Welcome to Butterfly Class

Welcome to Butterfly class! My name is Mrs Turnlund and I am the class teacher. We also have the lovely Mrs Bullet who supports our learning. I am so excited for the year ahead, we will be doing lots of fun learning and playing together in our classrooms and outdoor area. We also do lots of playing with Ladybirds class as well, meaning that we will be making lots of new friends and having fun together.

How we learn...

Children learn through play in Reception, both inside and outside the classroom. We aim to encourage children to explore, experiment, question, take risks, make and learn from mistakes, and grow in confidence. We want the children to have fun and enjoy learning!

All children are supported in developing their potential at their own pace. By means of developmentally appropriate activities and adult support, each child achieves his / her potential. This sense of achievement is very important in a child’s learning: we believe it inspires them to want to learn more!

Reception is a vital time in which our children settle into school and are supported to become happy, confident, independent learners. We promote teaching and learning to ensure children’s ‘school readiness’ and provide children with the broad range of knowledge and skills that enables them to make good future progress.

The Reception curriculum encompasses seven areas of learning. All areas of learning and development are important and inter-connected.

The three Prime Areas which underpin all learning and skills are:

· Communication and Language

· Physical Development

· Personal, Social and Emotional Development.

The four Specific Areas, through which the three prime areas are strengthened and applied are:

· Literacy

· Mathematics

· Understanding the World

· Expressive Arts and Design

Our Christian Faith is important to us at Harrietsham, and we help the children learn in a way that is meaningful to them. We have weekly RE lessons in which we reflect on our Four Christian Values: Love; Faith; Forgiveness and Fellowship.

Betty the Butterfly:

We have a class mascot called Betty who loves to spend time with her new friends at the weekend and during school holidays! She comes with an overnight bag and diary, for you and your child to document photographs, drawings and writing about her weekend adventures! Your child will then get the opportunity to share their news on a Monday afternoon.

Useful Information Reading/Contact Books Your child will have a yellow reading/contact book, which needs to be in their book bag daily. This book is to record your child's reading progress. Children will be taking home a ‘Love to Read’ and ‘Learn to Read’ book each week. Sounds Books Every Friday we will send home the sounds we have been learning in Phonics throughout the week. This is a great opportunity for your child to practise recognising, reading and writing the sounds. You can even play word building games or “I Spy” to encourage your child to apply their skills.

School Dinners! Every child in Reception is entitled to a free school dinner! We enjoy eating our school dinners in the lunch hall with our friends!