Welcome to Ash Class

Hello, my name is Mrs Dowler, and I am the teacher of Ash Class. In our classroom, we are lucky to have Mrs Elkins as our teaching assistant. I am really looking forward to working with such a wonderful group of children and getting to know you all.

In Ash class, we respect each other and our possessions. Most importantly, we are kind and caring to make sure that everyone can enjoy school and go home smiling! We will work as a team to help others to make sure every child is able to try their best and reach their potential. We will also be supportive of each other by understanding that everyone makes mistakes, that this is a part of learning and that mistakes are okay. I always tell the children, they will never be in any trouble for making a mistake, we will be proud of them for having a go and can then help them to improve.

A named PE kit should be in school every day and daily reading at home is strongly encouraged. In the classroom, we have a display which shows the progression the children are making with their home reading, and rewards are presented at regular milestones. Please listen to your child reading regularly and ensure this is recorded in the back of their journal (orange homework book).

Spellings and Maths homework will be set weekly and due in on a Friday.

Please check back on this page throughout the year as there will be updates of our brilliant school year. Ash Class is a friendly, happy, and caring place to be, and I am thrilled to be the class teacher.

Mrs Dowler

Scootability 

On Wednesday, Ash and Chestnut participated in fantastic sessions called ‘Scootability’. These sessions were about teaching the children how to be safe on a scooter through thinking about their balance, control, and the ability to stop.

The children practised scooting in a line, stopping safely for a hazard such as an animal or a reversing car. They also practised how to approach a pedestrian on the pavement. The children learnt that they need to step off the scooter (hedge side not road side), walk towards the person, say excuse me and thank you. Our Newtown children were fantastic at this activity, showcasing their brilliant manners (as they always do anyway)!

Additionally, the children completed a range of activities about balance and control when going around obstacles. The children successfully avoided all the obstacles and thought carefully about turning their scooters on tight bends.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Ash class, and I know Chestnut class did a superb job outside too. Tina was very impressed with all the children. Everyone behaved beautifully, listened carefully, scooted sensibly, and importantly had a lot of fun! Well done years 3 and 4!

Music at Newtown

This year we have been developing our music curriculum. Firstly, all children have been having weekly singing sessions with Sam Evans since the beginning of the year. Over the past couple of weeks, classes have started to use our new instruments – ukuleles and glockenspiels. It is always exciting when we get to learn a new skill! Not only are we learning how to play the musical instrument itself; we are also developing our selves as learners. We are needing to demonstrate determination, resilience, and teamwork to create a collaborative sound. The children will be sharing their musical masterpieces with the rest of the school in term 6.

In addition, we have had two other visitors this year. Earlier in the year we had a performance from the West of England Youth Orchestra. On Tuesday this week, years 4, 5 and 6 got to take part in Rock music workshops. During these sessions, the children learnt about key elements of music such as pulse and rhythm before getting to play a range of instruments. The children got to play bass guitar, electric guitar, drums, tambourines, and vocals. Using these instruments, the children were able to perform part of the song ‘We Will Rock You’ by Queen. They made an amazing sound!

As always, Newtown were noticed for their fantastic behaviour! All the children behaved beautifully and showcased some real talent, impressing our guests. We hope to see Danny and Rhia again in the future!

Mrs Dowler

Term 4

In term 4, our topic was the Amazon rainforest. We looked in detail at reasons why the Amazon is such a fantastic resource that needs protecting. We learnt about things such as many medicines that would not exist today or be as effective without an ingredient that originates from the rainforest. In our new Geography books, we produced lovely displays of our learning. Nearer the end of the term, we compared the temperatures of the Amazon rainforest with that of Sherbourne Forest, UK. This helped our comparison skills and made us consider the reasons for these differences. We were able to identify factors such as the distance to the equator.  

Everyone enjoyed this geography topic and loved learning about the animals which live in the Amazon rainforest and working out which layer they are usually found.

Tower of London - Thursday 23rd March 2023

On Thursday 23^rd March, Ash and Cedar visited the Tower of London! The children were all superbly behaved and amazing role models.

During the day we had a workshop learning about Pirate Prisoners and some famous tales of the tower. We also explored the site, looking at the Crown Jewels, spending time in the White Tower and seeing the ravens. The children were very excited to see the orb and sceptre that was then later used for King Charles III coronation event. The crown of the late Queen Elizabeth II was also a highlight for many.

The children also really enjoyed travelling to and from London around the world-famous landmarks. They loved looking for these from the windows and spotted many, including Big Ben, the London Eye, Tower Bridge and Downing Street.

It really was a very memorable day!

Wednesday 8th March Home Learning

Design and Technology Project

In term two, Ash class worked incredibly hard to use woodwork skills to be able to create their robots for our design and technology project. The children were very careful and sensible with the saws and drills and showed amazing resilience when things got a bit tricky! I think it is safe to say, the robots look awesome and I am very proud of all the children, for their hard work and fantastic attitudes to the project.

Remembrance Day

In Ash Class, we had some very meaningful conversations about Remembrance Day and the significance of this day. We discussed what has happened in the past, the sacrifices that were made and how this has shaped our lives and world today.

When creating our artwork, we discussed many aspects of the images. First of all, we spoke about surface treatment and texture as we built up the pieces of paper to add the depth of the fields. We spoke about perspective of the fields and objects in the distance being smaller than those in the foreground. We also spoke about the colours and how the black and white element represents the past, and the red poppies in the foreground show hope for the future and the memories we hold today. The children thought really carefully about the silhouetted figures/objects in their images.

I’m sure you will agree, the children have produced some breath-taking artwork! I am really proud of how carefully they worked, using their art skills to represent such an important day.

Term 1

Ash class have had a wonderful first term with lots of exciting work being produced. I am really enjoying getting to know the children and seeing all of their many talents.

We began the term by creating self-portraits. Each year we produce a new version of ourselves as we grow as learners and in our characters. The children worked so hard to look at the proportions of their faces along with trying to add shading and highlights to add to the depths of their drawings. I’m sure you will agree they have done a superb job!

To begin our Romans topics, we created our Roman soldier helmets (with crests) using a mosaic technique. This is a style that of course links to the Romans as well, therefore combining two pieces of learning. To further understand the soldier clothing, we were lucky enough to have some in school to be able to try on!

Also, we have been working hard practising our hockey skills in PE for our upcoming inter-house hockey tournaments! What an exciting first term!