Ysgol Gynradd 
Da​fen 
Pr​imary School 

This half-term our topic is ‘Who am I and Where do I belong' As part of this topic we will be;

 

Listening to a range of traditional and modern stories. Our Focus Books are;

Theme Books

• The Little Red Hen – Talk for Writing Pie Corbett style

• Only One You – Linda Kranz 

• It's Okay to Be Different – Todd Parr

• All Are Welcome – Alexandra Penfold 

• The Best Part of Me – Wendy Ewald

• You Choose – Nick Sharratt

• I Like Myself! by Karen Beaumont

• Marvelous Me: Inside and Out by Lisa Bullard

• The Family Book by Todd Parr

• So Much! by Trish Cooke

• The Mixed-Up Chameleon by Eric Carle

• From Head to Toe – Eric Carle

• My Amazing Body Machine – Robert Winston

• Look Inside Your Body – Louie Stowell

• I Will Never Not Ever Eat a Tomato – Lauren Child

• Funnybones – Janet & Allan Ahlberg

• The Colour Monster – Anna Llenas

• Ruby's Worry – Tom Percival

• The Huge Bag of Worries – Virginia Ironside

• When I'm Feeling... – Trace Moroney series

• The life of a cardboard box/plastic bottle

• The Boy with Big Big Feelings – Britney Winn Lee
  Clean Up by Nathan Bryan

• The Smeds and the Smoos by Julia Donaldson

• Michael Recycle by Ellie Bethel

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Autumn and Christmas Themed Stories

• Don’t Hog the Hedge – Twinkl Stories

• “Why Do Leaves Change Color?” by Betsy Maestro.

• The Squirrels Who Squabbled by Rachel Bright and Jim Field

• Squirrel’s Busy Day by Lucy Barnard

• Tidy by Emily Gravett

• The Nutty Nut Chase by Kathryn White

• Bear Snores on

• Leaf Man

• Pumpkin Soup

• The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson

• Pudsey’s Great Fundraiser – Twinkl Stories

• Owl Babies

• Bear Stays Up

• The Christmas Pine

• The Littlest Christmas Tree

• The Night Before Christmas

• What the Ladybird Heard at Christmas

• The Nativity Story

• Dream Snow

• Stickman

• A Festive Feast

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In order to answer our key questions - ​'Who am I and where do I belong?​' and 'How does autumn show us things change?​'

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We will be;

Autumn Term 1

• Exploring who we are by learning about ourselves, our families, our friends and what makes each of us unique.

• Developing a sense of belonging by getting to know our new classroom, school environment and the people who help us.

• Sharing our interests, favourite things and the people who are important to us through talk, play and creative activities.

• Creating self-portraits, family pictures and transient natural artwork using a range of materials and media.

• Developing our oracy and shared writing skills through a Talk for Writing approach to The Little Red Hen.

• Learning Welsh vocabulary and phrases to help us introduce ourselves, talk about our feelings and ask and answer simple questions, whilst enjoying stories about Tedi Twt and Fflic and Fflac.

• Becoming familiar with simple French greetings, songs and everyday vocabulary.

• Developing our early mathematical skills by matching, sorting and comparing objects, exploring more, fewer and the same, and investigating size through practical measuring activities indoors and outdoors.

• Investigating how we are similar and different by exploring our bodies, senses, feelings and emotions through practical activities and discussions.

• Developing our digital skills by creating self-portraits using JiT Paint and using technology to take photographs and explore our environment.

• Exploring our outdoor environment through creative, investigative and active learning, including natural self-portraits, measuring using our bodies, construction challenges, imaginative role play and collaborative games.

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Autumn Term 2

• Exploring how autumn changes into winter through seasonal walks, weather watching, observing trees and investigating how the natural world changes.

• Learning about special events and celebrations, including Bonfire Night, Remembrance Day and Christmas/The Nativity, and exploring why they are important.

• Creating a range of seasonal crafts using different materials and techniques, including poppies, fireworks, autumn nature art and Christmas decorations.

• Participating in Global Entrepreneurial Week by planning, designing, making, costing and selling our own Hyacinth plants in bespoke pots.

• Developing our mathematical skills by collecting, sorting, comparing and presenting information using seasonal objects such as leaves, conkers and pine cones, whilst exploring number through practical investigations.

• Investigating how seasons change the world around us through our enquiry linked to Why do leaves change in the autumn?

•  Developing our digital skills by using JiT to create story scenes and seasonal artwork linked to our learning.

• Using digital devices to take photographs and videos to record seasonal changes, weather observations and our outdoor learning.

• Exploring our outdoor environment through a range of focused activities, including seasonal investigations, Stick Man trails, den building, number hunts, natural art, mud kitchen experiences and creating homes for woodland animals.

 

PE Sessions

PE will take place on a Wednesday. Please could you ensure that your child wears their PE kit to school i.e. tshirt, joggers and trainers. Learners will not be permitted to change into their kit in school.

 

 

Reading Books

We will send Read, Write Inc sound cards, word flashcards and/or a reading book home with your child. Please return their flashcards/book once you have practised them with your child. This will enable us to monitor progress and assess when your child is ready to learn new sounds or change their reading book. Thank you for your cooperation.

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Snack Time/Amser Snac

​The cost of a daily snack per week is £1. This can be paid weekly or termly. This half term the cost is £7. We use any money raised (following the purchase of snacks) to purchase resources for our class such as baking/decorating items, craft resources or new activities for the children. Please note: Amser Snac is different to ‘Tuck Shop’. Learners in Dosbarth Heulwen access a class ‘tuck shop’ as a very important part of our daily routines, this supports social skills, numeracy development and enables our learners to take on the roles of ‘Weekly Helpers’.

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Outdoor Learning

Outdoor learning is a large part of our school curriculum, and we plan to spend a lot of time learning outdoors. Should you wish for your child to change their footwear, then please send appropriate outdoor footwear (e.g. wellies) into school in a labelled bag. 

We have wet suits available in school but if you wish to provide your own please label this with your child’s name.

 

Please keep an eye out for updates and information about weekly events on Piota, our school app. We will also be updating our Facebook and Instagram pages regularly.

 

Many thanks for your support. We are looking forward to a fun term 😊.

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 Miss Singleton and Mrs Littler