Phonics 

The children will continue with their daily monster phonics sessions. They will learn new sounds, blend words containing these sounds and apply these to writing words and sentences. The children will also continue to consolidate the first 100 HFW alongside being introduced to the next 200 HFW. The children will continue to be set weekly spellings using Spelling Shed which will be based on the spelling patterns that they are learning in class. The children really enjoy trying to get to the top of the leader board each week. 

Maths

Numbers within 20 including addition and subtraction

This half term the children will move onto numbers up to 20. Counting, representing, finding one more and one less and adding, ordering and sequencing and subtracting using manipulatives for support. There are some great games on Topmarks which the children can play to consolidate their learning at home.

English

Moving on from our curious quest journey, in the Spring Term Year 1 children move onto daily English lessons which are based on a chosen text. This half term the children will explore the texts Cave Baby by Julia Donaldson and Astro Girl by Ken Wilson-Max.

Cave Baby

Over the course of 3 weeks, the children will explore the story by labelling, describing and acting in role as the animal characters. They will sequence key events from the story and retell it orally before going on to write their own retelling of the story and sharing this aloud with others.

Astro Girl

The children will share part of the text before writing in role as Astrid. Before reading further, they will ask questions and write predictions. The children will write a simple leaflet about training to be an astronaut and space-travel.

PSHE

Dreams and Goals

In this unit, the children will learn how to set simple goals and consider what they need to do to achieve them. They will explore how it feels to face a challenge and how they can overcome challenges. Through group and paired discussions, the children will celebrate their own achievements and the achievements of others.

Music

The children will be introduced to rhythmic notation. They will be learning to read and write rhythms, recognise rhythms from their favourite songs as well as playing rhythm games. Finally, in pairs, they will be composing their own rhythmic 4 beat pattern.

 PE

Gymnastics

This half term the children will be exploring ways in which they can move their bodies in narrow, curled and wide ways. They will learn how to link these movements together in order to create a sequence. The children will have the opportunity to apply these movements on a range of different apparatus including benches and small tables.

Science

Animals: Sensitive bodies

The Jellyfish will be dentifying and naming body parts and conducting practical activities with the senses to spot patterns and answer questions.

History

How do our favourite toys and games compare with those of children in the 1960’s?

Children will find out about toys from the 1960's and how they were played with. They will make comparisons with the toys we play with today and see how technology has changed toys over time. 

Geography 

How does the weather affect our lives?

Children will find out about different weathers we get in the UK. They will record the weather over a period and make comparisons. Looking at seasonal change. Children will find out why the weather is not the same all over the world and make comparisons between different countries. Looking closely at Antarctica being a desert and the features of a desert.

Design Technology

Mechanisms – making a moving story book

The children will explore slider mechanisms and the movement they output. They will then design, make and evaluate a moving storybook from a range of templates.

 RE

Who is Jewish and how do they live?

In this unit, children will learn about Jewish worldviews and ways of life. They will learn about texts from the Torah and their importance for Jewish people today. They will find out about the mezuzah and the Shema prayer and what they mean for believers. Later in the unit, children will find out about Shabbat and Chanukah, discussing why Jewish people mark these times, what they learn from stories found in the Torah and why they are important today.

Computing

Programming - Moving a robot

The children will be introduced to early programming concepts. They will explore using individual commands, both with other learners and as part of a computer program. They will identify what each floor robot command does and use that knowledge to start predicting the outcome of programs. 

Art

This term the children will focus on drawing, exploring ‘line’ as the key element of Art.  We will be exploring what line means and look at the continuous line drawings by Picasso.  Then the children will create their own continuous drawings in the style of Picasso.  We will compare these with the use of line by Paul Klee.