Welcome to Reception
Our Reception consists of three attractive and engaging classrooms with a large communal central area, which provides a year group library, intervention space and a focused speech and language area. Throughout different times of the day, the children are able to free-flow between the indoor and outdoor areas to access a wide variety of both child-initiated and adult-led activities.
The Reception outdoor learning environment is large and purposeful for the children. It provides opportunities to extend the children’s learning through planned enhancements, aswell as developing provision alongside the children’s interests. In addition to learning within the indoor and outdoor classroom environment, all children within our Reception unit have access to weekly forest school sessions with trained Forest School experts in our own Forest School areas. Children also receive swimming lessons in the school’s swimming pool starting in the Autumn Term. This is a unique feature of Franche Early Years and the progress of pupils in this area is something we are extremely proud of. Children are encouraged to take risks and explore during their time in Reception and therefore truly embed the Characteristics of Effective Learning.
Key worker
Each child in EYFS has a Key Person who helps to ensure that your child is happy and their learning and care is tailored to meet their needs. In Reception your child's Key Person will be their class teacher. They will be the first port of call for any questions, queries involving your child’s learning. They will also support you as parents and/or carers, if needed, in guiding your child’s development at home and to engage with more specialist support, if appropriate. Key workers will regularly share updates, queries, concerns and achievements; celebrating your child’s successes within the setting.
What learning looks like in Reception
Each area of learning and development is implemented through a mix of taught sessions, adult-led groups and planned, purposeful child-initiated activities. In Reception, Phonics, English, Mathematics and Transcription time are taught on a daily basis with knowledge and skills further embedded through adult led focus groups and planned enhancements.
Within our EYFS departments ‘teaching’ is in every activity and enhancement provided, there are no activities that occur in the settings that are not considered opportunities for teaching and learning. Practitioners respond to each child’s needs and interests, guiding their development through warm, positive, high quality interactions. Due to our school context, we have a language rich curriculum supported by visual resources and strategies for learning, and using, new language and concepts.
The building blocks for future learning
For more information about how Early Years prepares children with the foundation blocks to access the National Curriculum, please look at our faculty curriculum documents on each of the Faculty pages within the website.
The Early Years team have worked closely with the faculty teams to ensure that whilst following the Early Years Statutory Framework, covering the 7 areas of learning, we also ensure and deliver a coherently planned and sequenced curriculum for each faculty.
The importance of language development
At Franche we recognise that language is central to all development. We therefore ensure that it is at the forefront of all our provision across Early Years through our planning, teaching, environment and high quality interactions. Our progressive planning includes a well thought out variety of age appropriate texts, poetry, rhymes and topic based vocabulary (star and shooting star words). Throughout the day we include opportunities for daily stories, rhymes, phonics sessions and concept cat. We work closely with our on site SALT team to ensure a that the needs of all of our children are met through high quality interactions, a language rich environment and targeted interventions. SALT work closely with a highly trained member of staff who works full time to delivering targeted Speech and Language and SEND interventions within Reception.
Please click the link below to be directed to the Speech and Language and Oracy page on the school website:
Look out for:
- Our weekly topic text. This will be on our newsletter along with a link to an audio version to share with your child at home.
- Our half termly poem and rhyme which will be uploaded on the school's Facebook page
- Our topic vocabulary (star words and shooting star words) This will be on our Long term curriculum document and weekly sway newsletter.
- Parent workshops
Phonics and Early Reading in Reception
At Franche we follow The Little Wandle Phonics scheme.
What is Phonics?
What is Phonics?
Phonics is a way of teaching children how to read and write. It helps children hear, identify and use different sounds that distinguish one word from another in the English language.
Written language can be compared to a code, so knowing the sounds of individual letters and how those letters sound when they’re combined will help children decode words as they read.
Understanding phonics will also help children know which letters to use when they are writing words.
Written language can be compared to a code, so knowing the sounds of individual letters and how those letters sound when they’re combined will help children decode words as they read.
Understanding phonics will also help children know which letters to use when they are writing words.
Synthetic phonics
The teaching of reading in which phonemes (sounds) associated with particular graphemes (letters) are pronounced in isolation and blended together (synthesised).
Teaching children to blend the sounds of letters together helps them decode unfamiliar or unknown words by sounding them out. For example, when a child is taught the sounds for the letters t, p, a and s, they can start to build up the words: “tap”, “taps”, “pat”, “pats” and “sat”.
Teaching children to blend the sounds of letters together helps them decode unfamiliar or unknown words by sounding them out. For example, when a child is taught the sounds for the letters t, p, a and s, they can start to build up the words: “tap”, “taps”, “pat”, “pats” and “sat”.
In Reception we timetable daily phonics sessions alongside planned time to develop listening and attention skills.
The children also apply their phonics knowledge through guided reading sessions, pre-planned opportunities in the environment, visits to the library, parent reading mornings, class reading area, variety of texts and through other cross-curricular and topic based work.
