‘Pupils at Green Lane are very happy.’ Ofsted 2023.

In Key Stage 1, we continue to build on the Characteristics for Effective Learning that are developed in Early Years through our Green Lane values. These are: courage, kindness, respect, team-work, resilience and honesty. Our nurturing relationships, quality first teaching, curriculum offer, learning opportunities and our engaging, purposeful learning environments support children in strengthening these values and demonstrating them in the different areas of their school life. Our children are coached in recognising and further developing these, both within themselves and their peers, and are often highly-praised both internally and externally for always trying their best and being happy, positive and well-rounded individuals.

At Green Lane, we take a real pride in our learning environments and facilitating them as our ‘third teacher’ (Reggio Emilia). Research shows that, visual coherence and structure increase attention and learning amongst pupils (Barrett et al 2015) and so we have a learning environment policy that promotes consistency across the key stage to ensure that our children are confident in using their environments to support and accelerate their learning. Our classroom displays are used as working walls where we prioritise vocabulary, worked examples and visual prompts and these are placed over a muted, neutral background which supports children’s focus on their teacher as opposed to brightly coloured or heavily decorated backgrounds (Fisher et al, 2014). This is especially relevant for many of our children here at Green Lane whose brains are already attending to speaking in and learning an additional language.

Each class also has a learning journey where the children’s work is showcased centre stage. This celebrates the learning and achievements of the class and research shows that personalising classrooms in this way promotes self-esteems and positive wellbeing (Maxwell and Chmielewski, 2008).

‘Pupils value the many opportunities leaders provide to support their wider development.’ Ofsted 2023

Our inclusive and diverse curriculum is built on the foundations of our curriculum drivers: communication, local and global community and opportunities and aspirations.  These have been carefully selected with Green Lane and the wonderful community we serve in mind, to build on children’s current knowledge, skills and experiences and provide them with a broad and balanced diet of learning. This ensures that our children’s education is cohesive and well-considered from Early Years through to the end of Key Stage 1. By interleaving our key concepts in each subject, all children have opportunities to strengthen and deepen their learning and understanding. Through our subject-specific knowledge categories, children are able to strengthen links between topics (big ideas) and subjects, with the knowledge-categories being repeated each year and built on. These widen our children’s eyes to the world of careers that is out there and enable our children to think like mathematicians, scientists, authors, product designers, artists, geographers, historians, musicians, computer scientists and so on. Additionally, we strive to provide our children with real-life, hands-on experiences through educational visits off-site and on-site to immerse them in a world of opportunity and encourage them to believe they can achieve anything they put their mind to. A wide variety of extra-curricular after-school clubs are provided for our children throughout the academic year to expand on this offer.

Oracy and communication is at the heart of our treasured, diverse school community and is of paramount importance. We facilitate our pupils to learn through talk and become effective communicators. Our three-tiered vocabulary system allow teachers to select appropriate and meaningful vocabulary to teach to our children to broaden their spoken and written language and opportunities are given to apply this new vocabulary regularly across the curriculum. Our children are encouraged to speak in full sentences and are provided with sentence stems to enable them to formulate their responses to questions effectively.

In order to diminish gaps rapidly, verbal feedback is given live in lessons by the adults working in the class. Children are taught to edit and improve their work following individualised, targeted feedback; direct instruction and worked examples to move their learning forward at pace and develop independence. We use a combination of scaffolding within lessons, small group support, same-day intervention and evidence-based time-limited interventions to provide support to children who are identified, through assessment for learning, as needing additional provision.

In a typical week, children are given 4 main maths lessons and 4 additional fluency-based maths sessions, 5 English lessons, 5 Guided-Reading lessons, daily phonics or spelling and regular handwriting lessons. In addition, they are taught a lesson of History or Geography, a lesson of Science, a lesson of Art or Design and Technology, a lesson of Music or Computing, a lesson of PSHE, and 2 hours of PE.

Schemes we use:

For home learning, we use the online platform, Seesaw. Children are set weekly homework tasks by their class teachers and the platform supports in the bridge between home and school as an effective form of communication. Teachers can provide feedback through voice notes and written messages to children on their home learning where support is needed to further their learning. Seesaw is also used as a form of recording work children complete within school and on school trips, through photos and videos, allowing parents an insight into their child’s school day and experiences.

Across Key Stage 1, we use a combination of formative and summative assessment to track children’s learning and progress towards the end of year expectations. The National Curriculum outlines these expectations as being the minimum requirements your child must meet in order to ensure continued progress at age related expectations. All the objectives will be worked on throughout the year and will be the focus of direct teaching.

Any extra support you can provide in helping your children with maths, reading and writing will be greatly beneficial and valued.

