Surfside Primary School Newsletter

Teaching & Learning and Engagement & Wellbeing Page

Ms Charleston & Mr Chapman (Learning Specialists) Gill & Kellie (Engagement & Wellbeing)

Thank you for your valuable feedback in our recent parent survey! Many of you expressed interest in learning more about reading strategies to support your child at home.

 

Supporting Your Child’s Reading at Home for Younger Readers

One of the key skills early readers develop is word attack skills, which help them break down and read unfamiliar words. This week, we are focusing on blending techniques—an essential strategy for reading simple consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) words like map, dog, and sit.

To guide you in supporting your child, I’ve included this Blending Strategies bookmark, which outlines three ways to help your child blend sounds together when reading. These strategies will make decoding words easier and build confidence in their reading abilities.

Stay tuned for more reading strategies, spelling rules, classroom routines, and practical ways to support your child's learning at home. We look forward to sharing more tips to help support your child's reading journey.

 

Supporting Your Child’s Reading at Home for Older Readers

Use these word attack strategies to tackle unfamiliar, complex words.

MORPHOLOGY MATTERS

Break words into roots, prefixes, and suffixes to uncover meaning.Example: unbelievable → un + believe + able

SYLLABLE PATTERNS

Identify syllable types to decode longer words.

Example: con/ver/sa/tion, de/ter/min/a/tion

SOUND IT OUT CAREFULLY

Break the word into phonetic chunks, paying attention to irregular patterns.

Example: pho-to-syn-the-sis

BLEND AND ADJUST PRONUNCIATION

Start blending from left to right and adjust based on context.

Example: ex/po/nent → adjust stress based on meaning.

USE CONTEXT CLUES

Look at the sentence around the word for hints about meaning.

SAY IT ALOUD & CHECK FAMILIARITY

Does it sound like a word you’ve heard before?

WRITE IT DOWN & ANALYZE

Writing helps reinforce spelling and meaning.

 

Supporting Your Child’s Numeracy at Home through developing a positive mindset

At Surfside Primary School, we are committed to building strong numeracy skills in all students. Confidence in maths enhances academic success and everyday problem-solving. You can support your child’s learning by fostering a positive attitude and engaging in simple numeracy activities at home.

 

Encouraging a Positive Mathematical Mindset

A positive mindset boosts confidence and resilience. Help your child by encouraging them to:

  • See mistakes as learning opportunities.
  • Approach challenges with curiosity and persistence.
  • Recognise the value of practice.
  • Find maths in everyday activities like cooking, shopping, and sports.
  • Talk about numbers – Point out numbers on signs, clocks, and calendars.
  • Play maths-based games – Board games, card games, and puzzles enhance thinking skills.
  • Use real-life maths – Involve children in shopping, budgeting, cooking, and measuring.
  • Practice mental maths – Ask quick questions like “What’s double 6?” or “How many minutes until 5 o’clock?”

For more tips, visit:

Online Numeracy Programs

Surfside Primary School uses engaging online platforms to build fluency:

  • Times Tables Rock Stars (TTRS) – Fun challenges to develop multiplication and division fluency.
  • NumBots – A game-based program for strengthening addition and subtraction fact fluency skills.

Your child’s teacher has provided login details. If you need assistance, please contact them.

Working Together

Your involvement is key to your child’s numeracy success. By encouraging a love for maths and making learning enjoyable, you help build their confidence and skills.

If you would like to still contribute to our parent voice please take the time to fill in our Parent/Carer Survey

We want to help our families get the most out of their school experience with their child(ren) and we want to use our Teaching & Learning and Engagement & Wellbeing page to support our families. We hope that you can take the time to fill in this form and help us to provide the support and information you need.