Phonics

We introduced two new tricky words: 'to' and 'I', and explored the sounds 'u' and 'r'. The children practised writing these sounds and words on their whiteboards and enjoyed a game during continuous provision to recall and say their sounds. Their confidence in blending and segmenting is really growing!

Maths

Our focus this week has been on understanding equal and matching items to flashcards to show an equal number. We’ve also discussed how numbers represent quantities—for example, the numeral 4 means 4 objects.

We began exploring patterns and used the outdoor area to incorporate maths into active play. The children loved our new PE/maths setup, where they recorded their scores on a rekenrek-style counting frame by sliding coloured rings along a pole. This hands-on activity brought maths to life in a fun and interactive way!

Drawing Club

This week’s stories were Dear Santa and Santa’s Special Letter. Using these as inspiration, we combined our phonics and drawing skills to write letters to Santa. These letters are ready to be posted on Monday—thank you to the parents who have volunteered to help with our trip to the postbox!

RE

Building on our discussion about how God created things for us to care for, we talked about ways to look after our school dog, Betsy. The children shared ideas about what Betsy might need and why proper care is so important for her well-being.

PE

In PE, we worked on following instructions, playing safely as a group, and practised running and stopping safely. The children are developing great control and teamwork skills during these sessions.

Festive Fun

With December just around the corner, we’ve begun preparing for the holiday season! This week, we decorated the classroom with our Year 6 buddies and set up our class advent calendar. From next week, a child each day will get to open the calendar—there’s so much excitement in the air!

We’ve had a wonderful week filled with learning, teamwork, and creativity. The children are looking forward to next week, especially our walk to the postbox to send their letters to Santa!

Star of the week: Congratulations to Oscar F, who is our star of the week, for amazing progress in his writing. Oscar F will be taking home his certificate and Wilfred the Elephant to write in the book all about his week spent with Wilfred over the next week and will bring him back next Thursday.

Please continue sending your children in full PE kits with labelled jumpers on WEDNESDAY'S and FRIDAY'S this term.  

If you are reading with your child, please remember to record it in the reading record. We will only change your child's book if you have read with them 2 or more times in that week! Please remember to have the library book in your children's book bag on Thursday to be changed. 

Any issues or concerns we need to know about, please speak to the Acorn team before and after school or email at: acorn@st-barnabas.kent.sch.uk