Teaching Assistants: Mrs Edgerley, Mx Lane and Mrs Watkinson

Sports Coach: Mr Cox

Week Commencing: 13.03.23

We have had a fantastic week in Class R/1! The children have worked very hard in all their lessons and are really starting to show resilience when it comes to learning. In R.E., our topic has been 'Gathering' and we have been looking at why people gather together and how some things are better with others and some things are better alone. In Collective Worship, we have looked at St Patrick and even though people were unkind to him, he still went back to Ireland to help others. We looked at how we can forgive others even if they make us sad, and how we can still help others even if they have hurt us. In Forest School, the class wanted to help and support each other climbing trees and making dens together to make sure no one was on their own and everyone had someone to play with.

Week Commencing: 06.03.23

We have had a lovely week in Class R/1. We have moved onto our new story which is “The tiger who came to tea” - the children are loving it! Year 1 have focused on vocabulary, inference and explaining the text  while Reception have been writing simple sentences to match an image from the story. The class are working very hard on their handwriting and their sentence structures, they have come on so much with their English work! In Collective Worship, we looked at how we can show our faith; pupils wrote some beautiful prayers and decorated them. This week’s Wednesday Word, was the story of Jesus and the Samaritan lady by the well. We discussed why the water from Jesus would be special and the children came up with some lovely ideas such as Jesus would have blessed the water and Jesus' water is special because he is the Son of God.

Week Commencing: 27.02.23

Class R/1have had an excellent week! We had a wonderful Collective Worship in Forest School on Wednesday when some of our Big Friends from Year 6 joined us. We looked at how Jesus was encouraging and how we can demonstrate this ourselves. Our Year 6 pupils encouraged their Little Friends and supported them throughout the activities. It was wonderful to see the children working together and helping each other. It was incredible to hear them telling each other "well done" and "you are amazing". This shows what caring, kind children we have at St Joseph's. In R.E., we are continuing our topic of Gathering which the children are really enjoying, we looked at how people gather in church and why we might gather in a church. The children are using fantastic vocabulary such as pews, font, parish family, Priest and Father. The children continue to impress us with their hard work and enthusiasm in phonics, English and Maths. We are so proud of our R/1 pupils and the progress they are making! 

Week Commencing: 20.02.24

Class R/1 have started looking at their new fiction story "Mog the Forgetful Cat" which the children are loving! In maths, Reception have been looking at the different ways they can represent 6, 7 and 8 and Year 1 have been looking at length and height. In R.E. this week, we have looked at gathering and how we need our friends to do certain things such as playing games and for support, the children said that you can't play hide and seek on your own or tig as that would be boring! In Collective Worship we focused on Lent, and looked at what we could give up. The children had lots of suggestions such as chocolate, ice cream and crisps. In Forest School we spoke about Jesus being on his own in the wilderness, and our activity was to support each other to follow Jesus' path. During the children's free play, they all made a den, when I asked who the den was for, they said Jesus in case he gets lost in the wilderness again. The children amaze us every day with their kindness, thoughtfulness, and enthusiasm. Well done R/1! We are super proud of you.  

Week Commencing: 06.02.23

We have had a fabulous week in Class R/1! The children have loved our art week activities! We have researched artist David Edgar who creates art out of recyclable materials, and we have then made our own models using these materials. In science we have been looking at the human body and comparing ourselves to our parents using photographs, looking at what is similar and what is different. We also conducted our own experiments to see whether taller children are faster! It turns out that  is not the case! 

Week Commencing: 31.01.23

We have a had a lovely week in Class R/1! We have enjoyed looking at our new book “The day the crayons quit”. The children had some amazing ideas about emotions and how the crayons were feeling and why. Reception have been focussing on writing simple sentences using a capital letter and a full stop; Year 1 have been using question marks, exclamation marks and adjectives. In maths, Reception have looked at capacity and doing lots of practical activities and estimations; Year 1 have focussed on place value to 20, specifically looking at one more and one less. In Collective Worship we looked at why God praises people and what we can do for God to praise us. The class had some fantastic ideas about being kind, respectful and helping each other.

