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Preston
Primary School
Academy

Foundation Stage Weekly Newsletter

Puffins and Penguins Weekly Newsletter, 8th November 2019

Dear Parents and Carers,

It has been a very busy week for Puffins and Penguins. As well as our usual busy timetable, we had to cope with a flood in the classrooms due to the torrential rain. As a result, we have been using alternative classrooms, the hall, and the new Innovation Lounge. The children have been very adaptable and we hope to have the situation resolved as soon as possible.

Thank you for your support at the Share a Story event this week. It was wonderful to see so many people enjoying books. We are very passionate about reading, it is at the heart of our curriculum. Singing, listening to stories, poems, and non-fiction books feed children’s imaginations and extend their vocabulary. The Department for Education launched Hungry Little Minds, a campaign to support parents with the communication, language and literacy skills children need to thrive. The website recommends activities for children aged 0-5, if you would like to find out more information please use the following link. https://hungrylittleminds.campaign.gov.uk/

The Book Bus was a great success and helped promote a love of reading. We will now be able to buy some wonderful new books for the school library, thank you.

In Read Write Inc the children have been split into smaller groups according to their individual needs. They will be recapping all the set one sounds to secure their knowledge. Please continue to revise the sounds at home, sounding out and writing them using the correct formation. The current target for many children is to orally blend. Oral blending is breaking words down into their smallest units of sounds such as t-a-p has 3 sounds and c-ar has two sounds. Oral blending helps your child identify and hear sounds in words and accelerates their ability to decode words (read) and spell. We will be holding a Read Write Inc demonstration on Thursday 21st November at 2.40pm in the hall. This will give you an insight into how we teach phonics and how you can support your child at home. We look forward to seeing you there.

In Maths we have been exploring number 8. Many children are becoming more confident to talk about the patterns they notice. We had a wonderful conversation about an Octopus, an Octagon and The Octonauts, talking about what they all had in common.

This week we have been talking about Bonfire night and fireworks. The children enjoyed sharing their experiences and learning about Guy Fawkes. Some of the vocabulary we have been using is pop, bang, bonfire, November, crackle, explode and plot.

The children have enjoyed a carousel of activities this week. They have been looking at print in the environment and talking about why writing is important and what we use it for. They have re-enacted the story ‘There’s a Bear on my chair’. We explored the emotions of the characters and the vocabulary; big, glare, lair, lure, rare, despair. We discussed all alternative words we could use for ‘big’. The children have also explored instruments and moving to a beat.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Foundation Team

Pop-Up Café

During the winter, our Pop-Up café will be open every Friday at the end of the school day. Teachers will take it in turns to bring children to serve drinks and snacks. There will be hot chocolate with cream and mini marshmallows. We will also have biscuits and sausage rolls cooked by our kitchen team. Please support us in this endeavour.

Home Learning Options:

  • Look for print in the environment and talk about what it means and why it occurs
  • Make your own firework picture and stick it in your red book
  • Make a rocket to bring into school to show to your friends. Talk about the 3d shapes you use.
  • Read a story together and talk about the vocabulary and characters
  • Write your name in your red book trying to use the correct letter formation
  • Learn and sing a traditional nursery rhyme ready to share with the rest of the class next week

Dates to remember – more information will be given nearer the time

Every Friday from 3pm – The Pop Up Café is open

Thursday 21st November at 2:40pm – Read Write Inc Phonic demonstration

Friday 13th December from 3:15pm – Friends of Preston Primary School (PTA) Christmas Fayre

Tuesday 17th December – Foundation Nativity at 9.30am or 2.00pm. Tickets will be available for either performance – further details to follow.

Friday 20th December – Last day of term

Address
Preston Primary School Academy
Old Paignton Road
Torquay
Devon
TQ2 6UY

Phone
01803 607075