Berkswich CE Whole-school

Curriculum Intent, Implementation and Impact 

Curriculum Intention

 "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."

The Bible, John, chapter 10, verse 10

Berkswich CE Primary is a thriving, forward-thinking school and as such, our curriculum is inclusive, accessible and ambitious for all children within our learning community. Our whole school vision is for each child to reach their God-given potential and, therefore, our intent is that all children delight in learning and are supported and challenged effectively within deeply engaging learning opportunities.

Our progressive curriculum aims to provide the tools for the children to be effective learners; it supportively drives them to build independence, think evaluatively, work with self-motivation and delight in growing in wisdom and knowledge.

Our curriculum is broad and every subject is valued; the integrity of each of these is keenly seen through the concepts and knowledge categories that are integral to each curriculum area and which thread through each subject unit and year group.

Through our school values and our bespoke extended offer, our curriculum focus is on developing children as unique and cherished individuals, purposefully furthering each child’s moral, spiritual, social, cultural, physical and academic development. These tailored enrichment opportunities strive to further extend our children’s experiences and strengthen and deepen their future aspirations.  

Our curriculum realises our intention for the school family - that our Berkswich CE community is outward-looking, embraces diversity and encourages and equips children to delight in life-long learning in order to develop into mature young citizens, prepared and eager to contribute positively within an ever-changing world.

Each Subject's Curriculum Intent

To find out how our whole-school curriculum intent is seen in each separate subject, please see each of the subject areas on our website by clicking here.

Curriculum Implementation

“Tell me and I’ll forget; show me and I may remember;  

involve me and I’ll understand.”

                                                                                                            Benjamin Franklin

Background

The National Curriculum is a set of subjects and standards used by primary schools so that children learn the same things. It covers what subjects are taught and the standards children should reach in each subject. This is a statutory document that all schools must follow. Schools have the autonomy to decide on how this content is delivered and what approach to take to ensure that our curriculum is bespoke to the needs of our children and community.

Working alongside parents and carers

Our role, in partnership with parents and carers, is to build strong foundations for a successful education, to enable each child to discover the joy of learning and a deep satisfaction from learning. Supporting parents and carers in knowing what and how we teach is important to us, since this enables us to all work together to ensure that each child’s learning journey through school is effectively supported and appropriately challenged.

We believe that one of the best ways to understand what learning in school is like is to join your child in the learning. We run a number of workshops and learning sessions, where parents are invited to join the children in school. Please look out for details in our weekly newsletter.

Implementation of our curriculum

Implementation describes the way in which we deliver our curriculum consistently each day. To do this we have carefully designed our curriculum in subject blocks and these are delivered over a period of time to keep the integrity of the subject and also prepare the children for high school ahead. Progression of knowledge and skills is carefully mapped across Key Stages, with EYFS providing the foundations for the demands of Key Stage One and Two. Subject leaders are integral to the planning process and understand the pathway that their subjects take. Concepts or knowledge categories, central to each subject, are revisited again and again in new and progressive contexts. This is designed to enable learners to acquire relevant subject knowledge which underpins the application of skills.

The curriculum is carefully and progressively mapped across each key stage and subject area. Progression maps may look different from each other since they have been adapted to respond to the needs of each subject.

Knowledge is consolidated and built upon to support retention and recall. This ensures that by the time that children leave our school, they have learned, and are able to recall and apply the key information that we feel is important in order for them to be successful in the future. Since, as a school, we have identified one of our values as key to the learning process, each progression map also contains statements for increasing persistency which supports children when tackling new learning, encouraging an eagerness to work hard and face new challenges with determination.

Learning opportunities are varied – those that spark the imagination, others that immerse a child into a new world, on-line collaborations, individual and groupwork, and so on – each method skilfully chosen by the teacher to ensure that the approach is purposeful, subject-appropriate and facilitates the achievement of the desired outcomes for all.

Our approach is inclusive; we are ambitious for all in the way that children learn. Children with SEND and those who are vulnerable are expertly scaffolded to succeed. Timely and targeted support and intervention is in place to ensure equity for every child.