For more information about how we teach Phonics at Franche, the Little Wandle scheme, our Reception overview and to download our Reception parent workshop presentation, please click the link below to visit the Phonics page on our school website.
Please also look out for:
- Our weekly phonics sounds : The overview is on the school website. The sounds of the week will also be on the newsletter/home reading book
- Phonics information and resources. You will find these on our school website (please see below)
- Home learning ideas to support phonics at home. These can be found on the school website
- Our phonics workshops. An introduction to phonics, phase 2, phase 3/4. Dates will be sent out via parent mail
- Home reading book: Each week your child will have a new home reading book.
READING:
At Franche Primary School we value Early Reading and recognise it’s importance in children’s development. In Reception we teach children to read through reading practice sessions three times a week. These:
- are taught by a fully trained adult to small groups of approximately six children
- use books matched to the children’s secure phonic knowledge using the Little Wandle Phonics scheme assessments and teacher judgements.
- are monitored by the class teacher, who rotates and works with each group on a regular basis.
Each reading practice session has a clear focus, so that the demands of the session do not overload the children’s working memory. The reading practice sessions have been designed to focus on three key reading skills:
- decoding: word reading
- prosody: teaching children to read with understanding and expression
- comprehension: teaching children to understand the text.
As well as Reading Practice sessions, each child reads with an adult once per week.
READING FOR PLEASURE:
On a daily basis at Franche we understand the building blocks for children to become immersed in a world of reading for pleasure:
- We have daily story time sessions using carefully chosen books that reflect the children at Franche Primary School and our local community as well as books that open windows to other cultures
- Every classroom has an inviting book corner that encourages a love for reading. We curate these books and talk about them to entice children to explore a wide range of books. Pupils are also exposed to these books in areas around the classroom to show that reading is not just for the reading corner.
- Children have a home reading record. The parent/carer records when they have read with their child to ensure communication between home and school. Reading records are checked every Monday and 5 dojos are given if they have read 5 times in the week.
- Our Reception garden has a reading shed where children can curl up with a book of their choice and even a reading buddy.
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Access to our very own Reception library in our shared central area.
- Visits from our local library
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Our Star of the Week Bears, choose two books for children to take home and read with over the weekend.
- Borrow Boxes are available at Parent Reading Mornings. Children can ‘borrow’ a book of their from the box to take home and enjoy with their grown ups at home. This can then be returned and changed for a different book.
- A Reception reading spine has been created alongside Nursery. On the reading spine, there are a wide range of multi-diverse texts, Pie Corbett texts and poetry that will be read to and performed by the children throughout the year as well as topic texts.
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Parent Reading Mornings take place every Wednesday morning where parents are invited in to share a book with their child and explore the planned focus for the session together.
For more information about how Reading at Franche click the link below to visit the reading page on our school website.
Please also look out for:
- Home reading book: Each week your child will have a new home reading book.
- Reading morning with parents. Information about your weekly slot will be on your newsletter
- Borrow boxes. You can borrow books from your child's classroom and year band library
- Our half termly poetry performance. This will be on the school Facebook page.
- Our interactive reading events Information will be on your newsletter
Writing in Reception
On a daily basis at Franche we understand the building blocks for children to become superstar writers:
- we prioritise opportunities for children to communicate; to speak, to listen, to be spoken with, and listened to throughout the day. Ensuring that these interactions are of a high quality, providing children with time to think and respond. These opportunities for conversation and communication are focussed on things the children are interested in and on the introduction of new, engaging objects, ideas and themes that will enhance children’s vocabularies. Children have opportunities to be included in one to one and group conversations with both children and adults.
- Incorporate pre-panned and child led writing opportunities across the provision providing children with the opportunity to include writing for a purpose in their play, and to engage in writing/drawing/mark-making throughout the learning environment.
- Incorporate fine motor opportunities in the provision providing children the opportunity to develop their muscle strength and co-ordination to be able to hold a pencil correctly and form letters correctly.
- Ensure that story times are planned for, prioritised and a valued time of the day, where children have the opportunity and time to be immersed in a broad range of high-quality texts.
- Plan daily opportunities for children to see writing modelled and used for a purpose, for example writing a list of the children’s ideas.
- Plan and deliver transcription time focusing on forming letters correctly and developing fluency, caption and sentence writing, over time.
- Targeted group time where we work with small groups of children to complete guided or independent writing.
- Encourage children to use the correct pencil grip by modelling picking up the pencil and pen correctly whilst reciting 'Nip, flip, grip'
- Notice, acknowledge and praise children’s engagement with drawing, writing, and mark-making materials. Provide constructive positive feedback, which describes what they’ve done. Across school we celebrate our 'Handwriting Heroes".
For more information about how we teach writing at Franche please click the link below to visit the writing page on our school website.
Please also look out for:
- Writing information and resources. You will find these on our school website (please see below)
- Little wandle letter formation phrases to help with letter formation.
