Welcome to Early Years
Our EY lead is Mrs Woodall, our teacher is Mrs Hunter and our teaching assistant is Mrs Hancock. Mrs Cottey leads our 2 Year Old provision.
In Early Years we love to learn through play and first hand experiences. Our wonderful indoor and outdoor areas enable us to explore, investigate, discover, create, practise, repeat and consolidate our developing knowledge, skills, understanding and attitudes.
Lots of our learning comes from our own fascinations and interests and our teachers support us to develop as individuals. Lots of exciting things happen in Early Years. We have focus stories and rhymes each half term and we have daily phonics and maths sessions. Drawing Club and Story Dough are exciting part of our curriculum and engage the children’s imagination, develop creativity and strengthen mark making skills.
Reception children have Music and PE delivered by Specialist Teachers. Our PE day is a Tuesday. We have a sensory den when we need time to relax, talk, self- regulate and feel calm. Each day we have a snack and toast time and we also brush our teeth to develop our self-care skills.
We have mini themes each half term. This year they are:
- Autumn 1- Me and My Community and Exploring Autumn
- Autumn 2- Starry Night and Celebrations
- Spring 1-Once Upon a Time and Winter Wonderland
- Spring 2- Are Eggs Alive?
- Summer 1- Why Can’t I Have Chocolate for Breakfast?
- Summer 2- Sunshine, Sunflowers and Shadows
(Please look at our Early Years Curriculum Framework for more detail.)
We use Jigsaw to support our Personal, Social, Emotional development and a music and movement approach called ‘The Whole of Me’ to focus on the fundamentals of child development that are vital for more formal academic learning.
Our teachers and teaching assistants keep in touch with our families via Class Dojo where we can showcase the wonderful learning we have been doing, share achievements and news. Each week Maths Monster (Nursery) and Mojo Monster (Reception) go home with our ‘Star Mojo of the Week’. It would be great if you could send us a photo via Dojo so your child can share and talk about their time with them.
Proud Clouds are shared with parents, so our teachers and friends get to hear about the amazing things we are learning to do at home or the times when we have made our parents feel very proud. These are displayed in our entrance. Our children have the opportunity to borrow a library book weekly to share at home and they have a ‘share book’ for any home learning activities.
Early Years Parent Information
Learning Showcase
Welcome to our 2-Year-Old Nursery Provision
We have a calming and inviting provision for 2-year-olds. You may be eligible for 15 hours free funding. Visit www.childcarechoices.gov.uk to find out if you are eligible. We offer 5 morning sessions from 8.40am till 11.40am. Your child can start in our two-year-old provision on their 2nd birthday providing we have a space available. Places will be offered in order of date of birth.
Our provision offers cosy, inviting areas situated within our Early Years which prepares our youngest children for the next stage in their learning journey with us.
If you are interested in our 2-year-old provision, please contact the school office on 01642 561237 or come into school to pick up an application form and have a look around. You'll need to return the completed forms to the school office with your child's birth certificate so that we may take a photocopy of it. Mrs Cottey will then contact you to offer your child a place. You will be invited in for a welcome meeting, a settling in session and given a start date. If you have any questions please email highclarence@highclarenceacademy.org
Lead Practitioner: Dawn Cottey
Nursery Documents
Welcome to Class 2
In Class 2 this year there are 16 children. We have 6 Year 1’s and 10 Year 2’s.
Our teacher is Miss Reay, and our teaching assistants are Mrs McGreal, Miss Cooper and Mrs Singleton.
Learning in Class 2 is fun! We have lots of brilliant games, practical activities and resources to support our learning. We have a COOL Time (Choose Our Own Learning) Areas within in our classroom where we can write, draw, construct models, take on roles or read quietly in our Class Library.
Reading is an important part of our school life; we must try to read at least three times a week at home. If we do, we receive Dojos and get a ‘Dip in the Box’.
Reading books and records must be brought into school every day and books will usually be changed on a Monday.
Children who are still on the Read Write Inc Phonics Program practise spellings using the phonic sounds that they are learning each week and these will be sent home on a Friday for the children to practise along with QR codes which direct you to Read Write Inc. video lessons which will be accessible for 3 months which gives us plenty of opportunities to practise and consolidate the phonics we are learning in school.
