Reception Focus 03.12.18

This week in Reception we will be continuing to practise our Christmas play ready for our dress rehearsal on Friday.

In Literacy, the children will be reading 'The Jolly Christmas Postman' and will be writing their own letters to Father Christmas.

In Maths, we will be introducing our 'money' topic to the children. They will have the chance to look at the different coins in detail, discussing the differences as well as completing some money challenges throughout the week. 

In Phonics, we will be learning the sounds 'j 'and 'v' this week. We will encourage the children to use the correct letter formation and write simple CVC words independently. 

Reception Weekly Focus 26.11.18

For the next two weeks, the children in Reception we will be spending time perfecting our Christmas play in the hall. The children are becoming more confident in singing aloud to the music and signing using British Sign Language.

In our Topic session we will be reading the Christmas story to the children so they have some understanding as to why many people celebrate Christmas. 

Our phonics focus this week is recalling all phonemes learnt so far and building CVC words - reading and writing them correctly. We will also be learning the new phonemes 'f'  and l'.

In Maths we are focusing on teen numbers. We will be counting forwards, backwards, work on teen number recognition and how to correctly write teen numbers this week. 

Reception Focus 12.11.18

This week in Reception we will be continuing to focus on the story 'Room on a Broom' by Julia Donaldson. 

In Literacy, the children will revisit the story and will have lots of fun making their own magic potions. They will then attempt to write their own recipe and list of ingredients for the potions. 

Our Phonics focus this week is recalling all of the phonemes learnt so far ensuring that they are all formed correctly. In addition, we will be learning the new phonemes 'u' and r'.

In Maths, we will be exploring size and length. 

In our Topic session, we will be discussing what Children in Need is and read a story about Pudsey bear. 

Reception Focus 29.10.18

This week in Reception we will be focusing on the story 'Room on a Broom' by Julia Donaldson. 

In Literacy, the children will get the chance to investigate a 'crash site' where the witch will hand crashed before hearing the story and joining in with repeated refrains. 

In Phonics we will be introduced to the new tricky words "to" and "into" and will be learning the new sound "o".

In Maths, we will learn how to correctly write the number 6 as well as complete a variety of different activities such as ordering fireworks, counting 1:1 and filling in the missing number.  

In Topic, the children will be learning about the celebration of Bonfire Night. We will be discussing ways to keep safe during firework displays and creating some exciting artwork.

We will also be celebrating with hot chocolate and marshmallows around the fire pit at the end of the week. 

Reception Weekly Focus 15.10.18

It is a busy week ahead as the whole school is celebrating "What makes Britain great?"


The children in Reception will be introduced to the topic on Monday and then throughout the week, the children will rotate between all three classes taking part in different activities. The children will have the opportunity to make scones, make their own flag or streamer, use the junk modelling to make a famous British building, paint a picture of someone who helps us or a member of the Royal Family, listen to British music and play some British games outside such as hopscotch.  


On Friday we will have a celebratory Afternoon Tea with the children, eating the scones they have made throughout the week.


We will continue with phonics where the children will learn the phonemes 'd' and 'g' and recap all the other phonemes learnt so far. We will also recap the tricky words we learnt last week 'I' 'no' and 'go'.

In Maths, we will practise counting in sets and counting 1 to 1, as well as learn how to write 3 and 4 this.

Reception Weekly Focus 8.10.18

This week in Reception we will continue focusing on the story 'Owl Babies' written by Martin Waddell. 

In Literacy, the children will once again hear the story, and then sequence pictures from the story and discuss the beginning, middle and end. 

In Phonics the children will learn the phonemes 'n' and 'm' and recap all the other phonemes learnt so far - s a t p i. We will continue to encourage them to write using the correct letter formation and hold their pencils correctly.

In Maths, we will introduce the 100 square, order numbers correct and count how many owls they can see. We learnt how to write 0 and 1 last week so will focus on learning how to write 2 and 3 this week. 

Reception Focus W/C 1.10.18

This week in Reception we will be focusing on the story 'Owl Babies' written by Martin Waddell. 

In Literacy, the children will hear the focus story, discuss the different feelings of the baby owls and try to retell the story in their own words.

The children will have the chance to paint their own owls using a technique called 'stippling'.

