Curriculum Subjects
ART & DESIGN
At Sholing Infant School we consider art and design to be of great value to our children. We believe that every child is entitled to express themselves creatively, giving them the opportunity to build their confidence and give them the freedom to experiment with their own ideas, through different mediums. It is our intention to provide all children with the knowledge and skills needed to independently create their own unique drawings, paintings and sculptures. We aim for all children to have a natural sense of wonder and curiosity when studying a wide variety of artwork, empowering them to discover great artists that will enable them to explore their own and other’s cultural heritages.
The teaching and implementation of the art and design curriculum at Sholing Infant School is based on the National Curriculum in KS1 and Development Matters in EYFS to ensure a well-structured approach to the subject. We use a knowledge-based approach, providing children with opportunities to practise skills taught before applying this knowledge to their own designs. This allows the children to express their creativity, imagination and experiences as well as providing them with the opportunities to practise and develop mastery in the key processes of art and design.
In the Early Years Foundation Stage, children are given opportunities to explore, use and refine a variety of artistic effects to express their ideas and feelings through their own curiosity, exploration and play. Children will also develop their ability to use a range of tools to different effect and purpose. The foundations of Key Stage 1 knowledge are also laid as children explore and rehearse painting, drawing and sculpting.
In Key Stage 1 the curriculum has been designed to ensure children build upon the knowledge they have previously learnt and giving them opportunities to apply this knowledge. The elements of art are progressively and coherently planned and sequenced throughout the curriculum, and these interlink with the different techniques to ensure children experience these elements in an array of mediums.The children also become familiar with a wide range of artists and craftspeople as they consider the cultural and historical impact of art. Vocabulary is also a key part of our art and design curriculum, as this allows children to fully grasp new concepts and make connections to move their thinking forward.
At our school, we strive to ensure that all children enjoy and achieve well in art, irrespective of ability. We regularly monitor children’s progress in art and design by completing work scrutiny, engaging in pupil conferences across the school and ensuring high-quality teaching is taking place. This shows us that children achieve well in art at Sholing Infant School. By the time children leave Sholing Infant School, we aim to have instilled a love for art and design within them, whilst having given them the knowledge and skills to help them express themselves in a creative way.
COMPUTING
The intent of computing education at Sholing Infant School is to equip all of our children, whatever their abilities or needs, with the computational skills and thinking they will need for the ever-changing world in which they are living.
By following the National Curriculum our aim is to ensure that all our children leave Sholing Infant School digitally literate with the skills and thinking they need for the next stage of their education. They will learn about, and how to safely use and create digital systems, as well as how to express themselves and share their ideas through information and communication technology.
Through the computational opportunities that children are presented with we also aim to develop life-long learning characteristics within our children, which they can use both within school and beyond.
At Sholing Infant School computing is taught as part of our Foundation topics and is therefore taught within familiar, relevant, inspiring and engaging contexts. With all of our learning we start with what the children already know and through practical and relevant experiences develop their skills and understanding further. Teachers secure subject knowledge and awareness of the required skills progression ensures that children retain knowledge, develop skills and link learning into new contexts.
All staff work together to ensure that children meet expectations in Computing and are ready for the next stage of their education. Assessment is done in a timely manner which enables teachers to form an accurate assessment of the needs of the children going forward.
DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY (D&T)
Design and Technology at Sholing Infant School is an inspiring, rigorous, creative and practical subject. Design technology encourages children to learn to think and intervene creatively to solve problems both as individuals and as members of a team. We encourage children to use their creativity and imagination, to design and make products that solve real and relevant problems within a variety of contexts, considering their own and others’ needs, wants and values. At Sholing Infant School we aim to, wherever possible, link work to other disciplines such as mathematics, science, engineering, computing and art. The children are also given opportunities to reflect upon and evaluate past and present design technology, its uses and its effectiveness and are encouraged to become innovators and risk-takers. In persisting, they develop problem solving skills such as trial and error in order to create their prototypes, before making their final product. These skills equip them for future learning in other subject areas, and participate successfully in a developing technological world.
Through a variety of creative and practical activities, we teach the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to engage in an iterative process of designing and making. The children work in a range of relevant contexts (for example home, school, leisure, culture, enterprise, industry and the wider environment).
