Combermere Barracks 2025 

We had a fantastic time at Combermere Barracks. The children were given the opportunity to explore the soldiers uniform, to feel the materials and were taught why it is designed it such a way. Everybody thoroughly enjoyed trying it on and getting to feel what it would be like to be a soldier. They were also given the opportunity to explore the stables, meet one of the horses and speak to a soldier about what it is like to be in the army. The children asked fantastic questions. All of the horses come from Ireland and need to be 16 hands high! The children visited the farriers workshop and were taught about the different shoes and tools used. The day concluded with looking around the museum and completing a treasure hunt. The children learned about how the army has evolved over the years, looking back at the uniform, ration boxes and key pieces of equiptment that are used. 

Thank you to The Household Cavalry for supporting our children's learning in such an interactive day! 

Easter and Lifecycles 

As part of our 'Everything grows' topic the children have observed the lifecycle of a chick. We carefully created the right environment to hatch the fertile eggs in the incubator. The children were very lucky to see the chicks emerge from the eggs, it started with 2 and by the end of the day we became very proud to say that we hatched 19 chicks! The children have been watching them grow over the past 2 weeks. Just before it was time say goodbye the children had the opportunity to hold and/or stroke them. It was very exciting! 

To bring the term to a close the children enjoyed taking part in an egg hunt around the EYFS playground. Once they had collected all of the matching eggs they were able to collect their very own chocolate to enjoy! 

Science Week 2025 (17th March - 21st March)

For science week we have had some amazing experiences. The week started by planting some potato seeds to kick off the annual Clewer Green potato competition, I wonder which class will win this year! We then went on to have Teach rex visit us with Fito the orangutan, Barry the sloth and Roger the parrot. The children were taught about sustainability and looking after our planet by reducing, reusing and recycling. We also explored the importance of maintaining our rainforests. Local beekeepers came in to speak to the children about beekeeping and explained how a hive operates. It was amazing to learn new information and also to see the difference in honey dependent on the time of year. Coming towards the end of the week the children experienced going inside a planetarium, Matteo spoke to the children about the planets and our solar system. It is safe to say the children were absolutely blown away by the experience. To bring a great week to a close the children visited the other year groups to observe and try out a science experiment, it was great to see the collaboration between the younger and older pupils. Each day the children have also carried out a science experiment in the classroom, we have been erupting volcanoes to look at the chemical reactions, melting ice using salt and finally floating and sinking. 

Lent Term 2025

This term our topic is "Everything grows". The children have been looking at a variety of different things that grow from plants to animals to humans. To facilitate the children's learning and provide rich experiences we visited Woolley Firs Environmental Education Centre. The children had a fun filled day exploring a range of activities such as pond dipping, decorating dragonflies using the natural colours around them, minibeast hunting and listening to minibeast poems in Hedgehog Hollow. Many of the children were very excited about exploring the area playing nature bingo on the farm, in the orchard and around the pond. During our pond dipping session we were very lucky to be able to 'net' a newt that we were then able to explore closely in a shallow tray.  The children all loved their picnic lunches and we were all very proud of them. Our thanks go to Lynn and Claire from BBOWT again for another amazing day.

Throughout this topic the children have also been observing caterpillars as they begin their transformation, they are currently getting bigger by the day and we are waiting for them to turn into chrysalis. The eggs are also very close to their time to hatch, we are hopeful to see some healthy chicks over the next couple of days (24/03/25).

EPIPHANY TERM

Welcome to the new year in Foundation Stage. This term we are going to be learning about keeping healthy. The children will be investigating healthy foods and looking at the importance of breakfast. They will also be exploring the need to keep physically healthy, including learning about different sports to enjoy. We will consider how to look after our bodies by keeping clean, including brushing our teeth. The children have already been following the "my happy mind ", but we will expand upon their learning about the importance of incorporating this into their daily routines.

Keep an eye out for updates on their learning!

CHRISTMAS TERM 2024

This term we are looking at traditions and rhymes and in particular traditional tales in the first few weeks. We have looked at lots including The 3 Little Pigs, Little Red Riding Hood, The 3 Billy Goats Gruff and The Gingerbread Man. We are reading the original stories and rhyming versions, acting them out and retelling the stories. The children have also been testing out their creative skills in support of each tale.

