and plants.

In English we will be using Talk for Writing to explore the story of ‘Maisy Mouse’ – the story of a mouse who creeps out of her mouse hole in the middle of the night to look for some cheese.  We will be learning how to write a super sentence and how to describe settings and characters using adjectives, powerful verbs and similes. We will also learn how to write a non-fiction information text – How to look after a Pet.

In Maths year 1 will be using addition and subtraction to solve problems within 10. We will use our subitising skills to help us partition numbers quickly and use this knowledge to solve calculations using mental maths.

Reception will be learning all about numbers to 10. We will be looking for patterns in the world around us and learning how to create patterns of our own. We will be learning how to sequence events and the days of the week.

REC Maths KO

In Art we will be learning about textiles including weaving and collage, and how to work with clay.

In Design Technology year 1 will be learning all about wheels and axles. Reception will be designing and making their own vehicle in their wood working lessons.

In RE we will learn all about special places, including the church and synagogue. We will visit Long Sutton Church to explore the different aspects of the building and church grounds. We will learn about why Christians make Easter gardens and the importance of the Jewish festival of Pesah.

This term Mrs Goodwin will be taking the year one children for forest school every other Friday afternoon where they will learn about nature, creativity and well-being.

Don’t forget to send your child in with a named PE kit and wellington boots for wet welly walks. Children will also need a complete set of named spare clothes too, just in case of accidents!

KS1 Curriculum Overview

Useful Documents and information:

Please find the powerpoint from Mrs Manzi’s presentation to parents about the Early Years Foundation Stage attached for you to look at at your leisure.

Foundation workshop 2022

Here is the link to the Foundation Stage phonics presentation:

Phonics workshop REC Sept 2022

Here is the link to the handwriting website which has lots of ideas to help you support the development of gross and fine motor skills in preparation for handwriting. https://teachhandwriting.co.uk/parents.html

If you are having to self -isolate here are a few things you can do to support your child’s learning at home:

Maths
  • Watch Number blocks together and talk about the maths you see

https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/joinin/numberblocks-help-your-child-with-maths

  • Play board games using a dice- this helps your child to practise subitising (seeing a number of objects without having to count them) and turn taking.
  • Practise reading and writing numerals
  • Count together – up to 100 and beyond
  • Sing number songs like Five little Ducks (BBC School radio has lots of number rhymes)
  • Make different patterns using everyday objects
  • Talk about the shapes you see in the environment
  • Cook together – follow a recipe and weigh the ingredients
  • Teach them to tell the time – o’clock and half-past the hour
  • Say the days of the week and months of the year together
English
  • Sing lots of nursery rhymes (BBC School radio will help) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p06kbsbz
  • Read lots and lots of stories together
  • Collect a few objects and make up stories together using the objects
  • Practise writing the letters of the alphabet
  • Support your child to practise writing their name
  • Make shopping lists together – either writing or drawing the things you need

Also – please call into school if you can, and collect a handful of reading books for your child to read whilst they are off school.