When designing and making, the children are taught to:
Design
• use research and develop design criteria to inform the design of innovative, functional, appealing products that are fit for purpose, aimed at particular individuals or groups
• generate, develop, model and communicate their ideas through discussion, annotated sketches, prototypes, pattern pieces and computer-aided design
Make
• select from and use a wider range of tools and equipment to perform practical tasks (for example, cutting, shaping, joining and finishing) accurately
• select from and use a wider range of materials and components, including construction materials, textiles and ingredients, according to their functional properties and qualities
Evaluate
• investigate and analyse a range of existing products
• evaluate their ideas and products against their own design criteria and consider the views of others to improve their work
• understand how key events and individuals in design and technology have helped shape the world
Technical knowledge
• apply their understanding of how to strengthen, stiffen and reinforce more complex structures
• understand and use mechanical systems in their products
• apply their understanding of computing to program, monitor and control their products
Key skills and key knowledge for Design Technology have been carefully mapped across the school to ensure progression between year groups. This also ensures that there is a context for the children’s work in Design and Technology; that they learn about real life structures and the purpose of specific examples, as well as developing their skills throughout the programme of study.
We will ensure that all children:
• develop the creative, technical and practical expertise needed to perform everyday tasks confidently and to participate successfully in an increasingly technological world
• build and apply a repertoire of knowledge, understanding and skills in order to design and make high-quality prototypes and products for a wide range of users and critique, evaluate and test their ideas and products and the work of others
• understand and apply the principles of nutrition and learn how to cook. Children will design and make a range of products. A good quality finish will be expected in all design and activities made appropriate to the age and ability of the child
Through the teaching of Design Technology at Sholing Infant School children learn how to take risks, becoming resourceful, innovative, enterprising and capable citizens. Through the evaluation of past and present design and technology, they develop a critical understanding of its impact on daily life and the wider world. High-quality design and technology education makes an essential contribution to the creativity, culture, wealth and well-being of the nation.
ENGLISH
At Sholing Infant School our English curriculum follows the National Curriculum and intends to provide pupils with an introduction to the essential knowledge that they need. We aim to develop pupils' oracy, reading and writing in all subjects to support their acquisition of spoken and written English. Our pupils are taught to read fluently, understand extended prose (both fiction and non-fiction) and are encouraged to read for pleasure. Reading has a high profile and at Sholing Infant School children are exposed to a wide range of quality reading texts which promote wider reading, by providing all children with library and sharing books as well as phonically graded reading books, setting ambitious expectations for reading at home. In writing, our pupils develop the stamina and skills to write at length, with accurate spelling, grammar and punctuation. At Sholing Infant School, we recognise that spoken language underpins the development of reading and writing and that the quality and variety of language that pupils hear and speak are vital for developing their vocabulary and grammar and their understanding for reading and writing. We believe that providing pupils with a well-balanced, enriching and engaging English curriculum will aid them in developing into self-assured communicators.
The overarching aim for our English curriculum is to promote high standards of language and literacy by equipping pupils with a strong command of the spoken and written word, and to develop their love of literature through reading for pleasure. A high-quality education in English will teach pupils to speak, and write fluently so that they can communicate their ideas and emotions to others and through their reading and listening, others can communicate with them. Through reading in particular, pupils have a chance to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually. Reading also enables pupils to acquire knowledge and to build on what they already know. All the skills of language are essential to participating fully as a member of society.
Underpinning both reading and writing is the understanding that the letters on the page represent the sounds in spoken word. We teach phonics using Little Wandle Letters and Sounds which is a validated systematic synthetic phonics programme. Good comprehension draws from linguistic knowledge and on knowledge of the world. At Sholing Infant School, we develop reading comprehension through high-quality discussions with the class teacher, as well as from reading and discussing a range of stories, poems and non-fiction. All pupils are encouraged to read widely across both fiction and non-fiction to develop their knowledge of themselves and the world in which they live, to establish an appreciation and love of reading, and to gain knowledge across the curriculum.
Our teachers set high expectations for every pupil in English. We plan stretching work for pupils whose attainment is significantly above the expected standard and plan lessons which scaffold and support pupils who have lower prior attainment. Pupils' prior knowledge and attainment is used to set targets which are deliberately ambitious.
Across our curriculum we develop pupils’ spoken language, reading, writing and vocabulary as integral aspects of the teaching of every subject. Understanding the language provides access to the whole curriculum and we know that fluency in the English language is an essential foundation for success in all subjects.
Spoken Language
Spoken language underpins the development of reading and writing at Sholing Infant School. The quality and variety of language that pupils hear and speak are vital for developing their vocabulary and grammar and their understanding for reading and writing. Teachers therefore develop pupils’ confidence and competence in spoken language and listening skills by expanding their vocabulary through modelling and direct teaching of new words (Vocab Vicki based on Ninja Vocab)
This is reflected and contextualised within all subjects. Pupils therefore learn to explain their understanding of books and other reading, and to prepare their ideas before they write. They are supported to make their thinking clear to themselves as well as to others and teachers ensure that pupils build secure foundations by using discussion to address any misconceptions.