Week Commencing: 23.01.23

It has been a fabulous week in Class R/1! We finished our English unit on non-chronological reports and we have continued to explore our senses in science, putting these to the test by being blindfolded and smelling, touching and tasting different foods. In R.E., we have finished our topic on celebrating with a class party on Tuesday. The children created their own decorations, we made cakes, listened to our favourite songs and had a dance. The children continue to make us all so proud with their positive attitude, their hard work and determination! Well done R/1! 

Week Commencing: 16.01.23

We have had a lovely week in Cl R1! In English we are continuing to explore non-chronological reports and caption writing, the children are enjoying our book “Toys and Games” which explores toys throughout history. In Collective Worship, we have been learning what courage means and how we can be courageous in our everyday lives. In R.E., we have looked at the 'Presentation Story' and how Jesus was presented at the temple. The children are thoroughly enjoying our science topic 'Humans,' and yesterday we learned all about our five senses and put these into action!

Week Commencing: 09.01.23

What an amazing first week back to school for Class R/1! The children seem to have matured so much over the holiday! We have been straight back into working and the children have been excellent at getting back into the swing of things. We have started new topics in English, R.E., history and science. In R.E. we have been looking at celebrations and what these mean, and in Collective Worship we have been looking at the New Year and what this means. The children loved watching the firework display from Big Ben on New Year's Eve.

Week Commencing: 05.12.22

What a fantastic week we have had in Class R/1! We have been extremely busy with assessments this week and what is becoming apparent is how much the children have progressed since September! It is incredible to see! In R.E. we have been talking about the Christmas story and why we celebrate Christmas. In Collective Worship, we have been discussing how we can be kind over the Christmas period and the children have come up with some lovely ideas. We have been practicing very hard for our Nativity performance and we cannot wait to show everyone! The children have worked so incredibly hard, and we hope everyone is as proud of them as we are! Our plea: if anyone has any books with moving parts, please can Miss Collins borrow them next week? This is for our DT activities. Thank you in advance!

Week Commencing: 28.11.22

What a fabulous week we have had in Class R/1! We started it off by going on our amazing trip to Hoghton Tower! We took part in many exciting activities such as looking around the wonderful bedrooms and reading rooms that Hoghton Tower has. We also had some of our children knighted as lords and ladies and Mr Cox was our king for the day. We then went into the dungeons which the children described as “spooky” and “scary”. It was lovely to see how engaged all the children were, how well behaved they were and what beautiful manners they all have. They really did us proud—well done R1!

In class we have been working hard this week in our phonics, English and maths and we are moving onto shape next week! In R.E, the children have learnt what Advent means and we thought about our most treasured gifts and why these are so special to us. We have been practicing our Nativity this week, with our stage and props. Please can children continue to practice their lines at home, they are doing a great job of remembering them!

Week Commencing: 21.11.22

We have had a lovely week in Cl R/1, we have been working hard in our phonics and maths. We have started a new book in English called “The Extraordinary Gardner”, there are a few words we are unsure of, so we have been looking in a dictionary to find their meanings. In R.E. we have learnt all about Judaism and the celebration of Hanukkah, we have decorated some lovely menorah candles which Jewish people light to celebrate this special time. We have started practicing our Nativity now the children have now been cast! We will be sending the lines home, so if you can please practice these with your child we would be very grateful!

Week Commencing: 14.11.22

It has been another exciting week in R/1! In Phonics, the children continuously do us proud with how well they are working and trying their best. We have been sequencing stories in English and adding in detail to make our sentences even better! In R.E. we have been looking at welcoming others into our classroom like God welcomes us, we have created party invites for our Year 6 friends. In Collective Worship we have been looking at what kindness means, and all the children came up with some lovely ideas about how they are going to show kindness. They said things like “don't leave people out”, “help our friends if they fall over”, “use manners and listen to people”. Well done R/1!

