Reception – Fir Class

Inspiring Excellence. Empowering Every Child.

WELCOME TO RECEPTION

A warm welcome to Reception. This page gives families a clear overview of the adults who support the class, our shared values, the daily timetable and the ambitious curriculum children will experience during 2026-2027. We want every child to feel known, included and excited to learn, while developing the knowledge, fluency and independence needed for the next stage of education.

Our class team

Our values in action

Our values shape how we learn, work and treat one another every day:

• Excellence: trying our best and taking pride in improvement.
• Empathy: listening, understanding and showing care.
• Equality: ensuring everyone belongs and can participate.
• Creativity: thinking imaginatively and exploring possibilities.
• Integrity: being honest, responsible and fair.

What we learn in Reception

• Personal, Social and Emotional Development: self-regulation, relationships, perseverance and independence.
• Physical Development: strength, coordination, safe movement and increasingly precise use of pencils, scissors and tools.
• Communication and Language: attentive listening, questions, explanations and well-formed sentences.
• Literacy: Read Write Inc. Phonics, matched books, Kinetic Letters, labels, captions and simple sentences.
• Mathematics: composition to 10, number bonds, comparison, doubles, odd and even numbers, equal groups and reasoning.
• Understanding the World: past and present, environments, communities, seasons, growth and natural processes.
• Expressive Arts and Design: creating, adapting, performing and selecting materials purposefully.

English: reading, writing and oracy

Writing focus: Sounds, letters and simple sentences. Across the year, pupils work towards meaningful captions and short sentences. Talk Before You Write helps pupils think, talk, rehearse, improve, write and reflect before and during composition.

Reading is prioritised every day. In Reception, systematic Read Write Inc. Phonics supports accurate decoding and fluency. Daily story time and rich classroom talk build vocabulary, knowledge and reading for pleasure.

Mathematics

In Reception, pupils secure early number, subitising, composition and mathematical language through practical exploration. Teaching uses small steps, clear representations, precise vocabulary, guided practice, retrieval and same-day support so gaps are addressed quickly without lowering ambition.

Science

• Animal adventures
• Changing seasons
• I am a scientist
• Our beautiful planet

Pupils ask questions, observe, measure, classify, record, analyse and explain with increasing independence. Practical work always has a clear scientific purpose.

Geography

• Exploring maps
• Outdoor adventures
• Around the world

Pupils develop locational and place knowledge, mapping, fieldwork and geographical enquiry, with meaningful links to Longlands, Market Drayton and the wider world.

History

• Peek into the past
• Adventures through time
• Local stories and significant places

Pupils build chronology and use evidence to explore change, cause, consequence, similarity, difference and significance. Local history links make learning tangible.

Religious Education and Worldviews

• Belonging and being special
• Christmas and special times
• God as Creator and the world
• Easter and new life
• Special places
• Special stories

Pupils make sense of beliefs, understand how beliefs influence people and make thoughtful connections between religious and non-religious worldviews.

Art and Design

• Marvellous marks
• Paint my world
• Creation station
• Let’s get crafty

Children generate ideas, develop practical techniques, learn about artists and designers, and evaluate and refine their work.

Design and Technology

• Junk modelling
• Soup
• Bookmarks
• Boats
• Seasonal projects

Pupils research, design, make and evaluate purposeful products, drawing on structures, mechanisms, textiles, cooking and nutrition, electrical systems and digital design as appropriate.

PSHE and Health Education

Recognising feelings, building positive relationships, developing independence, healthy habits and safe routines.

Speaking, listening and oracy

Pupils learn to listen attentively, ask and answer questions, explain ideas in full sentences, retell experiences and rehearse a complete sentence before writing. Every child is expected to think, rehearse and contribute through routines such as Turn and Talk, Wait Time, Cold Call and choral response.

Working with families

• Read with your child regularly and talk about unfamiliar vocabulary.
• Ask your child to explain what they are learning and how it connects to earlier learning.
• Support regular attendance, punctuality and readiness to learn.
• Check school communications for current texts, visits, homework and class events.
• Speak with the class teacher if you would like to discuss learning, support or wellbeing.

Curriculum note: class learning may be adapted in response to assessment, while preserving the intended year-group ambition and statutory entitlement.