Welcome to Cedar Class!

My name is Mrs Bieda and I am so pleased to be teaching you in Cedar class this year. I am very lucky to be supported by two amazing teaching assistants, Miss McVeigh (am) and Mrs King (pm).

You will be faced with many new challenges in Year 5 but if you remember to approach them with a positive attitude and are always prepared to ‘have a go’, you will find yourself enjoying your learning in a caring and supportive environment. I am looking forward to teaching you all of the exciting topics we will be covering this year, beginning with our history topic - Anglo Saxons and Scots and our science topic - Living Things and their Habitats in term one.

Key things to remember:

• A full PE kit needs to be in school every day. 
• Children are expected to read daily and record this in the back of their learning destination book.
• Maths homework will be set every Monday and will be linked to what the children have been learning in class. Spellings and Literacy homework will also be set on a Monday; all homework should be completed by Friday.
• The learning destination book can also be used for any additional home learning that your child wishes to do.

Warhol's weird and wonderful art

During term 5, Cedar class researched the life and art of Andy Warhol. They created a two-page spread of information about him in their sketch books and investigated colour.  Following this, the children recreated Warhol’s Mickey Mouse print, designed their own print and used polystyrene tiles to transfer their design to create their own Warhol inspired t-shirts. Finally, they created an original piece of Warhol inspired artwork using oil pastels. They all thoroughly enjoyed this topic and worked so carefully to achieve such fantastic results.

Somewhere to settle

During term 4’s Geography topic ‘Somewhere to settle’, Cedar class learnt about different types of land use, comparing uses in urban and rural areas. As part of this, Cedar class looked at the land use in Trowbridge in 1900 compared to today.

We then carried out a survey which involved walking to Trowbridge town centre, recording the types of land use we saw and also suggesting ways Trowbridge could be improved. One major area identified by the children as needing improving was the derelict Bowyers site. They had many exciting suggestions as to how the land could be used, including a water park!

Why do penguins prefer electric cars?

Cedar had a very exciting start to term 3 when they were visited by Al Sylvester, a polar explorer, who shared his experiences of his expedition to the South Pole. The children listened intently whilst they learnt the importance of teamwork, honesty and most importantly, to never give up. Al was an inspiring speaker who left quite an impression on both the children and the adults. His visit was a fantastic start to our topic on Antarctica, with the topic question being ‘Why do penguins prefer electric cars?’

Trowbridge Christmas Tree Festival at St. James' Church

As part of the Trowbridge Christmas Tree Festival, Cedar class made decorations for a Christmas tree to go on display at the Church.  They made little woollen hats to hand from the tree and filled the tree with lovely messages about why they like coming to Newtown School.  The tree is on display at St. James' Church until 4th December

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Theo and Klementyna, the first children in Cedar Class to receive their 75 reads certificates. 

The Sinking of the Titanic

As part of our DT topic on boats, Cedar class have written newspaper reports on the sinking of the Titanic. They have produced some excellent reports, two of which are shown below.

Maths

Cedar Class have enjoyed their Maths learning this week. They have been investigating multiples, factors and common factors of numbers using Numicon. They have worked well collaboratively and supported each other to understand each concept.

Boats!

Cedar Class have had a brilliant start to term 2. Our first topic this term is DT, where we are making boats. The children discussed the design brief, then practiced measuring and cutting accurately before making their prototypes. They are now beginning to construct their final products so watch this space!

It’s been brilliant to see that some of the children have been inspired to carry out some fantastic home learning by making some amazing boats at home.

Anglo-Saxons and Scots

During term 1, the history topic in Cedar Class has been Anglo-Saxons and Scots. The children began the topic by carrying out an enquiry into who was buried at Sutton Hoo. They studied written and photographic evidence and made hypotheses, before making their final predictions. Cedar Class correctly identified that King Raedwald had been buried there along with his possessions as was the custom in Anglo Saxon times.

During the remainder of the topic, Cedar Class found out about the Anglo-Saxon way of life through looking at historical artefacts, the jobs they had and the types of houses they lived in. They were able to identify place names in England that originated from Anglo-Saxon times. They also discovered that the Scots were invaders from Ireland, not Scotland as they had first thought.

Our PE Lessons

Cedar class have thoroughly enjoyed their PE lessons so far this term, not only have they have been improving their hockey skills with Mrs Bieda, they are also becoming better rugby players, as they have been fortunate to have Gav from Bath Rugby coaching them. He has been really impressed with their sportsmanship and has also identified some future rugby stars!