Children who have progressed from the Read Write Inc Program practise spellings in SCODE lessons and short word lists are sent home each week to help consolidate spelling skills. All our spellings are tested on a Friday.
Maths homework will also be sent home on a Friday which may include QR codes to help support learning through videos, stories or songs. This homework will be linked to the focus of the maths lessons of the current week.
Homework should be returned to Miss Reay by a Thursday; it is important that both the spelling and maths homework is completed each week.
Later in the year, Phonics After School will be available for the Year 1’s in preparation for the Phonics Screening Check in June. A P. E themed After School will also be available to Key Stage 1 later in the year too. Our P.E Day is a Wednesday, and we would ask that children come to school ready in their P.E kits.
We share work on our Class Story and Portfolios in the DoJo App and we would encourage sharing from home too. The school Instagram page is a fantastic way to see what is happening in our classrooms too!
We are looking forward to a fantastic year!
Learning Showcase
Welcome to Class 3
In Class 3 this year there are 14 children. We have 8 Year 3’s and 6 Year 4’s.
Our teacher is Miss Donoghue and our teaching assistant is Miss Cooper.
Reading is an important part of our school life; we must try to read at least three times a week at home. If we do, we will receive a raffle ticket and be entered in the weekly prize draw on a Friday. Amazing prizes to be won!!
Children are encouraged to use Reading Plus at home as it improves fluency, comprehension, vocabulary, stamina, and motivation.
We practise spellings daily in school, however it is important to practise these at home also, ready for a weekly check on a Friday.
Instant recall of our times tables is key in Class 3. Children are encouraged to use Times Tables Rockstars at home. Regular battles are set up for children to compete and develop their recall skills.
We need to complete spelling and maths homework every week.
We have P.E on a Tuesday and Wednesday, and we would ask that children come to school ready in their P.E kits.
Keep your eyes peeled for exciting opportunities in lunchtime and after school clubs throughout the year!
Learning Showcase
Welcome to Class 4
In Class 4 this year there are 22 children. We have 13 Year 5’s and 9 Year 6’s.
Our teacher is Mrs Brown and our teaching assistant is Miss Morris.
Reading is an important part of our school life; we must try to read at least three times a week at home. If we do, we will be added to the raffle wheel every Friday. Amazing prizes to be won!!
Children are encouraged to use Reading Plus at home as it improves fluency, comprehension, vocabulary, stamina, and motivation.
We practise spellings daily in school during our SCODE lessons and we send home word lists and fun games to practise and embed our spellings.
We will also send home a fun ‘Infinity quiz’ each Friday which the children can access using a QR code or on paper. The quiz will consolidate that week’s learning.
It is important that the children complete spelling and maths homework every week and don’t forget children we’ve now added a raffle wheel for homework too!
We have lots of lunchtime and after school clubs on offer from drawing club to roller skating, there’s something for everyone!
The Year 5’s will also have the opportunity to visit Derwent Hill this year for a 5 day residential. Mrs Caraher is so excited.
Learning Showcase
Blossom Class
Mrs Woodall, Mrs Main, Miss Cummings and Miss Crosby welcome you to Blossom Class. Blossom Class is a SEND Unit within our school for up to eight children with a primary focus upon meeting the communication, interaction, cognition and learning needs of our children. The staff in our Blossom Class have developed bespoke plans for our children accessing the unit; with a high sensory focus upon developing vestibular and proprioceptive senses using different equipment and tailoring activities to meet individual Education Health Care Plans (EHCP’s) outcomes along with a continuous focus on meeting speech, language and communication needs.
Our continuous provision is carefully thought out to allow our children to develop curiosity, independence, follow interests, build relationships and practise to embed key skills. We have a calming workspace nearby called our Bloom Room where our children can focus and flourish with carefully planned activities linked to their individual outcomes.
We work in collaboration with other ELT SEND Units, our in-school Speech and Language Therapist, our Communication and Interaction Advisory Teachers and the ‘Sensory Worx’ Team to provide the best possible provision to allow our children to progress as much as possible with all learning outcomes. In Blossom Class children ‘bloom and grow’ with close connections and active ‘hands on’ indoor and outdoor learning opportunities.