Highbury Infant School and Nursery

Orange Class

An insight into a year's learning in Year 1

Autumn 1

Our topic this half term is Animals.

In English we will be finding out the features of non-fiction books and how they can help us, as well as writing non-chronological reports.

Maths this half term will focus on using numbers in context such as in word problems and money.

In R.E, we are looking at human responsibility, which involves looking after our families and the planet we live on.

In PSHE we will be looking at what it means to belong to a family and the different make ups of family we all have as well as celebrating relationships and friendships.

We will be learning about what animals eat and how we can group them in Science. We will also be experiencing different types of Science enquiry.

P.E will continue to be on Tuesdays with Mrs Braham-Everett and Thursdays with Miss Kirbyshire. Please ensure your child’s P.E kit is always in school and hair is tied up every day.

Reading books and library books will  be changed on a Thursday. Please bear in mind that the reading books the children choose to take home are the level they are secure in, therefore they should be practising fluency and comprehension skills. In school, the books they read are the level they are working on.

Autumn 2

Our topic this half term is Transport.

In English we will be looking at instructions and how we can sequence them. We will also be looking at Handa’s Hen and how text is repeated in stories.

In Maths we will be looking at splitting numbers into tens and ones.

In Science we will look at different materials and their properties and why they are used for different vehicles.

In Geography we will be recapping on the continents and where types of transport can be found around the world. We will also be linking Geography to our History topic by going on a walk around Hitchin and making a map of where we have walked.

In History we will be exploring how Hitchin has changed since the railway came and how transport has changed over time.

In Jigsaw PSHE this half term our topic is ‘Healthy me’. We will be looking at how we can make healthier choices and how to look after our bodies.

P.E will continue to be on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Please ensure your child’s P.E kit is always in school and hair is tied up every day.  

Reading books will continue to be changed on a Thursday. Library books will also be changed once a week on a Thursday. Please bear in mind that the reading books the children choose to take home are the level they are secure in, therefore they should be practising fluency and comprehension skills. In school, the books they read are the level they are working on. Towards the end of the half term your child will be assessed again in reading.

 Just before half term, your child was given a new spelling booklet to complete weekly as well as a new homework sheet. As explained in the letter attached to the new homework sheet, we will now be collecting in spelling and homework folders every Friday, when children will have the opportunity to share their homework with the class. There will continue to be an additional spelling and maths activity on Purple Mash every week.  

This half term we are inviting parents to come into school and view some of your child’s work as well as a short class assembly.

Spring 1

Our topic this half term is Frozen planet.

In English we will be talking about toys that are special to them relating to the book The Last Noo-noo as well as poetry learning based on rhyme.

In Maths we will be using our knowledge on numbers to 10 to work up to 20 and telling the time to the hour and half past the hour.

In Science we will look at different objects and learning the materials they are made from. We will be using these materials to help us do experiments with ice.

In Geography we will be comparing weather patterns in the UK compared to Polar regions.

In History we will be learning about Ernest Shackleton’s expedition.

In Jigsaw PSHE this half term our topic is ‘Dreams and goals. We will be looking at setting goals for ourselves and taking on new challenges. 

P.E will continue to be on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Please ensure your child’s P.E kit is always in school and hair is tied up every day.  

Just before Christmas, your child was given a new spelling booklet to complete weekly as well as a new homework sheet. These folders can stay at home but need to be handed in on 7/2 for spelling assessments and so your child has a chance to share some of the homework with the rest of the class. An additional spelling game will be set every Monday to be completed on Purple Mash.

Our Forest School session this half term will take place on Thursday 10^th February. For these sessions it would be helpful if your child came to school with wellies, a coat and waterproof trousers (we have limited numbers of these in school if needed).

Spring 2

Our topic this half term is Dinosaurs.

 We will be learning about what animals eat and how we can group them in Science. We will also be experiencing different types of Science enquiry.

In Computing, we will be continuing our Computing curriculum on Purple Mash looking at grouping, sorting and making pictograms.

In R.E, we are looking at Justice and Fairness and the influence various rules have on or lives. 

We will be writing recounts and learning how to sequence instructions in English.  

Maths this half term will focus on numbers to 10 through sorting, identifying, grouping, addition and subtraction.

In Jigsaw PSHE this half term our topic is ‘Celebrating differences’. We will be looking at things that are the same as our friends and things that are different and how we accept these differences.

Your child has now been given a spelling booklet to complete weekly as well as their homework. 

Summer 

Our topic this half term is Ourselves.

In R.E, we are looking at the different communities we belong to. Part of this is to look at families. 

We will be learning about our bodies in Science, this will include looking at how our bodies work, the way we use our senses and how we change. We will also be looking at the differences between humans and animals, and what they both need to keep healthy.

In English we have three units; labels and captions, poetry based on our senses and a contemporary fiction unit.

Maths will continue to take a practical approach and your child will be learning to sort, order and classify objects as well as counting, adding and subtracting them.

In PSHE we will be following the ‘Jigsaw’ approach.  We will be focusing on ‘Being me in my world’ where we will explore thoughts and feelings surrounding feeling special and safe, rights and responsibilities, and rewards and consequences.                 

We will be having other Forest School sessions this term.