Reading
At Sholing Infant School, we are determined that every child will learn to read. We recognise the importance of children learning to read fluently; as inevitably, fluent readers will learn more because they can gain more knowledge for themselves and access the curriculum easily. Reading underpins our whole school curriculum, as a core life skill, that will enable our children to flourish. Reading a wide range of texts for pleasure enables our children to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually. Our rigorous approach to the teaching of reading develops our children’s confidence and enjoyment in reading; thus, equipping them with the knowledge and skills to succeed in life.
Characteristics of a Sholing Infant School Reader:
Our reading curriculum consists of three dimensions:
- Word recognition (decoding) - The ability to recognise words presented in and out of context. The ability to apply phonic rules – blending phonemes to decode (c-a-t).
- Prosody- The ability to read fluently with appropriate expression. When a child is reading prosodically, oral reading sounds much like speech with appropriate phrasing, pause structures, stress, rise and fall patterns, and general expressiveness.
- Comprehension - The process by which word information, sentences and discourse are interpreted. The same processes underlie comprehension of both oral and written language. This continues to develop throughout life.
It is essential that teaching focuses on developing pupils’ competence in all dimensions; different kinds of teaching are needed for each.
For each of our children to become good readers, they have opportunities to develop and use:
- 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 (understanding) of texts
- The motivation to read for both study and pleasure
- Extensive knowledge through having read a rich and varied range of texts
Phonics and Reading
We follow the validated synthetic systematic Little Wandle Letters and Sounds programme. The Little Wandle programme is devised into phases and is taught daily- starting as soon as children join in Reception. The programme incorporates the seven features of effective phonics practice. These are:
- direct teaching in frequent, short bursts
- consistency of approach
- secure, systematic progression in phonics learning
- maintaining pace of learning
- providing repeated practice
- application of phonics using matched decodable books
- early identification of children at risk of falling behind, linked to the provision of effective keep-up support.
Using the Collins Big Cat decodable books gives children the vital opportunity to practise the phonic skills they are learning without the distraction of words they have not yet learned to decode. These decodable books:
- are exactly matched to the phonics progression of the programme used
- present only words made up of GPCs learned to that point
- include tricky words only as they are introduced in the programme
- are used exclusively when children are practising reading and not mixed in with books that are not fully decodable at the child’s level.
Children still working within the Little Wandle programme read to an adult three times a week. Each of these sessions focusses on a different dimension (fluency, prosody and comprehension).
Once children are secure in their phonics knowledge (usually by the end of Year 1) they move onto the book band system. Books are carefully matched to children’s ability and teachers plan sequences of guided reading lessons that span over a two-week block. During this week block we focus on the three dimensions: fluency, prosody and comprehension.
Choosing Books
At Sholing Infant School we have created a reading spine that is progressive and offers children access to a range of high quality texts in all areas of the curriculum. Rhymes, songs, poems and stories have been mapped out to ensure that they are progressive in level of difficulty, theme and vocabulary. Texts used to support writing and other areas of the curriculum are also mapped. Within the reading spine we have a class reader (year 2) and our ‘Favourite Fives.’ The Favourite Fives are books that cover a range of new and classic stories that children love. They are shared multiple times over the half term. The repetition not only allows children to become familiar with the words but also aids learning complex information by increasing opportunities for the information to be encoded. It allows children to focus on different elements of the experience and providing opportunities to ask questions and connect concepts together through discussion.
Love of Reading
Alongside our systematic teaching of phonics, we also instil a love of reading. This is developed through the sharing of high-quality texts, rhymes and poems which are carefully mapped out across the school. This enables us to develop children’s cultural capital. We do this through talking about texts, making connections with children’s experiences and broadening children’s horizons through the use of carefully chosen high quality texts.
Vocabulary and Reading
Pupils’ acquisition and command of vocabulary are key to their learning and progress across the whole curriculum. At Sholing Infant School, teachers develop vocabulary actively, building systematically on children’s current knowledge. They strive to increase pupils’ store of words in general by enabling them to make links between known and new vocabulary and discuss the shades of meaning in similar words. This is supported by practise in reading books consistent with pupils’ developing phonic knowledge and skill and their knowledge of common exception words.
Writing
Writing provision
Every writing lesson follows our agreed teaching sequence, with every lesson providing the opportunity to retrieve and revisit prior learning, specifically designed for children to think back to what they have already learned so their knowledge becomes more embedded in long term memory. This includes regular quizzing to help children retrieve the things they may have forgotten and is a tool for teachers to assess any gaps and address these before moving on to new content.
The programme of study for writing at key stage 1 is constructed similarly to that for reading:
- transcription (spelling and handwriting)
- composition (articulating ideas and structuring them in speech and writing)
It is essential that teaching develops pupils’ competence in these two areas, alongside how to plan, revise and evaluate their writing. Each unit of writing should follow the agreed ‘reading into writing’ model across the school, showing a clear independent outcome. Learning will be progressive and ensure the children are taught the skills, knowledge and understanding needed to complete the independent outcome and evidence good progress within and between units of work.
