Welcome to Beech Class!

We are a mixed Reception/Year 1 class.

Our class teacher is Mr Bell and our LSA is Mrs Colton.

Our swimming day is Tuesday and our PE day is Friday.

Beech Class Updates

WC 28/04/25

In English this week we have been learning about instructions by independently following simple instructions to play a game. We then progressed to giving verbal instructions to Mrs Colton and then writing our own instructions on how to play boules. On Monday, we were visited by a cricket coach who gave the children a taster session which they really enjoyed. During continuous provision, the children have been enjoying story telling using puppets and creating their own puppet theatre with snacks and drinks!

WC 22/04/25

This week in science we have started our new topic on plants by learning about seeds and bulbs. The children planted their own sweet pea seeds and we planned a fair test to see what conditions are needed for seeds to grow.

WC 17/03/25

In maths this week we have been exploring patterns in sounds, words colours and shapes. The children have made their own linear and circular patters using paint, blocks and any other items they could find in the classroom. We have been making the most of the sunshine and spending lots of time outdoors.

WC 10/03/25

This week, we have been baking, decorating and tasting our own gingerbread men. The children have been closely watching our frogspawn and have observed it changing into tadpoles. We are just starting to see the legs emerging!

WC 03/03/25

We have had an exciting week full of visitors which has enhanced the children's leanring and fun. We consolodated our knowledge of "The Gingerbread Man" with a dance workshop for World Book Day. This helped the children to innovate the story and write their own versions. On Friday, Miss Fiona Guest was kind enough to come in and teach an interesting and fun science lesson where the children created their own secret messages using home-made invisible ink. 

WC 24/02/25
We have had a busy first week back and have made the most of the better weather by being outside as much as possible. In maths, the reception children have been making and finding number bonds to 10 and have been practising recalling these using our fingers. The Year 1s have started learning about multiplication by making groups and counting in 2s, 5s and 10s. We finished off our English topic by writing some non0-chronological reports about bears before starting our new traditional tale: “The Gingerbread Man”. In geography, we have been learning about the compass pints and how we use these to identify places on a map. We have started our D&T topic for the term by designing a new chair to replace the one broken by Goldilocks! 
 

WC 10/02/25
This week we have been finishing writing the story “Wild” in the perspective of the girl in the story. In maths, we have been learning the composition of eight and nine. The children enjoyed finding as many number bonds as they could to make these numbers. In science, we finished our topic about living things by learning about and making our own food chains.  
 

WC 03/02/25
On Thursday, we marked the NSPCC number day with a Key Stage 1 maths version of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” which pitted the boys against the girls. After some fierce competition, the game ended with a “fastest finger first” style tie breaker which was narrowly won by the girls! We then spent the afternoon carrying out some codebreaking challenges and an open-ended investigation to find as many different combinations of buttons on a gingerbread man as we could.
In history this week, we have been learning about air transport and we compared modern aircraft to those in the past. We extended our historical knowledge of land transport with a visit to Haynes Motor Museum where we explored a range of artifacts, cars and motorcycles and learned how they had changed over time. We also had a go at setting up our own production line and raced to see how quickly we could make 10 cars. 
 

WC 27/01/25
After a wet start to the week, the children came back to school on Tuesday raring to go and full of energy! In maths, the Year 1 children have been exploring, comparing and measuring mass using non-conventional units. The Reception children have been learning how to compare, represent and make number bonds to 7, 8 and 9. In English, we have been writing letters to the characters in Wild. The children have been telling the mysterious men what to do when they find the girl caught in a trap in the forest. A big thank you for all of the donations of seeds and junk modelling equipment. The children have really enjoyed making and decorating their wonderful creations!
 

Home Learning 27/01/25

We hope you all keep safe in the floods. As we are moving on to measuring weight next week, it would be great if you could do some cooking or baking at home. Please take this opportunity to read with your children. I have posted some other links below. If you are able to do any of these activities it would be great. I hope we will be back open on Tuesday.

