Curriculum Statement of Intent
Bishops Lydeard Church School and Nursery
Our curriculum is designed to achieve strong outcomes, positive mental and physical health, resilience and identity: reflecting our vision of ‘life in all its fullness’.
When Jesus spoke the words of John 10:10 to his disciples he had a vision for them that went beyond what they could see at that moment in time.
At Bishops Lydeard Church School and Nursery, we have that vision for all our children. We want every lesson, experience, and day in our school to expose children to an education without limits, full of the joy and fullness of life.
Our vision extends to our local community, where we want to see our bustling village impacted by the courageous care and vision of our pupils. We believe that by walking through life together, we can flourish together; achieving strong outcomes, positive mental and physical health, resilience and identity.
Bishops Lydeard Church School is an academy school, rooted in the local community. We are an inclusive and energetic school, where every child is an integral part of the school family. We are building a school that impacts the world around us with respect, endurance and friendship.
God’s love helps us: Respect each other, show Endurance and be a Friend to the World
At Bishops Lydeard Church School our curriculum is based on the September 2014 National Curriculum for Key Stages 1 & 2 and the Early Years Framework in Reception and Nursery. Our rigorous, well-planned curriculum combined with high quality teaching ensures that children are supported to be well rounded, empathetic young people who have a genuine thirst for learning and ‘life in all its fullness.’
Children develop a strong sense of moral purpose in addition to a respect for, and understanding of, people. Good mental health, wellbeing and resilience are vital for our children to develop ‘life in all its fullness.’ To that end, our curriculum is underpinned by the support we offer pupils to live healthy and fulfilled lives.
Introduction
The curriculum is all the planned activities that we as a school organise in order to promote learning, personal growth and development. It includes, not only the formal requirements of the National Curriculum, but also the range of extra-curricular activities that the school organises in order to enrich the experiences of our children.
We teach children how to grow into positive, responsible people, who can work and co-operate with others, whilst developing knowledge, skills and attitudes to learning. We do so with the intent that that they achieve their true potential and have choices and agency in their lives.
Vision and Values
At Bishops Lydeard Church School we strive to make our children passionate for learning and make their learning engaging, interactive and meaningful. To that end we make best use of our local context and the resources our community and local and regional area offers. We offer children an excellent education in a safe, nurturing, productive and inclusive environment.
We nurture our children on their journey and encourage them to be resilient, reflective, open-minded and independent individuals, respectful of themselves and of others in our school, our local community and the wider world. We take our responsibility to prepare children for life in modern Britain very seriously and ensure that the fundamental British Values are introduced, discussed and lived out through the ethos and work of our school.
Our curriculum promotes respect for the views of each individual child, as well as for people of all cultures, backgrounds and beliefs. We value positive mental health and well-being and the development of each person, as well as their intellectual and physical growth. We organise our curriculum so that we promote co-operation and understanding between all members of our community.
At Bishops Lydeard Church School our Christian values of ‘Respect, Endurance and Friendship’ permeate all areas of school life and support the delivery of our Christian Vison for ‘life in all its fullness.’
Aims
At Bishops Lydeard Church School we offer a balanced and broad-based curriculum which enables all pupils to:
- Make progress in academic and personal developments
- Feel successful in their learning and to promote high self-esteem
- Become resilient independent learners
- Be given time to learn new skills and knowledge and have time to practise and develop
- Know what their strengths are and which areas they need to develop
- Build schema and make links between previous and current learning
- Be able to evaluate and assess their own learning
- Develop their meta-cognition and self-regulation
- Learn and practise core skills in English and Mathematics
- Nurture positive relationships promoting working co-operatively with one another
- Become successful lifelong learners who are able to reach their full potential and always be prepared for the next stage in their learning
- Understand and value the importance of truth, fairness, choices and consequences
- Explore their spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development
- Challenge themselves to be the best version of ourselves
Organisation, Planning and Implementation
Our curriculum is delivered using a variety of approaches and resources depending on the nature of the subject being taught and the needs of the children. Learning is sequential and progressive. Teachers give careful attention to how the curriculum in each subject is planned to ensure that teaching builds upon what pupils already known in order to support them to both know more, remember more and can do more. Teachers proactively bring this to the forefront in their teaching. It is in this development of the long-term memory that we can be sure that learning has been successful, and progress is made.
