Our Curriculum
Our personalised curriculum at Whingate is carefully planned to meet the needs of all the children, a curriculum that goes beyond that of the national curriculum. By maintaining high expectations of ourselves and each other, our children are equipped to encounter opportunities and challenges with resilience and determination. Each unit is planned creatively to inspire, engage and excite the children at all levels. They are encouraged to ask questions, investigate and be actively involved in the learning that takes place. We encourage a curiosity about the world and strive to ensure that our children will contribute positively to it, both now and in the future. Pupils have great memories, and develop into happy, caring and resilient young people. They leave Whingate with the knowledge and skills to make decisions, self-evaluate, make connections and become lifelong learners.
Our whole school curriculum is underpinned by these 6 principles:
Communicate
Live Healthily
Accept and Respect
Understand the Wider World
Dream Big
Explore
Communicate:
Our children are encouraged to work as part of a team, taking on different roles with confidence and developing an understanding of others’ opinions and views. All children are encouraged to speak clearly in grammatically correct sentences (supported by the Grammar Police) and listen to others. They develop an ability to explain and justify an answer / idea / opinion with confidence.
Live Healthily:
Children know how to keep themselves and others safe. They know that mental health is important and develop the skills to live healthily. Children are encouraged to be physically active and eat a healthy, balanced diet. Good hygiene is promoted across school, both within PSHE sessions and day to day activities. Children are taught to manage money carefully and about the importance of organising funds effectively.
Accept and Respect:
Children are taught and encouraged to show kindness and respect for themselves and others. They understand difference and equality and are tolerant of other people’s views and opinions.
Understand the Wider World:
Through the carefully planned curriculum, children develop an understanding of the local environment, as well as the wider world. They learn about cultural differences and traditions and gain an insight into the beliefs of others. Children take part in local and worldwide experiences, learning about different countries, traditions and behaviours.
Dream Big:
Children are not afraid to make mistakes and are praised for trying and working with resilience. They are encouraged to always try their best and this is rewarded daily. They learn to be ambitious and aim high in all aspects of their life. They are well-informed about career paths and are aspirational when thinking and planning each stage of their life.
Explore:
Our children are encouraged to ask questions, explain and justify decisions. They learn to problem solve and think critically when following a line of enquiry. Their experiences are adventurous and allow them to manage risks and push the boundaries to get the best possible outcomes.
INTENT
The child is at the centre of what we do at Whingate. Our curriculum has been designed to create a balance between the National Curriculum statutory requirements and a range of experiences which allow our pupils the opportunities to broaden their life experiences. Our curriculum provides our pupils with experiences and opportunities which best meet their learning and developmental needs. Through clear strategic planning, the curriculum provides not only memorable experiences, but is rich in opportunities from which the children can learn and develop transferrable skills. The acquisition of knowledge and the development of skills is carefully planned to create a purposeful and exciting learning journey for every child, ensuring that milestones are met at key stages throughout their primary education. Whingate Superheroes support children in reaching their full potential.
IMPLEMENTATION
Our creative curriculum is designed so that the subject-specific skills are linked to fully embed knowledge and skills. In order to ensure that progression and balance is maintained, subject leaders develop whole school progression documents which clearly highlight the learning objectives and take into account our personalised curriculum aims. Teachers plan and tailor units of work and lessons to address the specific individual needs of pupils so that all pupils are able to reach their full potential regardless of their starting point.
Quality first teaching:
- Staff have high expectations of themselves and all the children.
- Teachers impart knowledge accurately and with enthusiasm.
- Teachers consider prior knowledge and experiences and these are built upon in a systematic way.
- Lessons have clear learning objectives.
- Child are engaged with their learning
- Lessons are interactive.
- Appropriate use of teacher questioning, modelling and explaining.
- Children will develop resilience and accept responsibility for their own learning and work both independently and as part of a team.
- Regular use of encouragement and praise to motivate children.
Focussed assessment:
- Rigorous assessment and tracking of children’s performance takes place to inform classroom practice, allowing children to make good progress and close attainment gaps.
- Day to day, weekly, half-termly assessments used effectively.
- Assessment for learning evident … learning objectives, learning outcomes, success criteria, self and peer evaluation.
Intervention:
- Individuals and groups who are not making sufficient progress are identified.
- Provision for intervention is mapped according to need.
- Learners are enabled to perform beyond age related expectations, deepening their knowledge and understanding.
- Interventions are evaluated and relevant adjustments are made.
- Pupil Progress and SEN meetings take place half-termly to discuss current and future interventions engaging in dialogue around the impact of interventions, potential barriers and further actions required.
Learning environment:
- Organisation of the classroom/learning environment adapted to the children’s learning needs.
- The use of learning resources and ICT are developed to allow children to work independently and successfully.
- Displays are a mixture of celebration of children’s work and supportive resources (working walls).
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.
Pupils, parents and staff are consistently and regularly consulted about the curriculum and the impact that it makes. The desired outcomes of the curriculum will ensure that pupils are well rounded students, ready to embark on high school education and the rest of their lives. They will be equipped with the foundations and skills to achieve success in all aspects of life. Pupils will have an understanding of what they are good at and will have developed skills to face their challenges.
