Our Curriculum
Intent
At Charlton Primary School we are ambitious in our aims for the curriculum. We want every part of our school community- children, parents and members of staff to experience success. Our motto ‘From such a seed’ is complimented by our values and behaviours.
At Charlton, it is our mission to deliver consistently excellent education that nurtures the whole child, enabling them to fulfil their potential, and encourages aspiration in every child. This is achieved through a broad, balanced and rich curriculum, with clearly defined coverage of knowledge, understanding and skills, that develop progressively through each year group, starting in the Early Years from Nursery to Year 6.
However, to prepare young children well for future success, we believe strongly that education should not just comprise knowledge and facts. As such, our curriculum is underpinned by four main drivers: Wonder, Knowledge, Discovery and Responsibility.
These drivers inform the way in which our curriculum subjects are planned and delivered.
Implementation
All National Curriculum subjects are carefully planned, structured and sequenced to ensure progression across units of work and across year groups or key stages. The curriculum is structured to help children remember long term, the content that they have been taught and children are encouraged to integrate this new knowledge into other areas. It is rooted, and has evolved from, a solid agreement between all subject leaders about the knowledge and skills that our children will need in order to ensure that they develop resilience; growing and developing academically, physically, socially and morally. We aim to tailor our curriculum to fulfil every child’s potential and adapt to incorporate local events and opportunities, where appropriate. Through a curriculum that is both stimulating and challenging, children develop ‘Wonder’ about the world as they become independent and active learners.
Throughout all areas of the curriculum, reading is prioritised. Key vocabulary for all subjects is prominent within planned ‘Learning Journeys’ and children are given access to a range of age appropriate texts across all subject areas.
We place a sharp focus on phonics for our younger children and a programme of support is in place for any older children who may need additional help. These may be SEND, EAL or new to the school.
A range of extra-curricular school activities and additional experiences such as; fieldwork, educational visits and visitors to school, ensure that both enjoyment and learning are enhanced – helping to engender an appreciation of human creativity and achievement. We also encourage children to showcase their talents by entering competitions, participating in sports tournaments and singing at special events.
Impact
Judging the impact of our curriculum offer is derived primarily from first-hand evidence of how children are progressing, drawing together evidence from the voice of the child, lesson visits, work scrutinies and wider reviews. Some of the ways we do this include listening to a range of children read; discussions with children about what they have remembered, talking to teachers about how they are getting on against curriculum aims and how well all children are prepared for the next stage of education.
Beyond the academic: Citizenship and our school values
Our children are part of a global society. Which is why, at Charlton, we believe the teaching of citizenship and helping young children to understand the society they live in is important. We believe in a duty of care to support children to become good citizens and positive role models within their community.
In addition to dedicated PSHE sessions, a cross-curricular approach allows citizenship to be incorporated into other lessons as and when it arises. Forums, such as school councils and assemblies, are ways we teach children about democracy and participation. Alongside learning about rights (Through Rights Respecting Schools), through our values we place emphasis on encouraging children to take on responsibilities within the school and local community. We believe that good citizenship teaching gives children a voice and creates a climate in the school where they can talk about issues freely.
Our school values: Be Happy, Be Kind, Be Responsible are well established and breathe into every part of daily life. At times, our school values are explicitly referenced in lessons and at other times there are implicit references. They form the bedrock of positive relations between staff, children and the wider Charlton community. On Fridays, they are the foundation of our whole school assembly, where children are recognised for demonstrating these within the school day. These are then celebrated by the school community.
Our aim is for children at Charlton to have a deeper understanding of themselves and the world around them, to be able to question with curiosity and value others’ personal beliefs, values and attitudes in a respectful manner and as a result of their learning become happy, responsible citizens of the future with a firm understanding that although we are all different and make different choices, we are all equally important and unique.