Reading into Writing
At Sholing Infant School, we follow a ‘reading into writing’ model to teach writing. Teachers begin this journey by mapping ‘text potential’ prior to planning a unit of work. This ensures that the chosen text is fit for purpose, is high quality and the teaching of vocabulary can be planned for. Purpose, audience and form are key drivers in each unit of writing. These are shared with the children at the start of a unit and can been seen on the working wall and learning journey overviews within children’s English books.
The principles of the reading into writing model are:
Text Immersion
During this stage, tier 2 and 3 vocabulary from the text are discussed and displayed.
A model text is used to demonstrate to the children a clear expectation of what their final outcomes will include. This model text contains exemplification of the key skills to be taught in the unit. This becomes a writer’s ‘toolkit’ and is used at many different reference points throughout the learning journey.
We explore text or film stimuli, at the start of a unit, in a variety of ways: book talks, drama techniques, debates and text discussions are a few examples. This stage of writing is heavily discussion based and will link explicitly to our whole class guided reading sessions. The two interlink. The working walls in classrooms are showcases for rich vocabulary that has been ‘magpied’ from various sources.
Skills Building Stage
This is a heavily guided, taught and marked stage in the reading into writing journey. Key unit skills are broken down for children. This is a practise stage whereby teachers would use ‘I do/you do’ sessions, sentence doctor workshops or skills building sessions to teach National Curriculum objectives from the appropriate programme of study. Children write sentences or short burst paragraphs in their books to practise and master this skill. The English working wall is used to gather examples and provide support for this stage of writing.
Teacher Modelling Stage
This is a guided, taught and marked stage in the reading into writing journey. In lessons, teachers model writing sentences, paragraphs or whole texts to the children, verbalising explicitly the choices they are making as writers, alongside their reasoning.
Outcomes from any skills sessions, short burst writes or teacher models are different to the independent outcome expected by the children.
Independent application stage
Independent writing will be easily identified in children’s books. Each independent piece is labelled as ‘Unit Outcome’. There will be no success criteria stuck in books for an independent write. The school teaches editing as part of the writing process. Children are taught to be aware of the purpose and audience of pieces and choose vocabulary and structures accordingly. There is less ‘in the moment’ teacher marking for independent writes. At the end of each unit outcome, the teacher marks against a GPaS bar and provides children with a formative comment. This means that children know what their next steps are.
The English curriculum aims to develop pupil’s knowledge and skills with language quickly, enabling them to innovate and create with words as their medium.
Monitoring and Outcomes
To ensure that the teaching of English allows our pupils to make expected progress, regular monitoring is undertaken by the subject leader. Learning walks take place regularly and mentoring and coaching sessions are put in place to ensure that teachers receive the support they need. Children’s reading journals are scrutinised frequently to ensure that the evidence collected by teachers and work completed by pupils’ demonstrates what children know and remember. In addition to this, the subject leader carries out termly pupil conferences with a range of children. This not only enables a good insight into what our children enjoy about reading but also to check that books are appropriately matched to children’s reading ability. At Sholing Infant School, we strive for all children to achieve highly in English and data is monitored carefully by teachers and the subject leader to ensure that any gaps, whether for individuals or groups, are plugged through interventions or through revisiting and reviewing in class. At Sholing Infant School we see the impact of a rigorous early reading programme and progressive writing system through the strong end of foundation stage and end of KS1 outcomes for all pupils.
GEOGRAPHY
At Sholing Infant School, we have designed our geography curriculum with the intent that it will inspire our children with a curiosity, fascination and appreciation of the world around them. It will equip them with a diverse knowledge and understanding of people, places, natural, human and physical geography The curriculum will engage our children and facilitate and inspire them to become inquisitive, resilient, independent, challenging thinkers and active global citizens with the confidence to use, and build on, their cultural capital, learning and experiences - both inside and outside of the classroom.
In the Early Years, children begin to understand their place within known spaces and their immediate environment, but are also exposed to a wealth of other worldwide people, cultures and traditions. Children in Early Years begin to make comparisons between places in their world.
During KS1 pupils develop knowledge about their locality expanding wider into the United Kingdom and continents of the world. They develop an understanding of basic subject-specific vocabulary relating to human and physical geography and begin to use geographical skills, including first-hand observation, to enhance their locational awareness. They compare their local area to places in both the United Kingdom and beyond.
Geography at Sholing Infant School is taught in blocks throughout the year, so that children can achieve depth in their learning. Each unit of work has identified the key concepts and knowledge that children need to know, and consideration has been given to ensure progression across units throughout each year group and across the school.
