This document provides an overview of the curriculum for Year F3 students in Term One of September 2014. It covers several topics that will be taught, including: getting to know each other, families and friends; types of homes and houses; becoming independent; transportation; communication skills in English and Vietnamese; mathematics; physical development; expressive arts; understanding the world; and literacy. Key vocabulary, books, and websites are listed to support learning in each subject area. The curriculum aims to help students settle into the new school year, develop social and emotional skills, and build foundations for further learning.

1. Curriculum Statement
Year F3
Term One
September 2014

2. This term, our main topics are titled:
All about me, my family, and friendsAll about me, my family, and friendsAll about me, my family, and friendsAll about me, my family, and friends
This is a great topic for settling into a new school, as we find out lots
about each other and start to make new friends! We will start by talking
about ourselves and what makes us special. We will continue to learn
about our school, our own families and our friends, and how to treat
everybody with respect. Towards the middle of the term, we will be
learning about different kinds of houses and homes. We may even go on a
trip to visit our teacher or our friends’ homes!
During our first term at school, we are learning how to become
independent, so we will be trying hard to take care of our own needs,
such as going to the toilet, changing our shoes, and drinking water. It is very important that we are
encouraged to do this at home as well, so that we can become independent learners in school and
ready for the new adventures that everyday brings!
Key vocabulary: friends, family, me, home, house, celebrate, moon festival, body, feelings, sad,
happy, angry, surprised, excited, parts of the body e.g. head, leg, arm, eye, finger, etc.
Relevant books/authors: “Spot goes to school”; “My first day at school”; “All about My feelings”; “It’s
ok to be different”; “My Family Tree”. ”Cảm ơn bạn voi”; “Đôi tai tôi dài quá”; “Tích Chu”; “Làm anh”;
“Con yêu bố lắm!”; “Vì sao tớ yêu mẹ”; “Món quà của cô giáo”; “Thỏ xám đi tìm bạn”.
Related Websites/resources: http://www.iboard.co.uk/activity/Going-to-School-I-See-752
http://www.iboard.co.uk/activity/My-Address-71
http://socnhi.com/Hang-truyen.html
Holiday and transportHoliday and transportHoliday and transportHoliday and transport
Straight after holidays, the children will be excited to share their experiences,
this is a great way to start a topic about the great transport world around us.
We will be learning about different types of transport. We will begin by
thinking about transport in Vietnam and the journeys that are familiar to us. As
the weeks pass, we will gradually think more about transport around the world
and even into outer space as we let our imaginations run wild!
Key vocabulary: We will be learning key words such as ‘car - ô tô’, ‘motorbike - xe máy’, ’bicycle—xe
đạp’, ’bus - xe buýt’, ’train - tàu hỏa’, ’boat - thuyền’, ’cyclo - xích lô’, ‘aeroplane - máy bay’, ‘helicopter -
máy bay trực thăng’, ‘hot air balloon - khinh khí cầu’, ’rocket - tên lửa’, ’space ship - tàu du hành vũ trụ’,
’pirate ship - thuyền cướp biển’, journey, transport, travel.
Relevant books/authors: Dấu hỏi biến hóa - Vũ trụ; Những tên cướp biển, Chiếc tàu hơi nước cũ kĩ,
Ông xe phun nước, Album nhỏ của em - Phương tiện giao thông, Mười vạn câu hỏi vì sao - Phương
tiện giao thông, Xe chữa cháy, Đội cứu hỏa. “Ben and Gran and the Whole Wide World” by Gillian
Shields; “The Journey” by Neil Griffiths., “Mrs Pirate” by Nick Sharrat.
Related Websites/resources:
Soc Nhi Website - http://socnhi.com/
Transportation Colouring Pages. - http://www.primarygames.com/socstudies/transportation/color.htm
Transportation Games Online - http://www.primarygames.com/socstudies/transportation/games.htm
Barney Transportation Matching Game - http://pbskids.org/barney/children/games/
transportation_game.html
Cookie.com Transportation Game, - http://www.cookie.com/kids/games/transports.html
British Council Website - http://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en/category/topics/transport

3. COMMUNICATION AND LANGUAGE– English and Vietnamese
We will be learning important skills to best help us communicate effectively. As we go through the
term, we will learn to respond to instructions, listen to different sounds and stories and make our own
connections to previous lessons. As we develop these skills, we will then be able to extend our
vocabulary in both Vietnamese and English and begin to use and understand more complex
sentences.
How you can support at home:
• Explain why it is important to pay attention when someone is speaking
• Encourage the use of language by telling stories or playing games
• Use opportunities to stop and listen carefully for environmental sounds, and talk about sounds
you can hear such as long, short, high, low.
Related websites/resources:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/ http://www.storyplace.org/storyplace.asp
http://pbskids.org/
PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT –
In the first term, we will be developing our independence skills, building up the confidence to explore
our surroundings and express ourselves. We will be learning how to make friends and convey our
needs and feelings appropriately.
As we are introduced to the Golden Rules of BIS, we will be thinking about the consequences of our
actions and the importance of each rule during weekly Circle Times. These values and attitudes are
also reinforced and encouraged in our daily routines at school. This is a very important topic, as it will
shape the way we treat each other and behave in school throughout the rest of the year.
How you can support at home:
• Children should feed themselves and understand the importance of eating healthily and drinking
water.
• Children should be encouraged to dress independently, including their shoes and socks.
• Children should have many opportunities to play with others and learn to share their toys.
• Children must go to the toilet independently, and wash their hands!
Related websites/resources:
http://www.sesameworkshop.org/ http://www.kidspsych.org/index1.html
MATHEMATICS
We are learning numbers in both English and Vietnamese counting up to 10, and then 20. We will
also be trying to recognise numbers and put them into the right order, starting at 0. We are going to
start learning about adding, so that we understand that we can add two sets together and find out
how many objects we have altogether. For Shape, Space and Measures, we will be exploring colours
and shapes, and looking closely at patterns and shapes that we see around us everyday. We will also
be learning about measuring height and capacities.
How you can support at home:
• Incorporate counting into everyday activities, such as going to the supermarket and counting
the apples or abstract things like counting how many times you have jumped or hopped. It
would be helpful to count in both Vietnamese and English.
• Encourage children to identify both shapes and colours, and notice patterns when they see
them.
Related websites/resources:
http://www.iboard.co.uk/activity/Adding-Two-Dice-716 http://www.poissonrouge.com/123/
http://www.storyplace.org/storyplace.asp http://www.kids-space.org/

4. We do hope that the above information will be useful for you when supporting your child’s homework and
discussing his/her learning. Should you have any further questions please contact your child’s class
teacher.
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT - In our PE lessons, we will be developing our confidence and control with
both large and small movements. We will be travelling over, under, around and through a wide range of
equipment both inside and out. Within the classroom, we will be encouraged to use equipment safely and
with control, learning how to hold tools correctly and use them independently.
How you can support at home:
• Show children how to use scissors/glue sticks/ pencils correctly and let them do so at home.
• Take children to a park (where possible) and encourage them to move in different ways, climbing
over, under and through.
Related websites/resources:
The Little Gym in Vincom Center, Long Bien; tiNiWorldSyrenaTower 51XuânDiệu,Q.TâyHồ;
tiNiWorldPicoMall Tầng 3, 229 Tây Sơn, Q.Đống Đa
EXPRESSIVE ARTS AND DESIGN - We will be exploring a wide range of media and be encouraged to
express ourselves creatively as much as possible. This will include paint, oil pastels, papier mache, and
modeling clay. We will have access to ‘Small World Toys’ everyday, so that we can develop our
imaginations and make up our own stories, based on our experience and ideas. In music we will be
investigating a range of instruments, focusing on a key skill each week, such as ‘beating’ or ‘shaking’. We
will be exploring how we can change sounds, and also listening for patterns within music.
How you can support at home:
• Sing lots of songs and let children experiment with music making (this can be with a bottle filled with
beans; a pot and spoon…. There are many ways to make music without owning real instruments!)
• Let children be creative at home and encourage them to paint and draw whatever they want to. Ask
them about their pictures.
Related websites/resources:
http://www.crayonboxgames.com/ http://socnhi.com/
UNDERSTANDING THE WORLD – We will be developing our curiosity by exploring our new environment
at school. We will investigate using all of our senses to see similarities, differences, patterns and change.
We will be learning about our Vietnamese heritage other cultures, focusing on the different types of homes
and transport around the world. We will also be beginning to use a range of ICT equipment including the
Interactive White Board. This is to support us with our learning of other subject areas, but also as a way of
developing key skills that will help us in the future.
How you can support at home:
• Encourage children to ask questions about what they see around them. Enjoy finding out the answers
together.
• Let children explore with their senses (taste; touch; smell; sight; hearing) and ask them about their
preferences.
Related websites/resources:
http://socnhi.com/ http://www.birminghamzoo.com/
http://www.dinodon.com/ http://www.kids-space.org/ http://nebuland.com/
LITERACY – This year we will be learning phonics at a pace that will let the children develop a love for
reading and writing. We will begin by listening to different sounds and rhymes and then proceed to stories
and songs with enjoyment. We will also continue to work on writing our own names independently. We will
practise responding appropriately by asking and answering questions about the stories. We will also begin
to understand the sequence of events in a story (beginning; middle; end) during the second half term.
How you can support at home:
• Provide children with dual language books and let them explore the differences.
Related websites/resources:
http://www.sesameworkshop.org/ http://www.kidspsych.org/index1.html