Poppy Class
Years 1 and 2
Meet the Poppy Class Team
- Mrs Cooke
- Mrs Weston
- Mr Madeley
We are really excited to be teaching your children in Poppy class, and are looking forward to making lots of wonderful memories together.
Key Information
Communication
Key messages for parents will be communicated via Class Dojo. Copies of letters are sent out to parents via emails.
Your messages to us
Class Dojo (Staff aim to respond within 2 working days)
Call the office if a more urgent message needs to be passed on or you can make an appointment to talk in detail if required.
Snack Time
Fresh fruit always available.
Bring a healthy snack from home if you wish.
Please chop olives/grapes length ways.
No Nuts – please have a look at packaging carefully.
Toast/Bagel options for morning break – pay Lucy in the office for each half term (cash only).
PE
PE lessons are on Monday and Friday afternoons.
On these days, the children need to come into school with their full PE kit on, earrings taken out, and hair tied back. When Mrs Cooke has planning time on Friday afternoons, the children will be having PE with our special sports coach Mr Cooper and Forest School with Mr Madeley.
Homework and Spellings
The children will be given homework every Friday, which is due back in on the following Wednesday. This will often include a piece of maths homework linked to learning in class. The children will also receive spellings investigations, as part of their weekly homework. Please do support us by working with your child to complete this.
You could even try these websites to support with spellings further…
Spelling – KS1 English – BBC Bitesize
Little Bird Spelling || Practise spelling Common Exception Words
Words and Spelling, English Games for 5-7 Years – Topmarks
Alongside this, some children may bring home a ‘Phonics Home Learning’ sheet and a ‘Phonics Folder’ containing tricky words, sound mats and blending cards to try. These folders will include instructions on how you can support your child at home. New words will be added from time to time.
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Reading
Please send reading bags into school every day, with your child’s reading books and reading record. Reading books are changed once a week.
Supporting your child with reading
Although your child will be taught to read at school, you can have a huge impact on their reading journey by continuing their practice at home. There are two types of reading book that your child may bring home.
- A phonics reading book; this will be at the correct phonic stage for your child, and they should be able to read this fluently and independently.
- A sharing book; your child will not be able to read this on their own, and is for both of you to read and enjoy together.
Phonics Reading book (Changed on a Thursday)
This book has been carefully matched to your child’s current reading level. If your child is reading it with little help, please don’t worry that it’s too easy, as your child needs to develop fluency and confidence in reading. Listen to them read the book. Remember to give them lots of praise and celebrate their success! If they can’t read a word, read it to them. After they have finished, talk about the book together.
Sharing book (changed on a Friday)
In order to encourage your child to become a lifelong reader, it is important that they learn to read for pleasure. The sharing book is a book they have chosen for you to enjoy together. Please remember that you shouldn’t expect your child to read this alone. Read it to or with them. Discuss the pictures, enjoy the story, predict what might happen next, use different voices for the characters, explore the facts in a non-fiction book. The main thing is that you have fun!
Autumn Term 2026
This autumn, Poppy Class will enjoy a wide range of learning experiences. Below is an outline of what we’ll be covering.
Phonics and Writing
Many of the children in Poppy class will be participating in daily phonics lessons to support their decoding and blending skills. Please support your child to practise and reinforce the phonemes and graphemes we are learning in school by using the ‘Phonics Home Learning’ sheets. More information and support can be found on the Little Wandle website –
https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents/
Children will build on their knowledge of how we construct an accurate sentence. The main focus will be on using a capital letter, full stop and finger spaces. To support our writing, we will have handwriting lessons to learn correct letter formation. We build spelling knowledge by applying our taught sounds and spelling rules in Phonics and putting these into words and sentences.
English Key Texts – Autumn Term
| Cave Baby (sentence skills) Naughty Bus (narrative) | Dear Earth (information leaflet) Astro Girl (fact file) |
Maths – Autumn Term
Year 1
This autumn, Year 1 pupils will develop their understanding of place value and addition and subtraction through the White Rose Maths scheme. Children will explore numbers within 10 before extending their knowledge to numbers within 20. They will learn to count forwards and backwards, compare and order numbers, recognise number bonds, and understand the value of each digit. Using practical resources, pictorial representations and mathematical reasoning, pupils will build confidence in adding and subtracting within 10, explaining their thinking and solving a range of real-life problems.
Year 2
During the autumn term, Year 2 pupils will deepen their understanding of place value and addition and subtraction. They will work with numbers to 100, developing fluency in counting, partitioning, comparing and ordering numbers, and recognising the value of tens and ones. Children will use a range of practical resources and representations to strengthen their understanding before applying efficient written and mental methods for addition and subtraction. They will solve increasingly challenging problems, explain their reasoning, and make connections between different mathematical concepts to develop confidence and accuracy.
In addition, the children in Year 1 and 2 have daily maths fluency sessions. These sessions help children become confident and comfortable with numbers. Using the NCETM approach, children practise key skills little and often, building speed and accuracy in a supportive way. Lessons include practical equipment, clear visual models, and plenty of talk so children can explain their ideas and learn from mistakes. This helps children develop strong number skills and a positive attitude towards maths.
TT Rockstars
Children in Year 1 and 2 have access to TT Rockstars. Their usernames and passwords can be found at the front of their reading record.
Click the website link below to access:
Home – Times Tables Rock Stars
Autumn Wider Curriculum 2026
Geography – Our Wonderful World – This essential skills and knowledge project teaches children about physical and human features, maps, cardinal compass points, and positional and directional language. They learn about the equator, hemispheres and continents and are introduced to the countries, capital cities and settlements of the United Kingdom. The children carry out simple fieldwork to find out about local physical and human features.
History – School Day – This project teaches children about their own school and locality, both today and in the past. They compare schooling in the Victorian era to their experiences today. We will also visit the Black Country Museum on 2nd December.
Science – Habitats and Human Survival
RE – Who Made the World? (Creation) and Why Does Christmas Matter to Christians? (Incarnation)
PSHE – Being In My World and Celebrating Differences
Music – Questions and Answers and Let’s Start Singing
PE – Multi-Skills
Computing – E-Safety and Basic Skills
DT – Remarkable Recipes – This project teaches children about sources of food and tools used for food preparation. They also discover why some foods are cooked and learn to read a simple recipe. The children choose and make a new school meal that fulfils specific design criteria.
Art – Exploring Colours – This project teaches children about colour theory by studying the colour wheel and colour mixing. It includes an exploration of primary and secondary colours, hues and how artists use colour in their artwork.
📚 How Can Parents Support Learning at Home?
- Reading together every day is one of the most effective things—this can include storybooks, comics, or even signs and labels, helping build confidence and vocabulary.
- Practising phonics (sounding out words) and simple spelling games can strengthen early literacy skills.
- For maths, parents can use real-life situations like counting coins, telling the time, measuring ingredients while cooking, or spotting numbers outdoors to make learning meaningful.
- Creative activities such as drawing, building, and role play also support imagination and problem-solving.
- Encouraging children to ask questions, talk about their day, and explain their thinking helps develop communication skills.
Websites such as BBC Bitesize, Topmarks and Phonics Play are excellent free ways for your child to embed skills at home too.
Primary resources, homework help and online games – BBC Bitesize
https://www.phonicsplay.co.uk/
Thank you
Thank you to all our parents and carers for your continued support. Your encouragement at home, involvement in school activities, and partnership in your child’s learning make a tremendous difference.
Please do get in touch if you require further information.
The Poppy Class Team