• Named water bottle
• Forest School will take place every Thursday. Just like Reception, children come in suitable home clothes that day. Please can you ensure children’s wellies are provided in a named bag.
• On PE days, children need to come into school wearing their PE kits. Please can all items of kit be named. We do PE. twice a week (outdoor & indoor)- children need a tracksuit (black or blue), shorts (blue/black), t-shirt (white), and trainers for outdoor PE. Ear piercing - earrings need to be taped over for safety reasons.
• As we have a limited space in the cloakroom, children only need their book bag and lunch box in school (if applicable). Unfortunately we cannot accommodate large bags/rucksacks.
• Please can we request that children only have one keyring on their book bags, otherwise trays won't close!

• Breaks are at 10:30am and 2:10pm
• Lunchtime is from 12:30 – 1:15pm
• We encourage the children to bring in healthy snacks for their morning break. We are a nut-free school so no snacks containing nuts will be allowed.
• The children are given a fruit snack in school.
• Parents can pay for milk to be provided for their child.

Free school meals are provided for children in Year One but these must be ordered online beforehand. The children can also choose to bring in packed lunched if they prefer.

Children in Year 1 enjoy a variety of trips as well as workshops where visitors come to the school.

Trips this year include:

Visit to the Hive- This is an exciting workshop for our children which involves exploring the library and completing a range of activities that are linked with our learning in school.

Visit to Wythall Museum – This exciting trip will help the children with their History work where they will be learning about how transport has changed over time.

Workshops:

Mrs Cadle – Florence Nightingale Workshop. Children take part in a range of different activities to learn all about Florence Nightingale and her legacy.

Animal Mania - This hands-on workshop supports our Science unit where they will be learning all about animals.

In Year 1, your child will read with an adult at least once a week. The children will also participate in a guided reading session during the week; reading a challenging text with an adult. Alongside this, the children read a range of texts as a class, providing further opportunities for us to monitor and assess your child’s reading.

Children will have daily phonics lessons where they learn to blend and segment different sounds.

We prepare children for their Phonics Screening Assessment which is a national test that will take place in June 2025. This test usually consists of 20 real words and 20 alien words!

We will share our sound mat we use in school to support your child’s reading at home. We recommend daily reading and PhonicsPlay games online are great for supporting children’s reading too.

Please make sure that your child brings their reading book and diary into school each day. 

Story Stones – Monday after school

Construction club- Wednesday afternoon

Mult skills club - Thursday after school

Mindfulness- Friday afternoon

Handwriting

• Please sit with your child when handwriting. Often children write and it looks correct but when you sit and watch they may form letters incorrectly, this will then later hinder them for joined up writing as well as increasing fluency and pace. The more often they do it incorrectly the harder and longer it takes to correct.
• Check that your child is holding a pencil effectively. 3 fingers to hold the pencil (see video link below) and 2 fingers curled in to give strength and stability. Thumb should not be crossing the pencil onto the finger as this decreases movement and means the child will use their hand/arm and tire quicker. Children can do this due to the thumb stabilising their finger as they need to improve muscles.
• Writing uses the fine muscles in your hand but muscles develop from the core out. So if your child is struggling try doing activities to strengthen their core (tummy, back, hips), shoulders and arms as well as hand and finger muscles.

Reading

We expect children to read at home on a daily basis in Year 1. Parents can support this by;

• Setting aside a calm, cozy time for shared or independent reading.
• Allowing children to re-read stories to help confidence and fluency.
• Encouraging your child to retell the story in their own words.

Maths

Supporting your children with maths at home can be fun, hands-on and woven into everyday life. Here are some practical ways you can help;  

• Count objects together – stairs, apples, socks, toys.
• Spot numbers in the environment – house numbers, clocks, price tags, calendars.
• Use board games, dice or card games to practise counting, adding and number recognition.
• Talk about the value of numbers: “Which is more – 7 or 9?”
• Use real-life problems: “We have 3 apples and need 5. How many more?”
• Encourage neat number formation.

 While Year 1 children will not receive regular homework, we do expect them to read at home as often as possible - ideally every day - as reading forms the foundation for so much of their development. Record your child’s reading in their reading diary. We encourage children to talk about what they have read so it would be great for you to discuss the text with them.

From time to time, additional homework will be given as an opportunity for parents to take an active part in their children’s learning journey and to help nurture habits that will support their long-term success.

An adult is available for quick messages at the door each morning. If you wish to discuss something in greater detail or in private, each teacher has an appointed surgery time after school. You need to email or let them know that you wish to talk with them so they can ensure that the necessary time is given.

1SP - Tuesday

1GF- Tuesday

1JD- Thursday

Dance with Miss Rayner every Tuesday morning

Computing with Miss Tauk

Music with Mrs Kainey

In the summer term, the children undertake a KS1 Phonics assessment. This is a short, one-to-one assessment that takes place in Year One to help teachers understand how well children are learning to decode words using phonics. It is designed to be gentle and child friendly where your child will be asked to read 40 words aloud, some are real words and some are made-up ‘alien’ words. This will check their ability to blend sounds.