P2D Reflective Friday 27.09.24
Dear Parents,
We hope you had a great week.
Important information
- Loose Parts on Monday 30th September.
- Parents Consultations Tuesday 1st October and Thursday 3rd October.
- Tempest order forms are in your child’s purple folder today. If you want free delivery you will have to order by 10th October.
- Change of clothes: Please ensure that your child has a spare change of clothes at school (including pants and socks); these don’t have to be school uniform. It is really helpful for them all to have them (especially when they get wet). Some children took them home after needing them in but haven’t returned them back to school.
- As usual your children will be taking home their reading books today. This is a showcase of their learning. We have been reading the book at school so your children might find it ‘easy’. Please return the reading books on Monday: this is essential so books can be used by other children across the school. We have a few books missing and this means that a set of books cannot be shared with a group of children.
- Please if you are late do not knock on the door and ask a child to open the door for you go to the school office. For safety reasons children should not open the school doors.
This is a summary of our learning this week:
Literacy
This week we revised last week’s sounds oa/ow. We made boats and bows with arrows (look at the photos of our bows below).
Here is a wee video that you could watch at home if you would like to revise the learning:
We have practiced our reading skills: prediction, inference, summarising, etc.
We have introduced new tricky words from block 4: where, what, who. It would be very helpful if your children practice to read and write these words and previous blocks.
In writing we wrote about one of our parent/carers.
Handwriting: we have started to practice how to write i, l and t in cursive. See the website below to see how we practice them at school.
Ideas for learning at home
- Please ask your child to read the school reading book at home.
- Read, write and make the words: boat, goat, road, load, toad, foal, oak, coach, soap, soak, loan, bow, row, show, mow. You can write the words and ask your child to look for the oa/ow letters and circle them. Ask your child how many letters the word can has and how many sounds.
- You can play this free online game:
- https://ictgames.com/phonicsPop/index.html
– Please continue to read stories to your child at home.
– Please continue to encourage your child to read at home. It is important that children practice reading every day.
Maths
We have continued to work on our numeracy skills through our SEAL programme (different groups will work with different numbers and skills depending on their abilities to be able to make progress accordingly). We have been practicing our addition skills: we have used the different skills that we have learned so far to solve some calculations in small groups.
We have been looking at the 100 square: a 100 square is a 10×10 square that typically contains the numbers 1-100. The numbers are in sequential order and, since our number system is base-10, this means that all numbers with the same ones digit can be found in the same column. This can begin to give children a basic understanding of place value.
We have worked on time: months of the year. Ask your child how we can work out which months have 31 days.
We loved this song:
Ideas for learning at home:
- Please use your Sumdog account to practice numeracy skills.
- https://www.topmarks.co.uk/learning-to-count/chopper-squad
- Ask your child to tell you in which month he/she was born: which month goes after and which month goes before. You can ask about other members of the family and relatives. Can they tell you in which season is that month?
PE
We have worked on pre- basketball skills; we have learned how to do a chest pass and a chest and bounce pass. We had great fun trying to get the ball through the hoop.
SCIENCE
We have started our Sun, Moon and stars topic. We have discussed what do we know about it and what do we want to know.
We have learned to describe how the Earth spins around its axis in 24 hours resulting
in day and night. We know that the Earth movement is called Rotation. We watched the video here:
FRENCH
We have been practicing greetings. We like this song:
We hope you have a lovely weekend!
Mrs de Bonrostro
P1b reflective Friday 27.9.24
Thank you for the many positive responses to our survey so far. If you have not yet completed the survey, please do so by Tuesday 1st October.
Please check this blog every Friday as we will share the learning from the week. We would encourage you to look at it with your child so that they can talk to you about their experiences in class. The blog will also include this week’s ‘homework’ activities.
We may also share other information via the blog during the week, so you may wish to set up an alert for new posts.
Our learning this week
Here are some photographs of us developing our skills through our independent learning opportunities and experiences this week. Please take time to share these photographs with your child so they can share their learning with you.