In Phonics the children will learn the phoneme 't' and 'p' and recap 's' and 'a' from last week. We will continue to encourage them to write using the correct letter formation and ensure they are holding their pencils correctly.

In Maths, we will continue to play a variety of games focusing on counting confidently to 10 and consolidating number recognition to 10, as well start to write numbers 1 and 2 using the correct formation. 

Reception Focus W/C 24.09.18

We begin our second full week with all the children in our Reception setting. We are happy to say that they have done so well at settling in so far and will continue to reiterate the rules and routines to them. 

We will be starting Phonics with the children and plan to introduce the phonemes 's' & 'a'. The children will sing these Jolly Phonics songs and practise writing these sounds. We will be encouraging them to use the correct formation and hold their pencils correctly.

In Maths, we will be continuing to play a variety of games focusing on counting confidently to 10 and consolidating number recognition to 10. 

The children will also have the chance to get creative as each class will be making either an elephant, lion or giraffe themed paper plate according to their class.

Reception Weekly Focus 02.07.18

In Reception this week it is a busy week!! We will be starting our Pirate topic which nicely continues on from Billy's Bucket. 

The children will get creative and have the opportunity to make their own under the sea creatures using a variety of materials and tools. 

In Phonics, we will be recapping all tricky words and all sounds learnt this year. 

In Maths, we will be focusing on recapping addition and completing simple addition number sentences to 20.

We have our EYFS Sports Day on Tuesday 3rd July this week. We hope to see many of you there and hope parents/guardians are ready for the parent/guardian race at the end!

We are also holding Transition mornings for our classes starting this September 2018. On Wednesday morning the Elephant class will spend from 10.30-11.30am in Nursery. The Lions will do this on Thursday morning and the Giraffes will do this Friday morning. 

We would like to thank all those parents who have volunteered to help on the school trip. Class teachers have spoken to everyone who is needed to help. Many thanks for your continued to support!

Reception Weekly Focus 25.06.18

In Reception this week it is a busy week!! We will be continuing our topic focused on the story 'Billy's Bucket' by Kes Gray and Garry Parsons.

The children will get creative and have the opportunity to make their own under the sea wax relief pictures. 

In Phonics, we will be recapping all previous sounds learnt but focusing on the digraph 'er' and the trigraph 'ear'. 

In Maths, we will be focusing on counting in 2's where the children will use the Splat square and 100 square to count in 2's. There will be a 2's number hunt. 

In Topic, the children will listen to Noah's Ark, linking to our Maths focus. The children will also have the chance to see some real live farm animals in school on Tuesday as some animals from Wellgate Farm will be visiting EYFS. 

The children will continue their Guided Reading sessions. The children will spend Friday morning completing a rotation of different activities in their class which range from guided reading, guided writing, independent reading & phonics activities.   


We would like to welcome as many parents to attend our Open Day this Thursday where you are invited to come in and look through your child's work from the year. The session times are 9.15 - 11.00am and then 1.30 - 3.00pm. 

Reception Weekly Focus 11.06.18

In Reception this week we will be continuing our topic focused on the story 'Billy's Bucket' by Kes Gray and Garry Parsons. 

In Literacy, the children will re-listen to our focus story and look at non-fiction books hopefully learning a little bit about different sea creatures.

In Phonics, we will be recapping all previous sounds learnt but focusing on the digraphs 'or' and 'ur'.  

In Maths, we will be focusing on counting in 10's this week where the children will use the Splat square and 100 square to count in 10's. There will be a 10's number hunt and the children will be introduced to the idea of multiplication by showing them the sign and using counters to help model how to write a multiplication number sentence. 

The children will be continuing their Guided Reading sessions this week. The children will spend Friday morning completing a rotation of different activities in their class which range from guided reading, guided writing, independent reading & phonics activities.   

Reception Weekly Focus 05.06.18

Welcome to the last term of the academic year - time is flying by!

In Reception this week we will be starting our new topic focused on the story 'Billy's Bucket' by Kes Gray and Garry Parsons. 

In Literacy, the children will have the opportunity to hear the story and discuss it as a whole class.

In Phonics, we will be recapping all previous sounds learnt but focusing on the digraphs 'oo' (long sound) and 'ar'.  

