Welcome to Owlets Class! 

About Us

Owlets Class is our 'reception' class. The class teacher is Miss Monique Lambie and the teaching assistant is Mrs Julie Price.

Curriculum and Learning

The curriculum for reception year is the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and this covers seven areas of learning:

• 3 Prime Areas: Communication & Language, Physical Development and Personal, Social and Emotional Development, and
• 4 Specific Areas: Literacy, Mathematics, Understanding the World, and Expressive Arts and Design

To attain the 'Good Level of Development' (GLD) by the end of reception, children need to make sufficient progress towards the 'Early Learning Goals' (ELGs) in all 3 prime areas, as well as in literacy and maths. For further information about the ELGs, please see the document below. Please note, however, that children are not assessed against these criteria like a 'tick sheet' but, rather, teachers make a 'best fit' judgement based on their knowledge and observations of each child as well as their experience.

At Dry Sandford, we believe that children in reception, and indeed throughout KS1, learn best through play and so most of the learning takes place through a stimulating and inviting 'continuous provision' approach. There are also many opportunities for children to develop their fine motor skills through targeted activities such as play dough, threading, cutting and sticking. Having free flow between the inside and outside environments throughout the day means children are also developing their gross motor skills by using the trikes, scooters, climbing frames and obstacle trail outside.

Our learning in Reception is topic-based and we cover a new topic each half-term. We rotate topics on a 3-year cycle along with Barn Owls Class (our year 1 and 2 children) and this includes a varied range of topics such as Traditional Tales, All About Me, Space, and Dinosaurs! We have also carefully selected a range of books, both stories and non-fiction, to help bring these topics to life and to inspire children’s learning. In Owlets, we ensure there are sufficient resources and enrichment opportunities based on those books, for children to make progress in all seven areas of learning.

Phonics

We follow the Twinkl scheme of work for phonics and have daily phonics lessons, during which we recap on previous learning, teach new learning and provide opportunities for children to practise skills such as sounding out and blending for reading and segmenting for writing.

Reading

Children in Owlets will have two reading books each week, which will match the phonic level they are working at.  We endeavour to read individually with each child once a week, on their Reading Day, when their reading books are also changed.  Children should read those books at home with their parents, and we ask that parents fill in the reading record when they do so. When reading with children in school, we use the Rhino Readers range of books that complement the Twinkl phonics scheme.

We also share a story book with the children at least once a day as this fosters a love of stories and reading, as well as helping children to develop their vocabulary and understanding of language. We also encourage parents to do the same at home.     

Mathematics

We follow the White Rose scheme of work for our Maths sessions, but we adapt the planning and lesson formats in Early Years to ensure there are more learning opportunities using manipulatives or concrete resources throughout the classroom.

        

Timetable

We operate a soft start in Owlets: doors open at 8.40am and close at 9.00am. As children come in, they self-register by putting their own named Owl card onto our class Emotions Tree, put their book bags and water bottles in the correct places and then choose where they will start their learning – for instance, at a table-top activity, construction on the carpet or in the role-play or craft area.  

Free-flow choosing time across the indoor and outdoor spaces usually starts from 9.30am with milk/snack time at 10.15am.

Phonics lessons either take place in small groups or as a whole class during the morning and maths input is generally straight after lunch. Then, in the afternoons, there may be a directed task, with one adult working either individually or with groups of children, while the other supervises continuous provision. On Wednesday and Thursday afternoons, we mix with Barn Owls Class for indoor/outdoor continuous provision.

Owlets start formal PE lessons during the Spring term.

Assessment

Within the first 6 weeks of children starting at primary school, teachers are statutorily bound to carry out the national Reception Baseline Assessment. This provides a starting point for each child, which is then used when children are leaving primary school in year 6, to measure the progress they have made. Although this data is not shared with parents, an overview of how well children have settled into Owlets and the skills they have so far demonstrated will be shared with parents during the first parent evening meetings held in the first autumn term.

In-class phonics assessments are also carried out at the end of each term to help monitor children's ongoing progress and to identify whether any interventions are needed to help close any gaps in learning.

Home Learning

Other than daily reading at home, Owlets will not be set specific home learning tasks until the summer term, when phonics homework is occasionally set to help consolidate children's phonic knowledge and skills.

Trips / Visits

We make our curriculum as practical and exciting as possible so we aim to include off-site visits and visitors to school as often as we can. As Owlets often attend trips along with the Barn Owls Class, we vary the location of trips on a 3 year rotation.

Communication

Communication is key to a smooth-running classroom, and we do this in several ways.

We use the secure Class Dojo app for whole-class messages and notes such as needing to bring something in. We also post photos of what the children have been up to during the week – and sometimes even a video of their learning in action! We add important dates to this too, so do check regularly for updates.

Teachers are available at the beginning and the end of the day if there is a quick query or message to pass on. If you need a longer meeting, then please email the office who will pass on your message and we can arrange it with you.

There are two parents' evenings each year. In the autumn term, we discuss how your child has settled into the year group and discuss any concerns. In the spring term, we talk about your child’s academic progress.

If your child has SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities), in addition to the parent’s evenings, we will invite you to come into school three times each year to review their pupil profile and discuss their support needs.

At the end of the school year, you will receive a written school report.

General reminders

Things to bring with you every day:

• Water bottle - just plain water, please.
• Lunch box if you are having a packed lunch.
• We provide a limited variety of fruit/veg for snack time but if your child prefers a specific fruit or vegetable, please feel free to send this in with them. Snacks must be fruit or vegetables and must contain no nuts, celery or sesame.

Pupil Voice:

Here’s what the Owlets pupils love most about our class:

“I like the classroom”

“I like playing with my friends!”

“ We like to build trains”

“ Phonics!”