Learning at Little Heath Primary School starts with the child; our curriculum changes and develops to reflect this. It is our intention that the curriculum will be distinctive to each cohort, engaging the children’s curiosity so learning happens naturally.

Our curriculum will support children to become lifelong resilient learners with a positive attitude and the ability to work with others.

We will work in partnership with our families to support our children to grow as individuals and develop key skills such as independence and confidence.

We will have a clear focus on developing breadth in language and communication and physical skills. We will ensure children can communicate in a number of different ways with confidence.

We strive to use the outside environment as a key feature of our curriculum, and it is an expectation that all children will be physically active. The curriculum is planned with our Key Outcomes in mind and with the purpose of promoting excitement, awe and wonder. Within this, the opportunity for children to work in different groups and extend their relationships. Staff will plan learning activities matched to the children’s individual development and to help further and deepen children’s knowledge of the world around them.

We provide experiences such as external visits to the local church & fire station and visits from doctors, dentists and nurses. It is also important for us that learning is genuinely purposeful.

We know that children learn and develop well in enabling environments and so we will offer stimulating resources, rich learning opportunities through play and playful teaching, support and challenge for all. These include having opportunities to get messy and take calculated risks.

We intend to prepare children to reach the Early Learning Goals at the end of the Foundation Stage and ensure they make good progress from their starting points. We will support our children through their transition into KS1.

Our vision is that children will leave with the skills to be confident, successful and independent life-long learners with a thirst to be the best they can be.

Welcome to Year R - Oak

Our Year R Team consists of Miss Sherry, Mrs Barker and Ms Uddin

Miss Sherry

Hello My name is Miss Sherry and I teach Reception. My favourite things about teaching are seeing the children experience new things and watching them learn to read! In my free time I like to drink lots of tea and dance!

Mrs Barker

I have been working at Little Heath for the past 12 years and work in reception. I enjoy being able to help so many children on the start of their academic journeys.

Ms Uddin

Hello, my name is Miss Uddin and I am a teaching Assistant in Reception. I have been a member of Little Heath Primary School since April 2024. I enjoy working in Reception because I love to experience the immense joy of seeing the young children achieve small milestones within their learning and development and grow into well-rounded individuals.

• To identify grapheme-phoneme correspondences for single sounds and special friends in order to read words. 
• To develop confidence and engagement in purposeful talk. 
• To attend school as much as possible
• To develop effective learning behaviours.

At the start of Reception we complete an assessment called Baseline. This gives us an accurate picture of what the children can do at the start of their school journey. Further information can be found here: 

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1182374/2023_Information_for_parents_reception_baseline_assessment_WEBHO.pdf 

At the end of the year the children are assessed against the Early Learning Goals to see if the children have reached a Good Level of Development. 

Further information can be found here: 

https://www.familycorner.co.uk/parents-guide-early-years-foundation-stage-eyfs 

Phonics

Children begin to learn phonics as soon as they start Reception. See Early Reading and Phonics in the Key Information section of the school website for further information. 

Forming Letters

Alongside learning to recognise and read sounds, children also practise forming letters. We use phrases to help us remember accurate formation. 

P.E. Day: All children need their PE kit in school on a Tuesday. Our PE kit is plain white t-shirt, black shorts/leggings/jogging bottoms and black pumps.

Homework: We send activities home on a Thursday which is always linked to the learning covered during the week.

Reading Books:Once the children are at the stage of reading, parents will be sent a link to the reading book for their own child. This will give you access to an online reading book which follows our reading and phonics scheme RWInc. The children will read the same book in school. The children will also choose a library book on a weekly basis. The children visit the library on a Friday so they need to return the book they have and they can then choose a new book.

Thank you for visiting our Year R information page.

If you have any questions, please do come and speak to one of the Year R team. 

Many thanks,

Miss Sherry