Ducklings are newly hatched and excitedly exploring the world around them. We dive into each new learning experience and swim towards a challenging end goal.
Welcome to Foundation Ducklings Class
The Ducklings class teacher is Vicky Woolnough. Also working within the class are our Learning Support Assistants Stephanie Wills and Matthew Vanes. Over the next half term we will be focusing on a variety of different themes and topics which will be taken from the children's varying interests. We will also be welcoming our new September starters with a variety of transitions visits into school. Some sessions will be with their current key workers from their pre-schools and nurseries, some will be with parents and some will be on their own.
Team leader Mrs Nicky Howard
If there are any issues or concerns, please feel free to come in and see the teacher (Mrs Woolnough).
UPCOMING EVENTS
17th June - Trip to Exeter Northcott theatre to see Aliens love underpants
18th June - Sports day
4th July - Summer fayre
Healthy Eating Café- Date tbc
SUMMER TERM CURRICULUM PLAN
Week beginning 13th July 2015
PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT This week we will be listening to stories about our feelings. We will have the opportunity to discuss how we feel and realise that others may feel different. We will follow rules carefully like working safely in the woodland.
COMMUNICATION AND LANGUAGE We will be talking confidently about a past event using a photograph or an artefact. We will listen well to each other carefully.
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT This week we will be handling tools safely and correctly. We will have many opportunities to do this such as using hammers to sculpt ice, using pencils confidently, pretending to be builders in the role play area.
LITERACY This week we will be talking about events in our life. We will continue to write in many areas of our learning. We will also be reading a variety of story texts in Guided Reading.
MATHEMATICS This week we will be subtracting and following our own interests in number. We will use skittles to subtract and write calculations. We will find many ways to subtract with objects.
UNDERSTANDING THE WORLD This week we will use iPads and cameras demonstrating our good use of technology. We will explore how we are the same and different from others. When we share our object from the past we will think about families celebrate differently.
EXPRESSIVE ARTS AND DESIGN This week we will be exploring dance and music. We will make up our own wake and shake sequences to music. We will use the boom whackers to create our own music. We will continue to make our own pants. |
Week beginning 6th July 2015
We have been building alien traps!
Our ice challenge. we freed our aliens!
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
This week we will be working collaboratively in a group in our pants shop. We will also be engaging in activities as a group or with a partner where we need to work together towards a shared outcome. We will be focusing on getting our end of the day jobs just right!
Communication and Language
This week we will be creating questions for the aliens and recording them on sound buttons. We will be talking to each other as we approach activities together. We will be explaining the differences in materials and giving reasons for using them.
Physical Development
This week we will be moving confidently in a variety of ways when we take part in Wake and Shake sessions daily. We will also focus on this during our Upstairs learning sessions this week, where we will build our own obstacle courses and use the bikes and scooters.
Literacy
This week we will be looking at cookery books and selecting our favourite recipes. We will be writing simple sentences in a variety of ways such as writing answers in response to alien questions, writing persuasive posters in the pants shop and writing about why we like certain recipes.
Mathematics
This week we will continue adding together two sets of numbers to find a total. We will use the strategy of counting on a number line to support with finding the answers. We will also be finding out more about doubles by using dominoes and mirrors to double a set of objects.
Understanding the World
This week we will use sound buttons to listen to questions from the aliens and respond in a written form. We will be creating different environments using a variety of materials, thinking about their uses.
Expressive Arts and Design
This week we will be designing a moon buggy, considering the best materials to use and why. We will also be making our pants, referring to the designs that we made last week.Secret Garden Learning
We have been focusing on our performance and creative stories. We loved our ‘Britain’s got Talent’ sessionsand realised what a very talented bunch we are!!! We have been working collaboratively to create our own stories and showing leadership skills directing these as plays.
