The Year 2 Department
To support the work of the class teachers, Miss Durban, Mrs Kenny and Miss Silvester, we have three other members of staff working in Year 2. Mrs Abdullah, Miss Malloy and Miss Scott-Barnes are the Teaching Assistants for Year 2, who will provide support in each Year 2 class and will work with their whole class and support small groups and individuals within the classes, giving invaluable support across all areas of the curriculum.
Procedures in Year 2
We have a variety of procedures in Year 2 which we hope will enable the children to become more responsible and independent.
- All Year 2 children should be dropped off at the top playground each morning between 8.40am and 8.50am after the first few settling in days, when they should be taken straight to the classroom
- We would really appreciate all children being in the playground by 8.50am at the latest, so that everyone is present to then come into school together for the register and the first lesson of the day
- Any messages for the class teacher should be sent via email or Class Dojo. If the message is regarding changes to the end of day routine, please also include the school secretary in the email
- Messages should be sent in by 2pm, at the latest, to
- The children are expected to be responsible for their own personal belongings (which should all be clearly named) and should remember to store them in their school bag
- Most of our contact with you will be via Class Dojo or email and we recommend that you check your emails on a regular basis. Class Dojo will begin operating as soon as all families are connected
Parent/Teacher communication
We would like to work in partnership with you, the parents as much as possible. We will have our first individual parents meetings just before half-term, but are obviously very happy for any parents who may have concerns, to contact us by email prior to that. We will aim to reply within 24 hours to any messages you send us.
The beginning and end of the days are very busy times for us and it can be difficult to have a meaningful conversation regarding any questions or concerns you may have, with many other children and parents present. For this reason, if you do have anything you would like to discuss with us, we would be grateful if you would arrange an appointment with the class teacher.
At any time during the year please inform us of any circumstances at home which may have an effect on your child’s performance or behaviour at school, so we can give them the necessary support.
Similarly, we will be in contact with any parents during the year, whenever we have particular concerns, aiming to ensure the children have an enjoyable and successful Year 2.
Homework
As we believe strongly that education is a partnership between home and school, our aim is that we all work together to ensure that the children achieve to the best of their ability. Homework is one way that we can help to develop this. It is a way for your child to share their progress with you and for you to gain a greater understanding of some of the work they are doing in school.
Our weekly homework will consist of activities which require active involvement from an adult as this type of support at home is the most beneficial for a young child’s academic progress in the long term.
Reading
In order for your child to make good academic progress it is essential that they develop the ability to independently read and understand texts of growing difficulty by the end of Year 2.
Your child will bring home a new school reading folder on Friday 15th. It will contain two Read Write Inc reading books, one which they will have read in class and one which will be new to them. There will be a mixture of fiction and non fiction books for them to read. It is important that they share their reading at home with an adult.
They should bring their reading folder to school every day. New books will be sent home on a regular basis.
As well as learning to say the words aloud (decoding) it is really important they spend some time with you discussing the stories to understand the content. We would really appreciate it if you can encourage your child to understand that reading is not a race but is an act of enjoyment and discovery!
We would recommend reading every day if possible, for about 10-15 minutes, using the time both to read the books and discuss them.
Of course, we will also be reading with your child at school, sometimes in a group and sometimes individually.
Spelling Practice
Our aim is for the children to become confident at reading and writing a wide range of tricky words in their daily activities, not just learning words for a spelling test.
Each half term we will provide you with a set of high frequency words to practise reading and writing at home. We will review how confident your child is with the set of words at the end of the half term and then decide whether they are ready for the challenge of a new set or should continue practising the same set.
We highly recommend that you purchase a folder with plastic wallets so you can store all the spellings to be practised in Year 2 in one place and revise them on a regular basis throughout the year.
Maths
We will send home a fact sheet for you at the end of each week, informing you of the areas of Maths that have been taught in class during the week and some practical ways you can support your child at home. Occasionally, this may take the form of a worksheet but it is not our intention to send home formal work each week. Any Maths work sent home does not have to be returned to school for marking.
