Curriculum Statements

Maths

In Nursery we follow the Little Big Maths programme. Little Big Maths is a systematic and structured programme for ensuring that all children develop firm foundations in numeracy and ensures there is progression within the context of the child’s play. Progress is broken down into small steps to ensure learning makes sense and builds on previous experiences. By making maths fun and part of our daily life we hope to encourage children to enjoy maths and understand its relevance.

At SPSL in years Reception to year 4 we are using the Mathematics Mastery curriculum. The Mathematics Mastery curriculum has been developed to ensure every child can achieve excellence in mathematics. It provides pupils with a deep understanding of the subject through a concrete, pictorial and abstract approach. This ensures pupils fully understand what they are learning.

Key features of our Maths Mastery curriculum:

• High expectations for every child
• Fewer topics, greater depth
• Number sense and place value come first
• Research -based curriculum
• Objects and pictures always before numbers and letters
• Problem solving is central
• Calculate with confidence – understand why it works

Mathematics Mastery places emphasis on the cumulative mastery of essential knowledge and skills in mathematics. It embeds a deeper understanding of maths by utilising a concrete, pictorial, abstract approach so that pupils understand what they are doing rather than just learning to repeat routines without grasping what is happening.

Tracking Pupil Progress

In Mathematics Mastery assessment is continuous. From the beginning of every lesson, teachers and teaching assistants will be assessing what their pupils are, or are not understanding and use this to scaffold each segment of the lesson. Interventions will be both planned for and ‘live’, meaning that misconceptions are dealt with immediately and high attaining pupils are challenged appropriately.

At SPSL in years 5 and 6 we are using the White Rose materials to plan our Maths curriculum. The White Rose approach gives children to the opportunity to develop their fluency in different aspects of Maths before moving onto reasoning and problem solving.  Like the Mastery programme, we use a concrete, pictorial, abstract approach so that pupils understand what they are doing rather than just learning to repeat routines without grasping what is happening.

Literacy

Storytelling is at the very heart of our school whilst using the Talk for Writing approach. Children hear stories which are then learnt orally, deepened through a variety of creative activities, innovated upon and then have opportunities to invent their own. All narrative plots are covered over their time at school and children use these to develop their narrative writing skills. Non-fiction text types are also learnt through this storytelling approach and are all mapped out on our curriculum overviews to ensure there is effective coverage across the school. This approach has improved our children’s enthusiasm for writing and it means they are never stuck for ideas! Poetry is also included through the deepening activities and class collective worships and we feel that it is an essential part to language learning and playfulness.

Reading

We want the children at St Paul with St Luke to develop a life-long love for reading, as we believe it is one of the most important skills they can have in life. Through our dedicated story times throughout the day, celebrations throughout the year (especially during World Book Day), book fairs, catch them reading and exciting rewards for reading daily and following the school’s values (Waterstone’s  visits and reading picnics), we hope we have created an environment for that love of literature to grow whilst they learn in our school.

Reading is taught through the Read, Write Inc phonics programme in Early Years, Key Stage 1 and where appropriate in Key Stage 2. Once children are reading fluently, they move off the programme to focus on comprehension. During whole class reading sessions, children will be listening to their teacher read them high-quality books to develop an enjoyment of reading. Whilst learning from the skills that all teachers model, they will also be engaged by clarifications and discussions. To ensure all children comprehend the text correctly, they will be asked questions based on VIPERS (vocabulary, inference, prediction, explanation, retrieval and summarising/ sequencing).  All children are also given time to read to their teacher aloud during independent reading sessions.

History

Topics are informed by the national curriculum and are sensitive to children’s interests, as well as the context of the local area. The history curriculum at SPSL is carefully planned and structured to ensure that current learning is linked to previous learning and that the school’s approaches are informed by current pedagogy.

In line with the national curriculum 2014, the curriculum at SPSL aims to ensure that all pupils:

• gain a coherent knowledge and understanding of Britain’s past and that of the wider world which helps to stimulate pupils’ curiosity to know more about the past;
• are encouraged to ask perceptive questions, think critically, weigh evidence, sift arguments, and develop perspective and judgement;
• begin to understand the complexity of people’s lives, the process of change, the diversity of societies and relationships between different groups, as well as their own identity and the challenges of their time.

Geography

At SPSL we believe that Geography helps to provoke and provide answers to questions about the natural and human aspects of the world. Children are encouraged to develop a greater understanding and knowledge of the world, as well as their place in it. The geography curriculum at SPSL enables children to develop knowledge and skills that are transferable to other curriculum areas and which can and are used to promote their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

Geography is, by nature, an investigative subject, which develops and understanding of concepts, knowledge and skills. We seek to inspire in children a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people which will remain with them for the rest of their lives; to promote the children’s interest and understanding of diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. The curriculum is designed to develop knowledge and skills that are progressive, as well as transferable, throughout their time at SPSL and also to their further education and beyond.

Music

The National Curriculum for music aims to ensure that all pupils:
• Perform, listen to, review and evaluate music
• Be taught to sing, create and compose music
• Understand and explore how music is created, produced and communicated.

At SPSL the intention is that children gain a firm understanding of what music is through listening, singing, playing, evaluating, analysing, and composing across a wide variety of historical periods, styles, traditions, and musical genres. Our objective at SPSL is to develop a curiosity for the subject, as well as an understanding and acceptance of the validity and importance of all types of music, and an unbiased respect for the role that music may wish to be expressed in any person’s life. We are committed to ensuring children understand the value and importance of music in the wider community, and are able to use their musical skills, knowledge, and experiences to involve themselves in music, in a variety of different contexts. We believe that learning to play an instrument is a way for children to develop knowledge and skills but also develop a disciplined mind.

