Class Team

• Class Teacher: Alannah Nic A’Bhaird 
• Resource Teacher: Sara Reilly
• SNA: Anne Mc Cullagh

Class Admin

• The school day begins at 8:30, children will be marked late after 8:40 and will need to enter school via the front door. 
• If a child is absent, please send an email to the office or myself, or alternatively you can register reasons for late or absent children on the Aladdin Connects App. 

Teacht le Chéile

• Between 8:30-8:50 the class come together (Teacht le Chéile) and transition from home to school. This is a really important time for the children to settle into a new school day. 
• 8.30-8.40 10 minutes for parents to communicate with the teacher if needed.

Class Behaviour

• The whole school approach centres around the promotion of good behaviour. 
• Class Rules:
  • Listening to others and not shouting out
  • Being kind to others
  • Trying our best 
  • Helping each other 
  • Including everyone

Toys and cards

• We ask children not to bring toys or  cards into school . They cause distraction and are not needed during the day.
• For Golden time on a friday there are plenty of toys in the classroom for the children to play with. 
• We ask children not wear fitbit/smart/ interactive watches in Rang 1 as it causes distraction.

RMDS ethos

• The RMDS ethos highlights that every person is entitled to equal respect regardless of age, gender, nationality, religious beliefs, social and cultural background or economic status. 

Subjects Covered

Literacy: Primary focus in Rang 1 and involves reading, writing and oral language skills.

• Reading: The Oxford Reading Tree is the scheme used throughout RMDS. The reader that the children have each week is from this scheme. We encourage reading for pleasure as much as possible. 
• Writing: There is a big focus on handwriting in Rang 1. Letter reversal is very normal at this age and we will target it throughout the school year. The class will begin pre-cursive writing this year as well. All writing is purposeful and covers the genres of creative writing, factual writing and opinion. Children are encouraged to self-edit and self-correct. 
• Spellings: The class have been using the Spellbound Spelling Programme since the beginning of the year. The programme is designed to revise sight words, word endings and blends that would have been covered in Junior and Senior Infants. The words then get harder as the year progresses. The children will complete Spelling Homework each evening and are encouraged to do a practice test on a Thursday evening. The class then complete a Spelling Test on a Friday morning.
• Oral Language: On Monday mornings the children share their news or Nuacht. We do this as a whole class discussion and then write about it. Talk and discussion is a big part of our day across all subjects. The children take part in additional partner/group work which gives them the opportunity to practice oral language in English and Irish. 

Maths: We will be focusing on numbers 11-20 and number formation. Other areas covered will include:

• Addition and Subtraction
• Read, write and recognise the numbers 0-99
• Concepts of place value
• Mathematical skills including estimating, comparing, measuring and recording.
• Significant focus on the language of Math’s 
• Introduction to Standard Units of Measure. 

Gaeilge: An rud is tábhachtach ná go bhfuil na páistí ag caint as Gaeilge – The most important thing is that children speak Irish

• Gaeilge is a form of communication, we won’t focus too much on errors. 

• Immersive education through ceol (music), dramaíocht (drama) agus cluichí (games).

• Encouraging children to show off their Gaeilge and the words and phrases they know. 

• Úsáidimid Bua na cainte i rang a haon 

Core Curriculum

• Faiths & Festivals: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism, Humanism and non-religious belief systems

• Development Education
• Moral Development 
• Myself & Others
• Care of the Environment & Sustainable Development. 

Special education

• Special Education Teacher - Sara reilly
• Special Needs assistant- Anne Mccullagh 
• Fairness isn’t about everyone the same, but everyone getting what they need.
• Support in and out of the main classroom.

The Arts

• Drama – Exploring and Making Drama 
• Music – Performing, Composing, Listening & Responding
• Art – Focus on Oral Language and Response to other Artists
• All three subjects will be integrated to increase meaningfulness. The focus will be on the process and not the product. 

Social, Environmental & Scientific Education (SESE): History, Geography & Science

• Focus on development of skills and concepts rather than content and knowledge. The emphasis is on children’s own lives and surroundings. 

• Develops skills in questioning, observing, investigating, predicting, experimenting and analysing. 

P.E. 

• PE class takes place on a Wednesday morning so please make sure children have appropriate clothing. 
• During the first term the class will do GAA as part of their PE Curriculum.
• 10-minute movement break in the mornings
• RMDS also takes part in the Active Schools Programme

Social, Personal & Health Education (SPHE)

• Develops emotional and social awareness
• Stay Safe programme will take place in Term 2

Homework

• Homework in First Class should take no longer than 25 mins to complete.
• Homework will consist of:
  • Maths: This will mirror what is being covered in school.
  • Reading: The books sent home each week will be a mix of stories that are used to revise sight words, word blends, and increase fluency as well as books from different genres. Each child has their own individual reading plan. 
    • If possible, children should read aloud to someone who can help them with any tricky words. Reading aloud also increases confidence and fluency. 
  • Spellings: As mentioned, the children will have an exercise to complete each night in their Spellbound Workbook. It is recommended to complete a practice Spelling Test on a Thursday. There is a template at the back of the workbook that can be used for this. 
• If homework is taking a long time or causing any undue anxiety, please drop me an email or discuss it with me.  

Breaks and yard

• Small break 10.25-10.35. 15 minutes given before small break to eat. 
• Lunch 11:45-12:10. 20 minutes given after lunch to eat. 
• Children wash their hands before eating. Please send in a hand towel in a ziplock bag to dry hands and cut down on waste. 

• Remind children to focus on eating during eating times. 

Healthy Lunches

• No birthday treats please, we will celebrate birthdays in other ways. 
• No nuts in school at all.
• No chocolate, sweets, fizzy drinks, or crisps etc, (even homemade).

Health and safety- medicine

• Teachers and Staff cannot administer medicine to children!
• Approval needed from the Board of Management (except for EpiPens, etc.)
• Children can self-administer inhalers, etc.

Head lice

• Perfectly normal among young children 
• Head lice like clean hair as much as dirty hair! 
• Regular Detection combing is vital
• Please notify class teacher if a case of head lice occurs (discretion guaranteed!)
• Tie long hair back can limit the spread of lice

Communication

• 10 minutes each morning
• In the Yard at 2.10pm
• Via email - alannah@rmds.ie
• Via Mary and barbara in the office
• Parent/Teacher meetings in november