Hello, my name is Miss Ward, and I am the proud teacher of Year 1 Woodpeckers! I have been teaching at St John's for four years now, and I am so happy to be part of the team. I love to promote children's creativity within their learning and enjoy helping children develop their key reading skills through phonics. My favourite things to do in my spare time include creating my own paintings and drawings, and travelling to see beautiful places.

We also have two wonderful teaching assistants working within our team - Miss Wilkins and Mrs Archer. Miss Seaman teaches Woodpeckers on a Tuesday afternoon.

 

Weekly Timetable in Woodpecker Class:

Last term we saw some incredible learning taking place! Term 3 emphasised a balance of academic growth, creativity, and social development, laying a strong foundation for further learning in Year 1. We explored toys from the past and present, conducted science experiments and developed our writing skills. We also celebrated world mental health week. 

 

Have a look at some of our highlights from term 3:

 

 

 

 

TERM FOUR

Our topic this term is "Where we Live"

In English this term, we will be basing our writing around our new topic ’Where we live’ and exploring our local area. We will be looking at the changes in spring. Some of the exciting stories we will be reading include: Jasper’s Beanstalk, The Tiny Seed, Sam plants a sunflower, and Jack and the Beanstalk. We will continue to use our phonic knowledge to read, write words and construct simple sentences. We will continue to practise how to punctuate our writing and develop our writing skills by spelling words using suffixes.

                                                                           

Reading:

Your child will be bringing home a reading book every day, so please bring a book bag to keep the books safe.  Please try to spend 10 minutes each day listening to your child read, as it really does have a positive impact on their progress.  Remember to sign your child’s reading book when they have read it to you. These need to be brought into school each day to be checked.

The children will be able to change their reading books every Monday and Thursday.  This will give your child the chance to become more confident by re-reading the same book several times.

Your child's spelling shed login is stuck in the front of their reading record. Assignments are set once a week, so please keep practising as it really makes a difference to your child's progress! Thank you!

Maths:

In Maths we will be exploring the concept of place value within numbers up to 50. We will learn how to recognise the value of each digit in a number based on its position, focusing on tens and ones. We will use manipulatives such as numicon, counters, tens frames and cubes to help us to solve addition and subtraction questions with more confidence. We will also learn to continue to use a number line, and how to use our knowledge of addition and subtraction within 50 to answer word problems. We will also be learning about length and height.  

 RE:

 

      In RE, we will be focusing on the question ‘Why does Easter matter to Christians?' 

We will be exploring the signs of Spring and understanding that Spring is a time of new life, linking this to the Easter story. 

 

Science and Topic:

This term in Science, we will explore the topic of materials, developing an understanding of the different types of materials around us and their properties. We will ask scientific questions and have the opportunity to take part in scientific investigations and enquiries. In Geography, we will be looking at our local area, Canterbury. We will be using our geographical skills to read and locate specific landmarks on a map. We will be thinking and comparing similarities and differences between the two locations. We will also be observing changes of seasons and weather in our environment.

 

 

Outdoor learning is every alternate Tuesday and you will receive a text beforehand so that appropriate clothing can be brought in. PE is every Wednesday morning.

 

Be ready for learning! In Woodpecker class, your child will need to have these items in school: 

Key Stage One (Years 1 and 2) 

• Book bag (no rucksacks please) 

• PE kit (to be worn on PE day) 

• Water bottle (no squash or juice) 

• Lunchbox (if not having school meal) 

• Wellington boots (to leave school) 

• Coat (weather appropriate) 

Please don’t bring other items into school, as we do not have space to store them, and it can cause upset if things are lost or damaged. 

 

School Uniform Checklist:

Please label ALL items of clothing and shoes clearly with your child’s name. This helps even our younger children to take responsibility for and look after their uniform. 

 

Reminders

In the morning, please drop your children off at the gates and leave any important messages with staff on the playground. We start our day's learning as soon as the children arrive, so teachers are not available to speak with parents and carers at the start of the day; after school is best.

 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us!