In Maths, we will continue to count in 5's and 10's as well as introduce the concept of capacity. We will discuss what this means with the children and do some practical measuring outside as well as some written recording.

The children will be continuing their Guided Reading sessions this week. The children will spend Friday morning completing a rotation of different activities in their class which range from guided reading, guided writing, independent reading & phonics activities.   

Early Years focus 21.5.18

This week at Hacton will be our MFL (Modern Foreign Languages) week. Early Years children will be completing activities together as a Phase. 

Each day the children will be learning about a different European country, so learning practically about the food, some simple vocabulary, artwork, landmarks and flags. 

They will learn about Italy, Spain, Germany, Greece and France.

Each day the children will move from the Reception to Nursery and work with all of the adults in Early Years to take part in a wide range of activities. 

On Friday, the children will dress in the red, white and blue of the French flag and attend the French cafe run by the Year 6 children. 

Also, on Friday, the children will be creating a piece of artwork together by a French artist. 

The Reception children will learn about Claude Monet and the Nursery will look at the work of George Seurat. This is linked to the Art initiative called 'Take one picture.' 

This promises to be a week full of fun!

Ciao! 

Reception Focus W/C 14.05.18

In Reception this week we will be continuing focusing on the story 'The Bog Baby'. 

In Literacy, the children will re-listen to the story The Bog Baby and discuss key features of the story. They will have the opportunity to listen to other traditional tales focusing on the language used in them as well. The children will then write their own story about their bog baby. 

In Phonics, we will be recapping the digraphs 'oo' and 'oa'.  

In Maths, we are continuing to count in 5's and 10's as starters in our a maths sessions, then the children will be introduced to the idea of halving where they will use practical methods and resources to support where necessary.    

The children will be continuing their Guided Reading sessions this week. The children will spend Friday morning completing a rotation of different activities in their class which range from guided reading, guided writing, independent reading & phonics activities. 

Nursery focus 14.5.18

This week in Nursery we will be celebrating the birth of our chicks. They should hatch on Tuesday, so we will be watching and waiting with baited breath!

To add to our week, we will introduce the children to the Royal Wedding and enjoy some celebrations within nursery.

In Maths, we will be counting backwards from 10 to 0 and beginning taking away in simple practical activities. 

We are continuing with our phonic games, tuning into different sounds and talking about them within our key groups. 

Reception Focus W/C 08.05.18

We hope everyone had an enjoyable extended bank holiday weekend and enjoyed sometime in the sunshine!!  

It is back to it again now. In Literacy, the children will re-listen to the story The Bog Baby and discuss key features of a Bog Baby. The children will then write a description of their Bog Baby they created with salt dough last week. 

In Phonics, we will be recapping the digraph 'ee' and the trigraph 'igh'.  

In Maths, we are continuing to count in 10's and will be introducing the concept of doubling to the children this week.   

The children will be continuing their Guided Reading sessions this week. The children will spend Friday morning completing a rotation of different activities in their class which range from guided reading, guided writing, independent reading & phonics activities. 

Reception Weekly Focus 30.04.18

In Reception this week we will start our new topic focused on the story Bog Babies by Jeanne Willis.  

In Literacy, the children will have the opportunity to hear the new story Bog Babies. They will have the chance to discuss with their talk partners what they think a Bog Baby looks like before being introduced to the story. 

In Phonics, we will be recapping the digraphs we revisited last week qu, ch, sh, th, ng & ai.  

In Maths, we will be counting in 10's with the children as well as recapping 2d & 3d shapes and talking about their properties.   

In Topic, the children will learn about different habitats and actually get a chance to make their very own Bog Baby with salt dough!! 

The children will be starting their Guided Reading sessions this week as well. They will spend Wednesday morning completing a rotation of different activities in their class which range from guided reading, guided writing, independent reading & phonics activities. 

Nursery focus 30.418 - 11.5.18

Our focus in Nursery continues to be life cycles. The children have been fascinated by the growth of the caterpillars and, now that they are in chrysalis form, this will lead into discussion and artwork and stories on life cycles.

We have introduced the eggs to the class and they are patiently waiting for them to hatch with the help of our interactive calendar.

In Maths we will be drawing sets of objects and writing numerals 1, 2 and 3.

