A winter plea! I know it is not always the easiest thing to do, but it would help us so much if winter accessories ( hats. gloves. scarves etc) are named or at least initialled so that we can reunite them with their owners even when those owners deny ever having had a pair of gloves with them !!
Also, please continue to send in your clean recycling. Many thanks
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
Our new sounds this week were th and wh.
Tricky words .
Learn to read and spell the word are
Writing prompt this week was ‘in the bath’
Maths and numeracy focus
Our continued focus this week was on coin recognition and counting /creating amounts of money using a variety o coins.
Below are links to a game we have used in school which you may also wish to use at home to support this learning.
Other areas of the curriculum
We have continued to discuss what we know about Scotland. We have looked at the work of a range of Scottish Artists and tried to recreate some famous works. We learned more about the history of tartan and how the cloth is woven. Mrs Cross told us the story of ‘The Three Donalds’ a tale of how tartan may have been invented !
In PE we continue to put our elements of scottish country dancing together. We now know a simplified circassian circle and the dashing white sergeant
Primary sevens came with their ipads to show us how to play some learning games.
We were asked to make a short video about our RRS display. We thought you might like to see it.
Next Friday one child will be chosen to perform the Selkirk Grace at our Early level assembly. Please keep learning it at home using the link from last week ( also below)
‘Homework’ ( things to practice at home)
For the whole school Burns competition please learn to recite the Selkirk Grace.
Ask an adult to help you look up your family tartan. Which colours can you see ? You might want to print a picture of it and bring it in, or try to draw a picture of it. Remember, not all surnames have their own tartan but they may have an associated one.
It was lovely to see you at the Drop-in session on Tuesday.
Important information:
On Thursday we will build castles made of junk. Please could you bring cardboard boxes, empty kitchen rolls ( no toilet paper ones, please), etc. on that day? Please do not bring it beforeThursday as we don’t have space to storage it.
Loose parts on Tuesday 6th February.
Please ensure that all your children’s items are labelled (including hats and gloves).
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). Please label all the items.
Next week we will not send reading books home.
This is a summary of our learning this week:
Literacy
This week we continued to learn about magic e. This week was magic e with an i. Eg: time, kite, pipe, etc.
We have practiced our reading skills: prediction and fluency are our focus.
We have continued to learn common words from block 5: write, great and move. Please continue to practice tricky words at home. All children know in which block they are working on.
In writing we are learning to write descriptions. This week we have written wonderful descriptions about Monet. We are really impressed with the work produced!
At cursive handwriting. This week we have practice m and n. See the link below of the formation we are practicing at school.
We did our ‘Twa Leggit mice’ recitation and two children have been selected to perform at the school assembly. Well done to all the children who took part and learned the poem; it was a very hard decision!
Ideas for learning at home
Please ask your child to read the school reading book at home.
Use your magic e wand for these words: kit, bit, fin , etc. Ask your child to write them and then add the magic e band at the end of the word and see which words they have now.
Ask your child to write and read these words: kite, bite, time, white, bike, line, slide, five, etc. You can write the words and ask your child to look for the initial blends and circle them.
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 started to learn about properties of 3D objects: faces, edges and vertices; stack and roll.
Ideas for learning at home:
When talking to your child ensure you use vocabulary using 3D Objects: we have learned cube, cuboid, sphere, cylinder and prism.
3D object hunt around the house and outdoors.
This video will help to reinforce the learning:
Other areas
EXA and PE
We have continued to learn Scottish Dance. We are learning to combine actions to create movement sequences independently and with others in response to music. We can now dance the Flying Scotsman’s Dance.
In gymnastics we are learning landing and balancing skills.
FRENCH
We are learning about colours.
SOCIAL STUDIES
We are learning about Edinburgh Castle We are learning to use evidence to recreate the story of place of local historical interest.
It was lovely to see you at the Drop-in session on Tuesday.
Important information:
Loose parts on Tuesday 6th February.
Please ensure that all items are labelled (including hats and gloves).
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). Please label all the items.
Next week we will do reading in class but not send reading books home.
This is a summary of our learning this week:
Literacy
This week we continued to learn about magic e. This week was magic e with an i. Eg: time, kite, pipe, etc.
We have practiced our reading skills: prediction and fluency are our focus.
We have continued to learn common words from block 5: write, great and move. Please continue to practise tricky words at home. All children know in which block they are working on.
In cursive handwriting we have practice m and n. See the link below of the formation we are practicing at school.
We did our ‘Twa Leggit mice’ recitation and two children have been selected to perform at the school assembly. Well done to all the children who took part and learned the poem; it was a very hard decision!
Ideas for learning at home
Please ask your child to read the school reading book at home.
