This week in phonics we have been reading multi syllable words using the sounds we know and have had lots of practice segmenting words to write them. We have been holding a sentence and writing it, learning that sentences have a capital letter at the start and a full stop at the end. We have been practising writing and reading our level 3 tricky words by completing a tricky word hunt first thing in the morning when we arrive in school. In maths we have been building numbers 11-20, recognising the pattern beyond 10 as well as verbally counting beyond 20 and noticing the verbal counting pattern.

We read the book ‘Whatever Next’, drew pictures and wrote captions alongside our pictures, wondering where we would travel to in our cardboard box and who we might meet in outer space. In role play we had our own box to use as a rocket and wondered about travelling to space. We learnt that in real life astronauts travel into space and we watched footage of the Artemis II rocket launch to the moon.

We have been observing our caterpillars and they have grown very very big. We have moved them now to a higher shelf in the classroom so that they can form a chrysalis.

In P.E. we began our ball skills unit and learnt the importance of maintaining control of the ball whilst exploring different ways of using our hands to move with a ball. In Art we admired some work by James Brunt, who creates art using items from the natural world. We then went onto the field and worked in small groups making our own pictures with nature. I have created a separate tapestry observation with some pictures of the children’s work attached for you to enjoy.

Unfortunately, we have had lots of children absent from school this week with a tummy bug that has been doing the rounds. (Mrs Warrener and I have never used so much hand sanitiser!) So we have been talking lots about the importance of hand washing and learning about keeping ourselves healthy as well as spending lots of time in the beautiful outdoors. I hope that everyone who has been poorly is well again soon and look forward to seeing a full class again next week after a restful weekend.

Jo Bentley

Please do not hesitate to email me with any questions or queries: jbentley@stjohnsprimary.org