Hedgehogs blog 4
Date: 1st Oct 2025 @ 5:34pm
1st October
I often glory at the awe and wonder of being a 4 year old; how me saying 'It's not Tuesday, that was yesterday!' delivers howls of laughter and then introducing a new month creates ooh and ahhs! We have our first Hedgehog birthdays this month- including my own (34 again obviously). Talking about birthdays, you are welcome to come in for a birthday lunch (see Miss Cadnam in the office for details) and be as proud as I am of their behaviour in the lunch hall and how little wastage there is. As a healthy school, I am not going to encourage bringing birthday sweets or goodies in, especially as we have a few children unable to have them due to dietary needs. We will make a fuss of them in school, sing to them at least once and they will have a smashing time with you before and after I'm sure. (Unlike me who has staff meeting until 6 #eyeroll)
Our GPCs are coming in thick and fast. So far we have learnt: satipngocmnd. We practise them about 10 times a day to recognise the phoneme or the picture (o-o-o- octopus). I had about 8 children who consistently got them all right today so we will need a lot more practise! Pretty much everyone is now blending simple CVC words (consonant-vowel-consonant eg cat/boat/men/lake) orally when I segment the words for them. We are still working on them reading a simple word using our known GPCs by blending independently. As long as I have everyone doing this by November we'll be on track for my reading journey with them.
We will start reading practice week 13th October all being well with staffing/children. I will put children into groups (these will be very flexible as their learning accelerates) and an adult will read with them at least 3 times a week with the same Little Wandle book. I will then send these very precious books home for a week so you can practise and practise these books until they have memorised them. This is for confidence and self-belief and habit-forming. Remember to make sure they are being a reader (even it they know it off by heart) by getting them to look and point at each word. First will be no-word books. For these, the focus is on language acquisition. You wouldn't believe how few of them could tell me the name of the animal (zebra) last week. Use the pictures to tell a story with them. Feel free to use my classroom technique of 'my turn, your turn' and if they mix up a past tense eg he eated the sandwich, ask them : eated or ate? They are just starting to realise it is always the second version!
I will give your child a coloured folder for their Little Wandle book (and library book if it will fit) so they stay in pristine condition. Please let me know if something happens to it as accidents do happen, and I'll let you know how to purchase a replacement. I will not be giving you a reading record this year though! We are using a digital (charitable) service which should make the recording of each read very easy and a few clicks. I will explain all about it next week in a paper letter so look in the book bags. I will launch it on the 6th (#busydaythatday!) so you can navigate it and we can iron out any problems before receiving your Little Wandle book a couple of weeks after. Please practise by recording that you have read to them as this is as crucial an activity as them reading to you (think vocab and comprehension). I will look at the data once a week and will give you notes of a target or general observation about their reading once a week. As with everything Hedgehogs, please keep any problems small and come sooner rather than later to iron them out.
A quick note about maths. We have started to subitise! This means when you see an amount and can 'see' it is 3 without counting even when the amount is moved around. Adults can generally subitise up to about 8-10. I'll be focusing on up to 6 over the course of the year (and beyond). Things you can do at home... play with dice. Can they recognise a 4 without having to count the dots? Play around with objects: count them- 3. move them - still 3 right? move them- still 3 right? If you fancy getting some paint out and painting 3 dots in lots of different ways, I offered housepoints for evidence! Doesn't have to be paint of course, focus on that 3-friend hold and use pens/pencils/crayons/chalk.
Hope the Harvest festival is in your diary: Tuesday 7th October 9.30 school hall. We might go a bit shy in front of all of you so go easy on us! I will tell you that they don't seem at all shy in class with it!!
Here's to an awesome October
Mrs H
