How Does Your Timetable Work?

[Guest heleng]

I am new to FS having taught in Year 1 for the past 6 years. I am still working on my timetable and need some help please!!! I have changed it several times already.

 

We have restrictions as the Reception class is part of the main school and we have assembly times and playtimes etc to fit in. We also share the space with the nursery class that runs 9-11.30am then 12.45-3.15pm.

The teacher who I have taken over from now teaches in the Nursery class. There are also difficulties as we have three term intake due to having a nursery class on site, so we get a new intake every term.

 

At the moment we have daily whole class maths input, literacy input, phonics session, whole class topic input and story time. We have a directed Welly Wednesday session focusing on K&U exploring the school grounds and immediate local area.

 

Should everything else be covered through continuious provision? Or do you have timetabled sessions for teaching other subjects? For example do you have a weekly music session/ RE session etc? When the children have had their literacy input do they have CIP for the rest of that session or do they have choices from a restricted number of literacy based choices?

 

Any sample timetables or ideas for how people manage everything would be much appreciated.

 

Helen

[Guest]

After alot of rejigging I have found it easier to work on this basis:

Mon - + Tues literacy days

Tues + Weds - maths days

Fri - catch up

 

All the time there is continuous provision - i.e. role play, art, small world paly, oudoors, etc etc. I found it impossible to cover lit and maths and everyhing else on a daily basis - was rushing around like a mad thing. I do letters and sounds - phonics everyday for 20mins followed by letters and sounds table top activities like making cvc words with magnetic letters etc, then we have a snack at 10am- outdoor play from 10.15 - 10.45am and then start on the focussed literacy or maths task depending on the day. In the afternoons - KUW and exciting art work etc as well as finishing off lit or maths activities.

 

I had to work around our set-up at school and change the timetable alot. Having a set literacy day enabes me to hear my readers also.

 

Hope this helps. Some people might object to this set-up and may say that all 6 areas must be covered at the same time every day - well I do, coz I have a writing area and role-play incorporates Cll too - and these are continuous . I think you have to work with your school setup and do what suits you. We are confined to a small classroom and I work part-time so I try and get my 'bread and butter' activities , if you like, in the morning, when I am in.

[Guest]

Have a feeling this might turn into a big post.

i love to read things on here just to reasure myself.

Do you do phonics and phonics activities every morning until play, and then a Num or CLL focus after??

 

We do this: (S0METIMES, WELL SORT OF, DEPENDING ON WETTERS, CRIERS, TANTRUMS ETC!!! PS THIS IS A RECEPTION CLASS)

 

children come in in the morning and put their water bottle on their colour table

hang up coat and put self registration picture on door

reading bags in book box or shared book tables (put big book ORT on table and chn put their bag on the same book as the one they have in their bag)

 

whilst all chn are arriving and doing jobs their is something to listen to, sing etc on the IWB

 

Am now beginning to add a morning arrival task such as name writing

 

When we are all on the carpet we take the register and count the number of chn in school that day. We write it on the board adn find it on the number line. We talk about if it is more/less or the same as the day before.

 

Next we choose the line leader and ender of the day.

then we do our weather watch where by we record the date, day, month and season.

 

Next we say our prayers

sing good morning Jesus song

adn sing Our schools the best song!

 

We have a rota and next 2 chn can share some news.

This sounds as if it takes ages but it doesn't really.

 

On Mon, Tue, Thur, Fri we then go to assembly or PE

 

When we come back after PE on Mon their is only time to get changed before we have our snack and playtime.

 

on the other days we come back and do brain gym and go on to a shared carpet activity. We split the 30 chn in to 2 groups mostly mixed, but sometimes ability, nad both teacher and CA have a group. We often to the same activity but at the mo it os eaiser to manage 2 smaller groups instead of one large group.

 

so a typical tuesday would be

 

come back from assembly and split into 2 groups and have a CLL or maths Focus then we would go to directed activities, sometimes both adults are focused on an activity or sometimes only one as the other is observing. Chn have to do the directed activity when asked and according to their ability.

 

i have started to introduce an Independent task that the chn must do e.g somthing easy that they can have a go at on their own. for example today the children had to colour in a birthdat cake adn write their name underneath and in Maths tomorrow we are goind to use them to make a birthday graph.

I have a set of small laminated names cards and i blue tac them to the independent task board. When the chn hav completed their activity they find their name and stick it to their work. This works 2 ways, at a glance i can see who has done the task and encourage those that haven't to have a go and by sticking their name on i always know who the work belongs too!!!

 

there are then always other indpendent activities such as role play, book corner, sand, outdoor play, writing tables, maths centers etc that the chn can choose from.

 

When writing it down it all sounds wonderful but don't get me wrong it is still bedlem some days adn chn do still find it hard to perserver at one task.

 

so that will take us 'till snack time and then it's play time.

After play we go back to our two groups and have a shot focus on CLL or Maths (opposite to the previous session) and then the activities continue the same until dinner

 

After dinner we do whole class shared topic work and then break into small groups where we tend to follow the same format as AM. We do lots of arty work esp, dressing up etc etc

 

liek someone said some people may not agree adn say you should have everything all the time-well we do at times e.g. we dress up AM to act out stories, we used play dough to make cakes and add birthday candles etc. We JUST MAKE IT AS MUCH FUN as we can.

 

then we end the day with a story/songs

 

i know this is long but hope when you read it you fell you do pretty much the saem in a reception setting. if you don't,let me know may be i have it all wrong (Aaaargh!)

 

We fit reading in where we can on Cll days and in the sfternoons, when parents volunteer etc.

 

WOuld love to read what others do

 

natasha