Foundation Learning Community

Week 8 

What a wonderful way to finish learning our letters! The children had a fantastic time celebrating Maggie Mouse’s birthday, and they all looked absolutely wonderful in their special dress-ups. It was a lovely way to celebrate reaching an important milestone — learning all of the letters of the alphabet! 

We have had lots of fun learning our letters and sounds, and it was wonderful to finish with some party games and celebrations with Maggie. The children have worked incredibly hard and should be very proud of the progress they have made. We are now learning new digraphs, which are 2 letters making one sound.  

So far we have learned: 

Sh, ch, qu, ee, ll, ff, zz, ss, ck.  

A very big thank you to our families for your continued support. Three dress-up days in one term is certainly a lot of organising! We really appreciate the time and effort you put into supporting your children’s learning at home. 

The children are making wonderful progress with their reading, and it is fantastic to see the impact of regular home reading practice in the classroom. In particular, we are noticing increased confidence and fluency when reading our Tricky Words. Your continued support with home reading is making a real difference. 

Tricky Words 

Tricky Words are common words that appear frequently in books and do not always follow the phonics patterns we have learnt. Developing automatic recognition of these words helps children read more fluently and confidently. 

Ideally, by the end of this term, children should be able to recognise and read most, if not all, of the nine sets of Tricky Words in their current reading diary and on the laminated Tricky Word sheet in their reading folder. 

Some children have also been sent home with a Tricky Word booklet to provide additional opportunities for practice and consolidation. A few minutes of regular practice at home can make a significant difference to your child’s confidence and reading fluency. 

Thank you once again for your wonderful support.