Curriculum Overview
Our Curriculum at Meadowside is designed to nurture children’s curiosity, support them in becoming courageous and ambitious learners and promote our values of relationships, kindness and respect to one another, in our community and the wider world. Our Vision is for all of our children to feel safe, happy and supported. They will enjoy a creative and captivating curriculum that inspires them to reach their full potential.
What are we trying to achieve? (Intent)
At Meadowside, our vision is for all of our children to feel safe, happy and supported. They will enjoy a creative and captivating curriculum that inspires them to reach their full potential.
We nurture children’s curiosity; support them in becoming courageous and ambitious learners; and promote our values of relationships and respect to one another. Our curriculum changes and adapts with our community and the wider world, ensuring our children are prepared for the next stage in their journey of development.
Our Curriculum has been designed with our 5rs at the heart of everything we do. Our values, relationships and respect, and our curriculum drivers, being resourceful, resilient and reflective, are represented by animal mascots. All children and staff know these and work together to include them in all that we do.
We intend to:
- Equip learners with a broad, balanced and relevant knowledge and skill base which inspires them and gives them a passion for learning.
- Deliver a progressive and sophisticated curriculum where learners constantly build on their prior learning and knowledge.
- Ensure careful planning and sequencing of our curriculum to maximise learning opportunities and support learners in retaining knowledge and vocabulary.
- Encourage children to make connections across their learning and to ask and answer questions about the world.
- Enable all children to reach their full potential. Teachers have the highest expectations for all children and have the skills to tailor, adjust and adapt the curriculum to be relevant, inclusive and challenging for all learners.
- Celebrate and promote diversity building on children’s cultural capital.
- Use high quality texts and a passion for reading as integral parts of all areas of our curriculum.
- Nurture home school links and community links by sharing our learning regularly and giving back to our local community.
- Powerful parent partnerships ensure children are supported with learning at home as well as school.
- Maximise opportunities to use our exceptional outdoor spaces and skilled Forest School staff member using valuable resources from our school environment and local area.
- Ensuring our children are ready for the next stage in their journey and that their voices are heard in decisions that affect their future.
Our Values and Curriculum drivers- 5Rs
Our values are the 5Rs and these are represented by animal mascots. All children and adults know these and work hard to include them in all that we do.
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Our Values Relationships ( Elephant) Respect ( Bee) |
Our Curriculum Drivers Reflection ( Penguin) Resourcefulness ( Squirrel) Resilience ( Rhino) |
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How should we organise learning in order to achieve this? (Implementation)
At Meadowside we implement our curriculum through a cross curricular ‘Big Idea’ approach. We have a whole school ‘Big Idea’ posed as a question every half term, of which most foundation subjects are taught through enquiry-based learning projects. These are driven by high-quality class texts which link the English theme and Big Idea theme for each half term.
In EYFS we use the Early Learning Goals with progress towards these tracked using Development Matters which prepares learners for their next transition. We then follow the Primary National Curriculum programmes of study for Years 1-6. To challenge and enagage all children at their learning level, in addition we follow the Rainbow Curriculum for foundation subjects. This progressive continuum of skills ensures pupils are challenged appropriately. To promote curiosity and courage, we use Bloom’s Taxonomy question stems to include higher order thinking questions. I Some learners are working at Pre-Key Stage Standards and we follow PIVATS to ensure progression of learning is achievable and successful and demonstrates progress for our SEND pupils.
‘Big idea’ learning journey’s are launched with a class-based or whole-school event to inspire curiosity and ‘hook’ interest. This is often themed on a class text carefully chosen to engage readers and link with wider, global initiatives. The learning sequence is then skilfully planned building on prior knowledge and skills. The implementation of our learning sequence follows Rosenshine’s Principles of Instruction. Use of Knowledge organisers and learning journeys improve working memory techniques, so that children know more and remember more. Learning is celebrated and shared through a landing activity which consolidates learning and gives a purpose for each Big idea.
Religious education is taught in week blocks at the beginning of each half-term and links are made with global learning. The other core and foundation subjects are then connected to the Big Idea theme. The themed platforms enable the Curriculum to be flexible and adaptive to allow for changes within the local community, national and global. Subject leaders ensure long term plans and medium term plans are in place and ensure objectives are coherently planned and sequenced for progression.
Some subjects follow schemes of learning such as music, PSHE/RSE, Computing and RE. Where possible links are made to the Big Idea theme to encourage engagement and connectedness but only if this is possible. All learning is connected through the school values and skills are transferred across subjects to ensure pupils make meaningful links. Outdoor learning opportunities are maximised in all subjects. All children experience a half term block of Forest School and this is implemented to include National Curriculum objectives, delivered through an outdoor classroom by a specialist teacher.
Pastoral support for all pupils is a high priority and the basis for all learning. Children who feel safe, happy and supported are able to progress through the curriculum. Nurture groups, animal care, art-based therapeutic interventions, outdoor learning are some of the pastoral support we offer. We build strong relationships with families and our community and adapt the curriculum to the needs of the children in our care.
Ongoing comprehensive teacher assessment of children’s learning in all subjects ensures key milestones are reached. Teacher assessment is used to inform planning and implementation of KUNCU (Keep Up Not Catch Up) strategies. Teachers develop a clear and accurate picture of strengths and areas to develop. The Rainbow curriculum skills continuum is used to assess foundation subjects with summative records kept on the data tracking system INSIGHT. Peer feedback and self-assessment are extensively used along with regular low-stakes quizzes and star challenges. Statutory assessments are completed at the end of EYFS, KS1 and KS2. Termly Maths and English Standardised Assessments support teacher judgements, teacher assessments and inform planning against National Curriculum objectives.
Our Curriculum Flow Chart
The flow chart document below provides a summary of how all the components of our curriculum link together and the connections between all its components.
How will we know whether we have been successful? (Impact)
The impact of our curriculum ensures children enjoy learning and have a sense of achievement. They know their strengths and work hard to overcome challenges. They are ready for the next stage in their learning journey and prepared for the world around them.
Children are confident at talking to others and can solve problems in teams and by themselves. They are resilient when faced with a challenge and can reflect on prior learning to help them achieve. Children at Meadowside care about the environment and are proud of their school and their community. They tolerate one another and respect each other and want to make the world a better place for their future and the lives that depend on it.
Children at Meadowside feel included in all aspects of school life and they celebrate difference and stand up to bullying and abuse. They know how to keep safe online and in the community and beyond. They feel ‘heard’ and are empowered to change the world and make a difference.
Children leave Meadowside academically secure and emotionally ready so they can navigate the world with these skills. They feel confident and supported to achieve their aspirations and follow their dreams.
Documents to support our curriculum flow chart:
Curriculum Jigsaw EYFS Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, Year 4, Year 5, Year 6
Meadowside Study guides can be viewed and downloaded from the relevant subject tab in the curriculum section of out website.