In phonics we are continuing to listen and distinguish between different sounds and focus our attention to hearing and talking about the different sounds of objects.

The zebra group will be introduced to the sound 't' and will identify objects beginning with this sound as well as have a go at writing it. 

Reception Weekly Focus 23.04.18

In Reception this week we will be continuing focusing on the story 'The Hungry Caterpillar' written by Eric Carle. 

In Literacy, the children will have the opportunity to hear the story once again and following sequencing the pictures last week, the children will write their own version of the story. 

In Phonics, we will be recapping all previous sounds starting by focusing on the digraphs qu, ch, sh, th, ng & ai.  

In Maths, we will continue to discuss different patterns and be introduced to symmetry. The children will learn what this means and create their own symmetrical butterfly pictures this week.   

In topic, the children will continue to learn about the life cycle of a butterfly and discuss the changes that the classroom caterpillars are currently going through!! 

Nursery weekly focus 23.4.18

This week in Nursery, we will be planning to children's interests with our chosen focussed pupils. 

We will also be looking at and learning about the life cycle of a chick, as we have a very special delivery of 10 eggs from Wellgate Farm.

The tadpoles have been put in the garden in a 'pond' and our caterpillars are growing well. 

Therefore, life cycles are the topic for the next few weeks as the children observe and talk about the changes they see each day.

In Maths, the children will be sharing objects with their friends so that they each get an equal amount. Phonics will also continue in our key groups.

Reception Weekly Focus 16.04.18

Welcome to the Summer Term! Hopefully we will see some warm weather finally. 

In Reception this week we will be continuing with our mini beasts topic, focusing on the story 'The Hungry Caterpillar' written by Eric Carle. 

In Literacy, the children will have the opportunity to hear the story and sequence the pictures in the correct order.

In Phonics, we will be recapping all previous sounds learnt including those tricky trigraphs and all the digraphs the children learnt last term.  

In Maths, we will be investigating patterns. The children will get a chance to discuss different patterns and begin to make their own patterns.  

In topic, the children will be learning all about the life cycle of a butterfly and theywill get a chance to welcome some new class arrivals which arrive on Wednesday - caterpillars!! 

Nursery focus 16.4.18

Welcome to the summer term, let's hope we see some sunshine!

This week in Nursery, we will be looking for and identifying signs of Spring around us. We will go on a Spring walk around the school grounds and take photographs of what we see. We will discuss the importance of looking at flowers and resisting the urge to pick them.

The children will be counting pennies in Maths and making amounts to 10. They will also begin Phase One phonics: listening to and identifying a range of sounds and describing them using their growing vocabulary. They will do this in small groups led by the key workers.

Early Years focus 26.3.18

This week is the school's Literacy Week, and the theme is Fairy Tales. Throughout the week in Early Years, the children will be reading and enjoying a range of traditional tales including Jack and the Beanstalk, The Gingerbread Man, Little Red Riding Hood and Hansel and Gretel.

The children will be taking part in a range of activities linked to each story and sharing time in both Nursery and Reception.

There will be opportunities for painting, creating, cooking, dancing, planting and hunting for characters hidden in the gardens and beyond!

The week will end with a Fairy tale dressing up day on Thursday. All children can come to school dressed as a character from a traditional tale. 

Nursery focus 19.3.18

This week in Nursery, we are continuing our theme of Fairy tales with the story Little Red Riding Hood.

The children will be painting pictures of the characters and learning about the moral of not talking to strangers and only going out with an adult.

The children will be re-enacting the story, singing songs and reading the story.

The children will also be exploring weight using scales and using the vocabulary heavy and light.

On Friday, we will walk to the bakers and buy our own cakes to share with our friends. We will use this opportunity to look at numbers and shapes around us.



Reception Weekly Focus 19.03.18

In Reception we will continue focusing on the story 'Aaaarrgghh, Spider!' by Lydia Monks for the last week. 

In Literacy, the children will have the opportunity to hear the story once again, joining in with repeated phrases. The children will then think about what other animals/bugs they could use to recreate their own versions of the story.  

In Phonics, we will be learning the new trigraphs 'ear' and 'air' and recapping what a trigraph is with the children - a group of three letters that represent one sound.  


