Latest News
Latest news at Ashmount School......
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Scholastic Book Fair
Wed 14 Jun 2017The Scholastic Book Fair will be arriving in school soon with hundreds of new children's books to browse and buy (14-19 June).
Parents and visitors are welcome to come in to school to browse and purchase the books anytime during the school day. If you are unable to come in, you may prefer to send in some money with your child and a member of their class team will help them choose a book.
A big THANK YOU to all who purchased a book (or two). We raised £344 which we have used to buy lots of lovely new books for school.
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Red Nose Day Fun
Tue 06 Jun 2017Thanks again to everyone who helped us raise funds for this year’s Red Nose Day appeal on Friday 24th March 2017.
We sold all 200 of our red noses to pupils, parents, staff and visitors to the school; our Key Stages 4 and 5 students held cake sales; and pupils enjoyed having the opportunity to wear something red to school for the day.
We have just received a letter and certificate from Sir Lenry Henry confirming that in total we raised over £560.
Lenny Henry writes, ‘Wow! What a Red Nose Day. £73 million raised so far with a big chunk of that total down to fantastic schools like yours fundraising for us. I don’t know where you find the energy but thank goodness you do. Now I don’t really need to tell you that the pupils, parents and staff at your school are amazing. You see them do brilliant things every day. But please hang up the enclosed thank you certificate to show the world how proud we at Comic Relief are of you! The money you and your school raised for Red Nose Day goes to helping people living tough lives in the UK and some of the world’s poorest communities. On their behalf, thank you.’
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3M Young Innovators Challenge
Tue 23 May 2017This week, three teams of our Key Stage 2 pupils visited the 3M Loughborough offices to take part in their ‘Canyon Crossing Challenge’.
The aim of the challenge was for teams of primary-aged pupils to design and build a bridge using materials from a given list, which can carry up to 12kg whilst minimising the weight of construction.
Our pupils will find out on Friday 26th May 2017 how their bridges – which they built from wood, gaffer tape and string – stood up to the designs from the other 23 teams who entered the challenge this year.
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Dance and Wiggle Week
Mon 22 May 2017During the week beginning Monday 22nd May 2017, Ashmount will be celebrating our annual Dance and Wiggle Week.
Dance and Wiggle Week is all about moving and having fun, and is a great opportunity for promoting physical activity and encouraging our children and young people to engage with a range of different styles of dance and types of music.
There will be a number of workshops taking place throughout the week, including an interactive concert performed by Yabba Funk, an African Jazz band, provided through the Spark children’s arts festival, and ballet and tap workshops, followed by an ‘Ashmount’s Got Talent’ contest to end the week on Friday afternoon.
We will also have a visiting dance teacher in school on Friday morning to perform and teach a ‘carnival’ themed Zumba routine.
Pupils and staff are invited to bring £1 into school on Friday 26th May to take part in a ‘Colour Pop’ themed dress up day, in which everyone is invited to come to school in their brightest clothes.Healthy snacks, including fruit kebabs and flapjacks will also be on sale during the day. All proceeds collected will be donated to the Shepshed Toy Library, which provides support to families in our local area.
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Ashmount featured in SEN Magazine
Wed 17 May 2017You can read all about the fantastic work that has been going on in school to promote and develop our pupils’ speech, language and communication skills in the May / June 2017 edition of the national Special Educational Needs magazine.
The review of the 2016/17 Shine a Light Awards by Chris Hall praises Ashmount School for creating ‘a communication team that delivers efficient, coordinated support’.
We currently run 16 language groups for pupils who use voice output communication devices, eye gaze and Makaton signing; an assessment toolkit has been developed as well as a switch / AAC assessment library for use by parents and partner schools; and we are now a speech and language hub for schools in our local area.
Copies of the magazine article can be viewed in our foyer.
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Boccia Champions!
Thu 06 Apr 2017Congratulations to our team of Key Stage 3 students who took part in the Leicestershire and Rutland Sport School Games Boccia Tournament on Wednesday 5th April 2017. The group beat teams of students from the other Leicestershire special schools to be named Champions on the day!
Boccia is a sport that tests muscle control and accuracy. Players propel balls to land close to a target ball. Two sides compete as individuals, pairs or as a team of three over a set number of ends. Each side has six balls (red or blue) each end to try and score points. Points are accumulated over the course of a match to find a winner.
A ball can be rolled, thrown or kicked. If a player is unable to throw or kick the ball, they can use a ramp. If players are unable to release the ball with their hands, they can use assistive devices – head/hand pointer.
The sport is played indoors on a 12.5m by 6m court, usually in a sports hall but any suitable flat playing area can be used.
