Autumn Term 2026

Welcome to Eastover School and to Ladybird and Butterfly Class!

We are delighted to welcome your child to Eastover School as they begin their exciting learning journey in our Foundation Stage. During the autumn term, our focus will be on helping children settle into school life, build friendships, develop confidence and independence, and begin their learning through a range of engaging and enjoyable activities. 

Our autumn topic, "All About Me", will help children explore who they are, their families, their feelings, and the people who are important in their lives. Through stories such as The Colour Monster, Ruby's Worry, Meesha Makes Friends, Funnybones, Everywhere Bear and Peepo, children will learn about emotions, friendships, similarities and differences, and what makes each of us unique. 

Throughout the term, children will:

• Learn classroom routines and expectations as they settle into school life.
• Make new friends and develop positive relationships.
• Explore their feelings and learn strategies for managing emotions.
• Talk about their families, communities and special people in their lives.
• Discover the changing season of autumn through outdoor learning and nature walks.
• Learn about local traditions, including Bridgwater Carnival.
• Explore how they have grown and changed since they were babies. 

In Literacy, children will enjoy daily story times, rhymes, songs and discussions. They will begin learning phonics, developing the skills needed for reading and writing. They will have opportunities to write their names, mark make independently, draw pictures and begin recording their ideas. 

In Mathematics, children will sort and match objects, compare size, mass and capacity, explore patterns, count objects, recognise numbers and begin to understand quantities. Learning will be practical, hands-on and fun. 

Through Understanding the World, children will investigate their environment, learn about families and communities, explore seasonal changes, observe nature and take part in exciting STEM activities such as sorting natural materials, investigating bubbles, exploring materials, and measuring growth.

In Physical Development, children will develop their gross and fine motor skills through outdoor play, obstacle courses, climbing, balancing, mark making, cutting, threading, construction activities and PE sessions. 

Children will also enjoy a range of creative activities, including self-portraits, collage work, autumn art, leaf printing, carnival float design, transient art and music activities where they can sing, dance and explore rhythm. ]

We look forward to working closely with families throughout the term. Parents will have opportunities to share "All About Me" information, celebrate WOW moments, attend phonics workshops and support their child's learning journey at home and school. 

We hope you have a lovely first term with us at the start of your school journey.

Unlocking Letters and Sounds Phase 2 and 3

Key Dates for your diaries:

Autumn 

Week beginning 5th October: Bridgwater Week

Week beginning 5th October: Come and share a phonics lesson with your child.

Monday 9th November: Harvest Assembly

Tuesday 10th November: Visit from the Little Red Hen

Seesaw

Please remember to keep checking Seesaw for all our up to date information!  If you are having trouble logging in please speak to us. 

No Outsiders Ethos

The aim in EYFS is to introduce the No Outsiders ethos using very simplistic language: we are all different and we are all friends. There is nothing more complicated in the EYFS plans than the message that it's ok to be you and you may be different to me, but that's ok too.

You Choose encourages children to choose their favourite place to live, favourite transport, favourite food etc and shows that we all like different things. This is explored further in Red Rockets and Rainbow Jelly, where characters Nick and Sue are shown liking different things throughout the book, but conclude by saying they like each other. Hello Hello shows different animals with a range of shapes and colours who all say 'hello' and no one is left out. The Family Book shows children that there are many types of families - and then we draw our own family. Mommy, Mama and Me allows children to understand some families have two mums (or two dads); we talk about the things Mommy and Mama do with their child and ask if our own families do similar things (go to the park, drink juice, kiss goodnight). Finally, Blue Chameleon shows a lonely chameleon trying to make friends by changing shape and colour; he thinks you have to look like someone else to be friends. At the end, Chameleon realises you can be yourself and you don't have to change.

A mini tour of Eastover Primary School

Welcome to Eastover Primary School - this is a short tour, led by two of our Y6 pupils, of the main areas your child will experience in their first year at our school.

• School Readiness Here is lots of useful information to prepare your child for school.

Reception Baseline Assessment 2026

When your child starts school they will be asked to complete some activities linked to language, reading and maths. This is a national assessment for all 4 year olds. The activities are devised with children in mind and are completed with the teacher. All the information linked to this assessment is in the leaflet below. Any questions please see your class teacher.