Welcome. to the Buttercup Class page! Visit each week to see what we have been learning and how you can support your child at home.
50 Things to do Before You're 5!
Follow this link and download the APP.
We'll be making suggestions in our weekly updates about which activities you could try to do with your child. The activities are all free, or very low cost, and can be accessed locally. How many could you tick off the list?
Our Topic this half term is All About Me and the Knowledge Organiser give you an overview of our learning over the coming weeks. You could support your child with their learning by talking about your families, going for walks in the local community and talking about what you can see, discussing different jobs and the roles of people in the community who you help us. If you, or anyone you know, has a job which involves helping people in the local community that the children could learn about, please let us know!
Week Ending Friday 20th October
This week in reception we have been learning about our community through the seasons. We have learned about the four seasons and we have looked at pictures of Ely throughout the different seasons. We have also looked at evergreen and deciduous trees and spoken about what those words mean. We have enjoyed cutting pictures and sorting them by the seasons, looking for autumn leaves outside and we have explored mixing different shades of orange, brown, green and purple.
In maths we have continued learning about shapes and have been finding different shapes all around the classroom. Reception have also enjoyed making their own version of the story Farmer Duck which we have enjoyed reading over the past few weeks. They have came up with their own versions of the story, including 'Farmer Pig' in Bluebell and 'Farmer Croc' in Buttercups! They have been acting out their story in groups with puppets and they have had a go at writing their story using their phonics knowledge!
We hope the children have a wonderful half term break!
50 things to do before you're 5!
This week we would love reception to try #37 High Five
'Children are really interested in people and the world around them and they are particularly fascinated by people in uniform. High five someone who works in uniform and helps us, say thank you for everything they do to help us. Police, firefighters, paramedics, doctors, nurses, dentists, the list could go on of all the amazing people in our world who help us. Give them a high five next time you see them!'
https://cambspboro.50thingstodo.org/app/os#!/the-50-things-activities
Week Ending Friday 13th October
This week Buttercups really enjoyed having their parents lunch on Wednesday!
In reception we have been learning all about 'People Who Help Us'. We have been talking about the people in our community who help us if we go to the shops or the cafe, or if we are in an emergency. They have really enjoyed role playing as doctors, fire fighters and police officers. Many of them have built their own emergency vehicles in the construction area too!
In phonics we have been continuing to learn our sounds, this week we have looked at the sounds for j, v, w, y and z. We have been practicing how to write these letters in our books and we how to blend sounds together to make words.
In maths we have been exploring shapes. We have been investigating which shapes have curved and/or flat surfaces, which shapes roll and which shapes slide. We have also been stacking shapes into towers and deciding which shapes stack best.
We have also really enjoyed mixing the primary colours to make green, orange and purple.
50 things to do before you're 5!
This week we would love reception to try #5 Shout and Shhh
Your little one will delight in trying out the noises they can make themselves, exploring how the places they are can change that sound. A loud sound in the garden sounds different in the pedestrian subway in town. A whisper close to their ear might ‘feel’ as well as ‘sound’.
https://cambspboro.50thingstodo.org/app/os#!/the-50-things-activities
Week Ending Friday 29th September
This week in reception we have been learning all about 'My Family and Myself'.
We have been talking about the things we could do as babies and the things that we can do now, and how we have grown and changed since being a baby. We have been discussing who lives with us and how we all have different families. Some of the children have created their own houses by junk modelling!
In phonics we have been continuing to learn our sounds, this week we have looked at the sounds for c, k, u, b and f. We have been practicing how to write these letters on whiteboards and in our books, and we have been practicing how to blend sounds together to make words.
In maths we have been using the words, equal, compare, more, less, same, fewer to compare groups of numbers within 5.
We have really enjoyed playing with the sand and the new sand toys this week. We have been building and counting our sandcastles, making shapes in the sand and using words like 'smooth' to describe how the sand feels and looks.
We have been exploring the primary colours this week, and many of the children have enjoyed making owls with paint and by ripping paper to make feathers.
50 things to do before you're 5!
This week we would love reception to try #45 Hocus Pocus Potions
"Fancy making some super-power potion, some magic medicine or a spell or two? Take a look at some science mixed in with lots of fun, but be careful… It could get messy!"
https://cambspboro.50thingstodo.org/app/os#!/the-50-things-activities
This week in reception we have been learning all about 'My Family and Myself'.
We have been talking about the things we could do as babies and the things that we can do now, and how we have grown and changed since being a baby. We have been discussing who lives with us and how we all have different families. Some of the children have created their own houses by junk modelling!
