St Helen's Church of England Primary School Curriculum

Intent

At St Helen’s Church of England Primary School, we want all children to be curious, passionate and love learning which creates a spark and a desire for lifelong learning;

‘Love to learn, learning to love, all different, all equal’

Our broad and balanced curriculum engages all children so that they develop interpersonal skills, build resilience, become creative and independent thinkers and gain the confidence they need to be successful in the next stage of their lives.

• At all stages of learning, children are offered activities that develop a full range of concepts and skills appropriate for their age. As they move through school, the work achieved in the early stages is built upon and this ensures progression in learning.
• We focus on ensuring that children are challenged in their thinking and preconceptions.
• We aim to be flexible and our curriculum is adaptable – at times we change direction in response to children’s interests, local and national events.
• We value each child as a unique individual, celebrating differences within our school community.
• We provide a supportive learning environment based on clear social, moral, spiritual and citizenship principles, which permeate all aspects of life.

Implementation

Through our daily work, children aspire to be:

• Confident readers
• Successful writers
• Secure mathematicians
• Creative thinkers
• Independent workers

We are fully aware of the importance of a broad and balanced curriculum, although high priority is given to speaking and listening and transferrable English and mathematics skills. We recognise the importance of being fully competent at reading, gaining a greater vocabulary base, writing and calculating, and know that these skills underpin all aspects of the curriculum.

Our vibrant and rich curriculum is designed so that the subject specific skills are scaffolded within a cross-curricular theme or context each term.  Topics are carefully designed to capture the interests and imaginations of our children, based around a core text.  To ensure that progression and balance is maintained, the programmes of study are developed into medium-term plans which clearly highlight the learning objectives, assessment opportunities, differentiated tasks as well as links to other subjects.

We use every opportunity to capitalise on connections between subjects and develop and apply all important reading, writing, speaking and listening, and maths skills in a purposeful context. 

We teach discreet subjects with an aim of preserving the unique nature of each subject and allowing children to gain a better understanding of each subject discipline, making connections where they are appropriate.

RE, PE, PSHE which includes RSE and Health education are often taught as discreet subjects to ensure coverage of the main objectives and age-appropriate knowledge and skill development across the school.

When teaching we encourage children to be independent and to have opportunities to explore and learn from each other as often as possible. We constantly engage children as learners and believe that childhood should be an investigative and enquiring time where there are no limits to curiosity with a thirst for new experiences and knowledge, building a love for learning.  We believe children learn best from first hand experiences and when they are interested and excited about their work. We bring work to life by using practical tasks, artefacts, visits to relevant places of interest or by bringing people into school. Enjoyment of the curriculum promotes achievement, self-esteem, well-being and good behaviour.

The curriculum design is viewed by Senior Leaders, Governors and Teachers as an exciting, continuous and fluid process, which takes into consideration the needs, characteristics and interests of our children; their prior learning and experiences; and the statutory curriculum (EYFS Statutory Framework and the NC).

A programme of regular monitoring of the planning, delivery and organisation of learning across the school is undertaken at the school.

Assessment for learning is key to our daily planning and provision is adapted to meet the needs of all children, including disadvantaged and SEND, so that no child is left behind.

Impact

As a result of the work undertaken, children reflect that they enjoy lessons, are proud of their work and have a wide range of experiences during their time at the school. Through a range of opportunities and experiences, regardless of any child’s starting points, all children are able to achieve and flourish in both their personal and academic development.

When they leave our school, children are well prepared for the next stage in their education and are able to contribute positively to their community.

If you have any questions regarding the curriculum we teach, please contact the school directly.