Thanks,

Mr Bell

WC 20/01/25

This week in maths we have been learning how to measure length and height using non-standard units including cubes, pencils and dominoes. We have measured and compared different objects including toys and ourselves. The year 1 children have extended this by learning how to measure in cm using rulers. In computing, we have continued learning about programming by writing, testing and debugging our code to try to get the Beebots to reach the finish line on some race tracks. In English, we have been doing some descriptive writing about the forest and the Year 1 children have drafted some wonderfully descriptive poems.

WC 13/01/25

We have had a busy week in Beech Class. The children are working hard in phonics and we have finished off our English unit on letter writing by writing letters asking for help about a disgusting toilet! In computing, we have introduced basic coding using beebots and the children edited their simple code to try to get the beebots to stop in the correct place. In art, we looked at the work of the artist Paul Klee, and the children produced some lovely paintings in the same style. 

WC 06/01/25

The children have come back to school well rested and ready to learn! We have been learning all about letters in English and the children have been exploring the book "Here Comes Mr Postmouse" by Marianne Dubue. In art, we have begun learning about watercolour by experimenting how we can apply colour using dripping, flicking, and brushing. The children tried making lighter and darker shades and blending colours together. In PE, we have been learning about different running, from jogging through to sprinting and have been practicing this with games and relay races.

WC 09/12/24

This week, the children enjoyed performing “Snowman at Sunset” to both the school and to their parents and were amazing at both performances! We have enjoyed watching performances from both Willow and Elm classes. In maths, we have been exploring and comparing weight using cubes and a balance. In DT, we have been learning to use levers to make our own moving snowmen. 

WC 02/12/24

This week we have been busy practicing for our Christmas performance and it has been great seeing the children’s confidence increasing. In science, the Year 1 children have been learning about different temperatures, using thermometers and observing changes in temperature over time. The reception children have learn about heavy and light objects and have been experimenting with how many animals a boat can hold without sinking. In PE, we have been doing Christmas themed dances and have been learning more playground games by playing “the floor is lava”. 

WC 25/11/24

In English this week, the Year 1 children have been learning about the structure of a story and using this knowledge to plan and storyboard their own stories about monsters. In Reception maths, we have been exploring the structure of numbers up to 5 and how the digits are formed. We have been using lots of feely bag activities to support this and the children are getting much better at not peeking! We have also been practicing counting by playing snakes and ladders. In geography, we have found London and Kingsbury Episcopi on a map and have been using clues to decide if they are Cities, Towns or Villages. 

WC 18/11/24

This week in DT, inspired by Mr Underbed, the children have enjoyed designing and making their own pop up monsters using sliders. In English, we have been orering the events of the story and then writing about them. The Year 1 children have extended this by writing diary entries in the role of Jim. 

WC 11/11/24

We have had another busy week in Beech class and have been learning lots of songs for our Christmas performance about snowmen. In maths, we have been learning about the composition of number. The Reception children have been learning about 3, 4 and 5, and Year 1 have learnt about the numbers 11-20. In English, we have taken inspiration from Mr Underbed.

We have been making predictions about who has been under the bed and then describing the monster. The Year 1s have been learning how to draw lines and drop colour onto pictures using the laptops. 

WC 04/11/24

This week we have been learning all about shape in maths. We have been on shape hunts, played “guess the shape” and have been trying to make different shapes by folding paper. In Geography, we have been looking carefully at arial photographs to spot different features and have looked at images of our school and the recreation ground. In PE, we have started our new topic of dance. The children enjoyed making up their own dances on the theme of “fireworks” and performing them to the rest of the class. We have seen some great creativity when working with clay and the children have made a wide range of things including bird’s nests, animals and snowmen!

WC 14/10/24
This week we finished our topic on Kingdom Isambard Brunel by looking at how he built the Great Western Railway. The children were challenged to create their own amazing railways using the construction toys around the classroom. We also increased our baking repertoire by making and tasting apple crumble, which was much more popular than the pumpkin soup! 
 

