It is hard to believe that we have now completed six weeks of learning this term! I am incredibly proud of the progress, achievements and outcomes demonstrated by every child at GVPA.

In our assemblies over the past two weeks, we have focused on the virtues of Courage and Co-operation, and the children have embraced these values superbly in so many aspects of school life. A wonderful example of this has been our Year 1 and Year 2 children nominating themselves for pupil leadership roles, including Librarian, Playground Leader, Eco-Leader, School Council Representative and Pip's Dream Team (our lunchtime helpers). It has been fantastic to see every child put themselves forward for a role, demonstrating real courage and a willingness to make a positive contribution to our school community.

Our attendance currently stands at 95.1%. Although this has dipped slightly, I do not think anyone could have predicted the particularly unkind sickness bug that affected so many of our Year 1 children this week. Thank you for your continued support in helping us promote good attendance whenever children are well enough to be in school.

Below are some of our learning highlights from the past two weeks, which showcase the exciting experiences and fantastic achievements taking place across GVPA.

As always, thank you for your continued support. 

Mrs Burke 

Miss Matthews and Mrs Guild are super proud of Reception Maple 

Phonics and reading

In Phonics, we are continuing to grow the code by learning new sounds every day. The children are becoming increasingly confident at blending these sounds together to read words and are also learning to recognise and read tricky words such as 'the'. It has been wonderful to see their enthusiasm and progress each day as they develop their early reading skills. Miss Matthews and Mrs Guild are incredibly proud of all their hard work and achievements so far.

Writing

In Draw, Talk, Write, Reception Maple thoroughly enjoyed reading Goldilocks and the Three Bears and The Leaf Thief. The children have been enthusiastically using the stories in their drawings and discussions, developing their confidence and creativity. They are making amazing progress in their mark-making, drawing, and early writing skills, confidently identifying and writing initial sounds and even beginning to write CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words independently. We are very proud of their hard work and enthusiasm for learning.

Maths

In Mathematics, Reception Maple have been learning to recognise and create AB patterns in a variety of contexts. The children have explored patterns using shapes, colours, actions and sounds, developing their ability to identify what comes next and explain their thinking. They have enjoyed creating their own repeating patterns and working collaboratively with their friends to spot and continue patterns around the classroom. This exciting learning helps to build strong early mathematical skills and encourages the children to notice patterns in the world around them.

Reading & Phonics

In Phonics and Reading, the children have been learning new Phase 5 alternative graphemes. They now know the digraphs 'ay', 'ea', 'ou' and 'oy' and have thoroughly enjoyed learning and consolidating their knowledge of these new sounds. It has been wonderful to see their confidence growing. Their reading fluency is developing week by week, and we are especially pleased to hear children reading with increasing expression and enjoyment. We are very proud of the progress they are making.

Writing

In Writing, we have started exploring the exciting story Cave Baby by Julia Donaldson. To immerse ourselves in the story, we spent the morning creating our own cave paintings, just like Cave Baby. The children loved being creative and imagining what life might have been like long ago. We made predictions about what we thought the baby might do in the story and wrote sentences describing what was happening. To bring the story to life even further, we took part in some drama activities and acted out how the different animals might have moved. The children embraced the role play with great enthusiasm and imagination.

Maths

In Maths, the children have moved on to learning about addition and subtraction within 10. We have been exploring the concept of part-part-whole and understanding how two parts can combine to make a whole. The children are becoming increasingly confident in representing this understanding using number sentences. We have also learnt that the parts can be added in any order and the whole will remain the same. It has been fantastic to see the children applying their mathematical thinking and explaining their ideas with growing confidence.

Computing

In Computing, the children have been developing their mouse and keyboard skills. Using a click, drag and drop approach, they carefully created self-portraits using a range of drawing tools and shapes. They then inserted text boxes to label their work, giving them the opportunity to practise typing their names independently. The children showed great confidence and control when using the technology, producing some fantastic digital artwork.

Miss Guest is so proud of every child in Year 2. In class, they are making super progress in every lesson and around school, it is a pleasure to see the children becoming such role-models to the younger children. At lunchtime this week, many Year 2 children have been showing the Reception children how to play and share the playground equipment. Thank you Year 2!

Reading and Phonics

In Reading and Phonics, we have continued reviewing our Phase 5 phonics knowledge and have been practising applying these spelling patterns in both words and sentences. During our guided reading sessions, children worked hard to improve their reading accuracy and develop their understanding of new vocabulary.

Writing

We have now completed our work on The Bear Under the Stairs by writing information reports about real bears. We have now started our exciting new unit based on The Minpins by Roald Dahl. The children have been using expanded noun phrases to create detailed "Beware" posters, describing the mysterious creatures they imagine could be hiding behind the wall.

Maths

In Maths, we have moved on from Place Value to Addition and Subtraction. We began by revisiting our number bonds to 10 and enjoyed learning a catchy song to help us remember them. The children then used this knowledge to find related facts and explore number bonds to 100, building their confidence with number relationships. We have also been practising writing fact families.

Personal, Social and Health Education

In PSHE, we have been learning about the importance of staying healthy. The children have explored how a good sleep routine helps us to feel rested and ready to learn, as well as discussing healthy food choices and how a balanced diet helps to keep our bodies strong and healthy. We have enjoyed sharing ideas about the healthy habits we can follow every day.

Parking

Thank you to all the parents who are able to walk, bike or scooter to school. We are so proud of the children walking their scooters and bikes on the school grounds. 

As we approach the winter months, if you need to drive, please park on Eagle Drive, not on the road outside of school or on the road opposite. Blue Badge holders, this does not apply to you.

Pre-loved uniform is available for you at no cost in the meeting room at the front of school. 

For more information about the Fierte Multi-Academy Trust, please use this link: Fierté Multi-Academy Trust - Home

12.10.26 NHS Flu Vaccination (details sent directly from NHS)

19.10.26 Parents Evening (4:00pm-6:00pm)

21.10.26 Parents Evening (4:00pm-6:00pm)

22.10.26 Friends & Family Assembly (Year 1 and 2 parents only)

22.10.26 Spooky Lunch

22.10.26 Last Day of Term

23.10.26 School Closed – INSET Day

Telephone: 01827 214630

Office Email: office@gardenvillage.fierte.org

Headteacher / SENCO: headteacher@gardenvillage.fierte.org