DT

Design and Technology is an inspiring, rigorous and practical subject. Design and Technology encourages children to learn to think and intervene creatively to solve problems both as individuals and as members of a team. At SPSL, we encourage children to use their creativity and imagination, to design and make products that solve real and relevant problems within a variety of contexts, considering their own and others’ needs, wants and values. We aim to, wherever possible, link work to other disciplines such as mathematics, science, engineering, computing and art. The children are also given opportunities to reflect upon and evaluate past and present design technology, its uses and its effectiveness and are encouraged to become innovators and risk-takers.

Computing

Technology is rapidly changing lives and shapes of our society. Through teaching computing at SPSL, we equip our children to participate in a rapidly changing world where work and leisure activities are increasingly transformed by technology. It is our intention to enable children to find, explore, analyse, exchange and present information. We also focus on developing the skills necessary for children to be able to use information in an effective way.

INTENT:

We use the National curriculum for computing and Purple Mash, our scheme of work to:

Provide an exciting, rich, relevant and challenging Computing curriculum for all pupils.

Teach pupils to become responsible, respectful and competent users of data, information and communication technology.

Provide technology solutions for forging better home and school links.

Enthuse and equip children with the capability to use technology throughout their lives.

Teach pupils to understand the importance of governance and legislation regarding how information is used, stored, created, retrieved, shared and manipulated.

Utilise computational thinking beyond the Computing curriculum.

Give children access to a variety of high quality hardware, software and unplugged resources.

Equip pupils with skills, strategies and knowledge that will enable them to reap the benefits of the online world, whilst being able to minimise risk to themselves or others.

Exceed the minimum government recommended/statutory guidance for programmes of study for Computing and other related legislative guidance (online safety).

For our Online Safety curriculum, we also use the Jigsaw scheme of work, CEOP, UTHINKUKNOW resources, NSPCC and Safer Internet Day Websites.

By the time they leave SPSL, children will have gained key knowledge and skills in the three main areas of the computing curriculum:

1. computer science (programming and understanding how digital systems work)
2. information technology (using computer systems to store, retrieve and send information)
3. digital literacy (evaluating digital content and using technology safely and respectfully)

In 2019-20 we are working on ways to provide opportunities for children to use computing in all subjects across the curriculum.

Art

St Paul with St Luke Primary School is committed to encouraging creativity through a wide variety of forms and expression. All children are encouraged to develop their artistic creativity, learn and acquire new skills and processes.

Children will be given opportunities to explore a wide range of materials, tools and techniques in 2D, 3D and virtual form. Art and design stimulates creativity and imagination. It provides visual, tactile and sensory experiences and a special way of understanding and responding to the world. It enables children to communicate what they see, feel and think through the use of colour, texture, form, pattern and different materials and processes.

Children will become involved in shaping their environments through art and design activities. They learn to make informed judgements, aesthetic and practical decisions. They explore ideas and meanings through the work of artists and designers. Through learning about the roles and functions of art, they can explore the impact it has had on contemporary life and that of different times and cultures. The appreciation and enjoyment of the visual arts enriches all our lives.

Children are assessed in Art and Design under the four headings of ‘Generating Ideas’, ‘Making’, ‘Evaluating’, and ‘Knowledge’ which define the conceptual framework and underpins all teaching and learning in the subject. The national curriculum is taught through key areas of Art & Design; drawing, painting, print making, three dimensional work and mixed media (including textiles, collage and digital media)

Our Scheme of Work ensures that all pupils:

• Have a love of Art.
• Have enjoyment in producing a range of artwork using a wide range of high quality resources.
• Have opportunities to develop and re-visit skills over a time.
• Be given opportunities to build on skills and techniques year on year.
• Gain confidence to be creative using a wide range of materials.
• Have opportunities to experience “real life art’ at local Art Galleries.
• Participate in artist led workshops.
• Are inspired by other artists and each other.
• Can undertake art as part of a wider curriculum.
• Are allowed to express themselves through art.

PE and Sport at SPSL

At SPSL, we are aware of how important sport and PE is to the emotional, physical and social wellbeing of our children. Our children enjoy their PE lessons and have the opportunity to learn new sports and skills as well as developing their teamwork, determination and self-belief.  We provide a minimum of 1 hour of PE a week for reception class up to year 6 class.

Over the academic year, we cover Gymnastics, dance, swimming, hockey, football, netball, rounders, tennis, tag rugby, cricket and kwik cricket, dodgeball, badminton, athletics, multisports and volleyball.  For more information, please contact the school office for our PE whole school overview.

Swimming and after school cubs

At SPSL, we provide our children the opportunity to take part in swimming with year 4 taking lessons throughout the year.

Many of our after school clubs focus on promoting involvement in sport and fitness. We run football clubs as well as multisport and cricket clubs in the summer term.

We take children to inter school sports competitions and take part in a variety of sports events.

PSHE

At St Paul with St Luke we promote children's mindfulness and how they can readily choose their responses to situations rather than react while caught up in the flows and emotions. This is delivered through the Jigsaw scheme of work which is taught once a week. Every lesson contributes to at least one of the aspects of children's development. There are 6 Jigsaw pieces all together: Being in my world, Celebrating differences, Changing me, Dreams and Goals and Relationship (which the school covers separately). Each puzzle has 6 pieces (lessons) which work towards an end product. For example, the school leaning charter or the garden of dreams and goals. Each piece has two leaning intentions: one is based on specific PSHE learning (covering the non-statutory framework but enhanced to address children's needs today. And one on emotional literacy and social skills which covers SEAL learning intentions but also enhanced. The enhancements mean that JIGSAW is relevant to the children in our world today to include body image, cyber and homophobic bullying and internet safety. Each of these will be launched in an assembly by the Head teacher and the School leaders.