W/C 07/10/24

This week, we have based our literacy on the story of The Gigantic Turnip by Alekski Tolstoy. The children learnt the story using a story map and then suggested changes and adaptations. The Year 1 children were able to write their own version of the original story. In PE, we have been practicing our throwing skills and have been having competitions and relay races to practice what we have learned. In art, we have challenged the children to try some continuous line drawings, where they observe closly to draw what they see without lifting their pen from the paper. 

WC 29/09/24

In maths this week, our Reception children have been focussing on making patterns, both using objects and music. The children started by copying patterns started by an and adult, then they spotted mistakes made by Mr Snappy and finally, they composed their own patterns in pairs using musical instruments. We have been making our own snack by baking cupcakes and experimenting with making them better by adding other ingredients such as raisins. In computing, the Year 1’s have been learning how to log on to the school laptops and then how to drag and drop using the mousepad to complete pictures.

W/C 16/09/24

This week, we have been telling and improvising stories based on the book “The Cow Who Fell to Earth” by Nadia Shireen. The children have particularly enjoyed speaking the language of Dave, the moon cow, and we have heard loud renditions of “Woo, woo!” around the class. In history, we have been talking about the difference between the past and the present and sorting objects into those from the past and the present day. In art, we have ben drawing spirals and observing how our bodies move in different ways as the spirals get bigger and bigger.

WC 02/09/24

We have had a great first week in Beech Class. The children have settled really quickly and are wonderfully confident, friendly and fun. We have been learning “all about me” with a focus on oracy skills to help the children to talk about themselves and their families as well as drawing them and using other mark making skills including writing names. We have enjoyed using the new EYFS area which looks fantastic. Many thanks to all those who volunteered their time and money to support this amazing project.

WC 15/07/24

This week, the children had great fun during our Olympic Day. We started off by practicing and performing our own Olympic dance, designed our own Olympic uniforms and made our own Olympic torches. We then had a go at some real Olympic events, including discus and relay races. The day finished with the children making torches using willow and ribbons and having our very own Olympic torch parade!

WC 08/07/24

After weeks of waiting, we were finally able to harvest our potatoes! The children chopped them up, mixed them with paprika and oil, and then enjoyed tasting their own home-grown potato wedges. In English, we have been designing and writing character descriptions of our very own aliens, and predicting what will happen next in the story "Man on the Moon". 

WC 01/07/24

Last Friday, to help with our geography topic about the seaside, Beech class went on a trip to Lyme Regis. After lots of singing on the coach, we walked down the steep hill and explored the aquarium, fed the fish and held a starfish. We then had a picnic on the beach but had to be careful of the hungry seagulls who were intent on eating our sandwiches. There was just enough time for a paddle, digging some sandcastles and an ice-cream before the trip back to school!

WC 24/06/24

This week in Beech class we have been working on our descriptive writing using the short film "Butterflies" as a stimulus. The children have come up with a wonderful range of adjectives to paint a wonderful picture of what they saw. The year 1 children have been further challenged by innovating their writing and by using adverbs. In maths, we have been practicing our understanding of place value by carrying out open-ended investigations and puzzles. We have had another visit from our new intake for next year and we explored the school grounds and played parachute games in the shade of the trees. 

WC 27/06/24

This week, the Reception children have been extending their knowledge of patterns by identifying, copying and continuing patterns using music, and a variety of small world toys. Year 1 have been learning how to tell the time using analogue clocks to find "o'clock" and "half past". In English, we have been writing instructions on how to run a bean bag race and then we used our skills to write instructions for Beegu on how to go to school. In preparation for our trip to Lyme Regis, we have learnt about different features of a beach and worked out if they are physical (natural) or human. We have had another great visit from our new reception children from next year and they have had the chance to explore more of the outside areas. Now the weather is finally a bit brighter, please remember to send your child to school with suncream applied and with a sun hat.

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