A Day in the Life of our Reception Class

25 Apr 2023

Thank you to Miss Victoria Johnson, our Reception Teacher, for providing an overview of a day in the life of a Reception pupil at our school.

Reception children are welcomed into the Prep and line up with the whole school, ready for the day when the morning bell goes.

Children come into their calm and curiosity-filled classroom where they are greeted with a smile from their teacher. They begin their day by choosing a delicious and healthy lunch and using their British Sign Language skills to complete registration.

Our mornings consist of daily phonics, numeracy and literacy lessons and children are encouraged to apply their knowledge by working in their own individual exercise books. This builds confidence and independence as expectations are consistent for Reception children from the start of their educational journey at St. Mary’s Prep. We believe in their capabilities from the very start.

Reception pupils also enjoy the freedom of exploring an outdoor curriculum with forest school and regular trips to Crosby Beach to explore our local environment. We are passionate about our local environment and the kaleidoscope of colours, textures, and inspiration our local area provides for the children. For example, we use this inspiration to develop art skills and to understand the world around us. This allows the children to develop a breadth of vocabulary linked to their experiences and natural surroundings.

The children also take part in weekly lessons taught by specialist teachers including Music, Sport, Swimming and British Sign Language.

As a close school family, Reception are involved in whole school assemblies, charity fundraising events, trips, whole school sleepovers, Mass services and of course their stage debut in the Infant Nativity!

We want to ensure that each Reception child builds the skills they need to feel confident in themselves and show kindness to others. We pride ourselves in knowing that we are helping to raise and teach children who understand the value and importance of kindness.

We also promote reading for pleasure and Reception children read each day with an adult, either one to one or in a small group. This develops their reading skills whilst promoting a love of reading. Our school dog, Theo loves to hear the children read!

The seven areas of learning are also embedded through our Theme curriculum which is based on a range of high-quality picture books. This year’s Theme lessons have included a focus on Ourselves, Occupations within our Community, Gargoyles/Robots, Seasons, Sea Glass/Sea Life.

We do however, value and welcome the children’s ideas and take these into consideration when planning new learning activities for the children. We want the children to feel that they ‘have a voice’ and that their ideas and interests matter.

Each day ends with the children packing their homework and reading book ready to showcase their knowledge at home. We settle down together for a final story session and end our busy day with a prayer of thanks.

Reception children are also offered extra-curricular clubs which extend their school day until 4:15pm. These clubs range from Spanish, Drawing, Writing and Role Play to Library, Yoga, Dance, Multi-Sport and Lego Club.

We pride ourselves on developing happy children who are kind, hardworking, inspired, team players and positive members of the community.