Curriculum Intent, Implementation and Impact
Our curriculum is the beating heart of our school. We want our children to be knocking on the door each morning, eager to come in and start the day’s exciting learning.
Our curriculum has a clear purpose, an intent. Teaching is strong and all staff have a clear understanding of how to implement our curriculum in order to maximise the impact.
Intent - What are we trying to achieve here with, and through, the curriculum?
We, staff and students, are trying to foster life-long learning behaviours at Upperthong J&I School by encouraging: pride, enthusiasm, resilience, self-motivation, aspiration & respect. In all that we do we ensure that we create a learning-focused climate, built on nurturing, positive relationships, enabling all to feel safe and to thrive.
Each area of the national curriculum has its own intent statement which our curriculum teams are currently writing. These will identify the specific aims of each of the areas and what they want each child to know and have learned by each transition point.
Implementation - So, how are we going to deliver this?
We have the Early Years Foundation Stage & National Curriculums which we use as starting points, but embellish and deepen further as the children progress across the school. At the heart of this is the commitment to ensuring that children are exposed to wide and varied quality learning experiences. We are fully committed to developing each child’s unique potential and use a range of resources to meet the needs of the curriculum and endeavour to maximise the opportunities available outside the main curriculum (hidden curriculum). Our engaging and lively curriculum is designed so that specific knowledge and skills are scaffolded within a theme or context each term/half term. In order to ensure that progression and balance is maintained, the programmes of study are then developed into medium term plans which clearly highlight the learning objectives, assessment opportunities, tasks as well as links to other subjects. Teachers then translate these plans into smaller units – half term, weekly, daily plans where the specific needs of the learners are addressed. Our staff are skilled in assessing children’s needs, progress and attainment, with feedback from this used to ensure teaching is carefully tailored to meet the needs of all the children.
Impact - What difference is this curriculum making to our children?
We have 3 foci when it comes to measuring the impact of our curriculum on outcomes for our children:
- Ensuring high impact on standards
- The quality of education is outstanding.
- All children consistently achieve highly in all areas of the curriculum
- Children make at least expected progress and attain in line with or better than national expectations.
- Disadvantaged children and those with SEND achieve the best possible outcomes
Through our curriculum we intend that all our children are well prepared for the next stage of their learning.
- Ensuring high impact on children’s emotional development
- Personal development is outstanding.
- Children are happy and enjoy coming to school.
- Parents and carers are happy with the school and high proportions would recommend us to others.
Through our curriculum we intend that our children are well prepared for the active role they will play as citizens of Britain and the world.
- Ensuring high impact on children’s social development
- Behaviour and attitudes are outstanding.
- Children demonstrate our vision and values in their learning and in their behaviour in and around school
- Children learn to make the right choices for their safety and the choices children make benefit the school and local community.
Through our curriculum we intend that our children we develop a strong moral compass enabling them to go out into the world and making the right decisions for themselves and their community.