This week, as part of Black History Month, we have been beginning to learn about and celebrate the amazing achievements and contributions of Black people throughout history and within our communities. This year’s theme is ‘Honouring Our Community’, and we have been thinking about people who have used their creativity and talents to make a difference.

We learnt about local artist Thulani Shuku and looked closely at his artwork. The children were inspired to create their own beautiful self-portraits, thinking carefully about their features, colours and what makes each of us unique.

Some of the children have also recently become very interested in Michael Jackson, so we listened to some of his music and had lots of fun learning about his famous dance style. There were lots of little moonwalkers making their way around Shell Class! It was wonderful to see the children enjoying music, movement and expressing themselves through dance.

In maths, we have been exploring numbers 0–4 and beginning to understand that numbers are made up of smaller numbers. For example, we have been learning that 4 can be made from 2 and 2. We have been using practical resources, songs and games to help us explore how numbers can be composed in different ways.

In phonics, we have continued to develop our listening skills by exploring different sounds around us and experimenting with the sounds we can make using our voices. We have been making animal sounds, changing our voices and listening carefully to differences in sounds. These activities are helping us to develop the important listening and sound awareness skills we need as we begin our phonics journey.

Next week, we will be learning all about Autumn. 🍂

We would love your help with our learning! When you are out and about, please look for some Autumn treasures that your child could bring into school. Pine cones, conkers, leaves, twigs and other natural treasures are all welcome. We will be using them to explore, investigate and create artwork.

We are also looking for donations of pumpkins and squashes in lots of different shapes, sizes and colours. 🎃 These will be used for our Autumn learning and exploration.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support. We hope you have a lovely weekend and enjoy hunting for some Autumn treasures!

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