^{Curriculum Teaching and Learning Policy}  

As a school community, we believe our children possess unique gifts and qualities; as such they have the right to succeed, recognise their own greatness, and develop into the best versions of themselves in a respectful and nurturing environment.   Our school ethos is firmly rooted in our values with a ‘love of learning’ being the foundation of everything we do… so that ‘safe in knowledge, together we grow…’

We have a clear vision for our children and we aspire to supporting the children in our care to develop the following values:

Respect

• Good manners
• Respect
• Pride in themselves, others, their school and their community

Responsibility

• Responsibility for their actions
• A positive attitude towards learning
• Aspirations for their future

Courage

• Confidence and self-belief
• Skills for life

Wisdom

• Tolerance and understanding
• Happy memories

What do we want our children to learn?

At Barming Pre-School and Primary School we believe that learning is a journey and as such our curriculum is designed to be broad, balanced, inspiring and purposeful and is one that meets the needs of all pupils.   It is designed to promote learning and personal growth and development.   It includes not only the formal requirements of the National Curriculum (DfE, 2014) and Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework (DfE, 2023), but also the additional elements that we provide to enrich their learning experiences.

The curriculum allows children to develop effective interpersonal skills, build resilience and become creative, critical thinkers.   It provides opportunities for children to develop as confident and successful learners, with high aspirations and a sense of personal responsibility.   Our values underpin all that we do in school, fostering independence and thirst for learning.   High expectations in speech, language and communication strengthen children’s ability to learn at a deeper level, allowing them to articulate their learning; demonstrate quality thinking and application of skills and knowledge.

Physical and mental well-being are prioritised within our curriculum allowing children opportunities to develop their spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding, thus preparing them to make a positive contribution to their community and the wider society.   Every child is recognised as a unique individual and we celebrate and welcome differences within our school community.

Our curriculum enables teachers to drive the highest standards from learners so that they are well prepared for the next stage in their educational journey and the future beyond.   Our curriculum is relevant to children growing up in the Barming community but also broadens children’s experiences to enable them to become well rounded individuals.   The curriculum is cohesive and progressive, where both knowledge and skills are built upon year on year; but flexible enough to ensure that it evolves to remain relevant and stimulating.   We aspire to provide an engaging learning experience for all our pupils and believe that childhood should be a happy, investigative and enquiring time in our lives, where there are no limits to curiosity and there is a thirst for new experiences and knowledge.   As such, teachers ensure pupils are inspired to have a thirst for learning; and through high levels of enjoyment and engagement, children leave our school with a sense of belonging to a tightly knit community and a solid foundation for the continuation of their learning journey in secondary school.  

How do we facilitate their learning journey?

The curriculum incorporates the statutory requirements of the National Curriculum 2014 and other experiences and opportunities which best meet the learning and developmental needs of the children in our school, allowing them to flourish.   The curriculum provides children with memorable experiences, in addition to diverse and rich opportunities from which they can learn and develop a range of transferable skills.  

Age-related expectations combine the acquisition of knowledge and development of skills to create a purposeful and exciting learning journey for every child.   The curriculum has high expectations to combine transferable skills, demonstrate a breadth of vocabulary and develop strong, meaningful cross-curricular links.   Inviting classroom environments stimulate learners and engage them in quality thinking and reasoning.   Explicit weekly and medium-term planning is responsive to children’s needs; incorporating holistic approaches to teaching and learning.

The school takes pride in providing a highly inclusive environment, where learners of all abilities demonstrate levels of enjoyment in their education and most make good progress in most subjects and areas of learning.   Children at all levels are helped to carve or build their own potential.   Those who are most able are challenged and supported through being offered tasks which provide opportunities for greater depth and those who present with a barrier to learning are encouraged and given targeted support to embed skills, to develop at their own pace or simply to learn in a style that best suits their individual needs.

Curriculum Design Principles

Intent

Our curriculum is designed to engineer success by incorporating the granular detail, sequencing and ‘bigger picture’ of curriculum content.   The curriculum is designed to deliver the core knowledge and skills that pupils need to take with them on their journey into the next year, Key Stage of their education and beyond.   All teaching is structured to maximise learning opportunities.   Lessons will allow opportunities for the pupils to build up their understanding through various activities and opportunities to talk about their learning with their peers.   Teaching will afford pupils opportunities to review what has been learned.

