Curriculum Vision Statement

“Curriculum defines the purpose of a school and the journey a school wants its pupils to take”

Professor Michael Young, London School of Economics

Curriculum statement of Intent:

 We believe that every child should have the opportunity to develop a life-long love for learning through a curriculum that is creative, engaging and inspirational.

At Southglade our aim is to provide an engaging, varied and inspiring curriculum which promotes a love of learning, confidence and high aspirations by challenging pupils’ thinking through questioning and development of knowledge and skills. We aim to build on pupils’ strengths, interests and experiences to develop confidence in their capacity to learn and work independently and collaboratively. We offer an experience rich curriculum that is inspired by children’s interests.

Our curriculum not only provides our children with the skills that they need now, but also the ability to be curious, reflective and resilient, with a desire for life-long learning as they grow up in an ever- changing world. We provide an enriching, inclusive, happy and safe environment in which all pupils can share positive experiences and feel valued through their personal and academic achievements.

It is underpinned by our school ethos and values:

• To encourage children to believe they can achieve anything and have the confidence to make mistakes.

• To have RESPECT for everyone.

• To make everyone feel valued.
  
   These are the aims which underpin our book based curriculum:

• A school which has children and learning at the heart of everything we do
• A school where moral, social, spiritual, and cultural development underpins academic achievement
• Inspirational and enriching learning opportunities which build skills for life
• An inclusive, creative and inspirational curriculum which provides a range of opportunities in which to participate and excel, within and beyond the school day
• A culture that enthuses and empowers everyone to extend their own learning and high aspirations
• A listening school where children and adults know their views are important, respected and acted upon
• An enriching, happy and safe environment where we value effort, recognise success and celebrate achievements at all levels 
   
  How will the curriculum be implemented?

As a school, we teach using a book-based curriculum. Each termly class topic is driven by a carefully chosen book that lays the foundations for purposeful cross-curricular learning to take place. We weave ‘Awe and Wonder’ days into our half-termly topics in which we inspire and engage our learners through the use of an enquiry question to spark thought provoking and child led ideas. We actively use enquiry questions to introduce and drive the content of sessions and skills taught, which continues throughout the entire curriculum delivered that term.

Our Awe and Wonder days (up to 3 per term) provide hands-on exciting learning experiences to spark the imagination and bring learning to life through a range of inspiring, immersive and inclusive learning opportunities. Each half term has a focused curriculum driver (Art, DT, Geography, History) which enables the class teacher to focus on developing the pupils’ skills and knowledge in these subjects through a clear and progressive sequence of lessons. Links are planned into the curriculum driver lessons to consolidate prior learning in other subjects to provide breadth and balance across the curriculum.  Topics are always concluded with a meaningful outcome that matches the excitement of the initial launch and the opportunity for children to answer their enquiry question.

In addition to this, creative learning events are woven within the curriculum, such as Science Week, Enterprise Week, EAL days. Our children love undertaking this kind of a creative learning journey, as do staff, and, most importantly, we feel this approach to learning makes our school a dynamic, fresh and stimulating place to learn.

We are also proud of the value we place on extra-curricular activities and creative arts. We offer a wealth of opportunities outside of the classroom to develop and showcase our pupils sporting, leadership and creative talents.

Please look at our Curriculum overview pages for additional information regarding each subject

Our Curriculum Values:

We want all pupils at Southglade to have an understanding and appreciation for their own different beliefs and cultures and how these influence our communities including how to respect others as equals and become responsible citizens. We do this through an understanding of the spiritual, moral, social and cultural heritages of Britain’s diverse society in order to prepare for life in modern Britain. This works in conjunction with Southglade’s ‘Learning Values’ which are decided half termly to promote children’s character such as respect, resilience and pride, to name but a few, ensuring we are supporting children to become all round citizens ready for their future life. They help our children become better learners by encouraging good learning habits, high aspirations and positive attitudes that will enable them to face challenges and difficulties in a calm, confident and creative way. This approach aims to make children fearless in their learning, helping them know that they can get better at something as long as they practise, keep trying, have the confidence to make mistakes and always have an attitude of ‘I may not be able to do it YET.’

We want to help pupils adopt healthy lifestyles with a good knowledge and understanding of factors that may affect their physical and mental health as well as their emotional well-being. We have a strong network of adults throughout the school whose roles are designed to support and remove any possible barriers to learning.

We believe that it is our responsibility to unlock the potential we see inside each child and ignite that spark of enthusiasm for learning, as it is this enthusiasm that often shapes the direction of our lives. We want to empower our pupils to recognise that life is what you make of it; your future is not preordained by your socio-economic background and we should all have aspirational targets.

How do we evaluate and monitor the impact of our curriculum?

High quality practice across the school provides a strong foundation for learning along with opportunities for children to collaborate and develop social skills both within and outside school. Our curriculum design also ensures that the needs of all individuals can be met within an environment of quality first teaching, supported by targeted interventions where appropriate.

Enjoyment of the curriculum promotes achievement, self-esteem and excellent behaviour. Children share their learning with each other, their parents and carers and other year groups through assemblies, performances and events involving other schools and local community groups.

Subject leaders monitor their subjects through lesson drop ins, book scrutiny, learning walks, pupil voice and discussion with staff about how improvements can be made. Each coordinator has a detailed subject file which they use to collate evidence of planning, monitoring outcomes, subject development plans, skills ladders, as well as exemplar work samples from across all year groups. 

Monitoring outcomes are shared with the Whole Governing Body who are also invited to share in the learning journey by attending termly monitoring meetings or supporting launches and events.

Areas for development are subsequently added to the School Improvement plans (SIP) and Subject Development Plans, to which all staff contribute. Each SIP is reviewed  termly by the lead member of staff and shared termly with Governors.

The impact of the wider curriculum is now being assessed via a range of creative assessment strategies.

We are a school who is, and always will be, aiming to provide a curriculum where every child believes they can achieve.