Literacy focus
This week we have continued revising and assessing the children’s ability to recognise and use the letters s, a, t p, i and n. For most children, the skill of blending sounds together to read a word is trickier than building it themselves and many of us still need to master this skill. Please continue to support your child at home to practise
When revising these sounds at home please always use the pure sound of the letter (e.g. sssssss and not suh or the letter name Ess ). As we begin to use our knowledge of letter sounds to blend and build words to read and write, not using the correct pure sound can make things tricky for us. If you would like further explanation please just ask at the door.
Our storytelling prompt this week was “My hair was blowing when”
Maths and numeracy
Our focus skill this week has been subitising. There are activities listed below in the homework section.
In P1 we use the SEAL programme ( Stages of Early Arithmetical Learning) which promotes number literacy. Pupils will be learning skills and strategies appropriate to their current stage of development. This includes ( but is not limited to) recognising numerals to 10, 20 and beyond; counting forwards and backwards in sequence; counting objects with accurate 1-1 correspondence; ascribing numerosity to random arrays, spatial and finger patterns; counting two seen/unseen collections; describing and creating equal groups; partitioning patterns and numbers.
Other areas of the Curriculum
.
This week, pupils have shown an interest in learning about Narwhals.
We also had a visit from a spectacularly large spider (the children named it Sam) and we have found out some spider facts and read the story Aaargh Spider.
PE days are Wednesday and Thursday. Children should come to school dressed ready to participate as we will not change clothes in school -e.g joggers/leggings/shorts and a T shirt with a Buckstone jumper on top.
As far as the weather will allow , Thursday PE will take place outdoors until October so outdoor shoes on that day would ideally be trainers if possible..
Looking ahead to next week
Loose parts learning on Tuesday 1st October
Parent consultation meetings Tuesday and Thursday evenings.
Homework
Literacy
Spelling homework should ideally be done in several short sessions across the week . (5-10 minutes 4 times a week will have a huge impact)
Adult write the lowercase letters s, a, t and p, i and n on individual pieces of paper ( or can use magnetic letters if you have them)
Task 1.
Using the letter cards, the adult can build the following words
- sat
- pat
- at
- tap
- pin
- pan
- nap
- nip
- ( challenge spelling words) pants, past
The child should pronounce each sound as the pure sound, then blend the sounds together to read the word. This is the skill that most children find the trickiest.
Task 2
The adult should say one of the spelling words and the child uses the cards to build the word by fining the sound at the start, the sound in the middle, the sound at the end.
You may wish to keep the letter cards you make as we will be adding more sounds for spelling homework next week.
Other literacy activities
Play this game on a phone or tablet. Choose the ‘initial sounds’ option first please .
Numeracy
Practise the skill of subitising. Subitising is the ability to quickly and accurately determine the number of objects in a small group without counting them. arrange a small number of items under a piece of paper, then remove the paper for a few seconds ( not enough time to count) and re-cover. Ask how many were there? Start with regular dice patterns to 6, then extend to organised arrays up to 10, then introduce random arrays.
There is also a game here which we have been using in school which your child may want to show you. Choose the ‘game’ option – then the blue dice lead to the subitising activity. We also enjoy watching this short video which helps us to practise the subitising skill in different ways
All children acquire numeracy skills at different rates, so the homework activities are skills to practise. If your child finds it easy, increase the level of challenge by adjusting the range of number (eg, work within 10, up to 20, up to 50 etc)
- say the number AFTER a given number ( What comes after 7 ?) Children should answer quickly without the need to count from 1
- say the number BEFORE a given number
- explore teen numbers. e.g 11 = 10 and 1, 12 = 10 and 2. 13 is ten and how many more ?
- count forwards and backwards
- count a random collection of moveable or fixed items accurately with 1-1 correspondence.
Life Skills
- Learn to turn sleeves the right way out
- Learn your address
Reflective Friday 27.09.24
LITERACY
This week, we’ve been revising and assessing our knowledge of the sounds we’ve learned so far: s, a, t, p, i, n. Our focus has been on blending these sounds to read CVC words, such as “pat.”
When practicing these sounds at home, please ensure you are using the pure sound of each letter (for example, avoiding adding an “i” sound to make them “ti” or “pi”). If you’d like further clarification, feel free to speak with one of us at the end of the day.
