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Curriculum at Wiveliscombe
Curriculum Overview
Children come into Wiveliscombe Primary School at any time during their Primary School career and at any time during the school year. We use assessments, current information, and meetings with parents and guardians to ensure our children are taught effectively and that any gaps in their learning are addressed.
At Wiveliscombe Primary School our intent is for all children to have the skills and knowledge required to be the best they can be. We aim for all children to feel happy and confident and to leave us with a lifelong love of learning. We intend for pupils to be taught the National Curriculum across all subjects, to enjoy and benefit from a range of experiences and opportunities and to be confident in all areas of the curriculum.
There are lots of opportunities for children to consolidate and reinforce learning within a curriculum built on a progression of skills, ensuring that knowledge is embedded and secure before moving on to Secondary School.
Our curriculum is enhanced in the following ways:
- A broad and balanced curriculum
- SEMH provision for children who require this through ELSA and nurture sessions
- Children can have time to work with a newly trained Senior Mental Health Practitioner on our staff
- A PSHCE and RSE curriculum planned to provide relationship based learning
- Lego therapy
- School Parliament
- Eco-School committee
- Themed weeks and days throughout the year
- Forest School each week for every child
- Exciting learning opportunities such as visits from Exmoor Zoo, alpacas on the playground, Science Dome, working with a local artist, Police visits and other opportunities to experience learning from the Heritage Trust
- Residential trips for Years 4 and 6 enabling every child to benefit during
- Working to plans provided by professionals such as Speech Therapists and Educational Psychologists
- Swimming lessons at our open air swimming pool in the town during the summer term
- Music lessons for individuals in addition to class lessons
- Exciting curriculum days such as World Book Day and Science Days
- Mini Police for pupils to learn about the work of Police Officers, meet serving Police Officers and learn CPR and other skills
- Tennis coaching from a local club as well as benefiting from visits to the local tennis courts
- Outdoor grounds to enjoy climbing, running and playing
- Every child has Forest School with a trained lead each week
RE is taught across the school and has been adapted from Somerset Agreed Syllabus.
To find out exactly what is going on this term, please go to the Curriculum section for each Year Group where you will find planning and parent information.
Our Schools Approach to the Curriculum
We aim to provide a rich, broad and balanced curriculum full of experiences which delight and challenge each and every one of our pupils as they pass through their seven years of schooling with us. We have carefully designed our curriculum so that it provides a blend of skills and knowledge which are built on in a progressive way as our pupils move through the school.
Curriculum Design
On entry to the school, the Foundation stage makes a crucial contribution to children’s early development and learning. We provide children with a rich variety of teaching and learning experiences that are appropriate to their needs. The Foundation stage is about developing key learning skills such as listening, speaking, concentrating, persistence and learning to work and co-operate with others. There are seven areas of learning development in the Foundation Stage: they are all important and interconnected.
There are three prime areas:
- Personal, social & emotional development.
- Communication & language.
- Physical development.
There are 4 specific areas:
- Literacy
- Mathematics
- Understanding the World
- Expressive arts & design
The outdoor environment is also a very special part of the Foundation Stage curriculum. As such it is carefully planned for and available each day. The reception class has its own specially modified outdoor area. The teaching to achieve these early learning goals will be through first-hand experience and structured play. The areas of experience will be linked to the National Curriculum. The teacher and teaching assistant will keep records of the children’s experiences and attainments with assessments of developmental and learning needs throughout the school year. We encourage children towards reading, communication and mathematical skills from the very beginning. Much of this earlier learning is achieved through carefully structured play.
Young children who cannot read or write often express their ideas and feelings through play. It is an important way of developing new skills and building up relationships with other children both individually and in groups. Reading is taught through structured reading schemes supplemented with a wide range of other books. We follow a structured approach to the teaching of phonics. Books are used in a structured, graded way to allow children many opportunities for consolidation of key vocabulary. We encourage parents to work with their child at home by hearing them read on a daily basis. We are always pleased to discuss ways in which parents can help their child at each stage of their reading development. We aim to make all the children feel secure and confident within the school environment and develop a sense of achievement through learning, finding it to be a pleasurable and rewarding experience.
Throughout the school as they move into Key stage 1 and 2, children follow the National Curriculum, as in all state schools. This means that they follow nationally agreed programmes of study in Maths, English, Science, Computing, Art, PE, History, Geography, Design Technology and the Somerset agreed syllabus for RE. Much teaching and learning is cross curricular in nature. We aim to provide a stimulating, creative, broad and balanced, uninterrupted learning journey for all the children as they progress through the school.
Progress and attainment is assessed by the teachers and is also monitored through national assessment test and tasks.
Phonics and Reading Schemes Information
Our schools uses the Bug Club scheme to provide enjoyable and effective learning experience for our pupils in Foundation and Key Stage 1 and this scheme enables our children to become proficient readers able to recognise letter sounds as they move up through the school.
The Bug Club reading scheme is used in both Foundation Stage (Reception) and Key Stage 1. This scheme allows our pupils to progressively build their vocabulary and comprehension skills as they practice reading key words and become increasingly fluent readers.
Curriculum Enrichment
Our ambition is that the curriculum here at Wiveliscombe Primary School is enriched over and above the basic entitlement which all pupils should have. To this end we ensure that our children experience regular and varied trips out of school as well as residential visits to enhance their learning. These are often tied in with topics which are being studied in school.
Every year group in the school has the opportunity to be in a play ranging from Nativity productions in the lower part of the school to shows in the school hall.
We also regular invite visitors into the school to offer our pupils different perspectives into subject areas such as PE art and drama. This allows our children to achieve outcomes which they can be proud of and may take form of 3-D art work or Sports festivals. Examples of these may be seen around our school and in the form of photographic evidence on our website. These are celebrated through our fortnightly newsletters.
Our wide ranging extra-curricular provision in the form of after school clubs is carefully designed to allow every child in our school to sample something which will appeal to him or her. Clubs such as Yoga, Football and Choir enable all of our pupils to experience a special thrill as they are taught something new on a weekly basis. Many of our after school clubs are free to parents. Some of these clubs such as multi-skills club, football club and cooking club offer our children the chance to take part in inter school competition which further enriches their experience if this is something that they would like to be a part of.
At Wiveliscombe Primary School, all adults are committed to providing an inclusive curriculum that is differentiated for those with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND). We have high expectations for all of our pupils and ensure that our curriculum complies with the Equality Act 2010 and Special Education and Disability Regulations 2014. Further information can be found in our Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Policy and Equalities Objectives Policy - which can be found here. Any further information on our curriculum may be obtained by contacting the school directly where we will be happy to discuss this with you.
What does your child learn at school each day? Find information in our 'Curriculum Subjects'
We are delighted that Paddocks Nursery School is a part of Wiveliscombe Primary School