The following National Curriculum subjects are taught:
| Art and Design | Computing | Design Technology |
| English | Geography | History |
| Maths | MFL | Music |
| PE | PSHE/RSE (Jigsaw) | RE |
| Science |
In KS1 and KS2 our curriculum is planned on a rolling cycle with an emphasis placed on rich and well-matched experiences, cross curricular links and learning supported by quality texts and other appropriate experiences available in the local and regional area. The curriculum is also developed to support the needs of our current cohorts and the experiences we wish them to have. Our curriculum is then mapped into progressions and termly pathways, which are shared with parents. The implementation of the learning is based on the best pedagogic approach (for the learning at hand) and to support the development and understanding of disciplinary skills.
The Reception and Nursery curriculum is planned on a yearly basis linking to the Prime and Specific Areas of Learning in the EYFS and is guided by the children’s interests.
EYFS
During the EYFS, we support all of our pupils to develop positive attitudes towards learning, to be ‘school ready’ and so prepared for the next stage in their educational journey.
We prioritise communication and language (including oracy and the development of a wide vocabulary) and personal, social and emotional development as these enable our children to be ready to make the best progress possible both in the early years and beyond.
We also support all children to become full members of our community in which they will discover ‘life in all its fullness.’ A practical, playful approach to learning, based on the needs and interests of our children, is delivered through topic-based planning. This is underpinned by our curriculum progressions and knowledge of child development. We teach children individually, in small groups and in whole class settings. Through a combination of teacher input and continuous provision opportunities, learning is planned to enable children to develop their learning independently through exploration and challenge.
The ‘Characteristics of Effective Learning’ are at the heart of the Early Years Curriculum. They highlight the importance of playing and learning, active learning and thinking critically. All the learning experiences we plan for the children support them to utilise and develop these skills. Our learning environments, both inside and outside, are stimulating and engaging, and relevant to the needs and age/stage of our children.
Subject Specific Intents
|
English |
o For children to read widely and broadly and to do so for enjoyment and out of curiosity and a thirst for knowledge.
o For children to read fluently so that meaning can be lifted from the ‘page’. o For children to have curiosity around vocabulary and to use this to develop their knowledge and understanding and to express themselves with clarity. o For children to be able to communicate effectively in a range of situations and for a range of purposes both verbally and in written form. o For children to have core skills and automaticity in transcription so they can write freely and communicate meaning. o For children to build confidence and competence through spaced repetition o For children to be able to write with a developed level of grammar and spelling so that they are not prevented from achieving the higher grades in GCSEs or A Levels. o For the skills, knowledge and competencies developed in English to facilitate a full role in citizenship. For identity, voice, agency and advocacy, fairness, tolerance and respect to be able to shine through. |
| Maths |
o For children to build resilience and view themselves positively in terms of mathematics and believe that they can do it o For children to develop mastery of mathematics through the development of conceptual understanding and application underpinned by the use of a concrete, pictorial and abstract progression o For children to have an appreciation of number o For children to develop fluency in the recall of number facts, calculations and wider mathematical facts and skills o For children to revisit their learning across mathematics in order to retain / remember knowledge and skills and be able to apply these in different contexts o For children to develop and use the language of mathematics in order to support conceptual understanding and to be able to communicate understanding and reasoning o Children to be able to reason mathematically by seeing connections and relationships o Children to reason mathematically through verbalising thinking and recording this pictorially or in words o Children to be able to solve a range of mathematical problems |
| Art |
o That children develop confidence in creating and thinking critically- having confidence in their own ideas and choices. o That children develop their knowledge of Arts and Design through collaborative approaches o That children become inquisitive about the Arts and the different representations of Art. o That they learn how to use different and varied techniques and materials. o That they learn to use a multidisciplinary approach when planning and designing. o That children develop a knowledge of artists and designers from the past, present and future and become confident to take a positive role in the ever-changing world. |
| Computing |
o Children will build their resilience when solving coding or technology problems o They will use critical thinking to review and evaluate their work o For children to solve problems with code, debugging it, to ensure it works correctly o All children will have access to a wide range of technology, apps and resources o Children will develop the skills necessary to use computers effectively o All children will be responsible digital citizens, knowing how to stay safe online o Children will understand their rights and responsibilities when working in a digital world |
| DT |
o Children will develop their knowledge of design technology through collaborative approaches. o That children become problem solvers and question posers. o That they learn how to investigate before drawing conclusions, becoming informed innovators. o That they learn to use a multidisciplinary approach when designing and originating. o That children develop a knowledge of design from the past, present and future and become confident to take a positive role in the ever-changing world. |
| Geography |