The curriculum progression ensures children gain both substantive and disciplinary knowledge that helps them to form a greater understanding of the world around them. At Sholing we have identified key concepts as:
- Place
- Location
- Human and physical features
- Settlement and land use
- Mapping
- Directional knowledge
- Fieldwork
- Weather
These key concepts run through and across year groups and will continually be revisited and explored across the academic journey of a child at Sholing Infant School.
Each is underpinned by key vocabulary and ‘sticky’ knowledge that will be explicitly taught in Geography.
We will ensure that all children develop an understanding of our ever-changing world and how human and physical interaction can influence these changes. We want all children through their growing geographical knowledge to gain a deeper understanding of the world and their place in it.
HISTORY
History at Sholing Infant School follows the EYFS Development Matters and the National Curriculum aims and objectives in supporting all pupils, regardless of their background or ability, to develop an awareness of the past.
At Sholing Infant School, we are historians! Our aim is that we stimulate all children’s interest and understanding about the life of people who lived in the past. We teach children a sense of chronology, in order to develop a sense of identity and a cultural understanding based on their historical heritage. This enables our children to learn to value their own and other people’s cultures in modern multicultural Britain. We aim to make all children aware of the actions of important people in history and enable children to know about significant events in British history, whilst appreciating how things have changed over time.
History will also ensure our children understand how Britain developed as a society. Furthermore, our children will learn about aspects of local British history e.g. The Titanic. We believe that by allowing the children to understand the importance and enjoyment of history through different opportunities, they will become enthused learners about the world around them. Through the teaching of history, we endeavour to teach pupils to understand the complexity of people’s lives, including those of the present, the process of change, the diversity of societies and beliefs, whilst celebrating these differences. History at Sholing Infant School will inspire pupil’s curiosity, giving all children opportunities to ask questions, to think critically and develop an understanding of how evidence can be used to examine how their life today compares to that in the past.
History is taught regularly throughout the year, so that children develop a deeper understanding and depth to their learning. Teachers understand the key disciplinary and substantive knowledge for each topic and consideration has been given by the subject leader to ensure progression throughout each year group across the school. Teachers ensure that children know the ‘sticky’ knowledge that is required to help them progress effectively within History. All learning starts by revisiting prior knowledge. This will be scaffolded to support children to recall previous learning and make connections. Staff will effectively model the subject-specific vocabulary, knowledge, and skills relevant to the learning to allow them to integrate new knowledge into larger concepts.
In history pupils are introduced to historical periods that they will study more fully in key stage 2. They are taught about changes in living memory e.g. the changes in their own lives and events beyond living memory that are significant such as the Great fire of London. Children will also learn about the lives of significant individuals who have contributed to national and international achievements e.g. comparing the lives of Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth II. They are also taught about significant historical events and people in their own locality e.g. the sailing of The Titanic from Southampton docks, and the impact of RJ Mitchell in the context of WW2.
To ensure that the teaching of history enables our pupils to make good progress, regular monitoring is undertaken by the subject leader. Learning walks take place regularly and feedback provided to teachers. The subject leader ensures that teachers receive any support they need. History CPD provided by the trust is disseminated to ensure that whole school subject and pedagogical knowledge is strong, leading to strong outcomes in the subject. Children’s work is scrutinised frequently to ensure that the evidence collected by teachers and work completed by pupils’ demonstrates what children know and remember. In addition to this, the subject leader carries out regular pupil conferences with a range of children. At Sholing Infant School, we strive for all children to achieve highly inhistory and data is monitored carefully by teachers and the subject leader to ensure that any gaps, whether for individuals or groups, are plugged through interventions or through revisiting and reviewing in class.
At Sholing Infant school every child is taught to be a historian, irrespective of background or ability. Through the effective teaching of history our children are provided with the historical knowledge and skills that will support their academic and personal development throughout school and beyond.
MATHEMATICS
Mathematics is a creative, interconnected subject that enables pupils to develop rich links between the core skills of mathematics whilst developing an understanding of the world, the ability to reason mathematically, and a sense of enjoyment and curiosity about the subject. Mathematics is essential to every-day life, providing the knowledge and skills needed for every stage of learning and beyond, underpinning financial responsibility and independence, employment, science and technology.
At Sholing Infant School the Mathematics curriculum will equip our pupils with the skills necessary to succeed in the core areas of fluency, reasoning and problem-solving. Our curriculum is designed in order for all pupils to develop their independence and fluency in the subject, building on their learning every year by retrieving previous knowledge, and strengthening their range of newly taught skills in order to develop conceptual understanding. Pupils will develop their confidence and mental fluency when working with numbers, and will be able to effectively carry out and apply a range of calculation strategies. They will have access to a range of practical resources, and will develop their use of mathematical language which they can apply to the wider curriculum and beyond. They will be able to reason mathematically, and to solve problems through applying their mathematics to a variety of routine and non-routine problems.
