Curriculum

Knowledge and progression

Here at Burnham-on-Crouch Primary School, we believe all our children deserve the opportunity to leave each key stage with the knowledge and skills needed to excel as they move to the next phase of their education. Our curriculum, underpinned by the National Curriculum, is carefully sequenced and progressive giving time to ensure children know more and remember more. We have a focus on providing children, of all abilities and backgrounds, the chance to apply their new learning and take risks to solve challenging problems in all subjects.

Future Learning/Careers

As well as ensuring our children are prepared for their next phase of their education, we also want our child to be inspired by future careers. By providing children with authentic and real-life scenarios and experiences, children can understand how each subject can lead to future careers.

Multi-cultural and diversity

Due to our demographic and geographical location, ensuring our curriculum celebrates diversity and different cultures and provides children with authentic experiences is of upmost importance. Through celebrating and learning about different cultures, we enable our children to become connected with the world.

Enrichment experiences and opportunities

It is important to us that our children, from EYFS to Year 6, are immersed in experiences that are authentic, inclusive, meaningful, challenging, and engaging. Every experience will be active and hands-on, stimulating curiosity and questions whilst providing our children with the opportunities to explore their own learning and motivating them to take risks and challenges. Experiences can be seen in many different ways, such as school trips, assemblies, visitors, resources, local visits, community links and experiences within lessons.

Life-long learning

We inspire a love of learning that goes beyond the classroom. Children are encouraged to become independent learners and to take ownership of their learning, continuing their learning at home and pursuing their own lines of enquiry in EYFS and deepening understanding of topics that interest them as they move through the school.

Creativity and self-expression

Our curriculum promotes creativity and self-expression, through a variety of enrichment opportunities and experiences both in and outside the immediate school environment. It aims to encourage articulate, questioning learners who through a variety of experiences develop a sense of curiosity, awe and wonder. In our multicultural and diverse society, it is important that all our children have a voice and are able to express themselves clearly.

Critical thinking

Our children are taught to think critically and develop a more rigorous understating of each subject or unit of work, enabling them to explore the world around them and the  work of others, reflecting on prior knowledge in order to evaluate different ideas.

What we believe (Intent)

We strongly believe, that through our curriculum, children should feel connected to the world in which they live. Our Curriculum is driven by the need to prepare children for life in a forever changing, diverse and multicultural world as well as developing a love of lifelong learning. It provides a valuable foundation to embed our key values and reflect the demands of the EYFS framework 2021 and of the National Curriculum 2014. RE is taught following The Saffron Academy Trust RE Scheme, which is based on the Essex Agreed Syllabus 2023. Our curriculum is ambitious, inclusive and ensures equality of opportunity and experience. We offer a broad and balanced curriculum that supports the development of the whole child. Its key elements focus on the mental and emotional health and well-being of our children (and families) so that children are ready to learn and achieve academic success.

The curriculum is designed to promote resilience, creativity and problem solving through a variety of enrichment opportunities and experiences both in and outside the immediate school environment. It aims to encourage articulate, questioning learners who through a variety of experiences develop a sense of curiosity, awe and wonder. It ensures fun, meaningful and interactive lessons cater for all types of learning styles and children from all types of backgrounds. The curriculum addresses social disadvantage by building on pupils’ knowledge and skills enabling them to take advantage of a variety of experiences. The curriculum offers academic, vocational and technical opportunities. It ensures all pupils are treated equally, prepared for the next stage of their education and equipped with the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life. Through our curriculum, children are encouraged to be reflective, collaborative and cooperative learners who value each other’s thoughts and opinions and show kindness and empathy to all around them.

Why is the curriculum designed as it is (Implementation)

The curriculum incorporates the statutory requirements of the National Curriculum 2014. We have deliberately thought about what is taught, what has to be learnt and what children need to know in order to progress and succeed. We respond to current issues such as preventing radicalisation through teaching diversity, tolerance, keeping children safe online, as well as meeting the new statutory requirements for teaching RHSE and developing mental health awareness as guided by KCSIE 2023.

We have designed our curriculum to ensure our key values are embed through a consistent and progressive approach. An ambitious two-week cycle of subject coverage has been implemented for Geography, History, Science, Computing, Art and D&T, to inspire and interest our children. The approach enables continued in depth and progressive learning of a topic within a subject over a series of well-planned and sequenced lessons. It enables rapid progress and the achievement of new skills and knowledge. Clear links with prior learning, key vocabulary and core knowledge is included in the knowledge organisers shared at the start of each unit and these are referred to throughout the unit of work. Prior learning is referred back to within each lesson. The key knowledge that we expect the children to learn is tested through quizzes. The curriculum provides children with memorable experiences, in addition to diverse and rich opportunities from which they can learn and develop a range of transferable skills.

The school’s curriculum is broad and balanced. Specialist Teachers in PE, Music and Spanish enable children to acquire knowledge, understanding and skills in all aspects of their education providing them with opportunities to discover their talents and reach their full potential. This year we have introduced a STEM Enrichment Curriculum, which is designed to inspire future careers in STEM and strengthen links with our local and wider community. A range of initiatives, enrichment activities, focused days, trips, visitors and extra-curricular activities are undertaken to establish a curriculum that is inspiring, valued and enjoyed by all.

Carefully planned and organised progression maps for each subject enables regular and purposeful assessment. Knowledge planners form the start of each unit of work, highlighting core knowledge, key vocabulary, prior learning and end of topic outcome and each unit of work includes an enrichment experience and an assessment quiz. Teachers review and evaluate their teaching and planning and have a clear understanding of where their children are within each subject area.

We have followed statutory guidance and teach RHSE through our own bespoke plans, covering suggested learning opportunities and the needs of our pupils. We recognise the part our curriculum plays in the emotional wellbeing of children and work hard to build awareness of positive mental health through half termly themes. A timetable for extra-curricular activities is offered by the school, with clubs that support the core curriculum and children’s physical development, whilst also extending the range of their experiences.

The school takes pride in providing a highly inclusive environment. We have high expectations for all; children at all levels are helped to achieve their full potential. We are proud of the recognition that we have been awarded in PE (AfPE Quality Mark – Distinction) and Enhanced Healthy Schools. We are working towards reaccreditation for Artsmark and PSQM quality marks.

Why do we do what we do (Impact)

The impact of the curriculum is monitored though triangulation of outcomes: pupil voice, test/data outcomes, planning, monitoring of books and displays, lesson learning walks, discussions with teaching staff, pupils and parents.

We have embedded the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of children into our teaching and learning and continually ensure opportunities to develop resilience and independence are explored. Children use their prior learning to develop transferrable skills, knowledge and progression in their learning; they build memory by revisiting particular themes. We encourage and value self-reflection; we support our children to have high expectations of themselves and ambitions for their futures.