EYFS
Phonics
What is Phonics?
Phonics is a way of teaching children to read quickly and skilfully. Children are taught how to recognise the sounds each individual letter makes and to identify the sounds that different contributions of letters make such as ‘sh’ and ‘oo’. Children are taught to read by breaking down words into separate sounds or ‘phonemes’. They are then taught how to blend these sounds together to read the whole word. We use Little Wandle Letters and Sounds revised to teach phonics at our school.
The phonics screening check
The National phonics screening check is a statutory assessment that was introduced in 2012 to all Year 1 pupils and is a quick and easy check of your child’s phonics knowledge. All year 1 pupils will take the phonics screening check in summer term.
It comprises of a list of 40 words and nonsense words (words that are phonetically decodable but not actual words with an associated meaning e.g. brip, snorb). It will assess phonics skills and knowledge learnt through reception and year 1 where each child is asked to read on a 1:1 basis to an adult familiar to them. They will be asked to ‘sound out’ a word and blend the sounds together.
The screening check will identify children who have phonic decoding skills below the level expected for the end of year 1 and who therefore need help.
Year R Curriculum 2021-2022
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Autumn 1
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Autumn 2
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Spring 1
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Spring 2
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Summer 1
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Summer 2
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Themes |
Autumn time Exploring the school environment |
Spider Celebrations Harvest, Bonfire night, Christmas |
Winter Penguins Chinese New Year |
People who help us
Kenya |
Growing and Changing Healthy living Farm Life cycles
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Traditional Tales
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Trips/Activities/ Hooks/Experiences |
Walk in the woods Meeting key people from around the school |
Pantomime (in school)
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Exploring the weather/season Tasting foods
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‘Trip to Kenya’
Fire engine visit Set up a crime scene in your classroom. The children need to become detectives and work together to solve the crime |
Making a fruit salad Farm visit Hatching Butterflies
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Goldilocks crime scene to explore and investigate
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Prime areas of learning and development |
Personal, Social and Emotional Development |
New beginnings Classroom routines and rules. Support children in making friends Keeping safe at school |
Getting on and falling out – how to deal with anger e.g. when someone has taken a toy/not sharing. Bonfire night safety |
Taking turns – snakes and ladders (other games) Can we follow rules? Circle time |
Feelings – looking at facial expression. Looking after our friends when things go wrong. Circle times |
Relationships Working as a team to help each other learn. |
Changes – Transition to year 1 – getting ready. Nursery children to visit new classroom. |
Physical Development |
Managing own personal hygiene, toileting and hand washing. Buttons, zips and shoes. Pencil control: Following patterns Simple cutting patterns |
Parachute and circle games Pencil control: simple patterns and letter formation – air writing/magic pencil. Writing own name Morning books – letter formation |
Pencil control: letter formations (focus on phase 2 phonemes/writing name). |
Hula hooping/throwing and catching. Pencil control: letter formations (focus on phonemes from phase 3)
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Sports day practise Pencil control: letter formations (focus on phonemes from phase 4) Healthy eating
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Sports Day Safety in the sun Pencil control: letter formations (focus on all phonemes)
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Communication and Language |
Throughout the year children will: · Learn to speak with confidence during circle/carpet times · Learn to listen and respond appropriately with relevant comments, questions or actions · Use appropriate story language to re-enact/re-tell simple and familiar stories · Learn new vocabulary relating to topics · Share learning from home through learning journeys, show and tell (circle time) and talking about our class bear |
Specific areas of learning and development |
Literacy
Key Texts
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Owl Babies Ouch! Leaf Man The very helpful Hedgehog Nursery Rhymes
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Aarrgghh! Spider Pumpkin Soup Room on the Broom Christmas Story Jolly christmas postman
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Footprints in the Snow The Lonely Penguin Lost and Found Non-fiction book -Penguins |
Non fiction books about Kenya
Superheo like you
Non-fiction books about policeman/firemen etc
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Oliver’s Fruit Salad/Vegetables Handa’s surprise
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Goldilocks Little Red Hen Jack and the Beanstalk The Three Billy Goats Gruff
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Phonics/ Reading |
Phase 1/2 – Little Wande Recognising own name Introduce reading books (picture only) |
Phase 2 – Little Wandle
Individual readers (introduction of text) |
Phase 3 – Little Wandle
Individual readers |
Phase 3- Little Wandle
Individual readers
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Phase 4 – Little Wandle
Individual readers Introduction of guided reading |
Phase 4 – Little Wandle
Individual readers Introduction of guided reading |
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Adult Led Literacy/Writing Opportunities
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Copying own name Rhyming words and stories- learning to continue a rhyming string Telling stories through pictures |
Copy own name Difference between fiction and non-fiction Sequencing pictures from familiar stories Christmas cards, letters to Santa, lists. |
Write first name and simple words Card writing – Valentines Day Non-fiction: look at a contents/index page.
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Writing facts about people help us.
Kenyan animals fact file.
Add a phone and notebooks to your classroom. The children can pretend to ring a vet’s surgery and use their phonic knowledge to write down messages for the vets. |
Writing recount Story mapping Storyboards – writing simple sentences. Instructional writing Writing labels and captions |
Write a simple caption or sentence. Use non-fiction books to find answers to our questions Make a class non-fiction book. Writing labels. Story writing. |
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Mathematics |
Counting rhymes Sorting activities Counting objects Repeating patterns Simple 2D shapes |
Addition/Subtraction Find one more/one less Counting Subitising 2D/3D shapes Ordering numbers
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Number bonds to 5 Addition/Subtraction Counting
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Number bonds to 10 Measure Addition/Subtraction 2D/3D shapes Estimating Doubling and Halving |
Shape and pattern Measure Money Problem solving |
Halving/Doubling/Sharing Depth of numbers within 20 Time |
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Understanding the world |
Introduction to computers –using simple games. Learning about Diwali– festival of lights.
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Firework pictures Christmas Customs/family |
Learning all about Chinese New Year and Shrove Tuesday
Weather/Winter |
Using the keyboard, space bar. Opposites – hot/cold, old/new, night day.
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Growth, parts of a plant. Finding out about how we have grown and changed. Making healthy choices. Signs of Spring Eggs/Chicks
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Mini-beast hunting Recognising insects, Life cycle of Caterpillars. Looking after the environment. |
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Expressive Arts and Design |
Painting – self portrait Music – finding a voice (learn lots of new songs/sing with confidence)
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Autumn and Christmas crafts Music – learn autumn songs and poems and Christmas songs and rhymes.
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Music – Learn about rhythm and pulse in songs. Chinese lanterns/writing. |
Mother’s day cards, Music – exploring instruments how many sounds can one instrument make and Louder/quieter/fast/slow Kenyan animal prints |
Singing songs linked to traditional stories. Painting sunflowers. |
Music – making up compositions Working with clay |