Literacy

Phonics

This term, we are continuing to practise using our reading and spelling 'tools' to decode and spell words.

We will be focusing on the following spelling rules this term:

• ck, tch, dge: The phonograms‘ck’, 'dge' and 'tch' may be used at the end of a word or the end of the first syllable, after a vowel saying its first sound.
• c and g rule: The letter c or g before e, i or y says its second sound 's' (cent, cycle) or 'j' (gentle, ginger)

We will also be exploring phonograms that say the same sound such as

• 'ee' and 'ea'
• 'ai' and 'ay'
• er, ir, ur, wor, ear

Reading

This term, we will continue to develop our reading skills, using our reading tools and some CAFE strategies to build our comprehension, accuracy, fluency and expression. 

The CAFE strategies we will be focusing on this term include: 

• retelling the story in the correct sequence
• comprehension - Inferring and supporting with evidence
• Using punctuation to enhance phasing and prosody
• Recognising literary elements (genre, plot, character, setting, problem/resolution and theme)
• Compare and contrast within and between texts
• Use pictures, illustrations and diagrams to develop a deeper understanding of the text

We will explore these CAFE strategies using whole class books and EPIC Books, as well as when we read our independent books and complete a follow up activity in our reader's notebooks. 

Take home readers

Do you know how wonderful our take home readers are? Not only do we get to practise reading with an adult at home but we also get to show off our phonics knowledge with these decodable books, based upon the phonograms we learn at school! 

Writing

We have started the term by hunting for rhyming words to get us ready for poetry writing and have enjoyed reading some of the wonderful Dr. Seuss stories. 

This term we will be exploring the following types of poetry: 

• Haikus
• Couplets
• Shape/Concrete
• Acrostic
• Snapshot

We hope our descriptions during our poetry unit will help us write some amazing stories. 

The second half of the term will be spent writing narratives and informative texts. 

We will continue to implement the Writer's Notebook each week to develop our imagination and spark enthusiasm for writing.