Through a variety of practical, explorative and challenging activities, Mathematics teaching at Sholing Infant School is designed in order for children to build on their mathematical skills whilst progressing through the curriculum and developing their confidence in a range of mathematical areas, such as number and calculating, shape, space, measure and statistics. A rich learning environment and practical resources support pupils to underpin the core learning objectives across all areas of Mathematics. Mathematics is taught daily across the school, with additional opportunities for mental-oral rehearsal outside of the main mathematics lessons. Pupils within the EYFS take part in two focused mathematics morning per week, along with daily mental maths sessions to ensure that they are prepared for their future time in Key Stage 1 and beyond.
The subject leader and senior leadership team work to ensure that all teachers are equipped with the necessary skills to deliver clearly presented lessons and learning opportunities with confidence and competence, demonstrating sound subject knowledge. Teachers are supported to understand progression in all areas of the subject, building upon the children’s learning in prior year groups, and knowing what the subsequent steps in mathematics learning are. At Sholing Infant School Mathematics is taught using an adaptation of the ‘Loopy maths’ model. Class teachers produce unit plans which list the specific learning objective for the unit, suggestions of teaching and learning sequences following the ‘I do-You do’ approach, additional practise tasks for pupils to complete with support, and pieces of work that will provide evidence of pupils mastering working at Age Related Expectations (ARE). At the beginning of each unit of work, pupils are supported to retrieve their knowledge from previous related learning, and this is used as a base for the further building blocks of subject specific learning. Opportunities to deepen and apply their learning allows pupils to embed what they have been taught and to remember this learning in the future.
Our fully inclusive curriculum and teaching approach ensures that the needs of all learners are met, with pupils who have Special Educational Needs or are Working Towards the Expected Standard receiving the necessary support needed to access their learning at their current level of understanding. Opportunities for pupils to demonstrate that they are mastering AREs at Greater Depth are also provided, ensuring that pupils of all abilities are challenged. Systematic assessment enables Teachers to identify the level of pupil understanding and application of skills in each area, and allows errors and misconceptions to be addressed to ensure that pupils are confident when moving to the next stage of learning. This ensures that pupils can achieve our core aims of developing fluency, being able to problem-solve, and being able to reason mathematically.
At Sholing Infant School all learners are supported to develop their mathematical knowledge and skills to ensure that they are ready for the next stage of their education. With principal aims of our curriculum being to develop fluency, the ability to reason and to solve problems, pupils are provided with rich and varied learning experiences to ensure that they develop confidence and mental fluency with whole numbers, counting and place value. This in turn underpins the other core curriculum areas of Mathematics, such as calculation, fractions, statistics, measure and geometry. Pupils are equipped with the competence and confidence to solve increasingly sophisticated problems. This enables them to apply their mathematical knowledge to science and other subjects such as Design Technology and Computing. Children achieve high outcomes at the end of the Early Years Foundation Stage and at the end of Key Stage 1, demonstrating that they have mastered the curriculum and have embedded key mathematical skills that will equip them in later life and beyond.
A copy of our latest Maths information for parents can be downloaded below.
MUSIC
Music is taught through the integrated activities of performing, singing, composing and listening. Pupils are given opportunities to respond creativity to music from a variety of different styles and genres.
Pupils will be inspired through live musical experiences and practical music making, empowering them to be confident, resilient and culturally aware.
The National Curriculum for music aims to ensure that all pupils:
- Perform, listen to, review and evaluate music across a range of historical periods, including music in Victorian time, Fire of London, and Medieval times, along with a range of composers throughout all musical periods, genres, styles and traditions, including the works of great composers and musicians, such as Vaughan-Williams, Walton, Beethoven, and Whitacre, to name a few.
- Learn to sing and to use their voices every week with a variety of songs to fit with topics, including learning British Sign Language to fit with the appropriate words.
- Create and compose music on their own and with others.
- Use technology appropriately and have the opportunity to progress to the next level of musical excellence.
- Understand and explore how music is created, produced and communicated, including through the inter-related dimensions: pitch, duration, dynamics, tempo, timbre, texture, structure and appropriate musical notations.
Attainments:
By the end of key stage 1, pupils should be able to:
- Listen to performances, with an appropriate level of understanding and concentration. They should be able to recognise the majority of Orchestral instruments and understand how instruments are used for different sounds and effects. They should be able to recognise different genres, key features and their impact.
- Sing expressively, and with increasing accuracy through a range of songs, including rounds and chants.
- Create short sequences of sound and simple soundscape from a starting point, using simple symbols and the elements of music. They should also be able to compose through using specific musical notation and have an understanding of a whole note, half note and quarter note.
