Curriculum Intent

Curriculum Statement Castleton C of E Primary School

Intent

The aim of our curriculum at Castleton C of E School is to provide opportunities for children to develop as independent, confident, successful learners who achieve their full potential through our creative and experiential provision . Our curriculum aims to nurture a passion for learning that will remain with our pupils for life.

We aim for children to be proficient in key skills for maths and English, by use of careful monitoring and tracking of progress. Across the year we assess the learning that has taken place through pupil review meetings which then inform future planning and ensures progress based on prior learning.

We are an inclusive school who, due to the advantages of small cohorts, can provide an individualised approach to meeting the needs of all of our children.

Our strong Christian ethos is at the very heart of our provision with moral, spiritual, social and cultural understanding being intrinsic within our curriculum.

Castleton C of E School is committed to meeting the requirements of the Primary National Curriculum, with an aim to teach creatively and make the most of cross curricular opportunities. Through this approach we are able to utilise key skills across the curriculum, allowing for meaningful experiences that can be embedded in a relevant manner.

Implementation

Our children are taught in three classes; we have a Nursery/Reception class, a Key Stage One class and a Key Stage Two class. The coverage of the National Curriculum is achieved through a rolling programme of learning. These are enhanced further by specific themed weeks or days along with a broad programme of curriculum breadth experiences.

Our long-term planning takes into account the fluidity of our groups. The mixture of ages in the specific teaching groups means that we need to be flexible with our approach year on year to ensure continuity of skills.

Our curriculum timetable has been developed with our flexi school offer. We plan for the majority of key skills work to be delivered on our core days; Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

We plan our curriculum to ensure progress across the mixed age class and ensure breadth and balance enable us to meet a wide range of interests and relevance for each child. We use cycles of learning with a progressive approach to build on previous knowledge. 

We access the big outdoors whenever we can, making use of our beautiful and interesting locality. Woodland adventure sessions are a weekly activity, utilizing our very own outdoor area provided by the community.

We have a very strong focus on wellbeing with the adoption of the Derbyshire PSHE Matters resource that is delivered on a weekly basis throughout the school. The children are encouraged to have a mindful approach and lots of opportunities for safety and self-care.

Assessment and tracking is intrinsic to our provision of a progressive curriculum, particularly in Maths and English. Regular reviews and  meetings support planning the next steps for individuals, and promptly address any potential gaps in learning.

Impact

The outcomes of our curriculum are measured by the attainment, progress, learning attitudes, confidence and resilience of the children. We are confident that our children make good progress from their varied starting points. They receive a broad and balanced curriculum, enabling them to accrue cultural capital whilst securing good academic skills. We aim for our children to become responsible citizens who are respectful, skilful and ambitious.