Physical development | Carcroft School

Tracing our names with a starting dot ✍🏼

26th September 2026Sarah Mcglone

We have been putting our pre-writing skills to the test as we have been tracing our names, using a starting dot on each letter to help us with the correct letter formation.

Crew McGlone are FANTASTIC at remembering all the correct steps to show that they are ready to write: BBC, TNT, 6 feet, 2 hands. They have really blown me away with how well they are working on their ‘pinch parrot’ to perfect their pencil grip! The children have also been learning about the specific handwriting lines: top broken, top solid, bottom solid, bottom broken, as well as looking at how we start writing at the top of the page and we write from left to right. Lots of things to remember, but using our writing wall to look at the Widgits of each skill really helps us!

Fine motor skills

8th September 2026Tracy Haddock

As part of their morning task, they developed their fine motor skills by carefully threading pasta onto string. This activity helped to strengthen their hand-eye coordination, concentration, and control of small hand movements.

Pre-writing skills practice in Crew McGlone ✍🏼

6th September 2026Sarah Mcglone

We have been working on our pre-writing skills in Crew McGlone this week. We started by looking at how we need the correct posture when sitting at our tables to show we are ready to write before then moving on to look at using ‘pinch parrot’ to help us with the correct pencil grip. We talked about how when we are writing we start on the left and move to the right, starting at the top of the paper before moving our way down.

We used our new knowledge to have a go at tracing over lines and different patterns to practise these skills.

Crew McGlone – Tough Runner!

31st August 2026Sarah Mcglone

Crew McGlone absolutely loved taking part in Tough Runner to bring our first week in Reception to an end. Thank you to Crew White for helping us through the tricky parts and supporting us with words of encouragement!

Expedition

17th May 2026Sarah Mcglone

In expedition, we have been looking at the impact of pollution on the ocean and the things that live in it. We discussed different sea creatures and how they are adapted to their habitat. We then spent time sorting different animals into the categories of ‘land’ or ‘sea’.

Cricket!

15th May 2026Elizabeth Frost

This week, Crew Frost were given another exciting opportunity to take part in a PE session with Legacy. The children showed fantastic enthusiasm and engagement throughout the session as they developed a range of important physical and social skills through team games and ball activities.

The stages of learning were carefully scaffolded to support the children’s understanding and confidence. We first began by practising simple rolling skills, working in teams to roll the ball back and forth to one another. Once the children became more confident, we moved on to practising aiming and throwing the balls at pins to score points for their teams, helping to develop hand-eye coordination, control, and turn-taking skills.

Finally, the children were introduced to bats and learned about the role of a bowler, including fetching the ball after it had been hit. The children absolutely loved this part of the activity and showed great excitement as they explored the different roles within the game. It was wonderful to see many of the children making links to their own past experiences and confidently talking about games and sports they have played before.

Activities like these help to build important skills for Reception, including listening and attention, following instructions, teamwork, coordination, and resilience. We were incredibly proud of the children’s amazing listening skills, positive attitudes, and encouragement towards one another throughout the session. Well done, Crew Frost!

Stay away from the sharks!

15th May 2026Elizabeth Frost

Last week, the children were busy developing and strengthening their balancing skills through a fun and exciting physical development activity. Together, we created our very own “bridges” to carefully walk across whilst making sure to stay away from the sharks underneath!

The children absolutely loved this activity and showed fantastic levels of concentration and determination as they carefully balanced their way across. It was wonderful to see the children naturally using their arms to support their balance and thinking carefully about how to move their bodies safely and with control. Activities like this are so important for developing core strength, coordination, spatial awareness, and overall gross motor skills, which all support children’s physical development and readiness for writing.

What made the activity even more special was watching the children encourage, motivate, and help one another as they took turns crossing the bridges. Crew Frost showed fantastic resilience when things felt tricky and demonstrated such kindness and teamwork throughout the activity. We are so proud of the way the children supported each other whilst building their confidence and physical skills. Well done, Crew Frost!

Fine motor building

15th May 2026Elizabeth Frost

One day each week in Crew Frost, we spend time focusing on developing our fine motor skills through activities such as using scissors to cut along lines and around shapes. Cutting is an excellent skill to master in the Early Years, as it supports so many of the important skills children need as they begin their writing journey.

The children are learning how to separate and strengthen the muscles in their fingers and hands whilst carefully controlling the scissors. They are also developing their hand-eye coordination and problem-solving skills as they work out how to move the paper and scissors together whilst trying to stay on the lines. This takes a huge amount of concentration, control, and perseverance.

Alongside this, we have been practising our “ready to write” positioning by sitting with our tummy to the table and all six chair legs on the floor. Developing core strength, balance, and posture is a very important part of early writing development, helping children to gain the stability needed for mark making and pencil control in the future.

Although cutting may look simple, it is actually a very tricky skill that requires children to coordinate many different movements at the same time. We are so proud of the resilience, determination, and focus Crew Frost have shown whilst practising these important skills. Well done, Crew Frost — it is much harder than it looks!