Welcome to Year 1!

This booklet is designed to answer any questions that you may have about routines and practices in Year 1.  Please see your child’s class teacher if you have any further questions or concerns.

The Year One Team

Miss Sally Moore and Miss Catherine de Villa
Mr. Nick Paget and Miss Mylene Dela Fuente
Mrs Mairead Mc Gowan and Ms Laarni Contreras

What to bring everyday
•    Reading folders - containing red home/school link books, blue reading record books and reading books
•    Healthy snack
•    Lunch or you may pre-order food from the refectory
•    Water bottle
•    Hat

Uniform
•    Black school shoes
•    Please refer to family handbook regarding the wearing of jewellery.

Morning routines
•    Your child may bring their bag to the classroom cubbyholes and unpack their reading folder before the bell rings
•    We are encouraging children to be independent and ask that you please support this by asking your child to place the red book, blue reading record, reading book and homework book (Mondays only) in the correct baskets
•    Your child may then go to the playground located on level 0 
•    The bell will ring at 7:40 a.m.  Please make sure that you child arrives at school on time.  It can be very unsettling for children to arrive late

Snack
•    Children eat snack at 9:00 a.m.
•    Please send in healthy food that can be easily opened and eaten with minimum effort so that they can join their friends in the playground (located on level 0) soon after

Lunch time
•    Children eat lunch in the refectory from 11:10 a.m.
•    You may send a packed lunch for your child or pre-order a school lunch. Please do not send any money in with your child to purchase from the refectory
•    Children are supervised at all times and are moved to the covered playground at 11:30 a.m.
•    Please do not send in sweets or candy for either snack or lunch

Specialist lessons
•    Please check your child’s red book for the games, P.E. and swimming schedules
•    These lessons are an important part of your child’s education and they should participate in every lesson
•    Please make sure that they have all of the items that they need for these lessons
•    Swimming – BSM swimsuit, swimming hat, goggles, flip flops, towel
•    P.E. and games – children should come to school dressed in their P.E. kit

Timetables
•    The weekly timetable, is in your child’s red book

Home time
•    Children are dismissed at 2:15 p.m.
•    We ask that you arrive promptly at the refectory to collect your child
•    Children become very upset if they are not collected on time and they will be taken to the library if they are not collected by 2:30 p.m.
•    If your child takes the bus home, the assistants will walk them to the buses
•    If your pick up arrangement changes,  please let us know via the red book or if during the day please phone the front desk

Communication
•    The red home/school link book is one way that you can communicate with your child’s class teacher
•    These should be checked and signed daily
•    The Lion’s Roar (the school newsletter) is available on the school website every Friday and a link will be e-mailed to you.  Please read thoroughly as it contains lots of important information
•    Year One newsletters will be emailed every fortnight and uploaded on to the school website and contain important curriculum information and, often, requests for special items
•    You can contact your child’s class teacher at the following email addresses:
smoore@britishschoolmanila.org
npaget@britishschoolmanila.org
mmcgowan@britishschoolmanila.org
•    We are available before and after school, however please make an appointment if you would like to meet with us on a specific day and time, as we often have after school meetings and activities

Homework
•    In Year 1, it is designed to be informal and is not compulsory
•    However, we do ask that you read every night with your child and practise their camera words often
•    Your child will bring home their homework book on Mondays and it should not be returned to school until the following Monday
•    Homework activities consist of simple handwriting, literacy, numeracy, sometimes topic, art or science, and camera word activities
•    On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays your child will bring home an Oxford Reading Tree book or another scheme book
•    They will choose a classroom reading book on other days and these vary in difficulty and are designed to be shared with an adult
•    Please write a comment or sign the blue reading record book every night

Library

•    Please refer to your child’s timetable to see when the library session is and ensure that library books are returned on their library day

Camera words
•    These are commonly used words organised into sets
•    Your child will progress steadily through the camera word lists, learning to read and then spell each word

Targets
•    As the teacher feels appropriate literacy targets will be sent home so you are aware of how you can best support your child.

House Points
•    Your child can earn a house point for displaying excellent behaviour, effort, manners, being a good friend, producing outstanding work etc.
•    When they have 50 house points they will be awarded a bronze badge.  When they have 100, they receive a silver badge and 150 earns them a gold badge.  The badges and certificates are presented during assemblies

Birthdays
•    This is an important event for your child and we are happy to celebrate with them
•    However we cannot hold parties in the classroom
•    If you would like to bring in a cake or cupcakes to share  please co-ordinate this with your child’s class teacher

Parent helpers
•    You may be able to assist us in the classroom by listening to children read, creating resources for displays and assemblies or assisting during art and D.T. sessions
•    In the next few weeks your child’s teacher will let you know suitable days and times so that a timetable can be put together


Literacy in Year 1

Classroom lessons
•    Children participate in daily literacy lessons
•    Through reading, word, sentence, speaking and listening and writing tasks, your child will be engaged in a variety of activities
•    Work is differentiated for these sessions so that every child is supported and challenged


Phonics
•    Children work in class for phonics lessons
•    These are held 5 times a week in 20 minute sessions
•    Children work through the Get Reading Right scheme

Reading
•    Oxford Reading Tree is the main reading scheme that is used; we are also supplementing this with other reading schemes
•    Other texts may be used as and when required
•    Children progress steadily though the stages and may repeat these until the teacher feels that they have developed appropriate comprehension and reading skills required to move to the next stage

Handwriting
•    New Nelson is the handwriting scheme that is used at BSM
•    A copy of the correct letter formation will be sent home in your child’s homework book
•    If your child is left handed, some of the letters are formed differently and these will be highlighted for you

Numeracy
Lessons
•    Numeracy is taught through daily lessons and children are grouped according to ability
•    Sets are not fixed and remain flexible throughout the year so that children are supported in achieving their full potential
•    Mr Paget will be taking the group revising year 1 objectives then working on year 2 objectives, Miss Moore will be working on year 1 objectives, Miss Mc Gowan will be working towards the year 1 objectives.

We hope that you find this booklet useful and please let us know if you have any further questions. 

Thank you for your continued support.


The Year One Team