The Year 1 Team 

1D Mrs C Biddlecombe- Year Lead

1P Mrs A Johnson (currently Mrs E Dudek)- Class Teacher

1S Miss O Timmins - Class Teacher

TLSA's - Miss Bamber and Mrs Hunt

Welcome Presentation

There is a Welcome to Key Stage 1 presentation. Click on one of the links below.

KS1 information evening presentation

Year 1 Information Evening handout September 2026

AUTUMN 2026

Reading, Phonics and Writing

Daily phonics remains at the heart of learning in Year 1 and plays a vital role in helping children become fluent, confident readers. The children will continue to take part in daily phonics lessons alongside regular opportunities to apply their learning in both reading and writing. At home, do read together every day: Just 15 minutes spent reading, practising sounds, blending unfamiliar words and enjoying books together will help build confidence and foster a genuine love of reading. Talking about books, asking questions and sharing opinions is just as important and really helps develop children's understanding. In English, our focus this term is developing the essential building blocks of writing. We'll continue securing correct letter formation while developing children's understanding of simple sentence structure. In Year 1, handwriting and spelling are key priorities. These are known as transcription skills, and we want them to become increasingly automatic so that, as children move through school, they can focus on composing longer and more ambitious pieces of writing. There are lots of simple ways you can support your child's learning at home. Encouraging the correct pencil grip, developing fine motor skills and giving your child opportunities to write—shopping lists, labels, birthday cards or little notes—all reinforce the learning taking place in school. Across the curriculum, children will also have plenty of opportunities to explain their thinking, share ideas and build confidence when speaking and listening to others.

Mathematics

We'll begin by strengthening children's understanding of numbers to 10 before developing confidence and accuracy with addition and subtraction within 10. As always, learning will be practical and hands-on, using equipment, games and exploration before children record their ideas independently. NumBots will continue as a homework tool. Regular practice helps develop number fluency, so we encourage children to use it alongside practical maths experiences at home such as counting, spotting numbers, playing simple games and talking about numbers in everyday life.

Alongside their academic learning, we'll also encourage children to become increasingly independent by organising their own resources, making sensible choices and taking greater responsibility for their learning.

In our wider curriculum, we also have lots of exciting topics to look forward to this term.

Science: We'll investigate everyday materials, discovering their properties and why different materials are used for different purposes through practical investigations.

Geography: In What is it like here? we'll explore our local area, identify the features of villages, towns and cities, use simple maps and plans, and begin using compass directions.

History: Through How am I making history? we'll explore events within living memory, learn about Remembrance and discover the history of Dorridge Primary School.

Art & Design Technology: We'll get creative by exploring line and shape before designing, building and evaluating our own structures.

 DPC Curriculum Overview

You can find more details of the Dorridge Primary Curriculum on the Curriculum and Subject pages on the menu to the left.