Our pupils will be fully immersed in the great power that music can have, to encourage creativity, teamwork, attention, self-expression, resilience and most importantly enjoyment in through, listening, performing, singing and composing. Pupils will be given the opportunities to hear live performances and perform their own music through learning and composing on various tuned and untuned instruments.
Music lessons will encourage children to develop a love of music, offering them many different styles and genres to explore and experiment with and to understand the way music is created. Pupils will also have the opportunity to take part in extra-curricular music groups and to learn tuned instruments in class and privately.
Our music lessons will provide every child with an all-round basic knowledge of a variety of different cultures, traditions and genres that will leave them with a love of music which they can go on and explore throughout their lives. The will develop skills to enable them to enjoy music as a listener, performer and composer.
PHYSICAL EDUCATION (PE)
At Sholing Infant School, we aim to inspire all children to develop a love of physical activity and sport. Through good physical education, we aim to nurture confident, resilient children who will strive for their personal best. We listen to our children’s interests and provide them with a range of active experiences and clubs. We want to aid our children in obtaining the values and skills to celebrate and respect the success of others, as well as celebrating their own successes. We aim to ensure that our delivery of physical education allows all children to have the skills and mindset to leave our school with the capabilities to be successful in their sporting challenges and active lifestyles they move through to the next stages of their education. We strive to educate both our children and families to develop a greater understanding on how to live healthy lifestyles and make healthy choices. We are dedicated to ensuring healthy minds, as well as bodies and will continue to support our children's well-being.
At Sholing Infant School, the starting point for our PE curriculum is the National Curriculum. This is delivered through the Get Set 4 PE programme, taught by confident, enthusiastic, and knowledgeable teachers. By offering a high-quality physical education curriculum this inspires all children to develop a love of physical activity and sport. We aim to draw on a range of concepts such as physical, social, emotional and thinking skills to ensure all of our pupils are motivated and inspired to work collaboratively, competitively, with a positive mind-set. We provide our pupils with opportunities to access and enjoy a range of physical activities such as fundamental skills, gym, dance, yoga, athletics and net and wall skills.
In order to deliver a high-quality PE curriculum, PE is taught twice a week in Key Stage 1 and once a week in EYFS by teachers who have secure subject knowledge and inspire to motivate children to become passionate about sport. At our school the Get Set 4 PE in EYFS focus is on fundamental movement skills, negotiating space safely with and around others, and learning how to handle and use different equipment. This prepares them for KS1 in which children are taught in line with the NC requirements in that they further develop fundamental movement skills, understanding principles of defence and attack and using simple tactics.
Each unit has been sequenced to build on skills lesson by lesson. Within each lesson plan the learning is sequenced so that children can explore and develop a skill and then apply it to a game, sequence or choreography.
When delivering PE, we ensure all children are engaged whilst developing their fundamental skills of agility, balance, and coordination. All teachers ensure every lesson is inclusive and provides the correct level of challenge and support .
Regular monitoring is undertaken by the subject leader to check that our pupils know more, remember more and can do more. The PE leader carries out termly pupil conferences which demonstrates that children know, remember and can do more as they progress through the school.. At Sholing Infant School, we strive for all children to achieve and data is monitored carefully by teachers and the subject leader to ensure that any gaps, whether for individuals or groups, are plugged.
From the very start of their school journey in the Early Years setting, we encourage children to take a keen interest in taking part in extra curricular clubs. We offer the children at our school many opportunities to experience an active and healthy lifestyle such as active lunchtimes, enrichment activities, sports taster days and visits to watch sporting competitions. We also attend the schools’ games to take part in competitive/ non- competitive sports. When children leave Sholing Infant School, they are confident in mastering basic movements, applying these in a range of different activities and can work collaboratively in teams. They , most importantly have a love of sport which they will take into their future.
PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND HEALTH EDUCATION (PSHE) INCLUDING RSE
The National Curriculum framework document states that:
‘All schools should make provision for personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE), drawing on good practice.’
All schools have statutory duties to meet Section 2.1 of the National Curriculum framework which also states that:
‘Every state-funded school must offer a curriculum which is balanced and broadly based and which promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils at the school and of society and prepares pupils at the school for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life’
PSHE education is a non-statutory subject, but in order to fulfil its duties relating to the Social Moral Spiritual and Cultural development of children, their behaviour and safety, and to provide a broad and balanced curriculum a comprehensive programme of PSHE education is in place.
In 2020 the Department for Education released the compulsory, Relationships education and relationships and sex education (RSE) guidance that we encompass within our teaching of PSHE. This includes aspects such developing children’s understanding of what constitutes a healthy relationship including online relationships. Supporting children to develop healthy habits and have some understanding of how to maintain both their physical and mental health.
