Supporting your Reception child at Home

One of the best ways you can support your child's learning in reception is to have fun and encourage positive conversation about school. You know your child best, and at this young age, make activities short and fun based on your child's interests.

Please remember that your child is at school for a large part of the day and after a day at school, they will be tired and need time to play without structure. Below are some suggestions of how you can support your child at home but do not feel pressured or obliged to do these.

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

Encouraging Independence

In reception we promote independence which increases self esteem and positive self image. We expect the children to go to the toilet on their own, manage their own hygiene and personal property. You could support this development at home by:

• Let your child have a go on their own first!
• Try to put your child in clothes which are easy for them to put on and take off e.g. shoe laces, buttons etc
• Named clothes helps your child to recognise their name and belongings
• You could use a star chart to encourage them to do activities themselves
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Communication, Language and Literacy

Letter Names and Sounds

In reception we start off by learning letersounds, we hold a parent meeting in the first term to introduce the sounds to parents. We explain to parents how they can support their child at home Children are encourged to recognise the letter sound and the letter name. 
Here are fun ways to learn and pratice letter names and sounds:

• Eye Spy
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• Playing teachers at home and getting them to teach you the letters and sounds
• Go on a sound hunt....."We are going on a sound hunt...we are going to find a 'ch' one"
• Playing guess the letter by tracing on each others backs
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Reading

We want to encourage a passion for reading and books. This can be done through you reading to your child as well as them reading to you. Your child will be bringing home a book for them to read to you and one for you to read to them!

• Visit the library
• Encourage your child to choose books that interest them. This could be a Superman annual or a Barbie comic. Maybe even information books about Dinosaurs or Space!
• You could read words anywhere e.g. back of a cereal packet, sign posts, birthday cards

 Problem Solving, Reasoning and Numeracy

We want to encourage a love of numbers and solving problems. This could be done through:

• We have 5 people coming to dinner, how many plates do we need to get out of the cupboard?
• Sings songs like "Five fat sausages sizzling in the pan...one went pop and the other went BANG!" How many sausages are left?
• Counting EVERYTHING! Maybe the number of lamp posts on the way to school, or steps taken to get into bed.
• Counting out loud forward and backwards.
• Get your child to help you cook; measuring ingredients and sharing food out.
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Knowledge and Understanding of the World

• Help your child to understand the routines of their school day by talking to them about what they have done during the day.
• Encourage your child to understand their past and present for example relationships of aunts, uncles, grans and grandpas.
• Talk to your child about where they live, the name of their road and who their neighbours are.
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 Physical Development

• Go to the park and have some fun!
• Explore what our bodies can do. "How high can you jump?", "How fast can you run?", "How high can you stretch?"
• Improving smaller movements like pencil grip by using small construction toys or play operation!
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 Creative Development

• Get messy at home, get out the paints, chalks and have some fun!
• Role play - remember anything can be made into a prop.
• Singing, dancing and making music.