Kestrel Class  

Welcome to Kestrel Class. We have 15 children in our class and we are very happy to be based in one of our two newest classrooms in The Ark, next door to Sparrowhawk Class (Year 1 & Year 2). Kestrel and Sparrowhawk classes work closely together. 

Ms Blackmore is our teacher. Mrs Iles is our TA in the classroom on Monday to Wednesday, and Mrs Offer is our TA on Thursday and Friday. An example of our weekly timetable can be found here.

Please click here for this term's Class Newsletter and here for A Parent's Guide to Mathletics, our Maths learning resource. You can view our White Rose Maths calculation policy here.

You can read a Recommended Reading List for Foundation Stage and look at our Key Learning Skills.  This EYFS (Early Years Foundation Stage) Guide for Parents may also be of interest. You can also find out how to support your child with their reading at home here.

Click here for useful ways to support writing at home.

Early Years Curriculum

We believe that our Early Years practice promotes independence in young children and helps them to develop the skills they will need to become proficient life-long learners. 

 Some topics and projects are planned ahead and some are in response to children’s curiosities. In whichever case, the intent is to help secure children’s learning, deepening their understanding.

Topics vary in length and scale; a small project might span just a week but if interest is sustained, new questions posed or sub-topics developed, the project may last longer. 

During a project, we aim to support the children by providing them with the materials, tools and guidance they need to extend and develop their investigations. We observe and scaffold learning for children according to their individual needs. 

When planning a project, we consider adult-led focused activities, adult-supported group investigations and how we enhance our continuous provision:  

We plan our provision, observe children, reflect on their learning needs, interpret their next steps and then continue this cycle. 

We are constantly mindful of children's characteristics of effective learning, encouraging them to be play and explore, be active learners and creating and thinking critically. 

We consider the EYFS curriculum as part of our school’s curriculum progression model, where we intend to give children the knowledge and cultural capital that they need to succeed in life. 

KESTREL CLASS TOPICS 2024/25 (links with SPARROWHAWK CLASS)