Spring Term 2025

Welcome back to our Reception class as we start the next part of your Southill School journey. We are excited to be back learning together!

During this term, we will build on our personal, social and emotional development. We will continue to explore using our classroom and outdoor setting to enhance our learning. We will experience an exciting range of opportunities and continue to find out about our next steps to develop as curious learners.

Our main focus will continue to be the prime areas of learning (Communication and Language, Physical Development and Personal, Social and Emotional Development) to underpin everything we do. In addition we will plan and experience many activities and opportunities to enhance the specific areas of learning (Literacy, Mathematics, Understanding the World and Expressive Arts and Design).

Daily phonics sessions will continue, following our Little Wandle phonics and reading programme. We will send home books each week, after reading the book three times at school. Children will also bring home a library book each week. Our phonics focus this half term will be on introducing new digraphs (2 letters make 1 sound), reading new words and writing words using sounds we know. We will also learn to read some new tricky words.

Look out for our new Term Talk for information about our writing curriculum, as well as our learning as mathematicians.

Our topic for this half term will be  Big Wide World, where we find out about our place in the world through exploring globes, maps, habitats, transport and animals.

As we continue becoming nature detectives we will make use of our amazing school grounds, exploring winter – looking at the natural changes that happen, then moving on to the start of spring.

Things to remember:

Please bring a drink of water every day for snack time/lunch

The weather can still be unpredictable so bring outdoor clothing to cope with this – rain coats for those wet days and warm clothing – hats and gloves – for the cold days of winter.

Remember to read every day and write comments in the reading diary. This should include time for sharing your sounds in your phonics book, reading your Little Wandle book and looking at your sharing book from the library.

Remember to check the website for our weekly class blog. We love it when you leave us a message too as we read them out in our class.

Our day for taking part in a P.E session will be on a Thursday. Please wear your kit to school for the day.

We will welcome children through our blue gate from 8.45-8.55 in the morning. Please leave your child with staff at the gate and we will settle them in to school.

If you have any questions or you would like to send me information about any of your learning at home, please contact me by email.

Mrs Puddick

a.puddick@southill.dorset.sch.uk