Here at St Thomas', the children will be given many opportunities to listen to and enjoy many stories, rhymes and poems. Now the children have settled into Reception, they have started to learn their set one sounds to support them with reading with independence. You will see each week how they progress from recognising sounds, digraphs, trigaphs, blending words, reading sentences, role playing familiar stories and using expression to help bring stories to life! On this page, the class teachers will add the stories that the children will be focusing on but also provide some activities for you to take part in at home. There will also be lists of books that you may wish to read with your child at home. Happy reading! 

Term 5- On the farm

Farmer Duck

by Martin Waddell and Helen Oxenbury

This is the wonderful story about a busy duck who takes on all of the jobs which need doing on a farm until one day when it all changes. The exhausted duck who is much loved by the other animals on the farm do not like how the duck is treated so they decide to create a plan to change things.

Can your child consider how the duck might be feeling on the different pages?

Can you create a timetable of all of the jobs that the duck does?

The farmer was very lazy, how do you think this made the duck feel?

This term the children will be learning about different transport and their purpose. They will continue to explore a range of non-fiction books and understand how these books give information and facts whilst comparing these books to fiction texts. Above you will see some other texts that we will be covering throughout this term if you would like to explore these with your child. 

The children will be reading this story over a two week period. We will be focusing on imaginative language and also ways we can protect our own environment. Below are some prediction based questions. Please can you support your child with answering them. 

1) Can you spot the title? 

2) What do you think this story will be about? 

3) Do you think dragons maybe trouble? If so why? 

4) What do you think the many problem of the story will be? 

The Train Ride 

by June Crebbin and Stephen Lambert 

This week the children will be reading the story `The Train Ride`. We will be discussing what it is like to travel by train and the different sights we might see. Throughout the week, the children will share their own experiences and perform their own version of the story in the style and rhythm of a train. 

Have you ever travelled by train? If so, can you describe your experience using full sentences? What did you see on your journey and where did you go? What sounds did you hear? 

Term 3- Superheroes

Jolly Postman or Other People's Letters

by Janet and Allan Ahlberg

We are looking at our local community and the job roles that different people have, we have been focussing on the role of a postal worker. This story is a wonderful collection of letters from different characters, does your child recognise the letter recipients in the book? Could you write a letter, card or send a picture to someone you care for? 

Supertato 

By Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet

This week the children will be reading the story Supertato. Can you support your child with roleplaying the story using fruit, vegetables and utensils (masher and spoons only) from the kitchen. We would love to see any videos of the children's acting and retelling the story. 

Owl Babies 

 By Martin Waddell and Patrick Benson 

This week the children will be reading the story Owl babies and exploring characters feelings as well as sequencing the story. Can you support your child with researching facts about owls using the internet. Can they find out what they like to eat, how they survive in their habitat and what they look like.  

Elmer- David McKee 

Over the next two weeks, the children will be reading the story Elmer. This story is a wonderful story that explores tolerance and why it is important to celebrate all the reasons we are different and special. 

Can you support your child with answering the following questions about the story. Please encourage your child to use full sentences and explain their ideas using `because` and `and`. 

1) Who is Elmer? 

2) Why is Elmer special? 

3) What made Elmer decide he wants to look like all the other elephants? 

4) Is Elmer happy about this change? 

5) What makes Elmer special? 

6) Can you explain what makes you special? 

This term we will be reading a number of story books that support the children's understanding about different cultures and celebrations. We will also be exploring characters and identifying why it is important to show respect and identify why everybody is special. 

The Little Red Hen 

This week, the children will be reading The Little Red Hen. This traditional tale will continue their learning on harvest and begin to explore the changes that can be seen during Autumn time. In our Literacy learning, the children will be retelling the story orally. Can you support your child by retelling the story using actions. You will also find a link below that will take you to the BBC website where your child can take part in a listening activity. Have fun! 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/school-radio/eyfs-listen-and-play-the-little-red-hen/zfptqp3

The Bear Who Wouldn't Share

By Oakley Graham and Lizzie Walkley

Throughout the week during our circle times, the children will also be reading the story `The Bear Who Wouldn't Share.` This is to support the children with settling into their new routines but also to think about how others might feel when sharing does not take place. Can you support your child with answering the questions below linked to the story? 

1) I wonder what this story will be about? 

2) What clues can you see on the front cover that the bear is not happy about sharing? 

3) I wonder what he might not want to share? 

4) How might the other characters be feeling and why? 

5) How could we help the bear to share? 

Goldilocks and the Three Bears 

We are carrying on with our bear theme this term and this week the children will be reading the story Goldilocks and the Three Bears. This is one of the many traditional tales that Reception will be looking at this year. Can you work with your child to describe the character below using some exciting vocabulary. I wonder if you could send your ideas to your class teacher. 

We're going on a bear hunt. 

By Michael Rosen 

This week the children's learning will be focused around the story `We're going on a bear hunt` by Michael Rosen. This will focus on story language, repetition and using positional language in Maths. Below are some questions that you may wish to ask your child linked to the story. 

1) I wonder where they will find a bear? 

2) How do you think they will get there? 

3) Will they discover any other animals along the way? 

4) If you were going on a bear hunt, how might you be feeling? 

You can also find a video of the author, Michael Rosen performing the story. Can you encourage your child to also perform the story using actions and expression? 

Michael Rosen performs `We're going on a bear hunt.`