Sherard Curriculum
Intent
Our curriculum is driven by the need to prepare our children for lifelong learning. At Sherard, we offer a rich and vibrant curriculum which is ambitious for all learners. Through our curriculum, we develop the essential knowledge, skills and understanding which are the building blocks for later life. Our curriculum encompasses not only the formal requirements of the National Curriculum, but goes beyond the experiences of the classroom to ensure that our children are exposed to the richest and most varied opportunities that we can provide. Our aim is to enrich every child's school experience by creating an environment where they are encouraged to succeed and be the best they can be. At Sherard, cultural capital prepares children with the essential knowledge and skills for their future. The exploration of new skills and experiences help to nurture resilience, curiosity and creativity. The curriculum is further enhanced by our commitment to Values-based Education (including British Values) and, through this, we provide learning experiences which promote confident, self-motivated pupils, eager for lifelong learning. Reading and developing a rich and varied vocabulary underpins every aspect of our curriculum intent.
Implementation
A Big Question is carefully designed for each curriculum topic. This allows children to explore and investigate with the end in mind. They can demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways in order to answer the Big Question. Key concepts that will impact on children’s future learning are identified and form the key vocabulary that will be covered. These are our ’Sticky Words.’ Our curriculum design allows the children to connect past, present and future in their learning and to build upon existing knowledge and skills to ensure that these can be applied in all areas of the curriculum. In this respect, our curriculum allows for the accumulation of knowledge and skills, for the children to build on what they know and embed knowledge to enter the long-term memory – making it stick! Themes have been planned with the children’s needs in mind, ensuring that the local community plays a part alongside the wider world. In order to broaden the children’s experiences, visits and visitors are carefully planned to support and inspire the learning. As part of our planning, we ensure regular recaps of subject content and an opportunity to deepen the children’s understanding of their learning through performing class assemblies to their parents.
At the heart of our curriculum is the use of books and language to promote understanding
‘Cognitive psychology has shown that the mind best understands facts
when they are woven into a conceptual fabric, such as a narrative.’
Stephen Pinker
Professor of Psychology, Harvard University
Impact
Our cohesive curriculum places the learners at the centre and allows them to make connections in their knowledge, skills and understanding that are vital across all subjects.
At Sherard, we strive to ensure that our children’s attainment in core and foundation subjects is in line with or exceeding age-related expectations. We intend that our children will be fully prepared for their next stage of education; ready to contribute positively to society as a whole.
Our work on promoting social skills, including values, resilience and well-being enables the children to become the very best version of themselves.
At Sherard primary school children in KS1 and KS2 follow the National Curriculum. Children in Foundation Stage follow the Early Years Foundation Curriculum. Our teachers bring the National Curriculum alive by making links between the individual subjects and applying them to topics. We base our curriculum on a Challenge Curriculum where each topic begins with a Big Question. Each half term teachers will produce a curriculum plan that shows the links between different curriculum subjects and how they can be linked by overarching topics. We call this the Big Picture. Year groups will work together on the same topics and there should be plenty of opportunities to learn in and outside of the classroom.
Vocabulary that can be transferred to learning at other points of a child's education is what the curriculum is based on. This vocabulary is carefully considered for each topic to ensure it is meaningful, transferable and ambitious. In classrooms you will see these words displayed as 'sticky words.'
We have also underpinned the national curriculum with key values that we feel are important. That school promotes these values through the curriculum; in the classroom and in assemblies as we try to unlock the potential of every child.
We enjoy strong links with local schools (primary, secondary and special), community groups and local businesses. This, along with the fact that we are in the rural town of Melton Mowbray, gives us plenty of opportunities for local projects. We also enjoy going on residential trips and school outings. Recent adventures have included visits to Beaumanor Hall, lambing at Brooksby Hall, visits to Leicester Botanical Gardens, Leicester Gurdwara and Twycross Zoo. The year 6 recently visited Bawdsey Manor (PGL) near Woodbridge in Suffolk and the Year 4 and 5 children will be visiting Dearne Valley (Kingswood) near Doncaster.
Our school has an ‘in it together’ attitude to learning. We believe in letting parents and carers know what and how we are learning. We encourage two-way dialogue between school and home and support this through Parents’ Evenings, workshop meetings, curriculum information, ‘learning diaries’ such as Reading Record Books and invitations to our assemblies. We also believe that homework can help reinforce what we learn at school. All our children get homework, but our teachers are careful to make sure that it is kept to an appropriate level.