Learning & Curriculum
We try to provide our pupils with a wide range opportunities throughout the time they are at our school.
We review our curriculum annually, looking at the needs of our pupils and the community. As a Church school, we follow a very prescriptive programme of study ensuring that our children understand and appreciate other faiths as well as Christianity. We call this area Religion and World Views (Religious Education).
We use the Bedfordshire scheme of work and Understanding Christianity to provide a broad and range of faiths, based around our diverse community. Our emphasis on the well-being of our pupils cannot be understated and, as a result, PSHE is taught as a discrete subject through the Jigsaw scheme of work and all our children enjoy at least two hours of teacher taught sport and PE each week.
Foundation and Arts subjects are taught through discrete subjects making cross curricular links where appropriate. Curriculum maps are established across the school to ensure complete coverage in line with the National Curriculum. All curriculum maps are developed to meet the end of phase requirement as dictated by the Department for Education.
We try to provide our pupils with a wide range of opportunities throughout the time they are at our school. We review our curriculum annually, looking at the needs of our pupils and the community. We review the different opportunities for learning across the school, and ensure we include activities which enhance the learning and development of pupils holistically. Examples of this include our opera project for children in Year 5, camping on the school field, the development of Forest Schools and providing swimming for Year 3 pupils onwards.
EYFS – Early Years Curriculum at Holy Trinity
The school follows the statutory guidance for the EYFS curriculum:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-foundation-stage-framework–2
Four guiding principles shape practice in our Reception class. These are:
- Every child is a unique child, who is constantly learning and can be resilient, capable, confident and self-assured
- Children learn to be strong and independent through positive relationships
- Children learn and develop well in enabling environments with teaching and support from adults, who respond to their individual interests and needs and help them to build their learning over time. Children benefit from a strong partnership between practitioners and parents and/or carers.
- Importance of learning and development. Children develop and learn at different rates. (See “the characteristics of effective teaching and learning” at paragraph 1.15). The framework covers the education and care of all children in early years’ provision, including children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
Overall there are 7 areas of learning that form the curriculum.
There are 3 prime areas which are particularly fundamental as a foundation to pupils’ learning in the EYFS. These are:
- Communication and Language
- Personal, Social and Emotional Development
- Physical Development
The remaining 4 areas are:
- Maths
- Literacy (reading and writing)
- Understanding of the world
- Expressive Arts and Design
Also including:
- Religion and World views
The three characteristics of effective teaching and learning identified in the EYFS are:
- Playing and exploring – children investigate and experience things, and ‘have a go’.
- Active learning – children concentrate and keep on trying if they encounter difficulties, and enjoy achievements.
- Creating and thinking critically – children have and develop their own ideas, make links between ideas, and develop strategies for doing things.
Assessment
- During the first six weeks in Reception children are assessed against the Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA) information.
- At the end of Reception the EYFS Profile is completed for each child. This is where children are assessed against the early learning goals, and takes into account the reflects the professional judgements of teachers, and practitioners, but also includes input from parents and carers.
Phonics
At Holy Trinity we teach the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised phonics programme, which is validated by the Department for Education. The direct and systematic teaching of phonics is a key part in children’s ability to become confident readers.
You can find out more about Little Wandle here: https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk
Parent/Carer link to Little Wandle, including tips for reading at home: https://tinyurl.com/2mtdrk24
Maths
