We began this week with a truly exciting experience as Reception welcomed Science Oxford into school with their fantastic planetarium. The children were completely captivated as they stepped inside and travelled through space, sparking curiosity, awe and lots of thoughtful questions that carried on throughout the week.

This week, learning has continued within our topic Outer Space, with a strong focus on planets, stars and the moon.

As scientists, the children have been learning about the solar system, discovering that the sun is at the centre and that planets move around it. They explored stars and learned that the sun is a star, as well as investigating the moon and its different phases, using new vocabulary such as light, dark and phase.

As artists, the children created planets using puffy paint, carefully exploring texture and size. They talked about whether their planets were bigger or smaller than Earth and enjoyed experimenting with materials to represent space. They enjoyed painting freely on foil with paint and some children enjoyed exploring clay amnd creating aliens.

As investigators, the children explored the phases of the moon using Oreos, twisting, scraping and sequencing them to show how the moon changes shape. Next week we will be doing some cooking and making moon rock cakes, observing how ingredients change when mixed and cooked.

As communicators, the children took part in group discussions, shared predictions, and confidently used new space vocabulary to explain their ideas and observations during our topic time. They are also really enjoying the NELI language sessions where they develop an understanding of new vocabulary and apply it when talking about stories and events.

As musicians, the children sang along to the Solar System Song, listening carefully to identify and remember the names of the planets and practised solo singing during our music session game 'Doggy, Doggy'.

We ended the week with circlle time thinking about the Police and how important their job is in keeping people safe and making sure everyone is following the rules that keep our community happy. The chldren learnt  that the police are like the 'Super-Helpers' of our town. Just like we have school rules to keep our classroom kind, the grown-up world has rules, too. 

Home Learning

Reading (Reception):
Please support your child to complete 5 minutes of reading each day to help build fluency and confidence. Use the logins sent home on the sound mats to access the online eBook, and continue reading the physical book in your child’s book bag.

Handwriting:
Please support your child to complete their handwriting homework. It is really important that they practise forming letters correctly using the phrase on the sheet as a guide. Encouraging your child to say the phrase out loud while writing will help them to get it right.

Coming Up: 

Mother’s Day Tea: Friday 13th March at 1:30pm. Significant female family members of Reception children are invited to join us for a hot drink, delicious cake and some musical entertainment.

Thank you for your continued support. We are very proud of the children’s learning and look forward to another exciting week ahead.

Have a lovely weekend

The Barrier Reef Team