You are, and will continue to be, your child’s first and most important teacher, and we aim to continue your good work by providing a safe, secure and nurturing environment in our Reception Class.

The transition from home or nursery to a fulltime school is a massive step for both you and your child and we seek to ease this transition via the provision of a rich curriculum and a team of staff which are sympathetic the to the needs of pupils and of their parents. We take care to offer a gentle induction into school life and place a huge emphasis upon home school links and effective communication with parents. In practical terms this means you and your child will always be greeted with a friendly face and a listening ear, even in a busy Early Years classroom.

In the spirit of the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum our approach is a holistic one, meaning that our first concern is the social and emotional well-being of the children in our care. As a Church School we place much value upon a school community that is harmonious and caring; from Reception Class to Year 6 all pupils and staff are expected to treat one another with kindness and respect.

At the beginning our children’s school life there is much to be learned and some social skills need to be taught explicitly-for example the need to share and respect school equipment, to listen carefully to friends and adults and to learn self care skills and independence when becoming familiar with daily routines.

The children are sensitively led through new experiences and given ample time to get to know the many new people in their lives – adults and children. Games and activities are planned to help encourage communication skills and to model appropriate behaviour; it is a testament to our talented team of Early Years Practitioners that the majority of children settle quickly and happily into school life.

The younger children are lucky enough to have their own dedicated out door space and much use is made of this; it is proven that children are happier, more creative and more open to learning experiences when outside. For this reason, the children in YR are given an opportunity to learn outside daily, come rain or shine! Our outside classroom is an important part of our school day and experiences there provide long lasting and happy memories for your child as he or she moves through the school.

As the children prepare to say goodbye to Reception Class, the class teacher ensures that they are prepared for the transition into Year One; again this is managed sensitively and gently, so ensuring that the children are happy to take their seats in a new classroom and embrace an equally exciting range of brand new experiences in Year One.

Year 1 is the introduction to the National Curriculum but also builds on the goals and ethos of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It is a time when the children start to be aware and understand themselves as independent learners. They become more confident in all areas of school life and develop as individuals within a wider community. It is the first year that they wear full school uniform and take part as members of the School Parliament.

The children’s interest and pleasure in reading is developed as they begin learn to read confidently and independently. Pupils start to enjoy writing and see the value of it. They learn to communicate meaning in narrative and non-fiction texts and spell and punctuate correctly. In year 1 children learn to speak clearly, thinking about the needs of their listeners. They work in small groups and as a class, joining in discussions and making relevant points. This is particularly developed during their weekly Show and Tell sessions. They learn to use language in imaginative ways and express their ideas and feelings
when working in role, drama activities and assemblies.

The class develops their knowledge and understanding of mathematics through practical activity, exploration and discussion. They learn to count, read, write and order numbers. They develop a range of mental calculation skills and use these confidently in different settings.

During this year the class enjoy a creative curriculum which includes, History, Geography, Art, Design & Technology, RE, ICT and Science. The year also includes several trips to link with many areas of the curriculum, workshops and other activities to enrich their enjoyment of wider learning.

In Year 2 the children are beginning to be much more independent learners. They learn to discuss and evaluate their own work and become more responsible for their own learning through checking and editing.

In Numeracy they continue to learn to count, read, write and order numbers to 100 and beyond and round numbers to the nearest 10.  They develop their mental calculation skills to include knowing number bonds to 20, doubles to 10 + 10 and the corresponding halves.  Parents can also help so much with their first steps on the times table ladder by practising at home as well.  They learn to add and subtract two-digit numbers through various informal methods of calculation including partitioning and recombining tens and units.

In Writing the children learn to punctuate sentences with capital letters, full stops and question marks and begin to use commas in lists.  They write simple sentences using some prepositions and connectives that signal time and begin to use conjunctions to write compound sentences.  They start to make more interesting word choices and give detail to engage the reader’s interest. They learn to apply their knowledge of story elements such as setting, dialogue, characterisation, story language and structures, so that their own writing begins to ‘sound like a story’.  They practise handwriting in the cursive script and have weekly spelling tests.

Year 2 is a very exciting year for reading and the children make huge amounts of progress in their ability to read and understand longer and more complex texts.  Parents need to continue to read with their child every day but the focus begins to change to building reading comprehension.  Asking questions about what they have read, what has happened in the story, the characters, places and events and what they think will happen next, will all help the children to successfully complete written reading comprehensions at the end of Year 2.

Interesting history topics in Year 2 include learning about people who have blue plaques in the local area. In geography children learn about Sussex and visit Goodwood farm.  To tie in with our topic on ‘seaside holidays’ we all go on an end of year trip to the beach!

At the end of Year 2, the children will complete end of Key Stage 1 SATs assessments in Reading, Writing, Numeracy and Science.

Year 3 is an exciting and demanding year, as the children enter into Key stage 2. By this stage the children really begin to develop their thinking skills. To complete a piece of learning they may initially only be given the goal and work to decipher how to achieve it; Through the sharing of independent ideas, partner chats or group work they learn to develop their own success criteria.

Developing valuable problem solving life skills. The children are also more able to self and peers assess learning and offer positive feedback. They also spend more time editing and improving on what they initially produced, giving them a better understanding of topics and how to be successful in them.

With letters and home activities they are also encouraged to be more independent through the use of individual in-trays, which they take charge of emptying each day. This independence continues with reading. Reading journals are still used but they are completed more by the children, to develop their understanding and ability to form and express opinions on the texts they are enjoying.

The learning highlights of the year are numerous including a study of Roman Britain culminating in a themed Roman Day of learning, a mystery and adventure story literacy unit where the children turn authors and create thrilling stories for Key Stage 1. Learning about the Stone Age normally involves a lesson dissecting Stone Age man and woman’s poo!

In art the children produce wonderful mosaics for the whole school to enjoy with our visiting artist Adan Stanley. The children also produce metal sculptures in art and make exciting installations with them.

The science topic teeth and eating tends to enthral Y3 children as they find out more about the teeth they are currently loosing and growing and they also learn about teeth and growing.

The ultimate highlight for most children is planning and putting on a “Pop up Restaurant” for all of the children’s parents. It is a really fun night organised totally from start to finish by the children.

All this excitement is coupled with a strong foundation in developing key literacy, numeracy and social skills throughout the year.

During this academic year the children have a wide range of first hand experiences relating to key areas of the curriculum. We explore what it was like for children living in Victorian Britain, how attitudes towards children changed, and the people who are remembered for their part in these changes. This is brought to life with a fun packed Victorian Day in school, where the children experience just how strict the teachers were!

Another highlight in Year 5 is our trip to Osmington Bay. This is a physical geography visit looking at the amazing Jurassic Coast in Devon. While there the children experience a wide range of physical activities where they achieve more than they ever thought possible. They are encouraged to try new activities and really challenge themselves. The sense of pride at the end of each day is remarkable to observe and every child returns to school with a positive and determined attitude!

Year 5 is a year of independence. The children have greater responsibilities around the school and take a leading role in many aspects of school life. They are trusted to take their own initiative and solve problems as and when they occur. These may be in the classroom or when trying to support a younger member of the school. The children really live up to expectations and truly embrace this new level of trust and independence.

As a parent of a child in Year 5 it is important that you also promote independence at home. This may be with day to day chores, along with giving them more responsibility to remember homework tasks or to deliver key questions to the teacher without your support.