Our Curriculum
Intent
Our school Mission statement, “Living and learning, inspired by our faith” places Christ at the centre of everything we do. From this starting point, we plan our curriculum with the vision that every child will achieve their full potential for learning and development, no matter what their starting point, providing them with the best possible life opportunities.
We have developed an ambitious curriculum which is exciting, relevant, adapted to our local context and ensures diversity is celebrated throughout, in order to reflect our diverse school community.
Our curriculum is carefully designed to help pupils develop key knowledge and skills, so that they know more, remember more and can do more. We regularly revisit and review our curriculum to ensure that it is relevant, rooted in best practice and reflects current pedagogy. Sequenced progression for teaching and learning and high expectations ensure that all children are ready for the next stage in their learning and for future success in life.
Our intent is for our children to learn to be confident, independent, ethical thinkers who leave us ready to go out into the world and make a difference.
Implementation
Throughout the school we cover all areas of the National Curriculum: Religious Education, English, Maths, Science, Computing, History, Geography, Physical Education, Music, Art, Design Technology, RSHE (Relationship, Sex and Health Education) and PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economic education). In KS2 children are also taught Italian as a Modern Foreign Language. Specialist teachers deliver the curriculum for PE, Music and Italian throughout the school. Subject Leaders work closely with senior leaders to ensure that their subject is carefully planned and sequenced from the EYFS through to Year 6, ensuring that children acquire essential knowledge and skills at every stage of their learning and development.
In the EYFS our curriculum covers the seven areas of learning: Communication and Language, Literacy, Mathematics, Personal Social and Emotional Development, Understanding the World, Physical Development and Expressive Art and Design.
We believe that every child is entitled to high quality teaching. Our motto is ‘keep up, not catch up,’ so teachers are continually assessing children’s progress both academically and pastorally to ensure that they are making progress. Early interventions ensure that children get support where it is needed.
Our curriculum is further enriched in a number of ways, such as through the promotion of Oracy, Reading, Pupil Voice, Upper Key-stage Two Leadership Programme and our Extended Provision offer. We believe that the acquisition of language and the development of vocabulary are essential life skills which contribute to future academic achievement for our children. This is why we ensure that a focus on Oracy and the richness of language is prioritised from the EYFS through to Year 6 and permeates all of our curriculum. In addition, reading underpins our entire curriculum. A strong emphasis on reading builds confident, fluent readers and paves the way for academic success.
Curriculum subjects are enhanced by a range of special events and activities throughout the year, which are carefully planned to allow pupils to deepen their learning in a range of ways. We ensure that this is implemented in a holistic way to help pupils to develop links in their learning. For example: Anti-Bullying and Online Safety Week, Book Week, Science Week, ‘Big Talk Assemblies’ opportunities for children to share their learning with parents.
We recognise the importance of experiences for our children which enrich and deepen their learning, and we ensure that we plan these opportunities for children throughout the school. This includes: carefully planned educational visits in each year group, including local and residential visits; visits to the theatre, art galleries, museums, music performances and places of worship for every child in their time at the school; regular visitors into school, to provide positive role models who share experiences; opportunities to both watch and take part in competitive sports, national and inter-school competitions and a huge range of extra-curricular activities to extend our curriculum and ensure pupils are able to further develop individual interests and talents, whilst developing a lifelong love of learning.
Impact
Our children leave us as confident, independent learners who are ready to transition to secondary school and for the next step in their learning journey. Our Key Stage Two SATs results are consistently above the national average.
We measure the impact of our curriculum through statutory assessments, robust internal assessments, regular monitoring, external partnerships and a strong working parent partnership.
By the time our children leave us at the end of Key Stage Two they have developed –
*Well-developed moral values, understanding and self-awareness, knowing that they are unique and have their own God-given talents which they can use for the improvement of themselves and to contribute towards a better society for all
*Strong knowledge and skills in the core curriculum – Reading, Writing and Maths, which is transferrable for all other areas of their learning
*Skills which will enable them to be digital citizens and prepared for an ever-evolving world
*Confidence and ability to articulate their thoughts and views, knowing that their voice can make a difference
*Resilience and growth mindset in order to foster a life-long love of learning.