We completed a writing activity based on the prompt, “My hair was blowing in the wind when…”
Home learning options:
Here are some engaging activities that you can do at home to help revise the sounds.
Sound Hunt:
- Ask your child to go on a “sound hunt” around the house. They can find objects or pictures that start with the sounds s, a, t, p, i, or n (e.g., s for sock, a for apple, t for toy).
CVC Word Building:
- Use magnetic letters, letter cards, or just pen and paper to help your child build simple CVC words like sat, pin, tap, etc., using the sounds s, a, t, p, i, and n. This reinforces building and blending skills.
Sound Writing Practice:
- Practice writing the letters s, a, t, p, i, and n in fun ways. You could use finger paints, chalk outside, or trace them in a tray of salt or sand.
MATHS AND NUMERACY
In P1, we use the SEAL programme (Stages of Early Arithmetical Learning), which promotes number literacy and helps children experience and understand numbers at their own pace and level. The key skills we focus on include:
- Recognising numerals to 10, 20, and beyond
- Counting forwards and backwards in sequence
- Counting objects with accurate 1-to-1 correspondence
- Ascribing numerosity to random arrays, spatial, and finger patterns
- Counting two seen/unseen collections
- Describing and creating equal groups
- Partitioning patterns and numbers
Here are some photos of the children engaging in independent learning activities.
In PE, we have been exploring how to move at different speeds and have started learning about various multi-skills.
Looking ahead to next week:
On Tuesday, we will be having loose parts play with the other P1 class. It would be helpful if all children could have appropriate clothing and footwear for this. Thank you 😊
Enjoy your weekend everyone. 😊
ELC Newsletter 20.9.24
P1b reflective Friday 20.9.24
Please check this blog every Friday as we will share the learning from the week. We would encourage you to look at it with your child so that they can talk to you about their experiences in class. The blog will also include this week’s ‘homework’ activities.
We may also share other information via the blog during the week, so you may wish to set up an alert for new posts.
Our learning this week
Here are some photographs of us developing our skills through our independent learning opportunities and experiences this week. Please take time to share these photographs with your child so they can share their learning with you.
Literacy focus
This week and next we are revising and assessing the children’s ability to recognise and use the letters s, a, t p, i and n. We have also been practising forming the letters. There is a sheet in purple folders today for pupils to practise at home too. Please continue to help your child learn to blend and build words using the homework suggestions below,
When revising these sounds at home please always use the pure sound of the letter (e.g. sssssss and not suh or the letter name Ess ). As we begin to use our knowledge of letter sounds to blend and build words to read and write, not using the correct pure sound can make things tricky for us. If you would like further explanation please just ask at the door.
Maths and numeracy
In P1 we use the SEAL programme ( Stages of Early Arithmetical Learning) which promotes number literacy. Pupils will be learning skills and strategies appropriate to their current stage of development. This includes ( but is not limited to) recognising numerals to 10, 20 and beyond; counting forwards and backwards in sequence; counting objects with accurate 1-1 correspondence; ascribing numerosity to random arrays, spatial and finger patterns; counting two seen/unseen collections; describing and creating equal groups; partitioning patterns and numbers.
Other areas of the Curriculum
.
PE days are Wednesday and Thursday. Children should come to school dressed ready to participate as we will not change clothes in school -e.g joggers/leggings/shorts and a T shirt with a Buckstone jumper on top.
As far as the weather will allow , Thursday PE will take place outdoors until October so outdoor shoes on that day would ideally be trainers if possible..
Looking ahead to next week
Individual and sibling photographs are due to be taken on Wednesday 25 September. We realise that this is a PE day but please dress your child in school uniform that day and we will adapt our PE activities accordingly.
Homework
Literacy.
Handwriting practise sheet in purple folders today. No need to return to school, but please do use them.
Spelling homework should ideally be done in several short sessions across the week . (5-10 minutes 4 times a week will have a huge impact)
Adult write the lowercase letters s, a, t and p, i and n on individual pieces of paper ( or can use magnetic letters if you have them)
Task 1.
Using the letter cards, the adult can build the following words
- sat
- pat
- at
- tap
- pin
- pan
- nap
- nip
- ( challenge spelling words) pants, past
The child should pronounce each sound as the pure sound, then blend the sounds together to read the word.
