Teachers have been working hard to revise our curriculum in the light of the new National Curriculum, which was introduced in September 2014. Schools do have scope to personalise their curriculum as long as the basic requirements of the National Curriculum are covered. In revising the curriculum, we felt it important that it reflected and supported the school’s aims. For example: that it helps develop self-confidence in children and promotes high standards; that it promotes learning outside the classroom; and that it shows that learning can be fun and that we can learn throughout our lives, We have incorporated national curriculum requirements, kept many things we feel work for us and we are on the lookout to introduce elements of study that help make our school unique and characterful.
Reading is a vital skill for learning. In the Nursery (Foundation Stage 1) children sing and play games to learn letter sounds and start to learn the names of some of the characters in one of our phonics schemes – ‘Jolly Phonics’. In Reception, children use ‘Jolly Phonics’ and ‘Letters and Sounds’ to extend their knowledge of letters and sounds. They also learn a bank of key words and then we introduce them to books. Storytelling is always important to help develop a love of reading and texts. Children are given the sounds they are learning on ‘rockets’ and ‘fish’ to learn at home with their parents.
In Key Stage 1, where possible, children are heard read by an adult on a daily basis. We also encourage regular reading practice at home. We use a variety of reading schemes in order to develop word reading and comprehension. We encourage children to read widely across both fiction and non-fiction texts to develop their knowledge of themselves and the world in which they live. As they get older, emphasis is placed on Guided Reading which also forms part of the reading experience. This provides the opportunity to develop comprehension skills, increase knowledge of vocabulary and promote enjoyment of a wide range of more challenging texts.
Also in Key Stage 1, ‘Letters and Sounds’ form the basis of literacy sessions where children are taught to understand the relationship between sounds and letters (phonics). Children are gradually introduced to more sophisticated spelling patterns and word structures. Children begin formal spelling tests in Year 1 learning words containing spelling patterns linked to the phases in Letters and Sounds. We aim to develop the children’s ability to produce well structured, detailed writing in which the meaning is clear and which engages the reader. Teachers model writing strategies and the use of phonics and spelling strategies in shared writing sessions.
Each term we produce a curriculum newsletter for parents. These detail the areas of study for each class for a term. Curriculum Newsletters We hope you find it informative and that it helps you support your child’s learning.
Here are our long-term curriculum plans. Click Here These give an overview of the areas of study for each year group. You will notice that we have some two year rolling plans. This is because we often have children from two year groups in one class due to numbers and this prevents children repeating work the following year, if they remain in a mixed age class.
From the long-term plans, teachers produce more detailed medium and short-term plans.