Use your magic e wand for these words: kit, bit, fin , etc. Ask your child to write them and then add the magic e band at the end of the word and see which words they have now.
Ask your child to write and read these words: kite, bite, time, white, bike, line, slide, five, etc. You can write the words and ask your child to look for the initial blends and circle them.
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 started to learn about properties of 3D objects: faces, edges and vertices; stack and roll.
Ideas for learning at home:
When talking to your child ensure you use vocabulary using 3D Objects: we have learned cube, cuboid, sphere, cylinder and prism.
3D object hunt around the house and outdoors.
This video will help to reinforce the learning:
Other areas
EXA and PE
We have continued to learn Scottish Dance. We are learning to combine actions to create movement sequences independently and with others in response to music. We can now dance the Flying Scotsman.
We enjoyed drawing Scottish castles using charcoal.
FRENCH
We are learning about colours.
SOCIAL STUDIES
We have been learning about Greyfriars Bobby.
Here are some photos of our fantastic junk model castles from last week!
We introduced two new consonant digraphs this week: wh and th. Digraphs are two letters which go together to make one sound. We were building /writing these words : which, that and blending sounds together to read: when then.
Our new tricky word this week is are.
We were writing about being in the bath to practise using our new th sound.
We are encouraging the children to use the tricky words they know and the sounds they have learned to ‘have a go’ at writing independently. If the word the child wishes to use is too difficult to sound out, they can still write the starting letter. We are trying to remember to use finger spaces after every word so that our writing is not squashed together. The children have also been given free writing jotters which they can use for their own ideas and drawings whenever they are given the chance to choose their own learning.
We had new reading books this week. The children have been reading in groups at the teaching table. As well as decoding the words we have been discussing title and author, talking about the characters, and predicting what might happen next in the story.
THINGS TO DO AT HOME
Hold up the digraphs and ask your child to tell you the sound they make. Ask them if they can think of a word containing that sound.
Use letters written on a piece of paper or card to ‘build’ a word. The adult says a word and the child choses the correct sounds to make that word.
An adult makes a word using the digraphs th and wh and the child says the pure sounds of each letter to blend together to read the word.
Write down are on a piece of paper or card, hold the card behind your back then show it to your child and ask them to read the word you have shown them. Your child could practise writing the tricky words, forming the letters the way they have been shown in class.
(If you are unsure about correct letter formation, please speak to one of us at the end of the day).
NUMERACY AND MATHS
We have continued to work on core numeracy skills: recognising numerals, saying forward and backward number word sequences, sequencing numerals, counting items, saying the number before and after and adding numbers together in our heads.
We continued working on money. We were adding amounts to 10p and beyond. We used the iPads to play some money games.
THINGS TO DO AT HOME
Have a look at some coins at home, talk about their value and if possible, use them to pay for some items in a shop.
We have been working on using repeated patterns of movement to create simple sequences and have practised moving in time to music. We worked together with a partner to make our own sequence of movements. We were an audience for our friends and made positive comments about their performance.
FLUFFY!
Thank you so much for all the entries in Fluffy’s journal. It has been lovely to see the children’s enthusiasm and eagerness to take him home. At the moment, we are just allowing the children to keep him for two nights so that everyone can have a turn as soon as possible but if you forget to bring him back to school, please don’t worry.
We really don’t want to give families anything extra to have to think about so PLEASE don’t feel you have to add to the journal. Your child will be given the chance to speak to the class about what they have done with Fluffy.
SOCIAL STUDIES
We were talking about Antarctica and learning about some of the other animals who live there. We also discussed what else we would like to find out about this continent.
FRENCH
We started to learn the words for numbers from 1-10.
LOOSE PARTS
Next date for loose parts is Wednesday 7 February.
A winter plea! I know it is not always the easiest thing to do, but it would help us so much if winter accessories ( hats. gloves. scarves etc) are named or at least initialled so that we can reunite them with their owners even when those owners deny ever having had a pair of gloves with them !!
Also, please continue to send in your clean recycling. Many thanks
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
Our new sounds this week were sh and ch. We have also enjoyed using our phonics skills to read independently – a great sense of achievement. We are lucky to have volunteer support from Mrs Petit – she loves to read with us. We continue to practise correct letter formation .
Tricky words .
Learn to read and spell the words – she, we, be
Writing prompt this week was ‘at the shop’
Maths and numeracy focus
Our continued focus this week was on addition skills – aiming to use a counting on strategy where possible, Some pupils have been investigating how numbers are made of bundles of hundreds, tens and units.
Below are links to two games we have used in school which you may also wish to use at home to support this learning.