o Ensuring that children have a deep-rooted understanding of their local area which is then broadened to understand their sense of place within the wider world. o An acknowledgement that children need to revisit and systematically build on their locational knowledge year on year. This recognises the fact that for many of our children, school is the main source of this knowledge. o To ensure that children retain and build on their locational knowledge, all year groups will review the locational knowledge required for that year and all preceding years at the start of learning linked to Geography |
| History |
o Ensure that children have a deep-rooted understanding of history in their local area. o This is then broadened to consider the impact of historical periods on Britain, their community and them as children, considering both historical periods within this country and in the wider world. o Children consider how their lives have changed compared to those of the past, reflecting on the sacrifices made by others to provide them with the opportunities for future success. o An acknowledgement that children need to revisit and systematically build on their historical knowledge year on year. This recognises the fact that for many of our children, school is the main source of this knowledge. To ensure that children build on their knowledge of the chronology of historical periods, all year groups will review previous learning, discussing where periods of history already learnt sit on a timeline. o Children are immersed in age-appropriate historical vocabulary in all year groups to ensure that they have the subject-specific language skills required to communicate their understanding. o The history curriculum provides real-life opportunities to apply and deepen their skills and knowledge in the core curriculum subjects ensuring that they can understand the rationale behind learning in these area |
| Jigsaw |
o Children are able to recognise how to keep themselves and others safe o Children can identify feelings and emotions and can communicate these effectively. They are able to form and maintain positive relationships o Children are able to listen, reflect and discuss their and others perspectives and opinions. o Children learn to recognise their own worth (value, character and identity), work well with others and become increasingly responsible for their own learning. o Children can reflect on their experiences and understand how they are developing personally and socially, tackling many of the spiritual, moral, social and cultural issues that are part of growing up. o Children are active citizens. o Prepares pupils at the school for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life. o Children learn to understand and respect our common humanity; diversity, similarities and differences so that they can go on to form the effective, fulfilling relationships. |
| MFL |
o Children learn to communicate ideas and thoughts in another language; o They listen attentively and engage in conversations; ask and answer questions; express opinions and respond to those of others; seek clarification and help o They understand and respond to its speakers, both in speech and in writing, and are actively involved in speaking within lessons o Children develop accurate pronunciation and intonation so that others understand when they are reading aloud or using familiar words and phrases o Children develop an understanding of basic grammar appropriate to the language being studied o Vocabulary is introduced through song, rhyme, reading and listening o Children appreciate and celebrate similarities and differences and appreciate ‘opening up other cultures’ o Children read with care and develop skills and understanding o Children develop skills that will open further opportunities later in life laying the foundations for further modern foreign language teaching within KS3 and KS4. |
| Music |
o Children experience music creatively and emotionally as listeners, singers, performers and composers o Children enjoy singing and become confident singers o Children to see themselves as musicians and find pleasure and enjoyment music o Children can read rhythm and pitch notation to allow them better opportunities in KS3 and beyond o Children develop an understanding of the seven inter-related dimensions of music and have a language to describe music o Children review and evaluate music across a range of historical periods, genres, styles and traditions, including the works of the great composers and musicians o Children have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument and to use technology appropriately |
| PE
|
o Children will understand the importance of an active lifestyle o Children will believe that an active lifestyle will keep them healthy for the future o Children will develop their skills through physical activity that rewards effort and resilience o Children will experience a range of skills, sports and movements that challenge them o Children will learn how to work well as a team, celebrating each other’s success whether they win or lose o Children will suggest ways to improve tactics, create new rules and adapt an activity for the enjoyment of all involved o Children will grow in their perseverance, not being afraid to keep trying when they don’t succeed first time o Children will have a knowledge and understand of how their body works, moves and develops |
| RE |
o Children will develop their understanding of Christianity and other world religious and non-religious beliefs o Children will see RE as a contributing factor to their understanding of the world and their own experience within it o Children will be challenged to reflect, discuss and answer big questions o Children will have a greater understanding, tolerance and respect for other people’s viewpoints and beliefs o Children will be able to make sense of wide range of religious texts and sources, drawing on them to build a context for faith and personal choice o Children can understand the impact that view and values have in the decisions people make in the world o Children will make connections between the information they learn and the world they live in |
| Science |
o Recognise the importance of Science in every aspect of daily life and support children to see the patterns and links of life around them. o Increase children’s knowledge and skills and understanding of the world around them. o Develop children’s scientific skills, through a process of enquiry and support them in discussing and evaluating their findings. o Develop children’s curiosity and encourage respect for all living organisms and the physical environment around them. |
Our intent and implementation is reviewed as we move through an academic year. Subject leader monitoring evaluates and analyses progress from a range of sources. This informs any changes made. At the end of a year time is allocated to discuss and made any refinements based on the impact and the needs of the coming cohorts.