Year 2
Welcome back!
We hope that you have had a restful break. We are all so excited to get back to learning in school and hope your child is looking forward to the new term!
Uniform and water bottles
Please make sure that all of your child’s uniform is clearly labelled. Uniform guidelines are outlined on the School website – please contact the school office if you have any questions. All children should bring a labelled water bottle to school every day. A hydrated body means a higher functioning mind.
Nut Free School
Please can we remind you that we are a Nut Free School, so please do not pack products in the lunchboxes that may contain nuts, this includes chocolate spread.
PE
This year our PE days are Monday and Thursday. Please make sure that your child has their PE kit in school every day in case these days change or extra events are planned. We suggest that kit stays in school all week.
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Indoor PE: Children will need black shorts and a plain t-shirt in their house colour. Gym and Dance is done in bare feet. Children will need trainers or plimsolls for indoor games.
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Outdoor PE: black shorts and t-shirt, and a tracksuit or spare jumper for colder days. Children will also need trainers.
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Jewellery: A reminder that only stud earrings and wristwatches may be worn to school. Earrings must be removed or covered for PE. Children should not wear bracelets to school.
Homework
Children will have one homework book which will be used for all homework. They will have weekly spellings and maths homework. The maths homework will be set using the website Timetables Rock Stars . Log in details are stuck in the front of the reading record. If you have any queries about the homework, please do not hesitate to come and speak to us. Homework will be collected in each Friday and given out on a Friday.
Times Table Rock Stars
Cherry Fields Primary School is signed up to the Times Tables Rock Stars programme to support your child with their multiplication and division facts. The curriculum states that all children should be able to recall accurately their multiplication and division facts up to 12x12 by the end of year 4. Therefore, daily times table practice is crucial. When it comes to times tables, speed AND accuracy are important – the more fluent they are with their facts the easier they will access other aspects of the curriculum. In Year 2 the national expectation is that children become fluent in the 2, 3, 5 and 10 times tables and the related division facts. For their maths homework, children are expected to play on Times Table Rock Stars for 5 minutes at least three times a week. Certificates will be awarded to children in celebration assembly as they progress.
Spelling
At the start of the term, children will be given a termly spelling grid in their homework books indicating which spellings to learn each week.
Each week, your child will receive 5 spellings that follow the spelling pattern they have covered that week. We have also sent home a spelling menu, which has lots of great ways of practising spellings. It is important to practise regularly. On Friday, the children will have a spelling test for the spellings they have practised during the week.
Homework Menus
Children will have a termly menu with additional homework options on it. This term we would like to invite you all to get creative and do a project on something that you enjoy and are passionate about…something that tells us a little more about you. These have already been sent home.
Reading
We expect children to have daily opportunities to read to, or with, someone at home, as well as independently. Reading can include: books, newspapers, magazines, online reading, eBooks, reading tablets, information books, adverts, menus, poems, song lyrics – the list is endless. The important thing is that your child reads regularly (preferably daily!) and enjoys, and is engaged with, the reading! Each Friday, children will be sent home with the following:
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RWI book: This is a text that the children have been reading regularly in class to build fluency. They should be able to read this to you independently with minimal mistakes.
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Book Bag Book: This is a text that is based upon the sounds that children have been reading in class. As such, the children should be able to apply their phonics to knowledge to read all the words within the book with minimal support.
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Library Book: This is a text that the children have selected based upon their interest. These books are not based on prior phonics knowledge and should be shared with, or read by, an adult.
These books should be returned to school the following Friday to be changed.
All children have a reading diary, which they should bring to school in their book bag every day. Please record your child’s reading (as well as any additional comments) in the reading diary including the date and, where appropriate, page numbers. Halfway through the diary is a guide to help adults to support children’s reading as well as phonics/spelling guides for children as they progress through the school. To build fluency, children should read a text a minimum of three times. As such, school reading books will only be changed once per week on a Friday.
We will check the reading record is completed regularly. If your child reads four times a week, your child will receive a raffle ticket that will be entered into our termly reading raffle. They have the chance to win a book of their choice from the selection.
Curriculum |
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This term our Curriculum focus is Technology and we will be answering the question is ‘Can I design and build a structure based on my knowledge and understanding of historical periods’. We will be exploring different structures that represent modern and historical London inspired by the 1666 Great Fire of London. Our curriculum drivers will be DT and History as we look at 3D shapes in the world around us and how we can use this knowledge to create our own shapes whilst also learning about the key factors influencing the historical event of the Great Fire of London. To help with our Curriculum project we would like to ask for a voluntary contribution of £2 per child to help us fund our exciting Curriculum project. Your donations will be used to buy materials for the children to design, test and make their modern or historical building. |
Maths |
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Within our Maths, we are exploring adding and subtracting two-digit and one-digit numbers. This will involve thinking about:
We will also be exploring our first topic of multiplication and division. Here we will focus on:
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Writing |
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This term we will begin our English journey by creating a character description based on the book ‘Tell me a Dragon’ by Jackie Morris. We will be focusing on the structure of a simple sentence and how to compose these using the correct punctuation. We will then start to explore how to use a small range of grammatical devices including:
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Computing |
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This term, in Computing we will be looking at Digital Photography. We will be focusing on taking photos and the impact of landscape and portrait photos and when it is most suitable to use them. We will also begin to look at lighting and seeing how it can impact a photograph before using our new set of skills to capture a photo and recognise which photos are real and which have been changed. |
HRE |
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In HRE this term the children will be focusing on Growing and Changing and Safeguarding Ourselves. The children will be learning how to:
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Music |
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Our Music this term will be linked to our Christmas Nativity and Production. We can’t wait to share this with the children. Please keep checking Class Dojo for further information! |
PE |
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This term, our PE will be covering OAA (Outdoor Adventure Activities) and Dance. Within these topics we will be focusing on:
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RE |
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During our RE this term, we will be exploring the big question: “Who experiences true freedom?” As part of this, Year 2 are going to be focusing on events and celebrations within the Christian and Hindu religions. To start, Kahlo and Simmonds will identify the key features of the Hindu celebration of Diwali before explaining the importance of Diwali. Then, Year 2 will be exploring and explaining the importance of Christmas for Christians – recapping the Christmas Story and developing their understanding of symbolism for key people within the Christmas Story (e.g. shepherds, Kings and Mary). |
Thank you for your continued support – we are looking forward to an exciting year ahead and partnering with you in your child’s learning and development.
Mrs Lammond
Year 2 Teacher