"The secret of education lies in respecting the pupil."
Emmerson
Year One is a vital stepping stone on the way to independent learning. For a Year One pupil, the day becomes more structured as they follow a traditional timetable with subjects that begin and end with the bell. The children sit at tables and are addressed as a class. Whereas in Reception, the children had a great deal of free choice and were invited in small groups to learn and create with the teacher, in Year One they work in larger groups, as a class and independently. There is a great deal of focus on independence and the children are encouraged and rewarded as they learn new skills which enable them to do things for themselves. By Year Two, the children are able to work with confidence as independent learners.
In Year One, homework is designed to help pupils to:
English homework is set on a Monday and maths on a Wednesday; it should take no longer than 20 minutes. Spellings will be sent home each week on a Monday and reading books will come home each night. In our Infant School, pupils should read aloud to an adult every night.
In Year 1, we help the children to become confident with a pencil in their hand and focus on improving their confidence and ability to share their thoughts and ideas with the rest of the class. Through the study of popular fairy tales, the children progress towards writing a coherent sequence of ideas while separating words with finger spaces. They are introduced to capital letters when writing names, and for the personal pronoun ‘I’, in addition to the full stop, question mark and exclamation mark to announce the end of a sentence. A weekly set of 10 spellings is given for the children to learn and be tested on and regular handwriting lessons take place to ensure the correct formation of letters and the correct pencil grip too.
Reading plays an essential part in every school year at Highfield as success in this area can lead to greater success in all areas of the curriculum. In Year 1, regular reading takes place with the class teacher or classroom assistant and children are also set reading to do with their parents each evening. It is most beneficial for the children if they are also read bedtime stories as the more we all do to foster an enjoyment of books and reading at this stage, the better.
The children develop their maths skills through plenty of hands on learning and interactive fun. When they complete a book or a set of activities, there is a celebratory song and dance from the class and teacher to reward the child for their hard work!
The main skills covered in Year One are:
The pupils are assessed in Maths in the following ways:
Year One begin their formal introduction to the subject of History by looking at their own families, understanding the different generations and starting to think about how their life is different from that of a grandparent or even a great-grandparent as a child. This leads into one of the children’s favourite events of the year: Grandparents Day! The children create a family museum in their classroom and invite their parents and grandparents in for a guided tour. They then serve tea and cakes to their families! Year One moves on to study three more topics which are close to their hearts: their toys, their homes and their holidays. They look at these topics from an historical and a geographical point of view (with emphasis on comparison between Then and Now and Here and There) and delve even deeper by going on a linked school trip (eg Fleetwood Toy Museum) and by Locality studies.
In RE the children look at the Community in which they live and discuss the concept of Belonging. We teach awareness, understanding and tolerance of the faiths that can make up a community. The children are encouraged to share the faith and practice that is important to them. In Year One, the children focus on the topic of New Life.
Science is taught in the Science Laboratory or our nature reserve: Highfield Haven
The children are taught to take a hands-on approach to their study of Science and to ask the question "Why?". Their naturally inquisitive minds and lively imaginations always make for some very interesting lessons! The children are excited to visit the Science Laboratory and can be found in there researching pushes and pulls by creating ramps for their cars and comparing the texture and effect of different surfaces, or studying a variety of leaves, collected from Highfield Haven, under the microscope. In Year One, pupils study the following topics in Science:
Ourselves
Pushes and Pulls
Sorting and Using Materials
Light, Dark and Colour
Growing Plants: Investigating Plant Life
French is taught by Mrs Lockwood. The emphasis is on speaking the language with confidence and enjoyment. The children learn greetings, numbers, colours and animals in French as well as information about the country and its culture. They enjoy a range of stories, rhymes and songs on these topics too and are always full an enthusiasm for the subject.
This is a vital component in the children’s personal and social development. The children enjoy regular circle time sessions where any issues from the week can be brought up in a safe and friendly environment in addition to a dedicated lesson each week. There are 3 core themes to the curriculum which cover a variety of topics within them. These are:
Health and Wellbeing - Healthy Lifestyles, Hygiene, Changing & Growing, Emotions and Keeping Safe
Relationships - Communication, Bullying, Fairness and Family & Friends
Living in the Wider World - Rules & Responsibilities, Communities and Money & Finance
These core themes are supplemented with work on the Fundamental British Values (FBV)
Year 1 art is taught by our specialist Art teacher in the Art and Design Studio. In art history the children learn about the great artist, Paul Klee and Superflat artist, Takashi Murakami. Children make full use of the books in our art room library to discover more about these artists. The children learn basic colour theory in painting lessons and create colourful silk paintings in textile classes. Basic clay skills are taught in sculpture lessons and children learn techniques for using oil pastels in drawing sessions. They develop cutting and sticking skills through a collage activity. They learn basic printing skills in our printmaking classes, by creating a printing tile from which they take a print.
Our Year 1 children explore the essential basic methods of using both a computer and laptop. Topics include typing practice, using a mouse/trackpad and getting their first experiences with presentation software such as PowerPoint and Word.
Music is taught in the Music Room by one of our specialist music teachers:
Autumn
Exploring sounds
Exploring duration
Spring
Exploring pulse and rhythm
Exploring pitch
Summer
Exploring instruments and symbols
Exploring timbre, tempo and dynamics
In Year One, the length of the PE lesson is affected by how quickly the children can get themselves dressed and undressed. They quickly learn speed and the importance of tidiness so that there are no missing socks later! The children love their PE and games lessons and enjoy making the most of all the space in the Sports Hall to let off steam and to get fit and healthy bodies. They focus on dance, gymnastics and a variety of games which help with their general fitness, hand/eye coordination, balance, teamwork and ball skills.
Class 6H enjoyed a trip to local retirement home Bethany House recently.
In preparation for the visit, the children had learnt some traditional songs, including songs from famous musicals. Once there, the children entertained the residents with a good old-fashioned sing song and even brought along song sheets so that everyone could join in! 🎤 🎼
The class had also made some Easter cards for all the people who live there which they handed out before sadly having to wave goodbye to all the ladies and gentlemen.
It is always so lovely to see our children forming such good friendships with the residents and it is great to see Highfield’s relationship with Bethany House going from strength to strength! 🙂 🙂Photos from Highfield Priory School's post
4 days ago
Don't forget to join us for our Reception Taster Day next Monday if you are looking for a reception place for your child this September or in 2025!
With limited places available for both intakes, this is a great chance for you to discover why Highfield Priory is the North West's top independent prep school with an outstanding academic reputation and lots of extra curricular activities and events!
Please share this with any of your friends or colleagues who may be interested and contact the school directly by phone or email to book a place. Many thanks!Photos from Highfield Priory School's post
6 days ago
