Happy New Year! We hope you enjoyed a wonderful festive break and are feeling as refreshed as we are to welcome everyone back to school for Term 3. We are thrilled to report that the children have settled straight back into their routines, and their enthusiasm has truly been inspiring. It’s delightful to see their smiles and eagerness as they engage with their learning and friends once again.

This term brings an exciting change to our playtime arrangements that we hope everyone will love! We’ve introduced the option for the children to enjoy the Forest School during lunch breaks. We’ve noticed that slipping on their wellies and heading outdoors has sparked their curiosity and creativity. They’ve been fully immersed in the natural environment, exploring, discovering, and having a fantastic time with each other!

We encourage you to support this initiative at home by ensuring your child has a pair of wellies ready for playtime adventures. It’s a great opportunity for them to embrace the joys of the outdoors, even in the colder months. If you do have any old wellies that you are able to donate, we would welcome these!

 

English

We have been working carefully on our sounds and red words, and I must say, the children have been truly impressing their teachers with their excitement and effort. Additionally, we have been focusing on maintaining nice, neat handwriting, which is really beginning to show in their work!

This week, all the children have embarked on our guided reading adventures! The children have really got stuck into the story of Max and his adventures as a superbaby who can’t fly!We kicked off the week by making predictions about what might happen in the story, and it was great to see their imaginations at work. After reading the book together, we compared their thoughts to what actually happened.

We also had a go at using dictionaries to clarify any tricky words, and I must say, the kids did an amazing job with their definitions—it was impressive to see their progress!

 

In English, to reinforce their understanding, we encouraged the children to summarise the book by creating their own storyboards. This activity has allowed the children to express their creativity while honing their comprehension skills. They worked diligently to ensure that their sentences were punctuated accurately and that they began their sentences with time words, such as "first," "next," and "finally." Not only did this enhance the flow of their writing, but it also supported them in structuring their thoughts clearly.

 

Reading

Reading at 3 - Every Friday at 3 our doors will be open for you to come in and read with your child, please note, this will be for the full 15 minutes and children should not leave any earlier. Their books will be set up and ready for you to come in and enjoy listening to their wonderful reading.

Reading folders – Some children will continue to bring home two books, one being a RWI home book. Children are expected to try and read this three times during the week to ensure they are building on their reading fluency. The RWI home books will be changed by an adult.

The other book (with the coloured sticker) should be changed independently by the child themselves - first thing in the morning is a great time to do this!

Many children have now been moved onto the accelerated reader programme. (Please check their reading records for their ZPD scores. We will continue to assess and move more children onto this when they are ready. Children can change these books after they have completed the quiz online. The AR login can be found here… https://global-zone61.renaissance-go.com/welcomeportal/1892319

For a guide on how to use Accelerated Reader please click here… https://www.chiltonprimary.co.uk/accelerated-reader

Please ensure that the reading folders are placed in the reading trays/baskets, so we can read with your children and ensure books get changed. Thank you for your support with this!

Please listen to your child read as much as possible at home and record this in their reading records. Every week, one child from each class will receive a reading certificate in our Chilton Heroes assembly.

 

Maths

We have been delving into the concept of place value, specifically honing our understanding of two-digit numbers and practising rounding to the nearest ten. To make this learning experience even more enjoyable, we have introduced a catchy rhyme: "1, 2, 3, 4, round it down to the floor. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, round it up all the time!" The children have truly embraced this skill, and it's wonderful to witness their enthusiasm for learning.

Once the class felt confident with rounding, we transitioned to exploring partitioning in various ways. The children have been working with part-whole models, which helps them visualise numbers and understand their components. It has been a delightful process to see their creativity in action!

Looking ahead to next week, our focus will shift to addition. We’ll be emphasising our fact of the week: 5 x 2 = 10.

 

PSHE

Oh my goodness, the children’s enthusiasm in PSHE this week has been nothing short of amazing!

We have been focusing on our champion of courage, Frida Kahlo. As you may know, she was not only an incredible artist but also a remarkable figure who displayed immense bravery throughout her life. The children have been inspired by her achievements and have even begun to think about their own goals and how they can show courage, just like Frida did.

If you ask your child about what they’ve been learning, I’m sure they will be able to fill your brain with lots of fun facts! It’s heartwarming to see them engage so passionately with our discussions and to hear them share their own ideas about courage.

As we continue exploring this topic, I encourage you to have conversations at home about what courage means to each of them. You might find it helpful to discuss personal experiences or set little goals together that require a bit of bravery to achieve.

 

Love to Learn

Next week will be focusing on words with the ‘er’ suffix. Can you go on a word hunt to find as many words that end with ‘er’ as you can.

Ne creative and have fun!

 

Dates to remember

Monday 13th January – Reception Superhero Dress up Day

Tuesday 21st January 3.30-4.30 – Thrive Coffee afternoon

Tuesday 28th January – Year R Hearing Tests

 Wednesday 5th February – Young Voices at the O2

Thursday 6th February – Countdown assembly (KS2 only)

Friday 7th February – NSPCC Number Day. Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 to wear a number themed outfit and KS2 to come as Times Table Rock Stars.

Tuesday 11th February – Safer Internet Day

Friday 14th February – School Disco

 

We hope you have a wonderful weekend! 

Miss Kennedy and Mrs Winchcombe and all the Year 2 team.

Mrs Poppy Winchcombe – Team Azure – poppy.winchcombe@chiltonprimary.co.uk

Miss Maddy Kennedy – Team Peacock – maddy.kennedy@chiltonprimary.co.uk