If you would like to discuss how best to support your child in maths, reading and writing, please talk to their teacher either in person or via Seesaw, see our subject specific pages on our website for useful links and resources or contact our school office.

Year 1:

Maths:

End of year expectations for Year 1 Maths combine the DfE’s ‘ready to progress’ criteria and the national curriculum. The ready to progress criteria was developed by the DfE to enable children to catch up after the covid-19 pandemic. One of the main features of the criteria is that, if it is met, children should be able to more easily access parts of the curriculum that aren’t covered in the criteria. By the end of year 1, children will be able to:

• Count and across 100, forwards & backwards from any number.
• Read and write numbers to 20 in numerals and words, discuss their position in the number system and compare their value
• Develop fluency in addition and subtraction facts within 10
• Count forwards and backwards in multiples of 2, 5 and 10, up to 10 multiples from any given number.
• Make numbers to 10 from 2 parts and partition numbers to 10 into parts
• Recognise odd and even numbers
• Read, write and interpret equations using addition (+), subtraction (-) and equals (=) symbols, and relate these to real-life problems and contexts.
• Recognise common 2D and 3D shapes presented in different orientations, and know that rectangles, triangles, cuboids and pyramids are not always similar to one another.
• Make 2D and 3D shapes from smaller shapes to match an example, including manipulating them to place them in a particular orientation.
• Count, read and write numbers to 100 in numerals.
• Identify 1 more and 1 less than a number to 100.
• Use bonds and subtraction facts to 20.
• Add & subtract 1 digit and 2 digit numbers to 20, including zero.
• Solve one-step, addition, subtraction, multiplication and division using objects, pictorial representation and arrays.
• Recognise half and quarter of object, shape or quantity.
• Compare, describe and solve practical problems for different units of measurement, including length, height, mass/weight, capacity, volume and time.
• Sequence events in chronological order.
• Use language of day, week, month and year.
• Tell time to hour and half past.
• Describe position, direction and movement, including whole, half, quarter and three-quarter turns.

Reading:

In reading, we use a combination of word reading, by applying phonic knowledge and knowledge of high frequency words, and comprehension to assess a child’s reading ability.

In books that are closely matched to their phonic knowledge, by the end of year 1, the children will be able to:

• Identify which words appear again and again.
• Recognise and join in with predictable phrases.
• Relate reading to own experiences.
• Re-read if reading does not make sense.
• Re-tell with considerable accuracy.
• Discuss significance of title and events.
• Read aloud with pace and expression, i.e. pause at full stop; raise voice for question.
• Recognise: capital letters, full stops, question marks, exclamation marks
• Know why the writer has used the above punctuation in a text.
• Begin to know the difference between fiction and non-fiction texts.

Writing:

Writing in year 1 concentrates on children’s transcription, phonics application and coherence with shorter pieces, laying the foundation and paving the way for them to be able to create more elaborate and creative pieces later in the key stage. By the end of year 1, the children will be able to:

• Write clearly punctuated sentences.
• Use ‘and’ to join sentences.
• Begin to use ‘so’ and ‘but’ to join sentences.
• Use standard forms of verbs e.g. go/went
• Introduce the use of: capital letters, full stops, question marks and exclamation marks.
• Use capital letters for names and the personal pronoun ‘I’
• Write a sequence of sentences to form a short narrative.
• Use the correct formation for lower case letters, capital letters and digits.

Year 2

In year 2, end of year expectations are also end of key stage 1 expectations and so teachers are led by Teacher Assessment Frameworks to inform their judgements as well as the National Curriculum.

Maths:

By the end of Key Stage 1, your child will be able to: ​

• Compare and order numbers up to 100 and use < > =.
• Read and write all numbers to 100 in digits & words.
• Say 10 more/  less than  any  number to 100.
• Count in steps of 2, 3 & 5 from zero and in 10s from any number (forwards and backwards).
• Recall and use multiplication and division facts for 2, 5 and 10  tables.
• Recall and use +/- facts to 20.
• Derive and use related facts to 100.
• Recognise place value of any 2-digit number.
• Add and subtract:
  2-digit numbers and ones
  2-digit numbers and tens
  Two 2-digit numbers
  Three 1-digit numbers
• Recognise and use inverse (+/-).
• Calculate and write multiplication and division calculations using multiplication tables.
• Recognise, find, name and write 1/3; 1/4; 2/4; 3/4.
• Write and recognise equivalence of simple fractions.
• Tell time to five minutes, including quarter past/to.