Task 2
The adult should say one of the spelling words and the child uses the cards to build the word by fining the sound at the start, the sound in the middle, the sound at the end.
You may wish to keep the letter cards you make as we will be adding more sounds for spelling homework next week.
Other literacy activities
Play this game on a phone or tablet. Choose the ‘initial sounds’ option first please .
Numeracy
All children acquire numeracy skills at different rates, so the homework activities are skills to practise. If your child finds it easy, increase the level of challenge by adjusting the range of number (eg, work within 10, up to 20, up to 50 etc)
- say the number AFTER a given number ( What comes after 7 ?) Children should answer quickly without the need to count from 1
- say the number BEFORE a given number
- explore teen numbers. e.g 11 = 10 and 1, 12 = 10 and 2. 13 is ten and how many more ?
- count forwards and backwards
- count a random collection of moveable or fixed items accurately with 1-1 correspondence.
Life Skills
- Learn to turn sleeves the right way out
- Learn your address
P2B Reflective Friday 20.09.24
Hello families,
Hello families,
Welcome the P2B Bouncing Bunnies Blog for Friday 20th of September.
Timetables, Dates and Reminders
- PE is on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
- Our next loose parts session is on Monday 30th of September
- Our following Loose Parts session is on Wednesday 9th October.
- Miss Kelly takes the class on Wednesdays.
- We have a short class show and tell session each Tuesday focused on achievements and souvenirs of special experiences.
- Your child needs a spare change of clothes in school in case of spills or getting caught in the rain etc. If your child is wearing these home one day can we have a replacement the next day.
- We have a rotating list of class responsibilities each week. One of these is our librarian. The Librarian looks after our class reading corner and will bring in from home, or choose from the class library, a favourite book for Mr Bennett to read on Fridays.
- Our shared area is always in need of clean and dry cardboard boxes etc for junk modelling. Skip the recycling and bring yours in (no packaging from dairy products or nut products for the safety of those area users with allergies please.) A special note this week is that we particularly want shoe boxes as some amazing learning through play took place this week (see below)
Reading Books
- Reading books will be going out from today. Reading books coming home on a Friday as a way for the children to showcase their learning to you, not as homework.
- STOP PRESS: APOLOGY- due to a miscommunication, discovered today, with our reading support volunteer earlier this week two of our reading groups read each other’s books in the reading sessions. These children were reading our Fang’s Dentist book and the story about Ron’s Big day. If your child has these books please bear in mind they have had less preperation for their reading showcase than planned.
Trip out
Our finale to our houses and homes and information handling topics was a local area walk surveying homes in the local area.
The children enjoyed noting down the many types of residence in the area as they toured and were very good at spotting the different types. You could choose to extend this learning at home by asking what house and home types they can see on your next walk or drive. You could also practice counting with tally marks on a trip out or at home.
Thank you for those who supported or volunteered to support this trip.
Literacy
Our class sound focus this week was on revising all of our recent sounds. The highlight was a class game of hangman where P2b beat Mr Bennett’s toughest igh word ‘Lighthouse’. Which also came from our houses and homes topic.
To extend the learning at home be on the lookout for things that have igh in their name like the night or a light, or have -y in their name like a fly or the sky. May be play a game of igh/-y spy.
Maths and Numeracy
As said above maths was used in our house and homes survey this week. We also practiced some colourful addition games in class. The highlight for the children was being given access to Sumdog on the shared ipads. We will be working through the Sumdog diagnostic tests in coming weeks before supplying login cards for use at home.
Play
P2B were very lucky this week to be given the first chance to use a new resource. We have our own class set of large building blocks until the end of the year which should make it easier for all to have a shot at building something fantastic.
In the area today several of our class were inspired by shoe boxes to create elaborate doll’s houses with fantastically modelled coathangers and clothes.
Well made girls.
Health and Wellbeing
This week we did the important job of expressing ourselves using SHANNARI wheels. A freedom of expression outlined in the UN declaration on the rights of the child. All of the children expressed how happy they were under the indicators. In PE this week we worked on throwing and passing skills.
