Dear Parent/Guardian,

Primary 1 are continuing to settle well into school life and have made lots of new friends. Day by day, the boys and girls are becoming increasingly more confident and familiar with the routines of the class and the wider school.

Welcome back to our primary 2 children who have settled well and are helping their new P1 friends learn the rules and routines of the class.

We are all very excited for a fun year of learning here at St. Brendan’s. All the children looked so smart starting the school year and with your support we know this will continue. This term with your help we aim to ensure your child achieves their full potential in all aspects of learning.

Here is a brief overview of the learning which will be taking place in our primary 2/1 class during term one.

Literacy

Primary 1 children will follow North Lanarkshire’s Active Literacy programme for spelling, phonics and reading.

Primary One will be introduced to the initial sounds through a multi-sensory approach. Two sounds will be introduced each week alongside three common words. Children will be learning to recognise and write initial sounds and begin to blend sounds together and read three letter words.

We will be coordinating our handwriting with the sounds we are learning. Children will use whiteboards in class along with other kinaesthetic and visual materials to practise letter formation and early writing patterns, these will include playdough, shaving foam, sand and chalk boards.

Children will receive two reading books each week. (Monday and Wednesday) These books give you an opportunity for you and your child to enjoy reading together. You can help your child by talking about the pictures in the book, to help find clues about the story and its characters, and also encourage them to make predictions about what may happen next in the story.  The reading books are an essential part of our everyday classwork, therefore we ask that you ensure your child comes to school every day with their reading book.

Primary 2 children will also follow North Lanarkshire’s Active Literacy programme for spelling, phonics and reading. We will be revising all phonemes taught in Primary 1 and will then move on to learn new phonemes (ay, ea, ow, ue). Children will be introduced to the phonemes through a multi-sensory approach. One phoneme will be introduced each week alongside four spelling words. Primary 2 children will now only receive one reading book per week. Please ensure that your child brings their reading book to school everyday.

Numeracy

Primary One will be focusing on numbers 0-10 this term. We will be learning to recognise, count, write and form these numbers properly.

Numeracy is taught actively here at St. Brendan’s through stories, games, number rhymes and songs. The children will also be developing the ability to recognise, sequence and write numbers to 20, while exploring numbers before/ after/ in-between/ largest/ smallest.

You can help at home by practising numbers (counting forwards and backwards, missing numbers out when counting and asking your child to tell you which number is missing etc…) and reinforcing the above vocabulary

Primary Two will be focusing on numbers to 100 this Term. They will be learning to read, write and order whole numbers to 100 and learning about the value of the digits within each number.

IDL

This term we will begin by exploring traditional tales, looking closely at ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’.  Throughout this context we will be encouraging the children to develop their listening skills as well as building confidence in the rules and routines of the school and classroom.  The children will have opportunities to explore and develop their emergent literacy skills, number formation and counting skills, creativity and ICT skills.

The children will also be learning to make decisions and encouraged to take responsibility for their own learning and play, allowing them to become more independent. These learning experiences will provide the children with the opportunity to work alongside others, promoting teamwork and problem solving skills.

Health & Wellbeing

PE this term will be on a Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning. The children will be working on a ‘Mini Athletics’ programme, which will include running, jumping, throwing and catching. Primary 2/1 will also be working with P.E students from Motherwell college during their Tuesday P.E session and they will be developing a range of skills and techniques.

You can help your child by encouraging them to change and dress themselves at home, this includes fastening and undoing buttons on shirts and trousers/skirts. This will allow the children to be independent and confident individuals within the school environment.

R.E.

In R.E. we will be learning about the Bible and how to treat it with reverence. We will be listening to stories from the Old and New Testament as well as learning and taking part in our daily prayers. We will also be learning about Those who care for us and looking at both our families and the wider community and how we are supported.

Thank you for your support.

If you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me.

Mrs Shaw