We have started to discuss what we know about Scotland. We have looked at Scotland’s position on a world map and the position of Edinburgh. We know that Scotland is famous for lots of things like castles, lochs ( with monsters) tartan and bagpipes. We have decided we would like to find out more abut famous Scottish people including Robert Burns and Charles Rennie Macintosh . We designed some watercolour paintings inspired by the work of Charles Rennie Macintosh.
In PE we created more sequences of the movement patterns we have been learning and then we made sets and learned to dance the Canadian barn dance and a simplified version of the Virginia Reel. We have discovered that dancing is great Cardio exercise
Looking ahead to next week
Drop in session on Tuesday am.
‘Homework’ ( things to practice at home)
For the whole school Burns competition please learn to recite the Selkirk Grace.
( one for the adults!) If at all possible – start a collection of loose change – we will soon begin some formal learning about money and recognising real coins is an important outcome. In these cashless days children may not see coins very often.
We hope you have had a lovely week. It has been a busy one in p2!
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Please ensure learning stories are returned ASAP.
Your child will be taking home a poem to practice at home ‘Twa Leggit mice’. Information about the Robert Burns competition went out in the home link yesterday. As mention there only children who want to take part will do so but we would like all children to learn this poem. We have used this video in class to help us:
Here is a summary of our learning.
Literacy
Spelling: As a class we introduced the tricky words story, does and done. We then each worked on the particular spelling block we are focussing on.
Phonics: We have started to learn about “magic e”. Magic e makes the vowels say their letter name rather than their sound. For example in the word cake the a makes an ay sound rather than ah. Magic e remains silent.
Ask your child to explain how magic e works. Do they understand? The focus this week was on words with the a vowel.
You could write the following words on a piece of paper then ask your child to wave their magic e wand (sent home today!) then add an e at the end of the word. When you add magic e to the end of the word, can they read the new word that has been created? For example cap would turn into cape.
cap
mad
hat
tap
gap
at
can
mat
car
van
Please continue to work on reading and spelling the tricky words block your child is focussing on. Here is an idea for a game to play at home.
I’m thinking of a word
Write the words out on pieces of paper / card. Spread the cards out. Pick a word but do not tell your child which word you are thinking of. Say ‘I’m thinking of a word, the word has … letters’. The child is to guess what the word might be from the words spread out. If they guess correctly, they can keep the word card. If they cannot guess, give them another clue. ‘I’m thinking of a word that starts with the sound …’ or ‘ends with …’ or ‘rhymes with …’. Keep giving clues until they guess the word. This game will encourage your child to think carefully about the tricky words and ways to memorise them.
Please also go over their reading book at the weekend before returning it on Monday.
Maths and Numeracy
We have been working on naming 2D shapes and linking this with patterns.
Here is a fun game to play at home to reinforce this learning.
In our number work we have continued to work on doubles and addition and subtraction strategies. For those who are confident with doubles and the doubles plus one strategy, we have linked this to addition and subtraction strategies and used larger numbers.
For those pupils who are confidently adding and subtracting, we encourage the discussion of different strategies. You could challenge your child with some sums and ask them to explain how they reached their answer. For example, for 21 + 13 do they count in 1s? Or can they use a more effective strategy, such as first to add 10 to get to 31 then add 3 to get to 34.
Other Areas:
We have continued to learn about Monet as part of our artist study this term.
We have been learning to name colours in French.
As part of our health and well-being programme we have started the next unit of work which is called ‘Respect Yourself’. We have been thinking about valuing ourselves, accepting compliments and about the skills and qualities which make us each unique.
We have continued to learn about Edinburgh Castle and also enjoyed making junk model castles in small groups.
We have continued to work on our fitness as well as Scottish dancing.
We hope you have had a lovely week. It has been a busy one in P2!
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Please ensure learning stories are returned ASAP.
Your child will be taking home a poem to practice at home ‘Twa Leggit mice’. Information about the Robert Burns competition went out in the homelink yesterday. As mention there only children who want to take part will do so but we would like all children to learn this poem. We have used this video at school to help us to learn it:
Here is a summary of our learning.
Literacy
Spelling: As a class we introduced the tricky words story, does and done. We then each worked on the particular spelling block we are focussing on.
Phonics: We have started to learn about “magic e”. Magic e makes the vowels say their letter name rather than their sound. For example in the word cake the a makes an ay sound rather than ah. Magic e remains silent.
Ask your child to explain how magic e works. Do they understand? The focus this week was on words with the a vowel.
You could write the following words on a piece of paper then ask your child to wave their magic e wand (sent home today!) then add an e at the end of the word. When you add magic e to the end of the word, can they read the new word that has been created? For example cap would turn into cape.
cap
mad
hat
tap
gap
at
can
mat
car
van
Please continue to work on reading and spelling the tricky words block your child is focussing on. Here is an idea for a game to play at home.