Children should not spend more than half an hour at a time on Maths activities each session you work with them at home. Any activities not completed can be practised at a later time in the year for revision purposes.
We will also regularly allocate your child Abacus Active Learn online Maths games and activities. Your child will be told when new games are available for them.
We highly recommend that you purchase a folder with plastic wallets so you can store all the Maths homework in one place and revise them on a regular basis throughout the year.
Mini projects
Occasionally during the year, we may ask the children to carry out small projects, with your support. Information will be sent home about these projects at the relevant time.Maths
In Year 2 we have high expectations and ask the most from the children, ensuring each child develops to the best of their ability and becomes a confident, independent mathematician.
The children will initially be taught as a whole class by the Class Teacher and Teaching Assistant, just as in Year 1 using the Abacus Maths scheme. The teachers will ensure the delivery of the lesson and the activities given to the children are pitched at an appropriate level, in order for each child to make the best progress. There is regular assessment and regular discussion between the teachers in Year 2 to ensure the children are being given appropriate challenges.
Later in the year, the organisation will change and the children will be mixed into groups once a week, depending on their confidence in approaching the Year 2 curriculum and their mathematical ability. Please trust our professional judgement in placing your child in the most appropriate group. The groupings will be flexible and the Year 2 staff will consider very carefully which is the best group for each child to be placed in, to ensure they receive the best support and make the best progress possible.
Maths sessions always start with a mental warm up, where the children play simple games to practise their mental calculation strategies. For example, counting around the class in 2s or 10s, using number squares to show the answer to a question or writing on individual white boards.
The main part of the lesson is where a new concept is introduced or practised and it involves whole class work before moving to work individually or in pairs.
Finally the session ends with a plenary, where we revise and practise the concept for the day.
Much emphasis is placed on mental calculation strategies. We expect children to develop strategies for working with numbers in their heads as well as being taught to calculate using formal pencil and paper methods.
Literacy organisation
Literacy takes the form of a daily lesson. There will a mixture of Read Write Inc., Grammar and Extended Writing sessions during the week. The children will be introduced to a range of texts - fiction, non-fiction or poetry - and the children’s reading and writing skills are developed using the texts.
Speaking and Listening
During the year we will create as many opportunities as possible for your child to develop their speaking and listening skills during activities such as News Sharing, Show and Tell and Jigsaw P.S.H.E. sessions. We will also encourage the children to discuss the books they are reading during individual and group reading sessions.
This is an area where you can help your child at home by ensuring they have opportunities to speak in English and express their ideas and develop their vocabulary. Bear in mind that it is very difficult for a child to express themselves in written form if they cannot form those sentences orally first. A lack of vocabulary will prevent them from being able to be creative or explain their ideas fully.
Writing
Each week the children will have the opportunity to write in a variety of ways. During the year they will report on their weekend news, create their own story books, write poems and non fiction information fact sheets. Our aim is for the children to be confident, independent writers whose written work is creative and imaginative.
We also aim for them to be able to punctuate their work correctly by the end of the year. This is best tackled by encouraging the children to read their work aloud to an adult and hearing where they need to stop to take a breath.
We will also focus on a whole range of other grammar points, including different types of punctuation, different types of sentences, conjunctions, adjectives and adverbs to ensure they can structure their writing correctly.
Providing your child with a special writing book at home where they can create their own stories would be beneficial.
Obviously their writing is not going to be perfect at this age. You can help your child to feel proud of their abilities by reading what has been written and praising the content, rather than only commenting on the punctuation, spelling or handwriting. Furthermore, correcting every mistake your child makes each time they write will affect their self confidence and they may lose the confidence to write independently.
Spelling
During the year a range of phonic patterns will be taught in our daily phonic sessions using the Read, Write, Inc. scheme. Common irregular words (red words) will also be practised regularly. The practice of spellings will form part of the children’s homework.
