Squirrels

Caring for Living Things: Summer 1 Highlights

What a whirlwind of a half-term! Summer 1 has been all about growth, change, and diving into the natural world. Our classrooms included a bustling Garden Centre, a Minibeast Den, and a busy Vets Surgery, sparking fantastic new vocabulary and endless imagination. Here’s a quick round-up of our highlights!

Green Fingers & Minibeasts

• Inspired by Jasper’s Beanstalk, the children planted their own seeds, learned the secret recipe for growth (sunlight, soil, and water!), and watched them sprout in our outdoor classroom. They’ve now gone home for final harvesting—keep us posted on their progress!
• The Very Hungry Caterpillar is still a much-loved storybook. The children have learned the life cycle of a butterfly and tracked it in real-time. Our class caterpillars have officially transformed into cocoons, and we can’t wait to release our new butterfly friends when we return in June.

Wild Adventures at Forest School

Our weekly Forest School sessions continue to build massive confidence and independence. This term’s highlights included:

• Hunting for minibeasts and exploring habitats (linked to our lovely storybooks, including The Bog Baby).
• Getting hands-on with tools like saws and palm drills to craft our very own bees!

First Ever School Trip: Godstone Farm!

The excitement was through the roof for our first big adventure! The children made us so proud, getting up close to feed pigs, sheep, and alpacas, and even stroking a fluffy hen and a tortoise. The day finished with a high-energy session in the massive adventure playground.

Pet Care & Wild Imaginations

We turned into pet experts, sharing stories about our own animals and enjoying the book My Pet Goldfish. After learning how to look after real fish, we let our imaginations run wild. If our fish went on an adventure, who would they meet? Ideas ranged from mermaids and octopuses to sharks and... sabre-tooth tigers!

Understanding our Values

• In RE, we explored the big question, "What makes something special?", looking at how we care for treasured items and how different faiths use special objects. We also had a visit from Hannah Hossain from St Mary’s Church to learn why the Bible is a special book for Christians.
• In PSHE, we focused on Relationships—learning what it takes to be a great friend and how to solve problems together.

Marvellous Maths

• We’ve been busy learning number bonds to 10, recapping addition and subtraction, and introducing sharing, grouping, doubling, and odd/even numbers. We also introduced the names and properties of 3D shapes and explored how to build with different 3D blocks.

Super Writers & Artists

• Literacy: Independent reading and writing is officially taking off! The children are mastering new 'special friends' (two-letter sounds) and writing short sentences. In our Drawing Club, their drawings are becoming more detailed and their imagination continues to shine through in their written and spoken sentences. They have also learned how to use finger spaces and full stops to help their writing to be read by others!
• Art and Design: From split pins and folding to threading and sewing, our artistic skills reached new heights. The outdoor Junk Modelling station has been a hive of independent, creative construction, complementing our indoor Art areas well.

Rocking the May Fair!

We could not be prouder of how the children kicked off the PTA May Fair on 16th May. They worked incredibly hard on their dance routine and performed like absolute pros in front of a crowd. What a moment!

Phew! What a beautifully busy half-term. We’ve packed in so many new experiences, and we can't wait to see how much more our wonderful Reception children grow and thrive in our final half-term of the year.