Canterbury Cross Primary School 
Where Bright Futures Begin'

This week the children have focussed on directions and positions for Maths. They've learnt about left and right, different turns including half, full and quarter turns and above and below. They have been using positional language throughout the week - even during their playtimes!

During Literacy we are continuing to learn about stories from other cultures. They listened to, explored and written about the African tale Mama Panya's Pancakes. They have shown great interest in learning more about the African culture. 

For Science the children have planted their own cress seeds this week. They were so excited to get planting and will be completing a plant diary over the next few weeks - observing the growth of the cress plant, whilst taking care of it weekly.

The children have come back to a good start. For maths they were looking at repeating patterns using 3D shapes and making their own patterns. For literacy they have started learning about stories from other cultures. 

During Art this week the children made 3D insect sculptures using salt dough. We must say they have been super creative and really showed off their artistic flair!

The children have been in festive spirits this week! They've loved watching Reception's nativity assembly and joined in with the songs they remembered from last year! They indulged in a fabulous Christmas lunch, dressed up for an afternoon of Christmas activities, designed and competed in our Christmas hats competition and loved their visits from jolly staff members dressed up in Christmas inflatable outfits! 

This week the children have had assessments in reading, writing, arithmetic and reasoning. They have also had assessments in spellings and grammar.  We are proud of their efforts and they have shown courage and belief.

The children have also made houses in design and technology this week. They planned their homes, tested materials to use and decorated their homes in groups. They have created moving mechanisms like doors for their houses. Again they have worked fantastically and very creatively. Well done Year 1! 

This week in Literacy the children continues to look at features of a non-fiction text and continued an information text with their own facts. In Maths we looked at money and the children were able to recognise the different coins and notes we use. This week as part of our Science topic, we carried out an investigation to find out which material would be most suitable for a curtain. The children made predictions, recorded their findings and concluded their result.

This week in Literacy the children wrote the middle and end of their own version of a traditional tale and had a go at editing their own writing. In Maths we looked at number bonds to 20 and compared addition and subtraction number sentences using symbols. This week as part of our Science topic, we carried out an investigation to find out which material would be most suitable for a coat. The children made predictions, recorded their findings and concluded their result.

This week in Literacy the children focused on writing descriptive sentences about a character from a familiar story. In Maths we learnt how to read addition word problems and create our own number sentences. This week as part of our learning around Mental health and wellbeing, the children talked about what makes us happy and how our positive interactions can impact others. 

This week we started our traditional tales topic in Literacy and the children wrote their own retell of the 'Three Billy Goats Gruff' story. In Maths we learnt how to order numbers using smallest/largest and we looked at ordinal numbers. In Science the children enjoyed exploring everyday materials and their properties. 

This week the children have been practising basic skills in Literacy. We have looked at writing simple sentences remembering to use capital letters, finger spaces and full stops. In Maths we have looked at place value and practised counting forwards, number formation and writing numerals in words. Well done Year 1!
 

The children explored money and learnt how to count amounts using coins and notes in Maths. In Literacy we looked at stories from different cultures and looked at similarities and differences. 1A showed courage and confidence this week in their class assembly all about special places. This week in Art we completed our sculptures and decorated them. 

The children looked at 2D shapes and created their own repeating patterns in Maths. In Literacy we wrote a recount of 'Lost and Found' using time words and writing in the third person. In Geography this week we carried out fieldwork to measure different areas of our school grounds. 

The children completed a variety of maths puzzles linked to addition and subtraction facts and completed a 100 number square. They recognised the operation each time and used different strategies to solve the problem.

This week in Literacy the children have began to write their own information text about Penguins. In Maths we looked at 2D shapes and how to sort them in different ways. This week as part of our Art topic, we created a standing sculpture using recycled materials. 

The children have shown good spirits in learning this week.

For literacy we have started looking at non-fiction texts and children have identified features of these.

For Maths we have recapped comparing addition and subtraction statements using more than, less than and equal to.

During ICT the children thoroughly enjoyed bringing their space race rocket projects to life by creating their own algorithms using the scratch junior app. They really showcased their talents and enjoyed this topic thoroughly.

This week the children have planned and begun writing an edited version of the traditional tale 'The Little Red Hen'. During maths the children have worked on subtracting numbers and finding fact families. They have used careful counting and number squares to support them. All children have also began planning a space race rocket adventure for ICT where they have had to think of algorithms for their rockets. Next week they will bring their space race project to life.

The children have been writing character and setting descriptions using adjectives this week from famous traditional tales.

In Maths the children have been working on their number bonds and looking at systematic patterns within them. They have also had a chance to participate in an excellent African dance workshop this week and learnt all about Black History Month.

The children have continued to make a brilliant start to the year. We are so proud of them already! In maths this week they have been using number lines and number squares to count forwards and backwards and add missing numbers. During literacy they have been editing descriptive sentences. In PE they are working at becoming brilliant dancers and have been creating some pirate dance sequences!

This week we have been learning the importance of building good relationships with our peers.