FAMILIES at a Mossley school have shown that learning can also involve plenty of fun.
They have been busy lately embarking on all kinds of activities – from a phonics word hunt to making puppets.
Chinese New Year is always an enjoyable time for children and there was a special celebration this year at Micklehurst All Saints CE Primary to mark the Year of the Snake.
Parents and carers joined their youngsters in the nursery as teacher Mrs Brown retold the story of ‘The Great Race’ by Emily Hiles, with the children all taking turns to select the correct puppet from a bag and using the book to help them.
They also turned their hand to making puppets, retelling and sequencing headbands, trying Chinese food, decorating plastic fans and using puppets to retell the storybook.
Before parents and carers left, the children showed them the dance they had been practising, using their Chinese dancing sticks and sharing how Chinese families celebrate the occasion.
Every child was given a copy of ‘The Great Race’ along with some activities to complete, as well as going home with a pair of chopsticks, a red money envelope, a lucky coin and a fortune cookie.
Meanwhile, in Reception class, parents and carers were invited to join the latest ‘Stay and Play’ session – which focused on phonics.
The school said the aim was to share its ‘First Class Phonics’ scheme and share resources to ensure parents and carers feel confident when supporting their child’s phonics development when at home.
Families observed a short 10-minute phonics session before the children explored a variety of reading, writing and storytelling activities in the classroom.
These included mark making in sand, practising their handwriting using ‘sky, grass and ground’ handwriting resources, writing simple sentences, and completing an outdoor phonics word hunt.
