We at St Peter’s are very pleased to be part of your child's first year at school. We are looking forward to getting to know the children better and helping them to settle into school life.

We believe it is essential that the Foundation Stage is seen as its own Key Stage and that the planning and provision is unique to it. We, in the Reception Team, are committed to making the learning engaging and exciting for every child in our class.

The development of the children’s Prime Areas of Learning are crucial at this age and stage of their development. Through the development of the Prime Areas, there must be a focus on the characteristics of learning, particularly with reading and writing. The speaking aspect of communication and language is always our key focus so we will be developing the children’s speaking through language rich, story based learning and building on the children’s first hand experiences. This is where the role of the adults and the environment are paramount, alongside high quality continuous provision, which enables children to discover and explore for sustained periods in order to embed their learning in many different ways.

Each area of learning and development must be implemented through planned, purposeful play and through a mix of adult-led and child-initiated activity. Play is essential for children’s development, building their confidence as they learn to explore, to think about problems, and relate to others. Children learn by leading their own play, and by taking part in play which is guided by adults. There is an ongoing judgement to be made by practitioners about the balance between activities led by children, and activities led or guided by adults, such as phonics, reading, writing, maths, understanding the world and expressive arts and design. We, as practitioners, must respond to each child’s emerging needs and interests, guiding their development through warm, positive interaction. As the children grow older, and as their development allows, it is expected that the balance will gradually shift towards more activities led by adults, to help the children prepare for Year 1.

At St Peter’s, we value the support of parents and we look forward to inviting parents into school to observe their child's learning.

Below, you will find some information which we hope you will find useful. If you have any questions, please come and see us!

Mr Tierney, Mrs Jennings, Miss Cleveland & Mrs Maher 

Important Reminders

Snack time - We have a rolling snack break every morning from 10:15 - 10:45am. During this time children are able to play and they can choose, if they wish, to have a snack or not. We continually remind them during this period that there is milk and fruit available, should they want some.

We receive free fruit for children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2, however we have no say in what we receive. Usually, if a child will only eat a particular type of fruit, say blueberries or grapes, we advise the parent to pack that for them. However, if a child is happy to eat a variety of fruit then there is usually a good choice. Parents can also send in fruit for their child to eat and if they are still hungry, children can have some of the school fruit. We encourage children to eat enough to sustain them until lunchtime.

We do not allow the children to eat biscuits, sandwiches or crisps during this snack break.

Reception children also receive free school milk up until they turn 5 years old. Children do not have to drink the milk if they don't want to, some will say no and that is fine. Once a child turns 5, if a parent wants them to continue to have milk, they will have to pay for it. Further information can be found following the link below:

https://www.st-peters-sittingbourne.co.uk/cool-milk/

If a child is having a home packed lunch, parents can pack food that they know their child will eat, however, please adhere to the egg and nut requirements. In a packed lunch; crisps, fruit, yoghurt, a biscuit are all acceptable, as long as there is also a sandwich or something substantial that will see the child through to the end of the day.

There is no afternoon snack time.

Wellies - please ensure that your child has wellies in school so that they can access our wonderful outdoor areas. We will be taking the children onto the field in all weathers and going into the Forest School area whenever we can - they may need wellies for these activities.

Physical Development / PE 

The children’s Physical Development will continue to be developed through their active play within Continuous Provision. Activities such as building obstacle courses, using the trim trail, accessing the woodland walk and Forest School areas, stacking crates, building with the Poddley and bricks, using the trikes and bikes, helping each other on the tyre swing and working in the mud kitchen, all require high levels of exercise, strength, balance and co-ordination.

Children will be encouraged to work on these physical areas by accessing as much of our provision as possible.

We will also be linking our Physical Development activities to our topic each term.

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