Autumn 2024

A very warm welcome to all the new Foundation Stage children who have started this term and especially to those families who are new to Clewer Green. We look forward to working with you and your children this year. It has been a very busy first week for everyone as we all get to know each other, but the children are all beginning to get to know the routines and feel comfortable in their new environment. The weather has enabled us to spend lots of time outside and many of the children have begun to show their creative sides as they have explored many of the resources. We are also lucky to have some wonderful new furniture inside, funded by a kind donation from Eton College, for which we are very grateful.

Our topic this term will be "Ourselves" so keep an eye on this blog for information on what the children have been doing.

Term 6

Celts and Romans had a wonderful time at the end of term, preparing lunch for their parents. We were treated to wonderful weather so the children could set up and lay the tables in our Foundation Stage outside area with enough space for each child to invite one parent. 

The event started around Easter time when the children planted their crops and continued to tend them and water them throughout the terms, ready to harvest and cook them for lunch. They were able to grow potatoes, rhubarb, strawberries, peas, carrots, onions, tomatoes and beans, which they used as part of their three course menu. All of them helped with harvesting, washing, chopping, mixing, preparing the food, arranging the flowers, sorting the cutlery and then serving their parent with a plate of food. The best bit was when they could join their mummy or daddy to share a dessert!

Congratulations to all the children for a wonderful achievement!

Term 5

The children had a wonderful time visiting Combermere Barracks again this year. The Welsh guards told us that they "were so well behaved and credit to the school." Thank you to all of you for your voluntary contributions. I was asked to say "Thank you for the donation. 100% of this goes back into preservation and improvement of the archive museum displays."

The children enjoyed looking around the museum, trying on army clothes, trying to blow a trumpet, looking at and feeding the horses and watching soldiers training the new horses. They were also very excited to have a short stop at th park on the way home!

Term 4 Everything Grows

This term our topic is "Everything grows"  and to support the children's learning they had a wonderful day out at Woolley Firs Environmental Education Centre last week. They had a full day of activities including hunting for mini beasts in the woods, sorting them into the numbers of legs, listening to mini beast poems in Hedgehog Hollow, and decorating a dragonfly with things from nature on Ladybird Lawn. They particularly enjoyed Nature Bingo walking around the farm, the orchard and the pond areas. Pond dipping for water mini beasts was very exciting and many of the children were able to identify the creatures on charts. The children all loved their picnic lunches and we were all very proud of them. Our thanks go to Lynn and Claire from BBOWT again for another amazing day.

Term 3 Healthy Living

A healthy start to the Year!

This term the children are learning about Healthy Living. They are looking at healthy eating, healthy bodies, keeping clean and healthy minds. They will be thinking about what they already do and what they would like to try to help make themselves healthier. Last week they had a very exciting time investigating healthy foods. They looked at a selection of real vegetables which they used to make models and create patterns and we read the story of Supertato and his arch nemesis Evil Pea!

After learning about the importance of eating breakfast they used their creative skills to design their own tasty toppings for toast, which they tried out and ate in class.  There were some very interesting combinations! We look forward to hearing about what they have eaten for breakfast each day when they bring back their healthy breakfast charts. Finally there was much excitement when they were encouraged to try something new from a rainbow of fruits!

During the rest of the term they will be looking at different sports they can try and the effect of exercise on their bodies, the importance of keeping clean with particular reference to looking after teeth and in line with Children's mental health week, they will learn about how to keep their minds healthy!

A very busy and exciting term!

TRADITIONS AND RHYMES

This term we are looking at traditions and rhymes and in particular traditional tales in the first few weeks. This includes The 3 Little Pigs, Little Red Riding Hood, The 3 Billy Goats Gruff and The Gingerbread Man. We are reading them, singing them, acting out and retelling the stories as well as testing out creative skills in support of each tale. We are also focusing on the importance of Nursery Rhymes by saying lots of them together in class. Why not read a new one each day at home with your child? 

Autumn 2023

A very warm welcome to all the new children and their families who have joined Foundation Stage this year. We are looking forward to an exciting year with them. As they begin to settle into their new routines, we are pleased to see that they are becoming more confident and resilient in the classroom.

This term we will be learning about "Ourselves" and looking at the similarities and differences between us all. We shall also be starting to learn some phonics and considering the mathematical concepts of matching and sorting.

Keep an eye out for this blog where we shall post photos of their activities from time to time!