St Mary’s C of E Primary school is a ‘small school with a big heart’. Christian belief, family, community, and a true sense of team is at the centre of all we do. Our curriculum aims to develop our children academically, socially and spiritually, preparing them for the next phase of their education.

 

Intent

 

What are we trying to achieve through our curriculum?

 

1)  To inspire and engage our children with a creative curriculum that allows for individual and collaborative learning experiences.

 

2)  To develop resilient, reflective learners who persevere through challenges at all stages of development.

 

3)  To prepare aspirational and independent learners who are well prepared for their next steps, developing the wider child informed by Christian belief.

 

4) To deliver an ambitious curriculum that is coherently planned and sequenced toward cumulatively sufficient knowledge and skills for future learning and employment.

 

 

Implementation

 

How is our curriculum being delivered?

 

The implementation of our curriculum starts with our overarching whole school vision/mission statement created with pupils, parents and governor voice.

 

Our four classes are made up of mixed year groups and a two year rolling programme is implemented across the whole school.

Wherever possible, reading and writing are linked to the topic. Some lessons/subjects may be taught discretely if they do not fit in with the learning focus of the topic. To support effective teaching and learning, as a school, we may focus on a particular curriculum area for a few days.

 

Our Learning is sequenced into coherent and cumulative lessons that build and connect on previous content. Specific skills are discreetly taught and practised so that they become transferable. Carefully sequenced units activate prior learning, build on skills and deepen knowledge and understanding. Learning, vocabulary and content is cumulative; content is learned, retrieved and built upon.

Reading is embedded across all curriculum areas to extend and deepen pupils' understanding and use of vocabulary. St Mary’s truly has a reading culture. We want pupils to develop a love of reading during their time at St Mary’s and be exposed to a range of classic, contemporary and diverse literature. The use of the school library, class libraries, library van and varied class shared texts are pivotal to this.

 

We proactively use the outdoor space of our school including: forest school, the pond, sensory garden and the outdoor EYFS area.

All adults in school have relentless high expectations of children's attitudes to work, behaviour and how they hold themselves in and outside of school. We are ambitious for all our children, no matter their background or starting point - they are part of St Mary’s Team and thrive.

 

Effective interaction with our parents and community is the cornerstone of our school. We are a collective team. We are committed to working in partnership with parents as we believe that when home and school work closely together, we get the best outcomes for our pupils. Curriculum events, celebrations and parents evenings are always well attended.

Our children are confident, they thrive in lessons and have a love of being in school and being part of St Mary’s.

A collaborative marking and feedback policy has been agreed and adhered to by all staff. Children understand this feedback and how the marking impacts their work.

 

Adults use targeted, effective questioning techniques to push children’s thinking deeper.

Children possess a growth mindset and effort is seen as the golden thread to positive achievements.

Homework is set preparing children for the independence and discipline needed of secondary school and beyond.   

Our curriculum is constantly reviewed, taking into account staff and pupil voice.

 

 

Impact

 

What difference is our curriculum making?

 

Pupil progress is evident through ongoing assessment and through three key, tight pupil progress meetings across the year. Work is planned to address misconceptions and gaps in learning identified through assessments to ensure that the curriculum effectively meets the needs of all pupils.

 

Subject Leaders have the necessary expertise to play a pivotal role in both the design and delivery of their subject area, ensuring a clear progression of both skills and knowledge across all year groups. Core subjects have action plans that are regularly reviewed throughout the year assessing outcomes and areas for developments.

 

Outcomes for our children:

 

The impact of the school’s curriculum can be seen through the rising quality of work in the books the pupils produce and the in-year progress demonstrated by all groups of pupils.

 

We have high aspirations for all expecting:

 

• Our children make good decisions based on our Christian values

• Children demonstrate confidence, indepence, resilience and a real thirst for learning

• Knowledge, understanding and skills will be secured and embedded so that children attain highly and are fully prepared for secondary school.

• Children have exceptional communication skills and respect for their peers

• Children are tolerant of other views and faiths

• Vulnerable children and children with SEND achieve the best possible outcomes from their personal starting points.

• Children demonstrate emotional resilience and the ability to persevere when they meet challenges.

• Extra curricular activities allow for children to experience a wide range of music and sporting activities to take forward to their next educational phase.

• Children are ready for the next phase of their education and make a positive contribution to the world in which they live.

• Our children have aspirations for the future and know that these can be realised with hard work and determination.

• Our children can work both independently, but understand the crucial role collaboration plays

• Our results demonstrate high standards, leaving children of St Mary’s with an excellent foundation for future success

 

 

As a school we place staff well being and CPD at the heart of what we do. Equipping our adults with the skills they need, the time to do it and the support they need is essential to us being successful.

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