In Maths, we will be recapping subtraction. The children will have the chance to complete simple subtraction number sentences and write their own number sentences. We will continue to use a number line to help us find out the right answer and will ensure the children understand how to "jump" backwards on the number line when taking away. 

In topic, the children will get the chance listen to the Easter story in preparation for the Easter holidays coming up soon.  

Reception Weekly Focus 12.03.18

In Reception this week we will continue focusing on the story 'Aaaarrgghh, Spider!' by Lydia Monks. 

In Literacy, the children will have the opportunity to learn some new and interesting facts about spiders. They will then write about what they have learnt applying their phonics knowledge.  

In Maths, we will be recapping addition. The children will have the chance to complete simple addition number sentences and write their own number sentences. We will also ensure they are familiar with a number line and understand how to "jump" forward on the number line when adding 2 numbers together. 

In Phonics, we will be learning the new digraphs 'ur' and 'er', and then introducing the new trigraph 'igh' to the children. A trigraph is when a group of three letter represent one sound. 

In topic, the children will get the chance to be creative and will make their very own spider webs by threading with a safety needle.     

Reception Weekly Focus 05.03.18

We hope all the Reception children enjoyed the snow days last week!

It is back to business this week in Reception where we will be introducing our new literacy topic focused on the story 'Aaaarrgghh, Spider!' by Lydia Monks. 

In Literacy, the children will listen to 'Aaaarrgghh, Spider!' discussing any new vocabulary and positional language that might not be familiar to the children. Each class will then work together to sequence the pictures of the story and have the opportunity to retell the story in their own words. 

In Maths, we will be recapping the sessions missed last week due to the weather focused on positional language. 

In Phonics, we will be recapping all the tricky words learnt so far, complete some sentence work where the children will be both reading and writing sentences, as well as introducing the new sound 'oi' towards the end of the week. 

In topic, the children will be learning about Mother's Day and creating something a little special for all their Mummy's or Nanny's or Aunty's.     

Nursery focus 5.3.18

This week in Nursery, we will be focussing on the special lady in our children's lives be that mum, nan, granny or auntie. They will be given the opportunity to talk about why that person is special and what we can do to say 'thank you.'

They will also be continuing to learn about numbers to 10 and counting, sorting and sequencing missing numbers.

We will also be looking at daffodils and the first signs of Spring, and creating pictures of daffodils using crayons, pastels and paints.

On Friday 9th March, we would like to invite all mums, nans and aunties into Nursery for a special surprise. In the morning, this will be at 11.15am and in the afternoon it will be at 3.15pm.

Reception Weekly Focus 26.02.18

The Reception children thoroughly enjoyed learning about Chinese New Year last week, ending the week with a Chinese banquet on Friday afternoon where they got to try noodles, rice, prawn crackers and a variety of dip!

This week in Reception we will be focusing on the Traditional Tale The Three Billy Goats Gruff. 

In Literacy, the children heard the story last week and will get to draw pictures of their own pictures of trolls this week and write about them. We will be focusing a lot on the description of their own troll.  

In Maths, we will be going over positional language: on, under, next to, behind, in front, opposite, above, through etc. 

In Phonics, we will be recapping all the tricky words learnt so far and all the digraphs including the two new ones we learnt last week 'or' and 'ow'.

In topic, the children will be working together in groups to act out The Three Billy Goats Gruff.    

Nursery focus 26.2.18

This week in Nursery we will be focussing on recognising, ordering, counting and writing numbers to 10. 

The children will be taking part in lots of different activities including an outside number hunt in the school grounds (weather permitting). They will be painting, cutting, sorting, drawing, matching and playing with numerals in many ways to help them secure their number skills. 

At home, we would be thrilled if you could sing some number songs with your child when walking to school, driving in the car or when in the bath.

Reception Weekly Focus 5/2/18

This week in Reception we will continue focusing on the Traditional Tale The Three Little Pigs as well as introduce the new story Mr Wolf's Pancakes.

In Literacy, the children will be acting out The Three Little Pigs story and retelling the story in their own words. The children will have the opportunity to explore and think about how the characters are feeling at certain points in the story.

In Maths, we will be introducing time to the children. They will be exploring the features of a clock and learning about "o'clock".