However, in Year 2 what is most important is that the children are not afraid to write independently. Thus, although we will be encouraging the correct spelling of words, we want them to feel confident to “have a go”. Rather than correcting all of their spellings if they write at home, just focus on two or three words in their writing each time. As the year goes by, we will put emphasis on reading their work out loud to themselves to check for errors.
Handwriting
We will begin the year revising how to print the letters, focusing on correct letter formation, size and positioning of letters on the line. Before the end of the year we will introduce the children to a joined style of writing (a cursive script).
Any opportunities for supervised practice of handwriting at home would really help your child. A correct pencil grip and correct posture should also be encouraged. We would ask you to write in lower case letters at home and not only in capitals.
Reading
By the end of Year 2, through working in a partnership between home and school, our aim is that your child will be a confident, independent reader who above all has developed a real love of books and reading.
To teach reading we will use both paired and group reading schemes in class, as well as the individual reading scheme the children bring home. The children will have the chance to experience new texts at their level and work on decoding techniques, and particularly on comprehension, as well as expression and intonation. The children will regularly read to an adult either individually or as part of a reading group, reading a book pitched at the level of the children in the group.
Our Aims for Reading
The children should read with enjoyment and comprehension. They should be developing the skills of using appropriate intonation and expression.
They should be learning a range of strategies to decode words, although initially the use of phonics will be the most important.
They should be confident to read both fiction and non fiction books and understand the differences in how to read each type of book. They should begin to express preferences over the types of books they enjoy.
In order to achieve these aims, the books sent home will be of a level where the children can experience success at reading. During Year 2, as the children become confident at decoding, it may appear that the books are easy for them. However, this does not mean that they have fully understood the text they have read, particularly as the content becomes more complex. For this reason we aim to match the books they read to their level of comprehension as well as their level of decoding. A mixture of fiction and non fiction titles will be sent home during the year.
Frequency
The children need to read regularly at home with an adult. We recommend 10 - 15 minutes daily to ensure good progress. However, the quality of the reading practice, not the quantity is more important!
Reading Strategies
- Phonic skills should be used for new words, when this is possible. This will be the main method in Year 2.
- The common words should be learnt and recognised as whole words.
- New complex words, that cannot be sounded out, should be told.
- The pictures can be also used to provide clues to what is in the text.
- If one word is blocking the reading, then jump the word, read the rest of the sentence and come back to see if it can be worked out.
Approaching Reading
The way reading is approached at home will greatly influence your child’s progress.
- It is important to approach reading in a relaxed way, choosing a time when both the child and the adult will enjoy the session.
- The children should not be made to feel reading is a race to get through as many books as possible, but to enjoy each story they meet.
- As the child is reading the book, stop and ensure that they understand the content of what they are reading through simple questioning. Children can become very good at decoding (reading words aloud) without understanding the vocabulary, thus losing the meaning of the stories.
- Share the reading with the child in different ways:
- The adult and child can read alternate pages.
- The adult could read the narration, the child the dialogue.
- Ignore the text and use the pictures to tell the story orally.
- Read to your child regularly and enjoy all types of books - fiction and non-fiction - in English.
Academic expectations
This is an outline of where the children should be as they arrive in Year 2 and the progress they are expected to make by the end of the year. However, we obviously recognise that each child is different and may have particular strengths and weaknesses. All the work we plan for this year is aimed at supporting the children to reach these expectations to the best of their ability.
Beginning Year 2
Literacy
During Year 1 the children will have worked on a variety of activities to develop their skills in the areas of Speaking and Listening, Reading and Writing.
Thus as they enter Year 2, the expectations are:
Speaking and Listening
- The children should be able to talk about matters of immediate interest.
- They should listen to others and usually respond appropriately.
- They convey simple meanings to a range of listeners, speaking audibly and begin to extend their ideas or accounts by providing some detail.