I’m thinking of a word
Write the words out on pieces of paper / card. Spread the cards out. Pick a word but do not tell your child which word you are thinking of. Say ‘I’m thinking of a word, the word has … letters’. The child is to guess what the word might be from the words spread out. If they guess correctly, they can keep the word card. If they cannot guess, give them another clue. ‘I’m thinking of a word that starts with the sound …’ or ‘ends with …’ or ‘rhymes with …’. Keep giving clues until they guess the word. This game will encourage your child to think carefully about the tricky words and ways to memorise them.
Please also go over their reading book at the weekend before returning it on Monday.
Maths and Numeracy
We have been working on naming 2D shapes and linking this with patterns.
Here is a fun game to play at home to reinforce this learning.
In our number work we have continued to work on doubles and addition and subtraction strategies. For those who are confident with doubles and the doubles plus one strategy, we have linked this to addition and subtraction strategies and used larger numbers.
For those pupils who are confidently adding and subtracting, we encourage the discussion of different strategies. You could challenge your child with some sums and ask them to explain how they reached their answer. For example, for 21 + 13 do they count in 1s? Or can they use a more effective strategy, such as first to add 10 to get to 31 then add 3 to get to 34.
Other Areas:
We have continued to learn about Monet as part of our artist study this term.
As part of our health and well-being programme we have started the next unit of work which is called ‘Respect Yourself’. We have been thinking about valuing ourselves, accepting compliments and about the skills and qualities which make us each unique.
We have learned about Robert Burns
We have continued to work on our fitness as well as Scottish dancing.
We introduced two new digraphs this week: ch and sh. Digraphs are two letters which go together to make one sound. We were building /writing these words : chat shop and blending sounds together to read: chip shop.
Our new tricky words this week are she and be.
In writing, we had a choice of two story starts – I went to the shop…….
At the shop……….
We are encouraging the children to use the tricky words they know and the sounds they have learned to ‘have a go’ at writing independently. If the word the child wishes to use is too difficult to sound out, they can still write the starting letter. We are trying to remember to use finger spaces after every word so that our writing is not squashed together.
We had new reading books this week. The children have been reading in groups at the teaching table. As well as decoding the words we have been discussing title and author, talking about the characters, and predicting what might happen next in the story. Some children chose to continue a story by drawing what might happen next.
THINGS TO DO AT HOME
Hold up the digraphs and ask your child to tell you the sound they make. Ask them if they can think of a word containing that sound.
Use letters written on a piece of paper or card to ‘build’ a word. The adult says a word and the child choses the correct sounds to make that word.
An adult makes a word using the digraphs ch and sh and the child says the pure sounds of each letter to blend together to read the word.
Write down she and be on a piece of paper or card, hold the cards behind your back then show them to your child and ask them to read the word you have shown them. Your child could practise writing these words, forming the letters the way they have been shown in class.
(If you are unsure about correct letter formation, please speak to one of us at the end of the day).
NUMERACY AND MATHS
We have continued to work on core numeracy skills: recognising numerals, saying forward number word sequences, sequencing numerals, counting items, saying the number before and after and adding numbers together in our heads.
This week we also started working on money. We were looking at different coins and talking about their values. We used the iPads to play some money games.
THINGS TO DO AT HOME
Have a look at some coins at home, talk about their value and if possible, use them to pay for some items in a shop.
PE
We have been working on using repeated patterns of movement to create simple sequences and have practised moving in time to music.
FLUFFY!
Thank you so much for all the entries in Fluffy’s journal. It has been lovely to see the children’s enthusiasm and eagerness to take him home. At the moment, we are just allowing the children to keep him for two nights so that everyone can have a turn as soon as possible but if you forget to bring him back to school, please don’t worry.
We really don’t want to give families anything extra to have to think about so PLEASE don’t feel you have to add to the journal. Your child will be given the chance to speak to the class about what they have done with Fluffy.
SOCIAL STUDIES
We talked about Burns Night and learned a little bit about his life. We are learning the Selkirk Grace as a year group and will be reciting it at our assembly on 9.2.24. Can you please help your child by practising at home.
LOOSE PARTS
Next date for loose parts is Wednesday 7 February.
We are scheduled for a loose parts play session on Thursday but we will have to see what the weather is like on the day. Currently the forecast is not for high winds, so I suggest they come prepared and we will only cancel if it is much too wet.
Also, as it is Burns’ day on Thursday, the children are welcome to wear some tartan if they wish – no obligation at all.
Buckstone Primary School 