Week Commencing: 07.11.22

We have had another amazing week in Class R/1! We have learned all about Baptism in R.E. & being welcomed by God. In Collective Worship we thought about how we look after God's world and the children came up with some fantastic ideas such as not chopping trees down, looking after animal habitats, picking up litter, turning lights off when not in use & saving water. The children have worked hard in their phonics and English and have been applying the new skills they have, such as using adjectives, suffixes, capital letters and full stops.

Week Commencing: 01.11.22

We have had an incredible first week back in Class R/1! On Tuesday, we went to church on the bus and all the children were fantastic! They were all so respectful and well behaved, we were all so proud of them. We have covered lots of learning this week writing sentences in English and completing addition problems in maths. In Forest School, we made a giant Gruffalo using sticks, twigs and leaves; the children worked fabulously together and loved it! We  also enjoyed watching “Beauty and the Beast”, again the children did us all proud! They were all joining in and had a great time! Well done R/1, you are all amazing! 

Week Commencing: 17.10.22

We have had a fantastic week in Class R/1 during Art Week! We have looked at what an artist is and specifically at the work of Georgia O’Keefe. The children loved looking at the beautiful flowers she painted and they were excited to recreate their own. We have also incorporated history and English into our art by designing doors in the theme of a character we have explored such as The Gruffalo and the witch from “Room on the Broom”. In Collective Worship we looked at light and hope through Diwali and the Festival of Lights. What a kind and considerate class they are as pupils’ prayers were selfless and kind and focussed on those who have less than them.

Week Commencing: 10.10.22

It has been a lovely week in Class R/1, we have been looking at “A Squash and A Squeeze” in our English, continuing with our rhyming words. The children are really building their confidence with this. In maths, we have been looking at addition and subtraction which the children are getting to grips with. They are all enthusiastic and excited about learning! In our Forest School sessions Mrs Edgerley sent us on a treasure hunt; Reception children had to find two words that rhyme and Year 1 were looking for verbs, nouns and adjectives. They all did fantastically and loved it!

Week Commencing: 03.10.22

It has been another fabulous week in Class R/1! We have been learning all about rhyming words in our English . We have been singing Incy Wincy Spider to hear the rhyme and also reading The Gruffalo. This work linked in to  our Forest School session where we and looked at the habitats of spiders and created our own to help Incy Wincy. In maths, we have been learning all about numbers and what is greater, less than and equal to. The children have been fantastic in using their mathematical language. We have also been using some lovely scientific language such as transparent and opaque as part our investigation to see which everyday materials were absorbent or not. 

Week Commencing: 26.09.22

What a busy week we have had in R/1. We have now finished the Reception baseline assessments, the children enjoyed doing them 🙂 and it helps us finding out your children's next steps are and what your children are thriving in. 

Our traditional tale this week has been Hansel and Gretel, the children have really enjoyed the story and they can't wait to finish it. We have incorporated lots of learning which ties in with our traditional tale this week. We have been into Forest School and followed different trails and did some map reading; we have also been drawing maps outdoors using chalk, mark making, designing our own gingerbread house, writing different adjectives for the way the characters are feeling. We have worked very hard! 

The children have also thoroughly enjoyed our RE topic these past few weeks, we have learned that all our names our precious and we have said prayers to each other, we have also chosen a class prayer. We have learned that God loves everyone, and we are all his children. The children have really enjoyed finishing our RE and collective worship sessions with some lovely meditation, the children love getting comfy and listening to some calming music, they are all very sensible and respectful to one another when we do this. 

EdShed is currently just for Y1 pupils only, we will update you when Reception will be using it. This will be after half term.

Also, I have stuck ALL homework in the books, please note this is not just for 1 week. It is for the next few weeks (there is a list of dates at the front to guide you 🙂). Any questions, please ask. We have not received all Y1 homework books back, so if your child has no homework stuck in, please bring it back to school and we will get this sorted. Please can your child bring their homework book back on a Thursday to be marked. Book changing days are Mon/Weds/Fri. 

We hope you have a lovely weekend. 

The R/1 Team. 