Implementation

Our curriculum implementation is fundamentally based around the following:

• Meaningful schemes of work (either school created or purchased) with relevant links and progression of knowledge and skills.   Thorough planning, which is adapted to the school and needs of pupils, enables all pupils to make progress in every session.   Long and medium term plans are crafted to ensure full coverage of the National Curriculum.  
• Short term plans are flexible and responsive.  They are adapted according to pupils’ prior understanding and are designed to build on previous learning.
• Although pupils move through the curriculum at broadly the same pace, some will require support and others greater challenge.  The aim of the teacher is to design learning experiences that enable as many pupils as possible to master the concepts, knowledge and skills being taught and apply them confidently.
• In EYFS, KS1 and KS2 teaching ensures that learning opportunities are made available to the pupils that take account of a range of learning styles (investigation/problem solving, independent/paired/grouped/whole class work, use of technology, drama, visits, visitors, debates, designing and making things, outside learning, work in the community etc.).
• Our teaching takes into account the needs of all groups of learners, (disadvantaged pupils, pupils with special educational needs or disabilities, (SEND), more able, learners with English as an additional language (EAL), learners with social and emotional needs, children looked after and all other specific needs) and in keeping with our ethos of putting the child first we aim to teach in a way that meets the pupil where they are, considers all their barriers to learning and gives them the best chance of success.
• Recapping previous learning (topics / themes / concepts / aspects).
• Developing knowledge and skills – building on previous knowledge and making links.
• Deepening understanding.
• Assessing knowledge and skills to be learnt during the next lesson, topic, year or Key Stage.

The Learning Environment has a key role in encouraging, promoting, motivating and celebrating pupil’s knowledge and understanding.

In the classroom there will be evidence of:

• Respect between adults and pupils, including good manners.
• Pupils actively engaging with their learning.
• Progress the pupils are making during the current unit of work.
• Pupils having easy access to any relevant learning resources, encouraging the pupils to select their own appropriate resources for lessons.
• Key vocabulary on displays to promote pupil’s use of subject-specific words, while also spelling them correctly.
• Displays celebrating pupil’s work and encouraging further thinking with key questions.
• Working walls for Maths and English which are current and support progress.
• Developing learners with high expectations and a love of learning.

Pupils have the right to receive teaching that enables them to access learning and to develop their skills, knowledge and understanding.   Our child-centred approach, linked with a determination that every pupil should be given the best possible opportunities to succeed, guides all our teaching and learning.   Effort is praised and the link between effort and success made clear to pupils.   Good quality work is expected and celebrated through display and the reward system.   Positive reinforcement and developing self-belief and self-esteem are key features of the vocabulary we use with pupils.

Our curriculum has many enrichment opportunities built into it.  Whole school events and learning with pupils of different ages are key features of our school.

We provide a range of extracurricular activities which are accessed by many children and celebrated in our Friday Celebration assemblies. There is a range of after school clubs for pupils to extend their enjoyment of learning.  Many opportunities for families to get involved in learning are planned throughout the year.

Opportunities are given for Pupil Voice via our School Council. Our children have a voice within school and develop into confident and well-equipped lifelong learners. Pupils are encouraged to fundraise and promote charitable activities.

Impact

Our curriculum impact is assessed through a mixture of the following:

• Teacher assessments against the curriculum outcomes
• Quizzes/ Assessment pieces 
• Pupil/staff voice
• Book looks
• Tests, either informal or formal (NFER / SATS etc.)

Assessment

At Barming Pre-School and Primary School assessment takes the forms of formative and summative assessments. They are used to help raise standards by providing insight in to pupil’s learning and next steps.

Formative assessment

• This happens daily throughout all lessons to ensure children are able to access the learning and any misconceptions are challenged quickly.
• This also ensures children are able to move their learning on and access further challenges once they have understood the concept being taught in class.
• Good questioning of children will ensure that they are able to demonstrate their understanding.   In some cases, not asking for hands up allows for more effective feedback as more children have the opportunity to share their understanding.

Summative assessment

• This is used to evaluate pupil’s learning at certain points throughout the year.
• Our assessment timetable is as follows:

• All assessment scores are converted to standardised scores – which are recorded as User Tests on Target Tracker and are used to support teachers with levelling children.
• Gap Analysis is also completed to allow year group trends to be identified and for NTS assessments comparison to National levels is available.
• Children’s levels are recorded using Target Tracker.   These are recorded termly.   The different levels at the different stages of the year are as follows:

• Through these assessments teachers are able to identify where children require further support, be that through class teaching, adaptation or a short term interventions.

Assessment data is analysed 3 times during the year – Terms 2, 4 and 6 by SLT.   Pupil Progress Meetings are held after each data analysis. These meetings will include the class teacher and a member of SLT.   During these meetings any pupils whose progress is a concern will be discussed and appropriate interventions will be put in place.

For Subject Specific information please go to the sub pages on our website:

• Maths
• English
• Humanities - History and Geography
• Music
• Art and Design and Design Technology
• Languages - French
• Computing
• PSHE
• Science
• RE
• PE

How can I find out more about the Curriculum?

Click the link below to see the National Curriculum or simply ask to meet with the class teacher.

We also hold 'Meet the Teacher' at the start of every child's school year so you get the opportunity to find out about that specific year group and the curriculum content/expectations. 

We support the children to understand our curriculum and changes too by holding a 'Transition Day' at the end of the academic year. This is where the children get to meet their teacher for next year and find out about the curriculum for the year ahead!