Welcome to Year 1
Frequently Asked Questions
Term 1 Topic Map
Term 1 Core Texts
Year 1 Learning Cafe
year 1 learning workshop website.pdf
Term 1
The year 1 children have made a great start to the new academic year. They thoroughly enjoyed their recent visit to Brogdale. They experienced a tractor ride around the orchards, where they stopped to pick and sample their own apples. In the afternoon, they then chopped the apples, pressed them and made their very own apple juice. Delicious!
In science, the children have been learning about different animal classification and how animals are grouped according to their features. In art, the children have been exploring different lines. They had great fun drawing spirals which included using chalk to draw spirals on the playgrounds. You might have seen their designs yourselves.
They are still loving their ‘Let’s Explore’ time where they have been engaged in writing activities, construction, imaginative play in the role play area, drawing, junk modelling, maths activities and accessing the different OPAL areas.
Term 2
The term started off with a culinary delight when the children made an apple crumble during design and technology. The children created their crumble by peeling, chopping, sprinkling and rubbing the ingredients together, carefully following the recipe. Not forgetting the importance of having clean hands and being safe and careful with the cooking utensils. The friendly kitchen staff helped us to cook our crumble and then, the best part, we got to taste it.
It wasn’t just the year 1 children who had a good munch in term 2. ‘Nibbles the Book Monster’ has been engaging the children’s interest during their English lessons this term. Nibbles is a very naughty book monster – he chomps, munches and nibbles his way through fairy tales that don't belong to him! The children loved lifting the flaps, peeking through the peep holes, and chasing Nibbles through a fantastical world of books, in this quirky story, exquisitely illustrated by Emma Yarlett.
Term 3
The children have been learning about sculpture in art this term. The exploration started with careful looking and drawing, and from this grounded basis children were encouraged to take creative risks by using experimental mark-making with a variety of media. The children then explored how they could manipulate their drawings in an intuitive way to make 3D forms. Paper was twisted, folded, crumpled to become 3D and added to a simple structure. The children explored balance to finally create an individual bird.
We have been having a ROARING time in English. Throughout the term, we have been getting to know Lion and Mouse in the text ‘The Lion Inside’. This is a bestselling story about confidence, self-esteem, and a shy little mouse who sets out on a journey to find his roar. We have been focusing on using the conjunction ‘and’ to link two ideas in a sentence. We were introduced to question sentences and wrote our own questions to ask Lion and Mouse.
In science we have used observational skills to look closely at materials and their properties. As scientists we investigated the question, ‘What is the best material for an umbrella?’ We tested some different materials and recorded our findings.
Term 4
In design and technology this term, year 1 have been looking at windmills. The children identified the different features of windmills including the structure, axle and turbine. They then designed, constructed and evaluated their own windmills. The children tested their windmills outside to see if the wind would move the sails.
In science, the children have been building on their knowledge from term 1 by finding out more about animal groups. They identified different animals as carnivores, herbivores or omnivores and then classified them into the correct groupings.
Look out! There’s a mammoth on the loose! In English, the children have been following Oscar through a magical museum of curious creatures to find the mammoth before the clock strikes one! Was he munching sandwiches with Diplodocus Dave in the Dinosaur room? Or joining an aerobics class with the Extinct and Endangered Species? The Curious Case of the Missing Mammoth is a riotous adventure, packed with fascinating facts and lift-the-flap fun. With stunning illustrations from Karl James Mountford, this brilliantly interactive book brings museums to life and the children loved it!
