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Woolston Infant School

Curriculum

Woolston Infant School Statement of Ambition

 

“A curriculum exists to change the pupil, to give the pupil new power”.

(Counsell, 2018).

 

The curriculum at Woolston Infant School is based on the Early Years Foundation Stage Reforms 2021 and the September 2014 National Curriculum for Key Stage 1. Our curriculum is designed to not only inspire high aspirations, but also, to encourage our children to develop into resilient, life-long learners who welcome challenges, and who continue to grow and further their cultural capital. This also includes the ‘hidden curriculum’ - what children learn from the way that they are treated and expected to behave.  Our learning environment encourages children to be happy, independent and emotionally literate learners.  We aim to teach children to become cooperative, responsible and kind members of our community.  Through our learning values of tolerance, perseverance, kindness, cooperation and achievement, every child has the opportunity to flourish as an individual - with their own unique talents and interests.

We are committed to delivering a curriculum that empowers all of our pupils to be successful learners, equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to become global citizens, regardless of their starting points. At the heart of our curriculum is the premise that all pupils should have the right to acquire powerful knowledge that is specialised and takes the form of academic subjects (Young, 2018).

We believe that all curriculum subjects have equal value. Our curriculum is broad and balanced, promoting a sense of fascination, as well as encouraging our pupils to be curious about the world around them. Our curriculum includes not only the formal requirements of the National Curriculum but also a range of activities that are included within our curriculum to enrich the experiences of our children - for example, planned trips and visitors that bring the learning to life, providing further meaning and purpose. The local area is key to our curriculum, we provide opportunities for all pupils to know more about our locality, exploring our locality - such as important landmarks and historical events relevant to Southampton’s history.

Our curriculum aims:

  • To be inclusive: we are committed to meeting the needs of all children through the use of adaptive teaching strategies.
  • To provide opportunities for the act of ‘practising remembering’. We recognise that retrieval is key to effective learning - the more we know (and remember), the more that we can understand.
  • To deliver expert explanation: providing pupils with clear models and worked examples to enable pupils to solve problems with greater fluency.
  • To break down sequences of learning into small, manageable steps to ensure that working memory is not overloaded.
  • To provide opportunities to practise what has been modelled in order for skills and knowledge to become automatic.
  • To use assessment to capture learning over time, as well as to readdress misconceptions to improve pupil outcomes.
  • Planned opportunities for high level vocabulary and standards of oracy in all subjects (the expectation of speaking in full sentences).

 

For more information, contact our Curriculum Lead, Miss Jenkins.