If you would like any further information about our curriculum please email the school office:

office@callowend.worcs.sch.uk

      ‘Building a foundation for love and learning’

Curriculum Intent

At Callow End we build a foundation for love and learning by providing a welcoming, safe, supportive environment and have  high aspirations for all our pupils. As part of this vision we aim to ensure that our pupils receive the best possible education through a curriculum which is rich, broad and balanced and includes a wide variety of learning opportunities.

Our curriculum provides opportunities for our pupils to develop as confident, independent and successful learners. Excellent teaching across a wide range of subjects engages our pupils and encourages high expectations. Careful planning for progression in each subject enables our teachers to build on pupils’ prior learning and enables all pupils  to make good progress across the whole curriculum.

High quality teaching and learning are combined with our school’s vision and we work hard to ensure that our pupils develop spiritually, morally and culturally. Our core Christian values underpin the pupils’ learning and are woven into all aspects of school life. Linked to these are our teaching of fundamental British values, our work in PSHE, RE and the provision of opportunities for increased wellbeing and spirituality.  

We also recognise the importance of preparing our pupils for their future and for life in the wider world. We are therefore outward looking and aim to develop transferable skills such as resilience, co-operation, reflection and critical thinking. A variety of enrichment opportunities and experiences prepare our pupils for the responsibilities and experiences of later life.

Curriculum Implementation

Our school curriculum is clearly mapped and comprises all the learning opportunities and experiences that we plan for our pupils. The curriculum design ensures that the needs of all children can be met through high quality first wave teaching, supported by targeted interventions when appropriate.

Our curriculum meets the statutory requirements of the National Curriculum and subjects are carefully planned to ensure the progression of knowledge and skills across the school. It builds on prior knowledge and makes connections between new and previous learning. This progression ensures that there are many opportunities for our pupils to practise and apply their knowledge and skill in arrange of contexts so that they can gain a deeper understanding and embed knowledge into their long-term memory.

The foundation subjects are broadly organised into themes and topics so that meaningful cross-curricular links can be made by pupils. We have high expectations of key English and Maths skills and these are also embedded across the wider curriculum. For example, our focus on the use of high calibre texts across the curriculum allows our pupils to explore high quality writing in every genre and we encourage all our pupils to become fluent, enthusiastic, life-long readers. Mathematical skills are used practically during science, design and technology, geography and computing, allowing pupils to apply their learning in different contexts.

The curriculum is supported by the use of knowledge organisers which summarise the knowledge, skills and vocabulary for each unit of work. The organisers ensure that essential knowledge is readily available to pupils, allowing them overview of their learning. Pupils are able to review and retrieve knowledge and information for themselves leading to improved retention and a greater understanding over time.

Our fantastic outdoor facilities enable us to provide a wealth of learning in the natural environment, including woodland school, sporting activities, adventurous exploration, gardening and science activities. Outdoor learning also allows our pupils to opportunities for spirituality and increases their mental well-being. Other enrichment opportunities are provided through clubs, sports tournaments, visits, visitors and residential trips.

Curriculum Impact

The impact of our curriculum is assessed by the Headteacher and subject leaders. We use a variety of means to monitor and measure the impact of our curriculum including:

 

• The use of pre and post learning tasks, quizzes and retrieval practise to track the progression of pupils’ knowledge and understanding
• Monitoring of teaching and learning across the school and the curriculum. This includes the use of learning walks, lesson and small group observations, reviews of books and pupil interviews.
• Planning reviews in order to ensure the structured development of skills and knowledge and how they are applied to ensure pupils gain a deep and meaningful understanding.
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• As well as being measured through official and internal data when appropriate, the impact will be based on these key indicators:

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• Pupils know more and remember more about the key concepts and knowledge in each area of learning. These concepts, which have been chosen to form the core of our curriculum, are returned to many times throughout a child’s journey through school to ensure they are understood deeply.
• Pupils are able to do more as the progressive acquisition of skills is carefully planned for across each phase and key stage.
• Pupils demonstrate excellent learning behaviours, emotional intelligence and understand how to make good choices.
• Pupils use a wide vocabulary and are able to articulate their ideas and express themselves with clarity.
• Pupils are able to make links between their learning across the curriculum, using these links to further their understanding Where pupils are identified as needing further support this is acted on quickly and with an appropriate level of intervention to ensure they quickly overcome their misconceptions.
• The use of pre and post learning tasks, quizzes and retrieval practise to track the progression of pupils’ knowledge and understanding
• Monitoring of teaching and learning across the school and the curriculum. This includes the use of learning walks, lesson and small group observations, reviews of books and pupil interviews.
• Planning reviews in order to ensure the structured development of skills and knowledge and how they are applied to ensure pupils gain a deep and meaningful understanding