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Easter Crafts
Thu 06 Apr 2017Our Key Stage 4 and 5 students have been busy making Easter crafts - including cards and eggs - in their Design Technology lesson.
These will be on sale to parents, carers and staff in our foyer on Friday 7th April 2017.
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Ashmount named as ‘Special School of the Year’ in National Communication Awards
Mon 27 Mar 2017Ashmount School has been awarded the SEN (Special Educational Needs) School or Group of the Year Award at an awards ceremony in London for its continued commitment to developing our pupils’ communication skills. The 2017 Shine a Light Awards, run by Pearson in partnership with The Communication Trust, took place on 23rd March 2017 and were hosted by singer and theatre star Gareth Gates.
The 2017 Shine a Light Awards is a national awards scheme that celebrates innovative work and excellent practice in supporting children and young people’s communication development.
Ashmount School was praised for having shown strong commitment to developing pupils’ communication skills to ensure that they are empowered to meaningfully input into decisions affecting their own lives as they grow up and mature.
The school has also become a Speech and Language Therapy hub for the East Midlands and coordinates a wide range of language groups, providing support and training for parents, caregivers and staff in local schools.
The school has created a communication team that delivers efficient, coordinated support. We have created 16 language groups involving pupils who use VOCA (Voice Output Communication Aids), Eye Gaze, Makaton (sign language) and spoken language and have developed an assessment toolkit as well as a switch/AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) assessment library for use by parents and partner schools.
Abi Steady, Deputy Head and Strategic Lead for Communication at Ashmount School, said: It is an honour to have received this national award. Above all it recognises the outstanding efforts our pupils and staff make every day in an attempt to open doors in young people's futures.”
Gareth Gates, host of the 2016/17 Shine a Light Awards, said: “The dedication of Ashmount School is outstanding. Being able to communicate with confidence is often taken for granted but for many it is an everyday struggle. I have found my stutter crippling at times but I have learnt ways to manage my difficulties with the support of others.
“It is heart-warming to know that children and young people across England are getting the support they need to develop and achieve goals that may not have been possible otherwise. Ashmount School should be extremely proud of its award.”
Chris Hall, Director of Clinical Assessment at Pearson, said: “Congratulations to Ashmount School for their SEN School or Group of the Year achievement. The dedication to improving its pupils’ abilities is amazing; the innovative use of language groups and reaching out to their local area means the school is empowering so many children and young adults."
“This is the fifth year we have run the Awards and we remain blown away by the standard of applications. They give an amazing insight into the unsung work that is taking place across the country to improve the speech, language and communication skills of children and young people.”
Octavia Holland, Director of The Communication Trust, said: “Congratulations to Ashmount School and everyone who triumphed at the Shine a Light Awards. They have shown what can be achieved when expertise, enthusiasm and dedication is given to children and young people who struggle to communicate. These Awards highlight the very best practice that is taking place in settings across the country. We would like to say a huge thank you to Pearson for their long-standing support.”
(Pictured are Deputy Headteacher Abi Steady and Lead Communication Mentor Kirsty O'Connell collecting the award from Gareth Gates)
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Red Nose Day Fun
Mon 27 Mar 2017Many thanks to everyone who helped us raise funds for this year’s Red Nose Day appeal.
We sold all 200 of our red noses to pupils, parents, staff and visitors to the school.
Our Key Stages 4 and 5 students held cake sales, raising over £170, and pupils enjoyed being given the opportunity to wear something red to school on Friday 24th March 2017.
Our Fancy Dress Red Nose Day Disco, held from 6.00pm-7.30pm on Thursday 23rd March, proved really popular with our pupils and their families too.
In total, staff, pupils and their families raised over £300 in support of Red Nose Day.
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National Science Week (10-19th March 2017)
Fri 17 Mar 2017During the week beginning Monday 13th March, we have been holding a series of Science-related events across the school to engage and inspire our pupils with science, engineering and technology, in support of National Science Week.
These have included a series of in-class workshops led by our teachers and teaching assistants, as well as visitors from the Mad Science Company and students from Loughborough University, offering our pupils the opportunity to take part in a range of hands-on experiments.
Many pupils have been on educational visits to the local trampoline park to investigate how forces work on our bodies or to the local garden centre to find out more about how plants grow.
Our Forest Schools Coordinator Maria Gallagher has been leading a range of forest skills sessions for pupils of all ages across the school, and pupils have had the opportunity to handle and observe a range of animals, including snakes, hamsters, snails and stick insects.
Many of our classes also received visits from Duggie the Dog, our resident Pets as Therapy dog, who has now visited the school on several occasions, and never fails to raise a smile from our students or staff.
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