INTENT:
“Our curriculum should whisper to our children, “You belong. You did not come from nowhere. You are one of us. All this came before you and one day you might add to it too.” Ben Newmark.
At Ludworth Primary School, we believe that all children have the right to a curriculum which is current and knowledge rich. We use metacognitive strategies to organise our curriculum coherently and build on pre-existing learning through the exploration of concepts and enquiry questions which drive learning and curiosity in all our learners. We use the National Curriculum for England (2014) and tailor it to our community to make sure that each child in our care understands their place in the world and feels a real sense of belonging. We want them to understand how they can make a positive contribution to the world in which they live. We believe that all children can do amazing things. Therefore, we tailor our curriculum to explicitly teach compassion and humanity and how to apply it within a diverse and modern society.
We promote team-working and team-thinking through Kagan approaches to learning to support cognitive development. This approach is evident throughout school and not confined to the classrooms: we use the whole school grounds to enhance our learning offer. We believe that relationships are at the heart of success in school and take the time to get to know our children to understand the individual and help them become their best selves.
IMPLEMENTATION:
“The process of learning certainly requires the engagement of cognitive processes, but without other non-cognitive processes learning simply will not take place. The process of learning therefore involves cognitive, emotional as well as social processes
– Marc Smith: The Emotional Learner.
At Ludworth, we offer our learners opportunities to actively engage with knowledge and acquire new skills through stories where teachers use DEAL strategies (Drama, Engagement and Active Learning). This experiential learning allows for emotional engagement with the learning material giving knowledge a purpose and a place in the world. We endeavour to ignite our children’s imagination and capture their love of stories whilst offering the chance to practise collaboration, compromise, and conflict resolution.
We believe that all children should have the opportunity to learn outside the classroom. All children receive specific forest school sessions, and we endeavour to move our learning outside wherever possible. By encouraging learning outside we aim to assist children in the development of practical skills which improve children’s fine and gross motor skills; encourage children to develop their independence and confidence; practise collaboration and problems solving; and provide a stimulus for further classroom-based learning. We want our children to feel connected with the place in which they live and gain an environmental awareness and understanding of the outside world.
Ludworth Primary School is dedicated to the well-being of our children. Each week begins with a circle time session to establish a safe and secure start to the week where children explore a range of social and moral situations through discussion and play. Teachers also use this time to develop positive relationships with children and build on their understanding of each individual within their care.
IMPACT:
“Instead of a national curriculum for education, what is really needed is an individual curriculum for every child.” - Charles Handy
We understand that all children develop at different times and teachers are careful to understand and teach the child not the age group. We ensure that we plan carefully for the next steps of learning for each child whilst covering the National Curriculum for each year group. We use a range of assessment strategies to allow teachers to make carefully informed decisions about what each child needs and how to build it into their curriculum offer. We encourage both teachers and students to reflect on the skills and knowledge they acquired through their learning journeys and how they have been able to show our school values of adaptability, independence, commitment, problem solving, communication and determination.
Teachers are also encouraged to reflect on their practice using DR ICE (Deepening thinking, Role modelling, Impact on learning, Challenging expectations and Engaging in learning). By using this principle, teachers observe and coach each other across key stages, ensuring we share the best practice and strive for better outcomes for all our learners. All stakeholders have an active role in the monitoring and evaluation of our curriculum using; pupil voice, teacher voice, staff voice, parent voice, book evaluations, planning evaluations, lesson walks and display content. This helps to inform both short- and long-term goals linked to our School Development Plan, which is shared with all staff and Governors in our annual PLAN, DO, REVIEW session.
To conclude:
Our children remain at the heart of everything we strive to achieve, therefore, we offer them a humanised curriculum which is inclusive, rigorous and knowledge based: it develops them not only as citizens of the world which we live in, but also as designers of the world we want to live in.
Should you require a paper copy of any information on our website, please contact admin@ludworth.stockport.sch.uk Copies will be provided free of charge.