Welcome to Merlin Class

Class Teacher: Miss Morris 

Class TAs: Mrs Hoddinott, Mrs Andrews, Mrs Spyrou (Mon, Tue, Fri PM) & Mrs Hewlett (Wed-Fri)

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Autumn 1; Week 4

It was lovely to see so many of you at our Harvest Celebration on Wednesday. The children enjoyed their visit to the church, showcasing their work and hearing from their older peers about the importance of this festival. We think they did remarkably well, especially as this was their first time joining the school in an assembly style gathering! We look forward to our next celebration there - Christingle - which I'm sure will be here before we know it!

This week in phonics we have learnt the sounds /g/ /o/ /c/ /k/. We have worked hard in our provision to keep reviewing the sounds that we have learnt and how the letters are formed. We have also been focusing on recognising our names and ordering the letters needed to spell them. The children are making great progress with their reading and have enjoyed practising to read CVC words containing the sounds that they have learnt. I have added some words that the children have read this week to the bottom of the weekly phonics sheet so that they can continue to practise their reading at home too!

In maths, we have continued looking at numbers to 5, recognising these numerals and learning how to form them. The children have enjoyed subitising different amounts and learning our different formation rhymes.

We embarked on our first welly walk this week. As part of our focus this half term, we headed out to spot key places in our community including the school, doctors surgery and village shop. We also spoke about other areas we may visit, including the park and the church. Over the next few weeks we will be learning about people who help us.

During our circle time session, we shared a story learning all about Harold the Giraffe. We found out what his favourite food was, what activities he liked to do, what games he liked to play with his friends and who he can go to when he is feeling sad. The children each had a turn at sharing their own responses to these questions and listened really carefully to what others had to say - well done, Merlins!

European Day of Languages

Merlin Class enjoyed lots of Italian themed activities and provision today. Our favourite activity was definitely making pizzas and sampling our hard work in the afternoon! 

Autumn 1; Week 3

Our phonics sounds this week were /i/, /n/, /m/, /d/. The children are doing a great job at remembering their sounds but please do keep reviewing these at home as much as you can. This week, the children have also practised forming these letters. We have been super impressed with the childrens letter formation so far - we have such neat and enthusiastic writers in Merlin class!

In maths we have been looking at 5 frames and how numbers are represented on these. We have also been looking at numerals to 5 and matching them to their correct quantity.

In PSHE, we shared a lovely circle time discussing things we enjoyed about school, the friends we have made and what we want to be when we are older. It is always so sweet to hear their aspirations... 'a van fixer', 'working at legoland' and 'someone who protects the summer holidays' were just a few of my personal favourites!

During our afternoon sessions we have been busy making our harvest artwork ready for our assembly on Wednesday.

Autumn 1; Week 2

The children have been very excited to begin phonics this week. We have been learning the sounds /s/ /a/ /t/ /p/ and practising how to form these letters correctly. It has been great to see the children's enthusiasm towards early reading and writing - long may it continue! 

In maths we have been subitising different amounts and representing numbers to 5. The children have enjoyed our Numberblocks provision this week and showed great skill at building different numbers!

Yoga and music continued to be a big hit this week! I know that many of the children are looking forward to our first PE lesson on Wednesday.

Autumn 1; Week 1 

We cannot quite believe that we have reached the end of our first full week in school (albeit just the mornings, for now!). We are incredibly proud of all our new starters this year - as I'm sure you are too! The children are settling into Merlin Class so well. There are many new things for the children to adjust to when they first start school, however they are taking it all in their stride and have impressed us with how quickly they have embraced school life. I am sure there are lots of tired little ones coming home with you today - we have had a busy week!

We have been making our way through the statutory reception baseline assessments this week. The children have been keen to show off their skills in a variety of different communication, literacy and maths tasks. Our first week of school has, of course, also included lots of play opportunities in our inside and outside environments. The children have been busy making new friends and reuniting with some old ones whilst engaging in a variety of different activities, although our mark making and construction areas certainly seem to be the popular hot spots for now!

On Wednesday we enjoyed our first music lesson with Mr Male. The children had lots of fun listening to the sounds of different instruments, copying musical patterns and moving to music. It was fabulous to see the children so engaged in this lesson, listening carefully to instructions and joining in so enthusiastically.

Thursday was our first yoga session. Alongside music as part of our enrichment opportunities, the children will also take part in weekly yoga sessions every Thursday up until the October half term. The children practised lots of different stretches and listened carefully to Mr Hollard's instructions.

Looking further ahead, we will begin our phonics lessons on Monday, with reading groups beginning the following week (w/c: 22nd September). We are very excited to begin gradually building up our timetable and exploring new learning with the children. There are so many exciting things ahead for Merlin Class!