Reception
Welcome to Reception!
We are delighted to welcome you to the start of your child’s learning journey at Darwen Aldridge Sudell Primary School. Reception is a warm, nurturing and exciting place where our children learn through play, exploration and carefully planned experiences that spark curiosity and build solid foundations for future learning.
On this page, you’ll find key information about our curriculum, home learning, newsletters and snapshots of what we’ve been learning throughout the year!
Meet the Team
Our Reception team are dedicated to providing a safe, caring and stimulating environment where every child feels valued and supported.
Class Teacher – Miss Newsham “I am passionate about early years education and creating a vibrant, play-based environment where children learn through meaningful experiences. I especially enjoy supporting early literacy and phonics, creativity and outdoor learning. I love bringing learning to life in exciting and imaginative ways!”
Teaching Assistant – Miss Bromley “I love helping young children develop confidence and independence. I enjoy supporting phonics, early maths and hands-on learning activities.”
Our Learning Throughout the year, we will add photo snippets and short descriptions of what we have been learning. This may include:
exploring our classroom environment
phonics and early reading moments
maths through play
outdoor adventures
creative arts, construction and imaginative play
celebrations, theme days and trips
(Photo gallery or half termly upload section goes here.) Curriculum Overview Our Reception curriculum is based on the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and supports children’s development across the seven areas of learning:
Communication and Language
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
Physical Development
Literacy
Mathematics
Understanding the World
Expressive Arts and Design
We follow a play-based approach with a balance of child-led exploration and adult-guided learning.
Tapestry & ClassDojo Tapestry We use Tapestry as our online learning journal to capture your child’s experiences, achievements and progress throughout the year.
We regularly upload photos, observations and examples of learning.
Parents can see what their child has been doing in school and comment on posts.
You are encouraged to add your own photos and notes from home so we can celebrate learning together.
Tapestry strengthens our home–school partnership by giving you a window into your child’s day-to-day discoveries.
ClassDojo
We also use ClassDojo to keep communication clear and consistent.
Whole-class messages, reminders and announcements are posted here.
We celebrate children's efforts, kindness and achievements through Dojo points.
Important information and updates are shared on the Class Story.
ClassDojo ensures you never miss key information and helps us celebrate your child’s successes in real time. PE Information Our PE day is Tuesday. Children should come to school in their normal school uniform on this day. As part of developing independence and self-care skills, children get changed into their PE kit in school. We support them with fastening skills and encourage them to have a go independently before we step in to help. Please ensure all PE kit items are clearly named to help us return belongings to the correct child! Home Learning Home learning in Reception is designed to be simple, engaging and supportive of early skills. Each week children receive:
phonics homework, matched to the sounds taught in class
a decodable reading book matched to their phonics level
Online Learning
Every child has been given a Twinkl Phonics login to access phonics games, reading activities and online decodable books.
You may also wish to use:
Twinkl Phonics pronunciation videos: https://www.youtube.com/@TwinklPhonics/playlists
Top Marks Early Years Games
CBeebies Early Years Learning
Phonics Play
Home learning should be short, fun and built into your weekly routine.
Newsletters
At the start of each half term, we upload our class newsletter, which outlines:
key learning for the half term
important dates
trips, events or celebrations
reminders for parents
how you can support at home
Meet the Teacher & Curriculum Information Any presentations from curriculum evenings, meet-the-teacher sessions or open evenings will be uploaded here for parents who couldn’t attend or who would like to revisit the information.