Summer 1

The children have loved this half term's History topic 'Kings, Queens and Castles'. As part of our learning in school, we have been finding out about King Charles III as our current monarch, as well as comparing the reigns of Queen Elizabeth II (within living memory) and Queen Victoria (over 100 years ago).

Trip to Portchester Castle

On Wednesday 14th May 2025, Year 1 visited Portchester Castle as part of our History learning on Kings, Queens and Castles. We were very excited to visit a real life castle and look out for the different castle features, such as the keep, battlements, moat, drawbridge, portcullis, and bailey. Despite some of the castle being in ruins, the children were still able to imagine where some of the features would have been, for example, the drawbridge, and to imagine what life in the castle would once have been like!

The noise level on the coach erupted with pure excitement when we first arrived and the children caught their first glimpse of the castle. We had the most wonderful time exploring the castle and its grounds, including climbing the many stairs to reach the different levels of the keep. Some of the children even tried out a section of the spiral staircase, which was steep and narrow! The castle museum was really interesting and contained artefacts from an archaeological dig on site, such as a skull, jawbone, a cannonball and even a hairbrush! 

The children also took part in a workshop, run by members of English Heritage. They told us interesting facts about the history of Portchester Castle, including information about the Kings who once lived and ruled there! Some of the children were given the opportunity to dress up as kings, guards and servants, as well hold a long bow and a piece of chain mail! The children were so enthusiastic during their workshops, and impressed with their knowledge of castles.

To end the day, we walked around the outside of the castle walls to the beach. We had a fruity snack and the chance to throw some stones into the sea. It was a fantastic end to a fun and informative day!

Spring 2

To launch our English and Geography learning this half term, the children explored their 'Place in the World'. They all  had different sized circles, joined by a split pin. Each of the circles were labelled, in order of size from smallest to largest (Me, my house, my town, my country and my continent). For each circle, the children had to draw a picture and write a place name for each cirlce, remembering to include a capital letter of course! We were inspired by the book 'Martha Maps it Out'. In this story, Martha maps out her world, beginning with her planet and then ending with all of the rooms in her house.

In Geography, we have also been learning the names of the seven continents and five oceans. We have enjoyed listening to a variety of songs to help us with this! The children have been using Google Earth to look at the human and physical features of our local area and have drawn simple maps to represent some of these features. 

Science: Materials

At the beginning of the Spring term, we started to explore different materials, with a focus on the materials used to make toys. This half term, we have been describing the properties of materials, selecting the most appropriate language to describe each material from the words provided, for example, dull, shiny, see-through, stretchy, rough, smooth, hard and flexible.

We then learned about the scientist and inventor Charles Macintosh. He invented coats that were waterproof. During one of his experiments, Macintosh discovered that rubber could be dissolved to make a liquid. He put rubber between two pieces of fabric, which then made the fabric waterproof. 

To investigate waterproof materials further, the children were asked to find out which material would be best for the roof of a shelter. They needed to help Ted decide on the best material to fix the hole in his roof! The children tested out five different materials (tissue paper, fabric, tin foil, kitchen towel and plastic) by pouring the same amount of water onto each material and watching to see if Ted got wet! They found out that the tin foil and plastic bag were best because the water stayed on the top of the material and did not leak through, whereas, the tissue paper, fabric and paper towel all let water through eventually. The fabric was the worst because the water leaked through quickly!

DT: Sliding Mechanisms

In DT, we have been investigating sliding mechanisms. First, we looked at pop-up books and cards, and talked about how the moving parts can make stories more interesting and exciting to read. Then, we each practised making three different types of sliding mechanism, before choosing one of these for our Spring card design. The children loved making their cards, and were creative in their designs, especially in Cedar class; the colouring and attention to detail was incredible! In Yew class, the chick popping out of the egg was a firm favourite design!

Spring 1

The main focus for this half term has been 'Toys through time' in History. The children have loved this topic and there have been many highlights as we have delved deeper into the topic. 

To launch the topic, we had a visit from toy expert Mr Cushing, who has an incredible collection of toys, including metal wind-up toys and robots! He brought a selection of toys into school to show the children, sharing his knowledge and passion in abundance. There were many awe and wonder moments during the session, as well as excitement and enthusiasm! The children were also asked to bring in a toy from home on this day, and they got to come out to play with the children in 'Busy Time'. We then used their toys for observational drawings in Art. 

Another highlight of the topic was getting to learn more about the teddy bears that are special to the family members of Cedar and Yew children.  Parents and carers sent in photographs of their childhood teddy bears and the children then had to guess how old they were, putting them into chronological order on a timeline. We also had a special visit from a grandparent, who talked to the children about her old bears. One of them even still had its 'growl'. 

To conclude our topic, we had a 'Grandparents Tea Party'. Grandparents and family members were invited in to talk about the toys they used to play with when they were younger. Some grandparents were even able to bring in the real thing for the children to look at/play with. We all had the most wonderful time together, playing games, chatting and exploring the toy artefact table!  

Autumn 2

In Geography this half term we have been on a journey around the United Kingdom, identifying the four countries and capital cities that make up the UK, as well as naming the seas that surround us. We have also looked at England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in more detail by exploring the key characteristics of each country, such as national symbols, flags, landmarks, native animals, landmarks and food. The children have produced some beautiful drawings to illustrate key characteristics of each country.  

In Science, the children have been enthused by our topic on animals. They have been grouping animals into mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds and fish, and thinking about the diets of carnivores, herbivores and omnivores. They have also loved finding out about the life and work of David Attenborough, and have been fascinated when watching some of the video clips from some of his many wildlife documentaries.  

In DT, we have been making fruit kebabs. We were inspired by the book 'Oliver's Fruit Salad'. In this story, Oliver learns about the fruits that can be grown here in the UK, and why certain fruits need to be grown in hot countries. We then made fruit kebabs, choosing the fruit that we would like to put onto our skewers and then cutting the fruit into smaller chunks. We learned how to use the knife safely to cut, using the bridge-hold or claw-hold, depending on the type of fruit we were cutting. Once we had finished, we enjoyed eating our fruit skewers.

Welcome to Year 1

2024-2025

Autumn 1

 The children have really thrown themselves into their learning and are enjoying Continuous Provision- Busy Time in Year 1.We have been so impressed with their enthusiasm and energy and cannot wait to get into this term's learning. Our first Topic is Being me in my World, where we will be learning about our bodies and the senses in Science. In History, we will be creating our own personal timelines with key events that have happened in our lifetime. 

We have also been working hard in our English, Maths, Art, Computing, R.E and Guided Reading sessions. We will also be introducing Spelling Shed and Handwriting sessions into our timetable too. It's busy busy busy in Year 1! 

Important Information

PE Days - Monday (outside) and Wednesday (inside)

Library Day - Wednesday

PPA Monday morning.

The Year 1 team.

Yew Class Teacher - Mrs Wood

Cedar Class Teacher - Mrs Davis

LSA's - Mrs Sweetman and Miss Martin

PPA cover- Mrs Barnhouse and Mrs Lowe