Reading:

By the end of Key Stage 1, your child will be able to: ​

• Secure with year group phonic expectations, especially recognising alternative sounds for graphemes.
• Read accurately word of two or more syllables, most word containing common suffixes and most common exception words.
• Sound out unfamiliar words without undue hesitation.
• Re-read books to build up their fluency and confidence in word reading
• Read ahead to help with fluency and expression, and read with overt sounding and blending.
• Check that a text makes sense to them as they read, correcting inaccurate reading.
• Recognise simple recurring literary language.
• Comment on plot, setting & characters in familiar & unfamiliar stories and make links between them.
• Make plausible predictions based on what they have read.
• Make inferences
• Recount main themes and events.
• Comment on structure of the text.
• Use commas, question marks and exclamation marks to vary expression.
• Read aloud with expression and intonation.
• Recognise: commas in lists, apostrophe of omission and possession (singular noun).
• Identify past/present tense and why the writer has used a tense.
• Use content and index to locate information.
• Discuss and clarify the meanings of words, linking new meanings to known vocabulary.

Writing:

By the end of Key Stage 1, your child will be able to:

• Write simple, coherent narratives about personal experiences and those of others.
• Write different kinds of sentence: statement, question, exclamation, command.
• Use expanded noun phrases to add description and specification
• Write using subordination (when, if, that, because) and co-ordination (or, and, but).
• Correct and consistent use of present tense & past tense.
• Correct use of verb tenses.
• Write with correct and consistent use of: capital letters, full stops, question marks, exclamation marks.
• Use commas in a list.
• Use apostrophe to mark omission and singular possession in nouns.
• Write under headings.
• Write lower case letters correct size relative to one another.
• Show evidence of diagonal and horizontal strokes to join handwriting.
• Write effectively for different purposes, drawing on their reading to inform the vocabulary and grammar choices in their writing.
• Proof-read and edit their own writing.

‘At Green Lane, we love the friendly, supportive teachers, approachable staff and great trips and assemblies.’

‘My child has been made to feel valued and happy, as well as feel her opinions matter, which is important.’

‘Green Lane is a welcoming community and a safe environment. I am proud to say that all three of my children have thrived at Green Lane.’

Art – Jackson Pollock
Geography – Mapping and Describing the world
History – Martin Luther King
Science – Humans
DT – Sliders
R.E. – Who is an inspiring person? Who inspires me?
Computing – Information Technology Around Us
Music – Pulse (Leics Music Hub)
P.S.H.E. – Being Me in My World (Jigsaw)
PE- Baseline /Co-ordination Footwork (FUNS 10) and team games

Art – Henri Rousseau
Geography – Australia – comparison to England
History – World War 1
Science – Materials
DT – Guided design- Bridge Building
R.E. – Who is an inspiring person? Who inspires me?
Computing – Digital Photography
Music – Voice (Leics Music Hub)
P.S.H.E. – Celebrating Difference (Jigsaw)
PE- Static Balance one leg (FUNS 1)
Dynamic Balance to Agility- jumping & landing (FUNS 6)/ Equipment and dodgeball

Art – Andy Warhol
Geography – Sydney
History – The Plague
Science – Life Processes
DT – Frame Structures, finger fluency and design inspiration
R.E. – What do Hindus believe and what do Hindu stories teach us?
Computing – Programming a robot/algorithms
Music – Rhythm (Leics Music Hub)
P.S.H.E. – Dreams & Goals (Jigsaw)
PE- Dance Unit and Co-ordination sending and receiving (FUNS8) and benchball

Art – Naata Nungurrayi
Geography – Continents and The Atlantic Ocean
History – The Great Fire of London
Science – Animals
DT – Design, Make and Evaluate- levers
R.E. – What do Hindu’s believe and what do Hindu stories teach us?
Computing – Pictograms
Music – Pitch (Leics Music Hub)
P.S.H.E. – Healthy Me (Jigsaw)
PE- Co-ordination Sending & Receiving (FUNS 8)/ Co-ordination Ball skills (FUNS 9)and Tennis

Art – David Hockney
Geography – Climate and Extreme Weather
History – Queen Victoria – comparison of time periods
Science – Plants and Growing
DT – Design, Make and Evaluate Wheels and Axles
R.E. – The beginning of the world
Computing – Digital Music
Music – Technology, Structure and Form (Leics Music Hub)
P.S.H.E. – Relationships (Jigsaw)
PE- Agility: Reaction/Response (FUNS 12)/ Athletics

Art – n/a
Geography – Map Reading- Leicester and Sydney
History – Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole
Science – Living things and their habitats
DT – Food Technology- product design including weighing
R.E. – The beginning of the world
Computing – Programming Quizzes
Music – 20th Century Music (Leics Music Hub)
P.S.H.E. – Relationships (Jigsaw)
PE- Agility: Ball chasing (FUNS 11)/ Static Balance-Floor work (FUNS 3)/Cricket