- Letter formation sheets. These can be found on the school website
- Our writing workshops. Dates will be sent out via parent mail
- Writing competitions. These will be sent out via parent mail
- Spelling shed. You can access this at home with your child
Maths in Reception
In Reception, at Franche, children need to 'develop a strong grounding in number' in order for children to develop the 'building blocks' needed for them to 'excel mathematically'.
Our mastering number sessions focus on developing a deep understanding of numbers to 10; including composition and pattern. Children are encouraged to become mathematically observant, look for relationships, make connections with prior learning and communicate their mathematical ideas.
Through our creative curriculum, we engage pupils from an early age with mathematics, immersing them in their learning. We use stories, concrete apparatus and pictures to support our teaching and to build children’s mathematical vocabulary. Adults working within our early year’s unit, understand and observe each child’s development, assessing and planning next steps that cater to each individual. Children are taught through whole class sessions, focused adult led groups, number of the week, incidental opportunities (transition times) as well as high quality, planned opportunities for children to explore maths through play. Enhancements during continuous provision provide children the opportunities to build up their knowledge and apply what they have learned using manipulatives, such as conkers and tens frames for organising counting. Practitioners create a supportive learning environment, encouraging children to 'have a go', talk to adults and their peers about the things they notice, and to not be concerned about making mistakes.
For more information about how we teach Mathematics at Franche please click the link below to visit the Mathematics page on our school website.
WEBSITE PAGE: Mathematics at Franche
Please also look out for:
- Writing information and resources. You will find these on our school website (please see below)
- Phonics numonics to help with letter formation.
- Number formation sheets. These can be found on the school website
- Our parent workshops. Dates will be sent out via parent mail
- Mathematics competitions. These will be sent out via parent mail
- Numbots. You can access this at home with your child
Exciting and enriching experiences and opportunities to enhance our curriculum offer
In Reception we offer a wide range of opportunities and experiences. The majority of these experiences are pre-planned as part of our long term curriculum offer. Due to our extensive grounds and facilities we are also lucky to be able to offer weekly forest school sessions and swimming lessons in our on site swimming pool.
Below are some examples of experiences and opportunities:
- Our school facilities including trim trail, wellbeing garden, forest school, swimming pool
- Qualified staff leading specific sessions including forest school, music, 'teaching children to listen', P.E
- Lunch clubs e.g KIXX (football club)
- School trips e.g farm
- Visitors into school e.g animal man, story teller, police, fireman
- Links with the local library for story and rhyme events in school
- cooking/baking
- Visits to our local church
- Visits from members of the community
- Local walks
Look out for updates about events and experiences via parent mail. We also share lots of exciting things the children have been up to via our weekly newsletter, and Facebook page.
Reception's Forest school sessions for Spring are on a Tuesday afternoon. Please read your weekly newsletter to find out when your child's class has forest school.
Parental engagement
We recognise that children settle, learn and develop best when there is a strong partnership and effective communication between practitioners and parents and/or carers. Within Franche Community Primary School Early Years this is a key priority and area of strength. Parents are considered a valuable stake holder in their child’s education.
Throughout the year, we offer many opportunities for parents to be involved in their child’s learning. This involves parent workshops, harvest and Christmas performances and even class museums! We have an open-door policy where teachers are available for parents to come and talk to us, so if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to come and speak to a member of the Reception Team.
- Look out for The weekly Pre-school newsletter, which lets you know what your child has been learning this week.
- Our school website and Facebook page
- Reading mornings. Dates and times will be shared via the weekly newsletter
- Up and coming parent workshops. These will be sent via parent mail
- Up and coming special events e.g nativity. These will be sent via parent mail and dates will be added to the school calendar
How to support your child at home
Below are some links to help you support your child at home.
For more subject specific information and parental links please go to the faculty pages e.g 'writing' on our school website.
Here are some other contacts that you may find useful:
SEND SCHOOL WEBSITE: Franche Community Primary School - SEND Provision
SAFEGUARDING SCHOOL WEBSITE: Franche Community Primary School - Safeguarding
SUPPORTING FAMILIES AND WELLBEING SCHOOL WEBSITE: Franche Community Primary School - Supporting Families & Wellbeing
Health Visitor Telephone Advisory Service -Mon—Fri 9.00am—1.00pm: 01905 520 032
Your local Starting Well Family Hub - www.startingwellworcs.nhs.uk/familyhubs/
Speech and Language resources - www.hacw.nhs.uk/childrens-speech-and-language-resources
Toileting Advice—ERIC website www.eric.org.uk
Sleep Support - Cerebra— www.cerebra.org.uk
The Sleep Charity— www.thesleepcharity.org.uk
Joining Reception
We know that starting school can be a daunting experience for both parents and children. At Franche we pride ourselves in implementing a carefully planned, transition programme to support all children to settle within EYFS. However, we recognise every child as being a unique child and we will tailor our approach, when agreed through discussions with staff and parents, to meet the needs of individual children.
If your child is joining us in September please take a look at the following documents to help you support your child to be school ready: