Year 2
Welcome to Year 2!
Class Teacher: Mrs Bechley
Mrs Bechley
Support Staff:
Mrs Crisp Miss Jones
Welcome to the Year 2 page. We are pleased that all the children have settled into the school year. We hope parents/carers have had an opportunity to meet us and get to know us as a team.
In Year 2, we pride ourselves on having an 'open door' policy in Year 2 and hope that all our parents/ carers feel that they have regular contact with members of staff from the year group team. If you require any support, please do not hesitate to contact us using our email addresses or by making an appointment via the main office.
We very much look forward to working with our Year 2 friends and families this year.
Kind Regards,
Year 2 Team
Summer Term 2026 
English
In the summer term, Year 2 pupils will continue to develop their reading and writing skills through a range of engaging text types. Children will learn to write clear explanation texts, helping them explain how things work using technical vocabulary and organised sentences. They will explore kenning poetry, creating imaginative descriptions by combining powerful nouns and adjectives. In narrative work, pupils will read and write wishing tales, focusing on character, setting and the consequences of wishes. Throughout the term, there will be a strong emphasis on sentence structure, vocabulary development and handwriting.
In addition, we will be having handwriting and spelling sessions throughout the week to develop consistent letter formation and accurate spelling across all curriculum areas.
We will continue to use our sound knowledge, applying these to new words. The children will continue to use their segmenting skills to breakdown spoken words and represent these by graphemes, spelling many of these words correctly. By the end of year 2, children will be expected to spell many of the common exception words (see below) correctly.
Year 1- common exception words
Year 2- common exception words
We will be having Talk through Stories sessions throughout the week, daily story sessions and a weekly whole class reading session where we will be developing reading skills linked to VIPERS (Vocabulary, Inference, Prediction, Explanation, Retrieval and Sequencing)
We will be visiting the library during the term to share stories with the library staff and to choose some new books for our classroom.
Maths
In the summer term, Year 2 children will continue their maths learning using the White Rose Maths programme. Lessons are carefully planned to help children build confidence and understanding step by step. Pupils will learn about fractions, telling the time, reading simple charts and graphs, and exploring position and direction. They will be encouraged to talk about their thinking, use practical equipment and pictures, and apply their maths skills to real‑life problems. Our aim is to help children feel confident, enjoy maths, and become thoughtful problem‑solvers.
Geography
In the summer term, Year 2 children will learn about rivers, seas and oceans through the United Learning Geography curriculum. Pupils will explore what rivers are, how they flow and why they are important, as well as locating and naming the world’s seas and oceans. Children will develop their map skills by using simple maps and atlases, learn key geographical vocabulary, and make comparisons between different places. Lessons encourage curiosity about the natural world and help children understand how water shapes our planet and supports people and wildlife.
History
In history this term, Year 2 children will learn about famous explorers, focusing on Sacagawea and Michael Collins. Pupils will discover who these explorers were, when they lived and why their journeys were important. Children will learn how Sacagawea helped guide explorers across North America and how Michael Collins played a key role in space exploration as part of the Apollo missions. Through stories, pictures and discussion, pupils will begin to understand how explorers showed bravery, curiosity and determination, and how their actions helped change the world.
Science
In the summer term, Year 2 children will learn about the three states of matter: solids, liquids and gases. Pupils will explore the properties of each state, compare how they behave, and identify everyday examples. Through hands‑on investigations and observations, children will learn how some materials can change state, for example when melting or freezing. Lessons will encourage children to ask questions, use scientific vocabulary, and develop their curiosity about the world around them.
In Term 6 we will be consolidating our learning by reviewing our previous learning linked to materials, plants and animals.
PE
Our PE days this term are Wednesday and Thursday. Please make sure your child has school shorts, house team coloured T-shirt, tracksuit if cold, trainers or plimsolls and a waterbottle in school.
Home learning:
It is really important that the children read as often as possible. Please try to read with your child at least three times a week. They will be rewarded with this by helping them to make progress with their reading and developing a love of reading, but also with a reading raffle ticket, which could mean they win a new book!
The children are continuing on their Times Table Rock Star journey, which they will continue throughout their time at Victoria Road Primary School. Their login details can be found in their reading planner. We love to see them succeed, and they will have an opportunity to compete against the whole school; some have already had achievement awards at our Friday awards ceremony.
If any child does not have access to a tablet, mobile phone or laptop, then we can help them complete their work before school or whenever necessary. Please pop in to arrange this so we can achieve the set outcome for your child.
Topic Webs
Parent Presentation
Autumn Term Parent Presentation
Recommended Reads
Best Books for Year 2: Recommended Booklist for Ages 6-7
ACCELERATED READING
The children are enroled on Accelerated Reader which provides comprehension quizzes. The results of these can be viewed at home.
Children use a software program called Renaissance Place at school. This program has a special feature called Renaissance Home Connect, which you can access outside of school from any computer with an Internet connection. Renaissance Home Connect is fun and easy to use. It allows the teacher, and you to share information about children's progress in Accelerated Reader. You can log in to Renaissance Home Connect from any computer with an Internet connection and compatible browser. Children have been given their user names and passwords. To log in to Renaissance Home Connect Website:
https://Ukhosted102.renlearn.co.uk/2236540/HomeConnect
If you'd like to receive emails showing your student's quiz or test results, click the Email Setup link.
I have had a couple of questions about logging on from home. First - this is definitely possible, they can do quizzes and children can also use myON e-book library and daily myON News service - freely available for the duration of the closures. It will allow pupils to access at home, on tablet and laptop, an e-library of over 7000 books. Children can browse through books on myON. Once they have read the book, they can then log into your schools Renaissance site and click the Accelerated Reader tile. They can then search for the book and take a quiz. Please note that not all books on myON are quizzed.
https://readon.myon.co.uk/library/browse.html
The address to use to get to AR is: https://ukhosted102.renlearn.co.uk/2236540/default.aspx