Welcome to Chestnut

Teacher - Chestnut Samantha Webster
Photo of Samantha Webster

Chestnut is a class of 6 students with diverse needs and abilities whom are supported by 4 members of staff, we largely use symbols and signalong in order to communicate our needs, choices and feelings.

Chestnut class take a holistic approach to learning by following a topic based curriculum, where each subject is tailored to the individuals learning needs, thriving on routine and consistency, this approach enables learning to be teacher-led as well as child initiated.

Class activities are differentiated for each individual, ensuring that they are engaging and motivating to the individual child. Students particularly enjoy activities that are ‘hands on’ which relate to everyday life skills and promoting independence.

Summer Term 2 Timetable

Curriculum Info for Parents: Summer Term 2 2021 TimetableWe will be taking part in 2 themed days during the half term to explore our learning in the following topics- RE - Christianity-teachings and authority-understanding how rules help us MFL - France MUSIC - Exploring duration
Subject
Topic: Seasons, Weather & Holidays Here is a list of stories we will explore this half term- - Stickman-Julia Donalson - Seren’s seasons-Twinkl Ebook - Out and About-A first book of poems-Shirley Hughes - We’re going on a Bear hunt-Helen Oxenbury If you have any suggestions for books involving seasons, weather and holidays we would love to hear about them. Activities will be as follows, each activity linked to the book/story of the week- there will be a carousel of 3 activities each session.
MathsWe will be taking part in activities such as - Coin recognition - Recognising and discussing terms such as lots, more, one. - Awareness of quantity - Making sets/matching sets to quantity. - Coin/money exchange-roleplay - Positional language, on, in (packing appropriate weather suitcase. - Addition / subtraction –objects suitable to specific season/weather - Ordering moths of year/days of the week. - Matching items/symbols-recognising similarities - Understanding/exploring position. Placing weather symbols-next to, above, underneath. - Understanding the term more/less. - Exploring numbers in the environment-temperature, time
EnglishDaily story time, reading comprehension, exploring what we have heard/read, discussing characters, phonic recognition. We will be taking part in activities based around the stories mentioned above, we will also be exploring the weather each day and doing our own weather reports.
Phonic ProgrammeWe will follow the read write Inc. and Jolly phonics programmes, as this will enable us to explore our previous phonic
Focussed exploration and investigationChanges and anticipation-cause and effect around cooking and sharing. Exploring different textures and smells. This will also be included in our sensory play, and will include the use of sand/water tray, musical instruments.
Fine motor skills developmentPencil control, shoebox tasks, hand eye co-ordination activities, puzzles, which are topic related-we will be exploring life skills during this time such as cleaning, tidying away, laying the table, locating objects in their place. These activities will be closely linked to our independence skills and our creative activities.
Creative (Art, Craft and DT)We will be designing, making and evaluating- - Icicle-Winter - 3D bonfire-Winter - splatter fireworks-Autumn - wind chimes-Autumn - Sun-sun catcher-Summer - 3D daffodils-Spring - Sandcastles-Holidays - Salt dough sea shells - Season collage, 4 trees or 1 tree 4 seasons knowledge, our pencil control, listening and speaking skills as well as our signalong.
Communication/intensive interactionwe will be learning topic related words/signs and symbols such as seasons, Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer, holiday, weather, sunny, rain, cloudy, plane, train, boat .-working alongside children’s individual Communication plans.
Role play areaWeather station/travel agents, role playing as travel agent, holiday maker, cabin crew etc, experiencing social interactions and appropriate behaviour, modelled by supporting staff. We will be exploring holiday brochures, travel options and discussing previous holidays. While in the role play area we will explore the day’s weather and record it on our weather map.
Profile & Ideas for HomeEncourage your son/daughter to take part in activities that they enjoy which will support independence and the exploration of life skills, Please feel free to explore individual plans that you have at home such as EHCPs, SALT reports, or enjoy reading/sharing a story/book with your son/daughter.