Owl Class - Nursery & Reception 2026 - 2027
Miss Parr
Our aim at Newtown is to inspire and excite children at the beginning of their learning adventure and provide every member of our EYFS with a sense of awe, wonder and pride in their everyday learning and achievements. We are thrilled to see our youngest members of the school flourish and grow throughout the year.
Nursery - Autumn Term
Throughout the first few weeks, we will spend time getting to know one another, exploring our classroom and outdoor learning spaces, and establishing routines that encourage independence and confidence. At Newtown, we believe every child deserves an exciting start to their learning journey, where they feel inspired to explore, investigate and develop a lifelong love of learning through play.
In Literacy, our key story this half term is The Cave by Rob Hodgson. Through this engaging story, children will enjoy joining in with storytelling, retelling familiar events using story props and developing their speaking and listening skills. We will also share a wide range of favourite books, nursery rhymes and poems.
Our Super Fun Sounds sessions will provide the foundations for future phonics learning. Children will enjoy listening games, exploring environmental sounds, using their voices and bodies to make different sounds, and developing their awareness of rhythm, rhyme and syllables through fun, practical activities.
In Mathematics, children will explore early mathematical concepts through practical play and everyday experiences. We will compare groups using language such as more, fewer and the same, investigate shapes through building and construction, explore simple repeating patterns and begin saying number names in sequence through songs, rhymes and counting games.
Across our wider curriculum, Communication and Language is at the heart of everything we do. Children will develop their confidence through conversations, talking about themselves and their families, listening to stories and joining in with familiar nursery rhymes. We will encourage children to answer simple questions, build new vocabulary and develop their speaking skills through imaginative play and daily discussions.
In Personal, Social and Emotional Development, we will focus on helping children settle happily into Nursery by building positive relationships with adults and their friends. Children will practise taking turns and sharing, learn how to care for classroom resources and begin talking about their feelings using words such as happy, sad, worried and angry. We will also learn about keeping ourselves healthy, including looking after our teeth.
Our Understanding the World learning will encourage children to talk about themselves, their families and special events in their lives as they begin to understand their own place in the world. We will celebrate Harvest, Diwali, Bonfire Night and Remembrance Day, learn about different communities and explore our local area. During Forest School and outdoor learning, children will investigate seasonal changes, observe autumn colours, explore natural materials and discover more about animals and their habitats.
In Expressive Arts and Design, children will enjoy experimenting with paint, chalk, collage and natural materials while creating autumn artwork, self-portraits and simple patterns. Music, singing, dancing, role play and imaginative small-world play will help children express themselves creatively and develop their confidence.
Throughout the term, we will also develop children's physical skills through daily indoor and outdoor play. Children will strengthen their fine motor skills through mark making, malleable materials and early cutting activities, while gross motor development will be encouraged through climbing, balancing, running, riding bikes and exploring large outdoor equipment.
We are looking forward to a wonderful first term together as our Nursery children grow in confidence, make new friendships and enjoy discovering the exciting world around them.
Reception - Autumn Term
We are so excited to welcome our new Reception children to Newtown and begin their school journey with us. It is also a pleasure to see our Newtown Nursery children confidently transition into Reception, building on the wonderful foundations they have already developed. We are looking forward to getting to know every child and supporting them as they settle into school life, make new friendships and develop a love of learning through a fun and engaging curriculum.
In Literacy, we will begin our exciting learning through the beautiful story The Something by Rebecca Cobb. This imaginative book encourages children to wonder, explore and use their creativity as they develop their speaking, listening and early writing skills. Alongside this, we will continue to share a wide range of stories, poems and non-fiction books to foster a lifelong love of reading and help children develop their vocabulary and comprehension.
At Newtown, we use Ready Steady Phonics to teach children their letter sounds, reading and letter formation. Throughout the term, children will learn to recognise and blend sounds to read simple words, whilst also beginning to write letters and words independently. More information about supporting phonics at home will be shared with parents during the term.
In Maths, we follow the White Rose Maths scheme. This half term, children will develop their understanding by matching, sorting and comparing objects before exploring patterns, measures and the numbers 1, 2 and 3. Through practical, hands-on activities, children will learn to compare groups, recognise simple repeating patterns, explore size, mass and capacity, and begin to understand one more, one less and how numbers are made.
Across our wider curriculum, our learning is full of exciting opportunities. In PSHE, we will focus on building positive friendships, recognising our feelings, celebrating what makes us unique and understanding why families and special relationships are important. In Science, children will begin exploring the world around them by observing, asking questions and investigating changes they notice in their environment. Through Art, children will experiment with a range of materials and techniques as they develop their creativity and confidence in expressing themselves.
In Religious Education, we will explore special people, celebrations and beliefs, learning that different families celebrate in different ways. In Computing, children will begin to use technology safely while developing their understanding of simple digital skills. Through History and Geography, we will explore our new school environment, learn about ourselves and our community, and begin to understand the world around us through first-hand experiences and outdoor learning.
Home Learning
Children will bring home a fully decodable reading book each week that matches the phonics they have been learning in school. We recommend reading with your child for around five minutes each day, as this greatly supports their reading fluency, phonics knowledge and confidence across the curriculum.
Children will also bring home phonics activities and sound mats to reinforce their learning. Throughout the term, we may also send home optional creative, fine motor and practical challenges linked to our classroom learning for you to enjoy together.
Forest School
Forest School will be held on Thursday's. Please bring your child in in forest school clothes that you don't mind getting dirty. Please also put a spare set of clothes in their bag incase they get wet or cold. This includes bringing a space pair of shoes if they have come in wearing wellies.
Key Information
- Please label all clothing to avoid the loss of property.
- Children should wear full uniform and black school shoes each day (unless it is a PE or forest school day).
- Our PE session will be on a Tuesday. Children are required to wear their full school PE kit to school with sensible trainers on these days. (PE kits can be purchsed from the school shop)
- Children should bring a water bottle everyday. Children are asked to bring water only.
- Children do not need to bring pencil cases or other personal items to school.
To find out more about who will be teaching the class click on our Meet the Team page.
Any questions we are always available at the end of the school day. Additionally don’t forget to follow what goes on in our school on our Class Dojo page!
Miss Parr