The Mr Bennett Bit
It was a very busy week this week, with only 4 days to pack it into. The favourite part of the week was definitely the trip out to the local area. And I was so happy to hear how much it had been enjoyed.
Have a fabulous weekend Bouncing Bunnies
Mr Bennett.
P2D Reflective Friday 20.09.24
Dear Parents,
We hope you had a great week.
We had a great time on our discovery walk. Thank you to all parents who were able to come and help.
Thank you for bringing all the medical forms: We are the winners!!! See our trophies and a special gift from Mrs George:
Important information
- Your children will be taking home their reading books today. This is a showcase of their learning. We have been reading the book at school so your children might find it ‘easy’. Please return the reading books on Monday: this is essential so books can be used by other children across the school.
- We have set up a Sumdog account for each child. On your purple folder today you will find a letter explaining all about Sumdog and your child’s username and password laminated. Please use your account this week as this will provide information to set up tailored challenges for them. Sumdog
- No Loose Parts next week.
This is a summary of our learning this week:
Literacy
This week we revised all the initial blends and diagraphs that we have worked on so far: th, ch, sh, wh, -ai-, -ay, -ee-, -ea, -oo, -ee, -igh- and -y. It would be very beneficial for the children to practice these at home: looking for words that have those sounds in books, boxes, etc., thinking about words with those sounds and writing them.
We have introduced new tricky words from block 3: would, should, could. It would be very helpful if your children practice to read and write these words.
Please also revise the ones from block 1 and 2.
In writing we wrote about ourselves. We are learning to write descriptions. We are learning to use describing words to make our writing more interesting. We had a great time trying to guess who was the author of a piece of work by reading their own description.
Ideas for learning at home
– See suggestions above.
-Ask your child to read the reading book to you. Ask them questions about the text, what would have happened if…? Did they like the book? Why? Would you recommend this book to a friend?
– Sounds hunt: th, ch, sh, wh, -ai-, -ay, -ee-, -ea, -oo, -ee, -igh- and -y. Look for these initial blends and vowel diagraphs in magazines, books, food tins, boxes, etc.
– Spelling: tricky words. Ask your child to write the tricky words would, should, could using a different colour for each letter.
– Please continue to read stories to your child at home.
– Ask your child to write words with the sounds: th, ch, sh, wh, -ai-, -ay, -ee-, -ea, -oo, -ee, -igh- and -y. Can they write a sentence using one or two of these words? They can write them in post it notes and hide them around the house, whoever finds the most and able to read them wins.
- You can use this online game. Please choose the sounds that we have worked on so far.
https://ictgames.com/mobilePage/forestPhonics/index.html
Maths
We have continued to work on addition (within 10, 20, 50). We have been working on using the near doubles strategy. It would be helpful if all the children learn , at least, near doubles to 10.
We loved this song:
Ideas for learning at home:
- Ask your child to add two numbers together. For some, this might be with two single digits, for others it could be a 2 digit number plus a 1 digit number.
- For more challenge try this game ( please look at the doubles game):
- Before and after: Please continue to work on this concept. If you see a number around (bus, house number, etc) challenge your child to say the number before and the number after.
Other areas
Social Studies
We have continued to learn about houses and homes. We are now confident to name and identify at least two types of houses from our local area. What a wonderful walk we had! Very interesting conversations about the type of houses that we saw in our walk.
To finish our topic we were given the challenge of building houses using different materials: we needed to work as a team and explain the features of the house to decide which type of house it was.
PE
We have started to work on pre- basketball skills: bouncing a ball. Please practice this skill at home.
HWB
We have worked on our Wellbeing wheels to explain how do we feel using the wellbeing indicators.
Outdoor learning
We had a fantastic session on Thursday afternoon. Lots of problem solving skills while using the wooden ramps and when trying to build a zipwire. Some children had a great time with their music band (using pots and buckets).
We hope you have a lovely weekend!
Mrs de Bonrostro
P1R Reflective Friday 20.9.24
Hello everyone, this is what we have been learning this week.
LITERACY
This week we have been revising all the sounds we have learned so far: s a t p i n.
