09/01/2026 - RD

Date: 9th Jan 2026 @ 1:24pm

Welcome back and Happy New Year! It has been wonderful to see the children return after the Christmas break, full of stories, excitement, and plenty of energy for the new term. Despite the cold and icy start to January, the children have settled back into school beautifully and embraced every activity with enthusiasm. The chilly weather has sparked lots of conversation and curiosity. The children have enjoyed observing the ice outdoors, talking about winter, and noticing the changes in our environment. It has been a lovely way to ease back into our routines.

In maths this week, we revisited numbers 0 to 5, focusing on recognising each number, counting carefully, and representing amounts in different ways.
We also explored the concepts of one more and one less, using practical resources, songs, and games to help the children build confidence. They particularly enjoyed predicting what would happen when we added or took away objects from a group.

Our Drawing Club story this week was the much-loved Supertato.
The children were captivated by the mischievous Evil Pea and loved creating their own heroic adventures for the vegetables. They practised drawing characters, adding details, and using their imagination to build exciting story ideas.

We began our new DT topic: Dips and Dippers.
The children explored what makes a healthy snack and started thinking about what a superhero might need to stay strong and ready for action. We looked at different fruits, vegetables, and simple dip and dipper ideas, discussing textures, flavours, purpose and healthy choices. This will lead into designing and making our own superhero snack later next week.

Our Supertato theme led us naturally into a wider discussion about superheroes.
We talked about the superheroes we see in stories and films, and then moved on to the real-life superheroes in our community and in our own lives.
The children shared thoughtful ideas about people who help us every day—such as doctors, nurses, firefighters, teachers, family members, and many more. It was a lovely opportunity to build gratitude and awareness of the world around us.

It has been a busy, joyful first week back, and we are incredibly proud of how well the children have returned to school life. We’re looking forward to a term filled with creativity, curiosity, and lots of learning.

Wishing you all a warm and restful weekend.

Reception team.