In Phonics, we will be introducing the digraphs 'ar' and the short & long 'oo'.

In topic, the children will be making pancakes in celebration of Shrove Tuesday which is during half term and during this the children will be discussing healthy eating: 1) What foods are healthy? 2) How do we look after ourselves? 3) Why do we need to keep fit and healthy?   

Nursery focus 5.2.18

This week in Nursery we will be celebrating Chinese New Year. The date for the actual celebration is 16th February and 2018 will be the year of the Dog.

The children will have the opportunity to wear some traditional Chinese clothes, make and decorate their own dragon masks and learn about the Great Race which gave the years their names. They will watch some video clips of Chinese New Year celebrations and listen to and enjoy some music from China. 

We will finish the week on Friday with a Chinese Banquet in which the children will be able to sample some food including noodles, stir fry vegetables, prawn crackers and fortune cookies. They will also have a go at using chopsticks. 

The children in Nursery will wear red on Friday to celebrate in style!

Nursery focus 29.1.18

This week in Nursery, we are continuing our theme of bear stories. 

We will be reading a range of bear stories, but focussing on We're going on bear hunt. 

The children will take part in a bear hunt outside, and talk about and experience the different textures  within the story.

The children will also be writing and reading numerals 1-5 and developing fine motor control in Dough Disco sessions. 

We will also be working towards holding a Teddy Bears' Picnic on Friday, so the children will be writing invitations, decorating the nursery and thinking about the foods we might have at a picnic. 

On Friday they will all make some sandwiches to enjoy and we will have lots of fun with our bears.

Reception Weekly Focus 29.01.18

This week in Reception we will continue focusing on the Traditional Tale 'The Three Little Pigs'.

In Literacy, the children will be writing their own captions centred around this story. We will be encouraging the children to apply their phonics knowledge to segment and blend, as well as think about finger spaces and full stops.

In Maths, we will be recapping 2D shapes and introducing 3D shapes to the children.

In Phonics, we will be introducing the digraphs 'ai' 'ee' and 'oa'.

In topic, the children will be working together in groups to make houses from junk modelling. We will be encouraging the children to share resources, share their ideas with one another, and take turns during this activity. 
We will also read Aesop's Fable, 'The Lion and the Mouse'. This will follow on from 'The Good Samaritan' last week and hopefully continue our theme of being kind, helpful and friendly in Reception.

Reception Weekly Focus 22.01.18

This week in Reception we will begin to focus on our next Traditional Tale 'The Three Little Pigs'.

In Literacy, we will be reading the new story and discussing key parts from it. The children will have the opportunity to sequence pictures from the story and discuss what kind of houses they would like to live in and why.

In Maths, we will be recapping 2d shapes and using these shapes to build our own houses.

In Phonics, we will be introducing the digraphs 'th' and 'ng'. The children will then be recapping all the recent digraphs learnt in phonics to consolidate this new knowledge.

In topic, the children will using the Purple Mash ICT programme to create their own pictures of 'The Three Little Pigs' houses. The children will also have the chance to discuss what being a good friend means and put their team skills to the test in a group activity following reading the story 'The Good Samaritan.' 

Nursery focus 22.1.18

This week in Nursery, we will be reading and enjoying the Traditional Tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

The children will have the opportunity to create paintings, pictures, and puppets as well as retelling the story using real props and toys.

The children will make and taste porridge adding some extra treats, some of which will be healthy and some non healthy. 

The children will be learning to form the numerals 1, 2, and 3 using paint on a large and small scale and count and make sets of these given numbers.

Outside, the children will be going on a Traditional Tale hunt, looking for the characters within some of our best loved stories. 

Reception Focus W/C 15.01.18

This week in Reception we will continue to focus on 'The Gingerbread Man' story.

In Literacy, we will be re-reading the story and discussing key parts from it. The children will then write captions from the story applying their own phonics and tricky word knowledge to their writing.

In Maths, we will be exploring one less and taking one less away.

In Phonics, we will be introducing the digraphs 'qu', 'ch' and 'sh' and teaching the children exactly what a digraph is.

In topic, we will be reflecting on our science experiment from last week and investigating what materials would make a good boat to allow the gingerbread man to cross the river. Once the children have investigated which materials would make a good boat, they will have the opportunity to make one.