 

Pupils at Callow End can expect to:

 

• Be excited about their learning and proud of their achievements
• Have confidence in their own ability to achieve and make progress
• Be willing to have a go and do their best
• Have developed lifelong personal learning skills such as perseverance, resilience, independence and co-operation.
• Take part in well designed, interesting and stimulating lessons
• Understand their sequence of learning, what they are learning and why
• Have opportunities to discuss and share their learning with others
• Have the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learnt and to reapply and adapt their learning in a variety of contexts
• Be proud of their achievements

Equality Statement:

Callow End CE Primary School is committed to ensuring equality of education and opportunity for all pupils, staff, parents, guardians or carers, irrespective of race, gender, disability, belief, religion or socio-economic background. We are proud of the diversity within our school community and have due regard to:

• eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation
• advance equality of opportunity
• foster good relations and positive attitudes between all characteristics and different groups in all of its activities

This perspective is embedded and expected in all our policies and practices to ensure discrimination and equality are tackled appropriately.

Reading and Phonics at Callow End

 

We aim to encourage all our pupils to become enthusiastic readers who enjoy a wide range of quality texts and read accurately, with understanding and with enjoyment.

 

Phonics

In EYFS and KS1, direct focused phonics is taught every day through the Floppy's Phonics phonics programme which prepares children for learning to read by developing their phonic knowledge and skills whilst building their speaking and listening skills.

The Oxford Reading Tree scheme is used throughout EYFS and KS1 and is sequenced to embed a cumulative progression in phonic knowledge. This ensures that reading books are matched to pupils’ phonic knowledge and allow pupils to practice reading and re-reading books, that match the grapheme-phoneme correspondences that they have learnt . These books are read at home and at school.

 

Reading

A range of resources, high quality texts and planned activities and experiences develop understanding and nurture a love of reading and books. Once our pupils’ phonic knowledge is secure they move onto the Oxford Reading Tree scheme, together with supplementary texts appropriate to their stage and ability.

 

Guided reading groups use Rigby Star books in Key Stage 1, the Navigator scheme in lower Key Stage 2 and Fiction Express in upper Key Stage 2. High quality texts and focused questioning allow pupils to develop their reading and comprehension skills. Three planned Guided Reading sessions take place weekly across KS1 and KS2.

 

Throughout the school we aim to ensure that all our pupils develop:

• Excellent phonic knowledge and skills.
• Fluency and accuracy in reading across a wide range of contexts throughout the curriculum.
• Knowledge of an extensive and rich vocabulary.
• An excellent comprehension of texts.
• The motivation to read for both study and for pleasure.
• Extensive knowledge through having read a rich and varied range of texts.

Phonics at Callow End

 

Floppy’s Phonics provides our teachers with everything they need to teach your child the alphabetic code. This enables children to read, spell and write well, regardless of their individual needs and abilities.

Floppy’s Phonics is a rigorous systematic synthetic phonics programme which provides comprehensive multi-sensory resources to support learning in school and at home. Alongside teaching the letter-sound correspondences of the alphabetic code, Floppy’s Phonics enriches children’s vocabulary and develops their language comprehension. Letter-sound correspondences are introduced in a particular order and this enables the provision of cumulative sentences and texts for the children to practise with. Throughout each phonics session, children develop reading skills (print to sound), spelling skills (sound to print) and handwriting practise.

 

Lesson resources include display posters, reversible flashcards, sound books, decodable books, interactive activities and worksheets for each child to practise with and share at home. They are enhanced by illustrations featuring characters and themes from the Oxford Reading Tree series.

 

Further resources to help parents learn more about phonics can be found at the end of this section.

Knowledge Organisers 

The curriculum is supported by the use of knowledge organisers which summarise the knowledge, skills and vocabulary for each unit of work. The organisers ensure that essential knowledge is readily available to pupils, allowing them overview of their learning. Pupils are able to review and retrieve knowledge and information for themselves leading to improved retention and a greater understanding over time. The organisers help our pupils to become independent learners and support them to 'know more and remember more.' Please use the link to the Class pages to view the current knowledge organisers.

 

You can also read more in our Curriculum Policy which can be found on our Policies and Documents page.