Welcome to Reception! 

Hello! My name is Miss Duckers and I am the Reception teacher. This is my ninth year here at Castlefort School and I absolutely love working in the foundation stage. I want our children to love school and I strive to make our classroom a place of laughter and learning!

Our Early Years Setting provides the children with a stimulating, exciting and challenging curriculum in a caring and supportive environment. We want the very best for your children and hope that by working in partnership with you as parents, we can help your child achieve their full potential.

In the EYFS we love being creative, a little bit messy and a little bit noisy, but don't worry- it's all to help us with our learning! We do lots of singing, dancing, playing and creating. Children have the chance to work with their teachers and well as find out things on their own. I have lots of exciting activities planned for the busy year ahead, and cannot wait to share these experiences with the children.

We really value your support and the role you play in your child’s education, so if you have any queries or questions, please do not hesitate to come in and see any of us.

Meet The Team! 

                  Miss Hawtin              Miss Duckers                Miss Owen 

                Teaching Assistant       Class Teacher            Teaching Assistant 

We're really lucky to have such a supportive, friendly team in the Early Years. This year I will be supported by two wonderful Teaching Assistants, Miss Hawtin (pictured left) and Miss Owen (pictured right)

A Day In Reception!

A typical day in Reception will generally involve the following things:

-Literacy session- this will involve reading lots and lots of exciting and interesting books to give a context to start our writing. At the beginning of the year, this will be learning to hold our pencil and writing letters, and by the end some of us are even writing short stories!

-White Rose Maths - This involves lots of physical and practical activities, including singing, games and moving around!

-Read Write Inc. This helps us to learn our sounds to help us read. We work in small groups based on the sounds we know.

-Creative curriculum- this is our ‘topic’ based work, with lots of understanding the world (science, geography, history links) and art and creative activities. Example of topics we have done before are, ‘What happens when I fall asleep?’ and ‘why are carrots orange?’

General Information

School times

8.45am- 3.10pm

Our class doors are opened at 8.40am. Class teachers/Teaching Assistants will open the doors, welcoming the children through into their classroom. We encourage children to enter school independently and ask parents to stand back and wave. At the end of the day at 3.10pm the children will be dismissed from the same entrance. Parents are asked to wait on the ramp and join the queuing system, staff will then release children individually. Please try hard to get your child to school on time and to collect them promptly. If your child is late, it is extremely important that you come in via the main reception to let the office staff your child has arrived.

Dinner time

At lunch time the children will eat their packed lunch or school dinner in the dinner hall with other children. All Reception children are entitled to free school dinners and we actively encourage you to consider these. The school meals are cooked on the school premises and gives us the opportunity to encourage children to use cutlery correctly and choose a healthy balanced meal. If you would prefer your child to bring a packed lunch, this should be in a secure lunchbox, clearly labelled with your child’s name, and should not include any sweets, chocolate bars, or fizzy drinks. Once your child has finished their lunch they will get the opportunity to play outside.

Water bottles

Throughout the day children are encouraged to stay hydrated by drinking.  Children should bring in a water bottled with their name label on. These will be kept in class and will be refreshed throughout the day,

Play times

In Reception, the children have a morning playtime. Sometimes the children will use the Trim trail on the field to develop their gross motor skills. The children will also be using the outdoor area in the afternoon for learning.

 Uniform

 Your child will be expected to wear the Castlefort JMI School uniform. Please write your child’s name in each item of clothing so that we can return any lost items.  As children are very active, inside and out it is important that your child wears suitable black shoes.

We ask that the children are dressed in our school uniform of:

• White t-shirt
• Black/grey trousers/ skirt/ pinafore dress
• burgundy sweatshirt/ cardigan with logo on
• Red and white/pink and white checked school dress (Summer)
• Sensible black shoes

 PE Kit

Your child will be doing PE once a week in Early Years. Please ensure that your child has their full PE kit in school on your child’s PE day (Wednesday). They can take it home after their PE session for washing.

This should consist of:

• A White t-shirt/polo shirt
• A pair of black pumps or trainers
• Black shorts/black joggers    

Clothing and Weather

Reception is about active learning and this involves a range of activities both inside and out. We value outdoor play experiences and therefore use our outdoor area in all weather. Please can you ensure your child is dressed appropriately for all weathers.

During winter, please try to provide wellies, gloves, scarf, hat and a suitable coat. In summer, please try to provide your child with appropriate clothing and a sun hat. We ask parents to take responsibility for applying a sun screen to all exposed areas of children’s skin before Reception, or the children can apply it themselves.

Book Bags

Please make sure that your child has a book bag labelled with their name and that they bring it to and from school every day. It is really important that book bags are in school so that the children are able to take home any letters.

Learning at Home...

Below are some links to different websites that may help you with your child's learning at home. Why not have a little look through together and find some games or activities to enjoy together!