Reception

Be kind. Show respect. Aim High.

Welcome to Reception Class.

Your teachers are Mrs Stokley, Miss Swinbank, Mrs Haynes, Mrs Gilden and Mrs Rose. 

Welcome to your child's first year at school!

Every morning, we enjoy a 'Magic Breakfast' of toast and bagels.  In the afternoon, we prepare a healthy snack of fruit and/or crackers.  If you would like your child to have milk, please inform the office.

Please could you provide your child with a named water bottle, which can be refilled each day at school.  Your child needs a named coat and wellington boots that can be left in school in our boot box. This means that they can use the sand pit and mud kitchen as well as the rest of our outdoor area, especially on rainy days! 

Our P.E. days are Monday and Wednesday.  Please name all your child's kit and their trainers.  The children also enjoy movement, parachute games, bikes and scooters and taking full advantage of our field and Wildlife Area.  Mrs Haynes will lead Forest School for EYFS every Tuesday afternoon.  When the weather gets colder, we will ask you to provide warm clothing, such as gloves and hats.

Please share a story with your child each evening. Once we start learning to read, we will change your child's reading book every Monday.  Our reading expectation is for our children to read at home at least 3 times a week.  The book will link to the phonics we are learning and will support your child to practise their story telling, blending and segmenting. Some books may not have words in them and these are a great resource for the children to improve their own story telling and to make predictions about what could happen next.

We will be setting up Tapestry this week so please look out for your confirmation email to verify your account so you can start seeing your child's learning journey.  

In October, the children will take part in swimming lessons. As if by magic, a huge tent will appear on the playground and the pool is built inside. The swimming sessions will be at the end of the day, once a week and for half an hour only.  The children are supervised in small groups by two lifeguards who are in the pool with them.  For our Reception children, it is an introduction to being in a swimming pool and for them to feel safe and confident in water.  The children will need a swimming costume/trunks, a swimming hat, a towel and sliders/flip flops or crocs to wear to the pool.  The lesson will finish at 3.00 pm.  You are invited to come to school at 2.55 pm and help dry and change your child after their lesson.  Previous parents have brought in a onesie or pyjamas for their child as this is easier than getting them dressed into their uniform again.  I will let you know what day your child has their lesson when I have the information.  

If you have any questions or concerns about your child or their learning, please see me at the start or end of the day.  If it is not a 'quick fix', I will make an appointment with you. 

I am delighted to be teaching your child this year and cannot wait to introduce them to the foundation stage at Micklem Primary School.   

Kind regards, 

Mrs Stokley 

Early Years and KS1 Leader

At Micklem we follow the Statutory Guidance for the EYFS.

This sets out seven areas of learning for children from birth to five.

Three areas are particularly important for building a foundation for igniting children’s curiosity and enthusiasm for learning, forming relationships and thriving.

These are the prime areas:

• communication and language

• physical development

• personal, social and emotional development

Providers must also support children in four specific areas, through which the three prime areas are strengthened and applied.

The specific areas are:

• literacy

• mathematics

• understanding the world

• expressive arts and design 

(DfE September 2021)

We plan activities and experiences in order to meet the requirements of the Educational Programmes

• The statutory framework for the early years foundation stage