Welcome to Key Stage 1

Key Stage 1

Welcome to Apple, Cherry and Pear Class. We have three mixed year 1 and year 2 classes at St Mary’s.  We love to ‘Enjoy, Excel and Explore’ and we strive to be brave change-makers to make a difference to the world we live in. We enjoy making connections with one another, within our partnership with St Helen’s (Alveston), with our past as we learn from those that have gone before us, with our local community and across different subjects to fully immerse ourselves in our learning.

Our values are at the core of what we do every day and we enjoy talking and learning about these during collective worship. During Term 5, our value is hope and in term 6, our value is perseverance.

Teachers:

Apple – Mrs Humphreys

Pear – Mrs Hill

Cherry – Mrs Dowding

Teaching Assistants:

Mrs Norris - all day

Mrs Prottey – all day

Mrs Shuttleworth – mornings

Mrs Lloyd - Afternoons

CLASS CURRICULUM  

Welcome to Apple, Cherry and Pear Class. We have three mixed year 1 and year 2 classes at St Mary’s.  We love to ‘Enjoy, Excel and Explore’ and we strive to be brave change-makers to make a difference to the world we live in. We enjoy making connections with one another, within our partnership with St Helen’s (Alveston), with our past as we learn from those that have gone before us, with our local community and across different subjects to fully immerse ourselves in our learning.

Our values are at the core of what we do every day and we enjoy talking and learning about these during collective worship. 

Autumn Term

During the Autumn Term, the children will be exploring the Big Question of ‘How can we help a person or animal who doesn’t have a home?’ whilst our Global Theme is Identity and Diversity. The children will compare similarities and differences between peoples in local setting and also in wider contexts and focus on what contributes to self-identity and belonging. Throughout this topic, our brave-change maker skills are empathy and managing change. This means the children will focus on talking about identity and diversity using an awareness of and concern for people’s feelings. The children will aim to demonstrate an interest in and concern for others outside their immediate circle and in a context different to their own. In addition, the children will describe feelings about changes in their own lives and locality.

During Term 1, the children will focus on self-identity and how to live a healthy lifestyle, including eating a balanced diet and investigating how to remove germs to have good hygiene. The children will learn about the human life cycle and how we change as we grow, describing differences between life stages. Following this, the children will create a timeline to order significant events in their own life and use historical terms such as ‘then’, ‘now’ and ‘past’ to make comparisons. Using maps, the children will go for a walk in the local area to find out what homes are like in our community, whilst learning about how homes have changed through history. The children will take pictures to observe and describe. During Art, the children will learn about print artists Ben Nicolson, Claude Flight and Paul Klee. They will create their own print to create homes and houses. 

As our mini product outcome at the end of Term 1, the children will lean to make bread, make harvest soup and contribute to whole school Harvest Festival. They will also create videos all about themselves using clips.

During Term 2, the children will identify what is a ‘need’ or a ‘want’ when it comes to a house. In addition, the children will explore how different homes are needed for different people’s needs, as well as the affordability of different homes. Following this, the children will learn about what it means to be homeless and investigate whether homelessness is the same or different across different cities in the UK, thinking about challenges they may face. The children will learn about how charity work can make a difference to help people to survive homelessness and find out about the interesting work of UWE Bristol architect students who have recently engaged with a competition to provide solutions. As a result, the children shall consider how we can make a difference as brave change-makers.

Throughout Term 1 and Term 2, In Science, children will be learning about animals including humans. They will investigate similarities and differences between animals and put animals into different groups. Children will learn about their senses and investigate questions such as Do people with big hands have big feet?

As our maxi product outcome at the end of Term 2, the children will share their nativity performance with a wider audience in the community, in addition to playing a key role in promoting the shoebox appeal to provide Christmas gifts to vulnerable children and families.

Spring Term

Connected Curriculum Terms 3 & 4 "Is it fair?"

During the Spring Term, the children will be exploring the Big Question of ‘Is it fair?’ whilst our Global Theme is Social Justice. Throughout this topic, our brave-change maker skills are communication and making decisions. Children will be able to participate in discussions that affect self, others and the wider world by stating opinions and starting to give reasons for these in addition to listening carefully to others. They will also develop their skills to communicate effectively to a range of audiences through writing and talking.

In Term 3 as geographers, we will be comparing Bristol to the capital city of Uganda which is Kampala.  We will explore geographical similarities and differences including climate and vegetation. We will additionally make comparisons between schooling in Africa and the UK. We will create a wish list to support schools in Africa and take part in an African drumming and dancing workshop. 

In Term 4, as historians, we will be exploring how children have been treated unfairly in the past, with a focus on the Victorian era.  We will focus on the schooling system, using Mary Carpenter and the Bristol Ragged schools reform to compare the rights of children.

Term 3 – Mini product will be an African dancing and drumming workshop.

Term 4 – Report about changes in the schooling system since the Victorian times.

You can also use class dojo to keep up to date with the learning taking place in your child’s classroom.

Summer Term (Overview)

During the Summer Term, the children will be exploring the Big Question of ‘How can human behaviour impact the environment?’ whilst our Global Theme is Sustainable Environmental Development. Throughout this topic, our brave-change maker skills are communication and making decisions. Children will be able to participate in discussions that affect self, others and the wider world by stating opinions and starting to give reasons for these in addition to listening carefully to others. They will also develop their skills to communicate effectively to a range of audiences through writing and talking.

In Term 5 as historians, we will be learning about when and how plastic was invented. We will be learning about the inventors John Wesley Hyatt and Leo Baekland and how several people are responsible for the invention of plastics. We will learn about how the material has been refined and adapted over time and the importance of plastic during WW2. Children will learn to identify the negative impact which plastics are having on the environment and the actions that individuals can take in order to reduce this. As a mini-product children will write a letter to their local MP about plastic pollution.

In Term 6  as geographers, we will be exploring and understanding maps. We will learn that maps contain symbols and show aerial views. Children will learn to make their own maps with keys and symbols. We will learn to use a compass to navigate and to recognise the compass points north, south, east and west. Children will compare maps of the locality and notice the human and physical changes which have happened over time. As field work skills, children will carry out a traffic and litter survey. As a final product, children will create a model of the local environment with changes to make a positive impact on the environment.

Term 5 – Mini product will be writing a letter to local MP about plastic pollution

Term 6 – To create a model which promotes a positive impact on our local environment.