Year 1 and 2 would like to welcome you to Church of the Ascension Primary School website!

In our Year 1 and 2 area, we aim to keep you updated with all of the exciting things we do throughout the week and any important information.

Daily Routines and Expectations 

When the bell goes at 8.50am, the children should line up on the key stage one playground everyday. Please be prompt and ensure that your child is equipped for the school day.  It’s always a delight to greet every child each morning.

When the children come into school they must hang their coats and bags up, put water bottles and lunch boxes on the trolley and complete the morning task that has been set. The cloakroom areas are small so we advise that children continue to use their book bag so that it can be stored inside their tray. Children do not need to bring a pencil case as this equipment will be provided for them.

Children will need a water bottle filled with water, a healthy snack for their morning break and you can choose whether your child has a school dinner, school sandwich or a packed lunch from home.  Universal free school meals are available to all children in Reception, year one and year two so this will still be an option for your child.

The school day finishes at 3.20pm and your child will be dismissed onto the key stage one playground so please ensure you are visible so that we can dismiss safely.

Classes and Staffing

Year 1C – Mrs Clarke

Year 1/2B – Mrs Bate

Year 2S – Miss Slater (KS1 Co-Ordinator)

Support Staff:

Mrs Sidaway, Mrs Whitehead, Miss Hickman, Mrs Longville

General Reminders:

Book bags-Book bags need to be in school every day. Please check them each evening for letters etc. There is no requirement to bring a back pack as children will only ever need the space that is in a book bag, which fits nicely into their trays.

Water bottles-Please ensure the children have a water bottle with water in every day to keep the children hydrated. We have very limited disposable cups available for any child who forgets their water bottle.

Year 1 Phonics

As part of our continued commitment to high-quality phonics teaching, we have adopted the Essential Letters and Sounds (ELS) programme. ELS is based on the well-established Letters and Sounds framework and is designed to support children in making rapid progress towards becoming fluent, confident readers. As a result of this change, we will no longer be using Bug Club as our phonics scheme, and access to this platform has now been discontinued.

To support your child’s reading development, we ask that the decodable book provided by the school is read at least three times throughout the week. Just 10 minutes of reading per day can make a significant difference in helping your child become an independent and enthusiastic reader.

You will have access to:

· An eBook version of the decodable text,

· A “Share With Me” phonics book, tailored to your child’s current phonics level.

For more information please access https://www.chur-ascen.dudley.sch.uk/home/learning/subjects/english-reading-and-writing/

Year 2 Reading and Spellings

The children in Year 2 will move onto Essential Letters and Sounds Spellings once they have completed the ‘Essential Letters and Sounds’ Phonics scheme. This wonderful pack covers a full year of Year 2 spellings with the intention of ensuring that all the National Curriculum Year 2 spelling requirements have been covered.

You will have access to:

· A “Share With Me” phonics book, tailored to your child’s current phonics level.

Reading

Books will now be allocated/changed once a week, on Fridays, giving your child the opportunity to re-read each text several times. Repetition is key to building fluency and confidence—especially as children begin to understand that the same sounds can be represented in different ways in writing.

Reading books that your child can decode independently is a vital part of their learning journey. The books sent home are carefully matched to what your child has been taught in school, reinforcing their classroom learning. We only send home books for independent reading when we know your child can decode them successfully.

Alongside these, children will also bring home a “Library Book” for reading for pleasure. These are not necessarily phonically decodable but are chosen by your child to enjoy at home—either read by you, with you, or alongside them. These books help foster a love of reading and can be a lovely way to end the day, such as a bedtime story. Children will select these books from our EYFS and KS1 Library every Friday.

Homework and Spellings

Homework will be sent out on a Friday with the expectation that it is completed and returned on a Tuesday. The homework will alternate between Maths and English each week.

Spellings will no longer be sent home on a Friday to be tested the following Friday. Instead, the children will have regular practise of these in school. These spellings will be in line with the new scheme we have in school. There will be access to the spellings on this class page if you would like your child/ren to do additional practise at home in the week.

Mathematics

Please encourage your child/ren to access TT Rockstars and NumBots on a regular basis. This will support their times table knowledge and re call during lessons. We advise that Year 1 focus on NumBots and Year 2 focus on TT Rockstars.

Kinetic Letters

Kinetic Letters® is a handwriting programme for use in primary and secondary schools.

Four main threads of:

• Making bodies stronger,

• Holding the pencil,

• Learning the letters, and

• Flow and fluency

It enables children to develop legible handwriting that is produced quickly and automatically. With the development of automaticity, handwriting becomes a valuable tool and not a hindrance to learning.

PE

We do PE twice a week, on a Wednesday and Friday. Your child’s PE kit needs to be in school all week, please can all items of clothing be named. They will also need a change of footwear for PE. Earrings must be removed and long hair must be tied back.

If you have any questions you would like to ask, don’t hesitate to talk to any of the Year 1 and 2 support staff on the door or you can email us at:

info@chur-ascen.dudley.sch.uk

We will aim to reply to your emails as soon as we are able to do so.

If you would like to find out about the topics your child will be learning about each term, please click on the link below:

2025 – 2026 Roll A

2024-2025 Roll B

Year group termly overview Year 1 Summer

Year group termly overview Year 2 Summer

Year 1 Spring Overview

Year 2 Spring Overview

Thank you for your support. We look forward to working in partnership with you and your child/ren.

Miss Slater, Mrs Bate and Mrs Clarke.