Upstairs Area Learning
Physical development has been at the fore in our Upstairs Area. We have been loving moving in different ways, dodging and negotiating space, racing and chasing and really getting our bodies working hard as we learn. We laughed lots when we had ‘pants on our head’ races in our Upstairs Area following our trip to the theatre to see ‘Aliens love Underpants’!!
Woodland Learning
We have been explorers and creators, investigators and team workers in our Woodland Area. We have created tree sprites, made journey sticks to help us tell our stories, worked together to make wonderful pictures with natural materials and all gotten really involved in our den building and rope swings!! We are learning to take risks and manage these ourselves. We LOVE learning in the Woodland!!!
We have begun our topic 'Out of this world!'
We received a letter from a REAL astronaut called Ken Moon. He said that NASA were looking for new astronauts to join them on a mission to go to space. We wrote letters back to Ken Moon and we worked hard in our astronaut training.
Here are some of the exciting learning opportunities we explored last week:
Expressive Arts and Design - We have been using our imagination to tell stories - some that we already know and some that we have created ourselves.
- We have also been making space helmets, jet pacts and rockets!
Understanding the world - We have been using cameras and ipads to take photographs of our favourite activities.
- We also used the ipads to research information on the bugs we found whilst bug hunting.
Maths - We have been using everyday language related to money in our Fruit and Veg shop.
- We have been counting pennies and thinking how to make different amounts using 1p/2p/5p and 10p.
Literacy - We have been focusing on story telling using the story 'Whatever Next' as a basis for retelling and beginning to think of our own stories.
- We have been writing simple sentences and our Writing Rocket focus will be writing with correct letter formation.
Physical Development - We have been managing risk in a variety of ways such as standing on chairs in the digging area and using knives and scissors when chopping and slicing playdough.
Communication and Language - We have been retelling stories and making up our own stories using props and dressing up.
Our theatre trip to Exeter Northcott theatre to see Aliens Love Underpants
Here are some pictures of us doing our learning.
One of our friends bought in some butterflies that she had hatched at home for us to set free.
Us handling small pets with Hannah.
Our visit from Kingsley the guide dog in training.
Visit to The Torbay Bookshop - Monday 2nd March
John from Greenbay vets vists to tell us how to care for a pet. Thursday 5th February 2015
Visit from Keri from the Cats Protection League
Today, Tuesday 20th January, we received a visit from Keri Langridge from the Cats Protection League. Keri told us many interesting facts about cats that we didn't know before such as
- We should not let cats drink cows milk as they may be allergic to it.
- When cats close their eyes and turn their heads it is like them giving you a smile because they are happy and they like you.
- Cats whiskers help them to find out if somewhere is too small for them to go into. They have whiskers on their elbows as well as their faces.
- Cats like to sleep up in high places because they feel that they are safe.
- Cats will not drink their water if the bowl is placed next to their food bowl. They think that the water will get dirty when they drop their food, so will not drink it.
- Cats can sleep up to between 14 and 16 hours a day! They like to take small 'Cat naps!'
We really enjoyed finding out about cats and playing a game about what keeps a cat happy and healthy. We were very lucky as Keri left us with a cat mask, an activity booklet, some crayons and a certificate that said that we know all about a cats welfare.
Here are some pictures of us finding out all about cats with Keri.
Foundation Walk to the Post Office!
We wrote lists of presents that we would like for Christmas this year so that our families knew what to ask Father Christmas to get! We walked down to the post office on Goodrington Road and bought some stamps to send our lists through the post. We looked for signs on the way there and back. We used our phonic fingers to read some of them and we had a go at writing the words and letters down too. Here are a few pictures of our trip.
Our new environment has provided many exciting opportunities for learning. The children are able to access any areas of provision during the day. We have an enticing cosy room for snack, role play and sharing stories. Ducklings classroom promotes investigation, messy play and mathematical skills; whilst Goslings classroom encourages writing, reading and creativity. Our brand new outside learning area provides sand, water, creativity, reading, writing and role play.
Here are just a few photos of our learning so far.