- Throughout the year the children should begin to show confidence in talking and listening and use a widening vocabulary.
- Reading
- The children should recognise familiar words in simple texts, which should include the sight recognition words from Rec. to Year 2.
- They should use their knowledge of letter sounds to read unfamiliar words and begin to develop a range of different strategies. e.g. reading on and using the pictures as well as sounding out.
- They should show an understanding of what they have read and be able to answer questions, retell events and predict what may happen.
- They should be able to express their response to poems, stories and non-fiction by identifying aspects they like.
- Writing
- The children should be able to communicate meaning through simple words and phrases.
- Their ideas should be developed in a sequence of sentences, and they should begin to use capital letters and full stops.
- Simple words should be spelt correctly and others should be phonetically recognisable.
In their handwriting, letters should be accurately formed and begin to be consistent in size.
Numeracy
As they enter Year 2 most children should be able to:- Count at least 20 objects accurately.
- Count in 1s from any small number and count in 10s from 0.
- Read, write and order numbers up to 20 and then up to 100.
- Understand basic addition and subtraction including 1 more and 10 more
- Know all pairs of numbers with a total of 10
- Use everyday language to describe features of 2D and 3D shapes.
- Use simple equipment to measure a length, mass or capacity.
End of Year 2 Expectations
Literacy
During this Year we will build on the skills the children have attained in Year 1 with the aim that by the end of Year 2:
Speaking and Listening
- The children show confidence in speaking and listening, particularly where the topics interest them.
- They should be able to show awareness of the listener, by including relevant detail.
- Their vocabulary should continue to grow and they express themselves clearly.
- They usually listen carefully and respond with increasing appropriateness to what others say.
They are beginning to be aware that more formal vocabulary and tone of voice is necessary in some situations.
Examples of teaching techniques we use in Year 2:
- Weekly news sharing sessions
- Show and Tell
- Reporting research to the class
- Jigsaw P.S.H.E sessions
Reading
- The children should be able to read simple texts with understanding and accuracy.
- They should express their opinions about major events or ideas in stories, poems and non-fiction.
They are able to use more than one strategy to read unfamiliar words e.g. sounding out, from the shape of the word, from the content or illustrations.
Examples of teaching techniques we use in Year 2:
- Whole class reading of different text types, including fiction, non-fiction and poetry.
- Group and paired reading activities, to focus on skills such as comprehension, intonation and expression as well as accurate decoding.
- Individual reading of texts to focus on individual needs and assess progress.
Writing
- The children should be able to compose both fiction and non-fiction, using appropriate and interesting vocabulary, showing awareness of the reader.
- The ideas should be written in sentences, generally demarcated by capital letters and full stops.
- Simple words should be spelt correctly and others are phonetically plausible.
The handwriting should have letters which are accurately formed, joined correctly and be consistent in size.
Expanded sentences, using conjunctions and adjectives should be used when appropriate.
Examples of teaching techniques we use in Year 2 for writing:
- The whole class shared text is used as a framework for creating their own stories.
- News writing, including the children correcting the teacher’s news for spelling and punctuation errors.
N.B. As writing is a complex process, writing tasks do not always have the same focus. At times it will be the content, at times the secretarial skills of punctuation and spelling.
Numeracy
By the end of Year 2 most children should be able to:
- Count, read, write and order whole numbers to 1000 and know what each digit represents (hundreds, tens or units)
- Describe and extend simple number sequences (including odd/even numbers, counting on and back in 1´s or 10´s from any 2 digit number, etc.)
- Understand that subtraction is the inverse of addition
- Know addition facts for all numbers up to 10 and then to 20
- Use the knowledge that addition can be done in any order when working mentally
- Understand the operation of multiplication as repeated addition or describing an array.
- Know and use halving as the inverse of doubling
- Know facts for the 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10 multiplication tables
- Estimate, measure and compare lengths, masses and capacities, using standard units; suggest suitable units and equipment for such measures.