When revising these sounds at home please always use the pure sound of the letter.(Please don’t add an i to the sounds to make them ti and pi). As we begin to blend and build words to read and write, not using the correct pure sound can make things tricky for us. If you would like further explanation, please speak to one of us at the end of the day.
We read My Big Shouting Day by Rebecca Patterson and told a story through our drawings about a time when we were shouting.
THINGS TO DO AT HOME
Spelling homework should ideally be done in several short sessions across the week. (5-10 minutes 4 times a week will have a huge impact).
Adult write the lowercase letters we have covered on individual pieces of paper ( or magnetic letters if you have them).
Task 1
Using the letter cards, the adult can build the following words
sat
pat
at
tap
pin
pan
nap
nip
( challenge- pants past)
The child should pronounce each sound as the pure sound, then blend the sounds together to read the words.
Task 2
The adult should say one of the spelling words and the child uses the cards to build the word by finding the sound at the start, the sound in the middle, the sound at the end.
Please keep the cards you have made as we will be adding more sounds in the future.
You could play this game using a phone or a tablet. Please choose the ‘initial sounds’ option first.
https://www.topmarks.co.uk/phonics/balloon-phonics-cvc-game
MATHS AND NUMERACY
In P1 we use the SEAL programme (Stages of Early Arithmetical Learning) which promotes number literacy. Pupils will be learning skills and strategies appropriate to their current stage of development. This includes(but is not limited to) recognising numerals to 10, 20 and beyond; counting forwards and backwards in sequence; counting objects with accurate 1-1 correspondence; ascribing numerosity to random arrays, spatial and finger patterns; counting two seen/unseen collections; describing and creating equal groups; partitioning patterns and numbers.
THINGS TO DO AT HOME
All children acquire numeracy skills at different rates so the homework activities are skills to practise. If your child finds it easy, increase the level of challenge by adjusting the range of number (eg work within 10, up to 20, up to 50 etc).
Say the number AFTER a given number ( what comes after 7?). Children should answer quickly without the need to count from 1.
Say the number BEFORE a given number.
Explore teen numbers. Eg 11 = 10 and 1, 12 = 10 and 2. 13 is 10 and how many more?
Count forwards and backwards.
Count a random collection of moveable or fixed items accurately with 1-1 correspondence.
INDEPENDENT LEARNING
The children have been developing their skills through independent learning opportunities in class. Here are just a few photographs of what they have been doing.
PE
In PE we were playing some warmup games and learning to move at different speeds and levels in a designated space.
‘OUR BUCKSTONE’ TOPIC
We have been chatting about our address and talking about the number of our houses.
LOOSE PARTS
The children are really enjoying loose parts play and are working well with their peers to build, create and investigate. The next day for loose parts will be Tuesday 1st October. Please can you make sure that your child has clothes that you don’t mind getting wet. Waterproofs and wellies would be ideal but old scruffy clothes will do just as well.
OTHER PRIMARY ONE MATTERS
Please bring in any clean recycling for the children to use in our STEM area.
Please make sure your child has a change of clothes in case they get wet or muddy. Can these items of clothing be named and kept in school in a bag. If your child has to change their clothes and takes the wet/dirty items home, please make sure they are replaced the next day.
We have a purple jumper which has been left in class for a few days now. It does not have a name on it, please come and ask one of us if you think it might belong to your child.
Any donations of plastic bags would be really useful for taking home artwork or wet clothes, thank you.
PHOTOGRAPHS 25.9.24
Individual and sibling photographs are due to be taken on Wednesday 25 September. We realise that this is a PE day but please dress your child in school uniform that day and we will adapt our PE activities.
We are very happy to speak to parents at the end of the day to discuss any issue concerning your child. We are not able to talk to parents in the morning as we have to supervise the children as they come in ready to start their day. Thank you for your understanding.
Have a lovely weekend.
CEC Open Day 6/11/24
Come and visit Buckstone Primary School!
Our P7 hosts will take you on a tour of the school and will share all of the exciting things that are happening at Buckstone Primary. You will have the opportunity to ask any questions about learning at Buckstone. There will also be members of the staff team around to answer any questions about enrolment or transition to Primary One. P1 Registration takes place online between the 1st and 15th November.
Buckstone Primary School 