Week Commencing 19.09.22

What another lovely week in R/1, we have been super busy! We have been looking at Goldilocks and the Three Bears in our Literacy lessons, the children have loved role playing the characters and we all had an opportunity to play the characters. We then went into our Forest School and created some fabulous bear pictures using textures; the children used hammers to imprint patterns from leaves on their pictures, they stuck on hay, leaves and berries. The children also squished the berries to make ‘paint,’ and they put their pictures against trees and rock and used crayons to see what different textures they could get from them, the children loved it! They were all so creative and imaginative with their pictures, we even had some children helping Mrs. Edgerley with litter picking!

In Maths, the children have been impressing us with their Mathematical skills! In Reception, we have been looking at shorter and taller and grouping objects together. In Year 1, we have been looking at one more, one less, comparing patterns and matching numbers to their written names.

We are still exploring natural materials in science, the children did a fabulous job yesterday finding materials made from wood, plastic, glass, paper and metal. The children used some amazing scientific language to describe the materials such as transparent, opaque, bendy, hard, soft, shiny and dull.

We are all really impressed with how well the children are following our rules and routines and how excited they are about their learning.

We hope you have all have a lovely weekend.

The R/1 Team :-) 

Week Commencing: 19.09.22

What another lovely week in R/1, we have been super busy! We have been looking at Goldilocks and the Three Bears in our English lessons, the children have loved role playing the characters. We then went into Forest School and created some fabulous bear pictures using textures; the children used hammers to imprint patterns from leaves on their pictures, they stuck on hay, leaves and berries. The children also squished the berries to make ‘paint,’ and they put their pictures against trees and rock and used crayons to see what different textures they could get from them, the children loved it! They were all so creative and imaginative with their pictures, we even had some children helping Mrs. Edgerley with litter picking!  

In maths, the children have been impressing us with their mathematical skills! In Reception, we have been looking at shorter and taller and grouping objects together. In Year 1, we have been looking at one more, one less, comparing patterns and matching numbers to their written names.  

We are still exploring natural materials in science, the children did a fabulous job yesterday finding materials made from wood, plastic, glass, paper and metal. The children used some amazing scientific language to describe the materials such as transparent, opaque, bendy, hard, soft, shiny and dull.  

We are all really impressed with how well the children are following our rules and routines and how excited they are about their learning.  

We hope you have all have a lovely weekend.  

The R/1 Team 😊 

Week Commencing: 12.09.22

It has been another fabulous week in Class R1. This week we have been looking at the Three Little Pigs story, we have linked this into our Forest School where the children were split into 3 groups. One group built a house of straw, one a house of sticks and one a house of bricks, all the children got stuck in! They worked brilliantly as a team, and came up with some fantastic ideas on how to build their houses. The Big Bad Wolf then paid us a visit so we could re-enact our story; the children loved it! We have started our maths work this week and we have been so impressed by the children's work ethic, they are so excited and enthusiastic about their learning. We are all so proud of them! Next week we will be started our Baseline Assessments with our Reception children.

Week Commencing: 05.09.22

What an amazing first week in Class R/1! The Reception children have settled in amazingly! We have had a very exciting first week, taking part in Forest School where we learnt how to stay safe. The children loved exploring the area, finding bugs and climbing trees. In P.E. Coach Matt was so impressed that he gave all the children the Star Player award for fantastic listening and joining in! We are all so proud of the class who are using fabulous manners, being kind to each other and following our school rules.

Week Commencing: 12.9.22

We have had a lovely week in reception, the children have loved our English topic of the Three Little Pigs. We have incorporated this into all areas of learning and provision, on Wednesday, we went into our Forest School area and the children were split up into 3 groups. 1 group built a house of straw, 1 a house of sticks and 1 a house of bricks. The children loved it! Especially when we got a visit from the Big Bad Wolf!

The children have got really stuck in with their learning this week and are very enthusiastic about it! 

The reception children have got a sharing book sent home today, that is for parents to read with their children and will be due in next week (Thursday 22nd September). The Year 1 children have a Monster Phonics book and again, this is due in next week. The children will be receiving their homework on Tuesday. If you have any questions at all, please just ask :-) Our class email is classr1@st-josephs-hoghton.lancs.sch.uk

We hope you have an amazing weekend and we will see you on Tuesday.

The Reception Team.