In phonics we have been continuing to learn our sounds, this week we have looked at the sounds for c, k, u, b and f. We have been practicing how to write these letters on whiteboards and in our books, and we have been practicing how to blend sounds together to make words.
In maths we have been using the words, equal, compare, more, less, same, fewer to compare groups of numbers within 5.
We have really enjoyed playing with the sand and the new sand toys this week. We have been building and counting our sandcastles, making shapes in the sand and using words like 'smooth' to describe how the sand feels and looks.
We have been exploring the primary colours this week, and many of the children have enjoyed making owls with paint and by ripping paper to make feathers.
50 things to do before you're 5!
This week we would love reception to try #45 Hocus Pocus Potions
"Fancy making some super-power potion, some magic medicine or a spell or two? Take a look at some science mixed in with lots of fun, but be careful… It could get messy!"
https://cambspboro.50thingstodo.org/app/os#!/the-50-things-activities
Week ending Friday 6th October
This week our topic has been ‘Where I live’. We started by looking at different photos and maps of our local community. Then we went for a walk around our school and enjoyed making a big class map of how we get from our classroom to the big playground. We have been discussing the different ways we get to school and how our journeys to school are different.
In maths we have been comparing groups within 5. We have been using the words more and less and we have been learning that ‘fewer’ can also be used to mean less. Our phonics sounds this week have been f, e, l, h and r and we have been using these to begin to blend sounds together to make words.
In our COOL (Continue Our Own Learning) time we have been making buildings and roads in the garden to replicate our community. We have used the chalk to draw roads, the blocks to make Ely Train Station and we even used the crates and fabrics to make our own Ely Cathedral!
50 things to do before you’re 5!
This week we would love for reception to try #18 Great Eastern Baking!
https://cambspboro.50thingstodo.org/app/os#!/the-50-things-activities
Week ending Friday 22nd September
This week we have started our All About Me topic in reception. We have been naming the different parts of our body, looked at x-rays and why doctors used them and we have made our own 'earbud skeletons'! We have been talking about how our bodies can move in different ways by jumping, running, walking fast or slow.
In phonics we have been practicing our sounds from last week m, a, s, d, t and we have been learning new sounds this week i, n, p, g, and o. We have also started to look at segmenting and blending sounds to read words. We have also been practicing how to write these letters in our phonics books.
Our number of the week has been 5. We are getting really good at recognising the number 5, counting 5 objects and finding different representations of 5 in and outside of the classroom.
Our story this week has been Owl Babies. The children have really enjoyed reading about the three owls, Sarah, Percy and Bill. They have particularly liked the phrase "I want my Mummy!".
Next week we will be continuing our topic of All About Me by looking at our families, the people who live with us and how we grow and change over time. It would be really helpful if the children could bring in a picture of their family, and if possible a picture of them as a baby so we can see how they have grown and changed!
50 Things to do Before You're 5!
We have been looking at the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough App '50 Things to do Before You're 5!' and we would love it if our reception children could get involved by trying one thing each week.
This week we would love it if our reception children could try:
#1 Looking for Animals. "When children have opportunities to see animals, a whole new world of wonder opens up for them. The animals needn’t be large or exotic!"
https://cambspboro.50thingstodo.org/app/os#!/the-50-things-activities
Week ending Friday 15th September
This week has been all about exploring and understanding our emotions through using the text The Colour Monster. The children explored colours associated with emotions and have been sharing school situations that might make them feel happy, sad, afraid, calm or angry. They have been recognising what facial expressions link to different emotions and what strategies they could use to support themselves and their friends if they feel sad or angry, such as smiling, or taking deep breaths by pretending to blow out candles.
Outside, the children made quiet space dens, and even a calm, green colour monster using crates.
Number 4 has been everywhere in our provision and the children are getting very good at recognising 4, and manipulating their fingers to show 4 in lots of different ways! It is important that the children have a deep understanding of numbers in order to become accomplished mathematicians.
Week ending 8th September
The children have completed their first week in school and we are so pleased with how well they have settled in. From making new friends, exploring new environments, attending assemblies and being independent in the dinner hall, they really have been amazing!
They met Fred Frog on their very first day and began their reading journey in school with blending sounds, and they have been showing us their understanding of small numbers in maths. This year has certainly got off to a great start.
We look forward to working with you to support your children's learning so with that in mind, if you have a job that helps people within our community, and would be willing to pop in and talk to the children about your role, please see Mrs Tomlin.