- Read a simple scale to the nearest labelled division, including using a ruler to draw and measure lines to the nearest centimetre.
- Use mathematical names for common 2D and 3D shapes; sort shapes and describe some of their features.
- Use mathematical vocabulary to describe position, direction and movement.
- Choose and use appropriate operations and efficient calculation strategies to solve problems, explaining how a problem was solved.
Other curriculum areas
Although Numeracy and Literacy are of great importance in Year 2, we do aim to provide a broad curriculum for the children.
The children will have the opportunity to explore a variety of elements of Science, History, Geography, Art/Design Technology, Personal, Social, Health Education and Computing during the year.
The Science topics for Year 2 are:
- Term 1
- Healthy Animals including Humans, Animal Habitats
- Term 2
- Changing Materials
- Term 3
- Out and About (Plants and animals in the local environment)
Curriculum Planning
Each term the learning will take place under an ‘umbrella’ topic heading, with the aim of children being able to make links in their learning across a variety of subjects.
Our topic headings for the year include:
- Fascinating Animals
- Explorers/Into the Arctic
- Asia
- The Seaside
- Where do we live and what makes it special?
- Be Careful what you Wish For
Assessment
The children are assessed each term to ensure they are making the progress expected in Year 2. Their progress will be reflected in the reports sent home and discussed at the Parents meetings each term. It is important for you to know that any assessments we carry out cannot make allowances for the fact that some of the children may be working in a second language and all the children are judged against the same criteria.
We will measure your child’s academic progress against a series of statements. These will demonstrate if they are making the expected progress for the Year group at the end of each term. Your child may not be at the same level across all curriculum areas each term; it depends on their strengths and weaknesses. Also, your child’s level may stay the same all year in one curriculum area or may change in another, depending on how well they achieve the targets for each term.
A small number of children may find an area of the curriculum very challenging and be working below the expected level for Year 2. These children may need extra support to make progress. We may recommend a further assessment of your child by Mr Rouco, the school psychologist, in this case to determine the reason your child finds particular areas of the curriculum a challenge. If we have any particular concerns regarding your child during the year, either academically or socially, we will make an appointment to see you, to discuss the best way of supporting them.
We do not expect the children to be doing extra studying for assessments at home in Year 2. Supporting your child with their weekly reading, spelling and Maths homework is the most beneficial way for your child to make progress throughout the year.
In order to make the situation as stress free as possible for the children each term, they will only be told they are doing ‘Special Work’ when we do carry out assessments and no mention will be made of tests or exams. We would be grateful if you could support us by not using the words ‘tests’ or ‘exams’ at home with your child.
Email addresses for Year 2
2D
- Miss Durban
- Mrs Abdullah
2K
- Mrs Kenny
- Ms Malloy
2S
- Ms Silvester
- Ms Scott-Barnes
Social and Personal skills
We place great importance on developing the children’s social and personal skills.
We have an ‘Activity Time’ at the end of some days, where the children learn to develop skills such as co-operation, sharing and friendship, through a whole range of activities including role play, art and craft, games such as chess or puzzles and a variety of construction equipment.
We spend time each week developing the children’s awareness of how to treat their classmates, how to respect rules and how their behaviour affects others through the use of the Jigsaw P.S.H.E scheme each week.
As well as a set of school rules, each class has its own set of rules, which the children are expected to follow. These are discussed on a regular basis. Positive reinforcement of correct behaviour is very important in Year 2 and we have individual, group and class reward systems in place to encourage the children to develop their personal and social skills appropriately.
However, the children also know there is a consequence if they are unable to conform to the rules, after reminders from the teachers.This usually takes the form of missing part of a playtime to give them time to reflect on their inappropriate behaviour or if deemed a more serious misdemeanor, speaking with the PrePrep. Headteacher.
To reinforce correct behaviour, the children always receive an explanation of why they have received a reward or why they have lost playtime.