Amethyst, Diamond & Emerald Blog - Friday 15th July 2022

 Happy Friday, everybody, and welcome to the last blog for this academic year! It seems incredible that we are already at the end of the year - it has flown by! We have all absolutely loved working with all your children this year and it has been a privilege to watch them grow, learn and flourish as the year has progressed. We are all sure that they will continue to be just as fabulous as they move on to being Year 2's and 3's!

Hot Weather Next Week

As I am sure you are all aware, the forecast for next week is for very high temperatures. Children will come into school on Monday as usual in their PE kit but if you wish, you may send your child into school in their PE kit on Tuesday and Wednesday as well as it might help them feel more comfortable during the day.

We will also be making some capacity for children to spend some time inside at lunch times if they wish to avoid becoming too overheated. Please ensure that children come to school each day with a sun hat, a bottle of cool water and sun cream already applied.

To help us all cool down, the fabulous PTA will be selling ice creams after school on Wednesday!

Book Collection

All children have had their reading diaries and reading books collected in this week. We will pass these on to their next class teacher so they are ready to be re-issued in September.

The children's school work books are all handed up also - current book and most recent completed book. These completed books are sent home after the October half term.

UNICEF Shoeshare Appeal

Just a reminder that on the last day of term we are collecting shoes in partnership with Unicef and Clarks, who will cleverly turn our old shoes into money that will help fulfill the rights of children around the world. You can send your child with a spare pair of shoes on the final day of this term so they can place their unwanted school shoes into our collection box. If you have any other unwanted pairs, you can send these in too. 

Our last collection total was 145 pairs of shoes - let's see if together we can smash this total!

Article 28 & 29: Every child has the right to an education.

HAVE A GREAT SUMMER HOLIDAY!!!

We will be available on our Key Stage 1 email up until Wednesday 20th July and then again from Thursday 1st September.

ks1@downhallprimary.com

Remember: children return to school on Monday 5th September.

All that remains is for everyone here in Key Stage 1 to wish you an amazing summer holiday. We would also like to give our heartfelt thanks for all your support and kind words over the year - it means so much to all of us!

Much love

Mrs Yuille, Miss Langley, Mrs O'Connor & Mr Jude

Amethyst, Diamond & Emerald Blog - Friday 8th July 2022

 Happy Friday, everybody, we hope you all had a lovely time at Sports Day today. It was so lovely seeing all the mums, dads, grandparents and other family members out together on the field for a picnic lunch and watching the children compete after such a long time! 

It is amazing to think that we are about to head into the last full week of school together!

Diary Dates

Saturday 9th July            -     PTA Summer Festival

Thursday 14th July         -    Open Evening 4-6pm

Wednesday 20th July      -    Last day of term         

UNICEF Shoeshare Appeal

Once again on the last day of term we are collecting shoes in partnership with Unicef and Clarks, who will cleverly turn our old shoes into money that will help fulfill the rights of children around the world. You can send your child with a spare pair of shoes on the final day of this term so they can place their unwanted school shoes into our collection box. If you have any other unwanted pairs, you can send these in too. If you want to get started early with a big shoe clear out, we will have a box ready to take them from Monday 11th July. Shoes must be in a wearable condition with no holes or broken soles and paired together with an elastic band. You can find out more about Shoeshare here:

UNICEF & CLARKS SHOESHARE APPEAL

Our last collection total was 145 pairs of shoes - let's see if together we can smash this total!

Article 28 & 29: Every child has the right to an education.

Open Evening

On Thursday 14th July from 4-6pm, parents and the wider community are invited to visit Down Hall for our Open Evening. This is an opportunity for you all to come in and see some of the work the children have done in school this year and look around their classroom. You can also visit other classes as well to see where your child will be working next year. We look forward to seeing you all!

Maths Homework

All the teachers in Key Stage 1 want to say a huge thank you to you all for your help and support with homework over the course of this year. It makes a huge impact in reinforcing all the concepts that we cover in class. We know that many of you are approaching the end of your homework books now so this week we are sending the homework books home but you do not need to hand them back in next week.

Instead, keep the books at home and use them as you see fit over the course of the holidays, whether that is to finish any last pages or review previous work ready for starting back in September.

As always, we are available on our Key Stage 1 email. However, we would encourage you to come and see us at the end of the day if there are any issues or questions that you have. Just come down the steps to see us!

ks1@downhallprimary.com

Have a beautiful weekend!

Lots of love

Mrs Yuille, Miss Langley, Mrs O'Connor & Mr Jude

Amethyst, Diamond & Emerald Class Blog - Friday 1st July 2022

 Happy Friday, everybody, we hope you are all keeping well. It has been an exciting time in Key Stage 1 with everyone meeting their new class teacher yesterday. There will be two more visits to new classes over the next two weeks to help everyone settle into their new environments happily.

Diary Dates

Friday 8th July                -    Sports Day

Saturday 9th July            -     PTA Summer Festival

Thursday 14th July         -    Open Evening 4-6pm

Wednesday 20th July      -    Last day of term         

PSHE - Changing Me

This half term in Personal, Social and Health Education we are learning about how to cope with change. This includes learning about change in ourselves as we grow from a baby to how we are now. It also includes a lesson next week in which we will be noting the differences between male and female bodies, using the correct terminology. This lesson is very much laying the foundations for future Relationships and Sex Education, which is now a statutory requirement to be taught in schools. We see this as a crucial part of Safeguarding our children and keeping them safe. We are planning to deliver this lesson on Tuesday 5th July.

Sports Day

On Friday 8th July we will be holding our Sports Day. Please see the letter on the website explaining the structure of the day.

Some key points to note:

• Sports Day begins for KS1 at 1:30pm.
• Children come to school on Friday in their PE kit but we would like your child to wear a colour t-shirt that matches their team colour: Brooklyn - Blue; Deepdene - Green; Hambro - Yellow; Teignmouth - Red.
• Parents can join their child for a picnic lunch which will be 12:00-1:15pm. Please ensure that you complete the slip on the Sport's Day letter (or put your intentions in writing) and collect your child from their classroom at 12:00pm as you would usually at the end of the day. The children will be collected from the field by their teacher at 1:15pm.

Maths Homework

This week we would like you to look at pages 66-67.

For both Year 1's and Year 2's this looks at describing position. Explore together all the language associated with position and direction such as behind, in front, left, right, between etc. Try explaining routes around the house or through the garden using all the different terms you can think of.

Don't forget to keep up all your fantastic efforts with your reading at home as well as either your phonics or comprehension homework books - it will make a huge impact on your child's reading development.

As always, we are available on our Key Stage 1 email. However, we would encourage you to come and see us at the end of the day if there are any issues or questions that you have. Just come down the steps to see us!

ks1@downhallprimary.com

Have a lovely weekend!

Best wishes

The Key Stage 1 Team