Our Curriculum for Autumn 1

English

Our opening writing unit will be based a book called Cave Baby by Julia Donaldson. This is a story about a story about a mischievous baby who gets into trouble for drawing on the cave walls. He is then taken on a night-time journey by a woolly mammoth to a place where his creativity is celebrated.

The children will enjoy writing captions, letters and their own version of the story. Our grammar focus for the unit will be using the suffixes ‘ing’, ‘er’ and ‘est’ on the end of words to change their meaning. We will also focus on using adjectives to make descriptive noun phrases.

Maths

Place value will be the focus of our learning in the first weeks.

This will include making sure we are secure counting forwards and backwards up to 50, understanding tens and ones, and being able to compare numbers using <, > and = symbols.

We will also practise counting in 2s, 5s and 10s.

The WRM 1 Minute Maths app for tablets and phones is a great resource for building confidence in key number facts.

Science

Our science unit is ‘Every Day Materials’. We will be studying the properties of materials and evaluating their suitability for certain purposes.

In addition, we will also consider seasonal changes in the weather as we move into autumn. This science aspect of our science will continue throughout the year with each change in the season.

Theme

Our theme for the first half of the Autumn term is Famous People from the past. Our focus will be on nurses from the past including Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole. We will learn about how they made an impact in their field and why they are remembered. We will then begin to compare their practice to modern day nurses. If any parents and carers are nurses and would be happy to share their experience with the class, please get in touch!

Computing

How is information technology (IT) being used for good in our lives? With an initial focus on IT in the home, we will explore how IT benefits society in places such as shops, libraries, and hospitals.

PE

PE lessons will begin with a focus on team building and collaboration. After that, we will use a range of games to develop our co-ordination, balance and agility. We will develop a simple understanding of attacking and defending tactics while also thinking about how to avoid others while moving about a crowded space.

Art and DT

In art we will be developing printing skills using printing blocks to create patterns and textures based on those found in nature such as those on plants and trees.

In DT we shall create lamps inspired by Florence Nightingale who was known as the ‘Lady withthe Lamp’.                                                                                                           

RE

In RE lessons we will be learning about Islam and studying the question ‘who is a Muslim and   what do they believe?’      

If any parents would be willing to share their experience of the Islam faith, please get in touch.

Music

In music lessons we will be learning to differentiate between a piece of music’s pulse and its rhythmic patterns. The pulse is a steady beat indicating the tempo of the song while the rhythm is the pattern of sound over the pulse.

PSHE

PSHE lessons will focus on well-being and mindfulness alongside our unit on responsibilities in and out of school.