The benefits to pupils of such an approach are numerous as PSHE prepares them to manage many of the most critical opportunities, challenges and responsibilities they will face growing up. It also helps them to connect and apply the knowledge and understanding they learn in all subjects to practical, real-life situations while helping them to feel safe and secure enough to fulfil their academic potential.
At Sholing Infant School PSHE is taught explicitly as a discrete lesson, organised into three themes, which are taught each year: Health and wellbeing, Relationships and Living in the wider world. Children are taught a variety of units during Key Stage One PSHE such as learning about positive relationships, mental wellbeing, and the wider world. Our learning is reinforced by our Safety Curriculum that threads through each unit of work which includes Stranger Danger, Online Safety, Road Safety, Rail safety and Water and Beach Safety. We plan our PSHE lessons to provide as many opportunities as possible for children to be collaborative to enable them to communicate effectively, to work well with others and discuss ideas. Our PSHE and Safety Curriculums are progressively planned and coherently sequenced to ensure that pupils always build on prior learning and are able to know, remember and do more.
Every PSHE lesson follows our agreed teaching sequence, with regular opportunity to retrieve and revisit prior learning, enabling children to think back to what they have already learned so their knowledge becomes embedded in to their long term memory. PSHE is also taught through the day-to-day work of the school, e.g. through assemblies and the school’s behaviour policy as children learn ‘The Golden Rules’.
The schemes of work for the PSHE units can be downloaded from the links below.
Should you have any questions then do please speak to either our headteacher Mrs Houghton, or our PSHE leader Miss Gardner.
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION (RE)
At Sholing Infant School we follow Hampshire's agreed syllabus for Religious Education (RE), 'Living Difference IV'. In the Foundation Stage, RE is taught through topics based upon the children’s own lives and their experiences. Within Key stage 1 and 2, RE is aimed to support pupils own spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.
Children are taught how to discuss, debate and disagree in a respectful way. They explore some of the big questions about life, as well as exploring religious artefacts, festivals and rituals. The teaching of RE is enhanced by visits to religious buildings, visits from different community members and the celebration of different faiths in assemblies and class.
Living Difference IV, purpose statement
Children are taught to understand and respect the importance of religious beliefs in the world around them. We aim to ensure that the RE curriculum is challenging, dynamic and relevant to pupils of all ages. We will focus on Christian and Hindu festivals throughout EYFS and KS1 but can explore other religions and religious festivals should we feel it necessary to our children and community (known as Pondering Time).
As part the Living Difference IV states, there are four golden thread concepts/words that are studied across EYFS and KS1. These are: community, belonging, special and love. As well as these, the children explore a range of A concepts (which are words/concepts shared within as well as outside of religions and religious traditions) and B concepts (which are words/concepts that are shared across many religions and religious traditions). The words/concepts that we, at Sholing Infant School, have chosen to explore are outlined in the Long Term Plan.
The Living Difference IV follows an approach to teaching RE whereby begins with the teacher finding interesting ways to bring the concept/word to live for children. This is achieved through a journey known as the ‘Enquiry Wheel’. This cycle holds 5 key steps are Communicate, Apply, Enquire & Contextualise and Evaluate. While all the steps of the cycle are important, it is stated that in EYFS and KS1 should have more emphasis on the Communicate and Apply steps meaning there is more focus on the children’s experiences.
SCIENCE
Our Science teaching at Sholing Infant School stems from the idea that having a good scientific understanding is fundamental for children to understand the world that they live in. We therefore strive to provide children with a high-quality Science education that teaches them the knowledge, skills and applications of Science needed for them to understand their surroundings. We believe that Science lessons should foster an excitement and curiosity in children about what they are learning and teach them about how they can use Science to help them explain their experiences of the world. We strive to inspire every child to see themselves as the scientists of the future. We also want to teach children different types of scientific enquiries that will encourage them to ask questions about the world, as we believe that children should be active in their learning. Our goal is for children to have ample opportunity to have first-hand practical experiences to look at scientific phenomena, observe changes over time, notice patterns and begin to use scientific language to describe what they have found out and link this to what they already know.
We aim to create an ambitious Science curriculum that will foster a love of learning for all children, will build on what they already know and will provide them with the scientific knowledge they will need for when they move into Key Stage 2, as well as giving them the knowledge and experiences they need to succeed in life. Our Science curriculum is inclusive and is intended to inspire all children to develop their scientific knowledge, regardless of their background and ability, and ensures that all children make progress.
In order to deliver a high-quality Science education, Science is taught regularly in Key Stage 1 at Sholing Infant School by teachers who have secure subject knowledge and can motivate children to become passionate, knowledgeable and skilled scientists. Science lessons are planned carefully to ensure that essential knowledge is acquired by all pupils and lessons are coherently sequenced to enable children to build upon what they already know. We view scientific knowledge as being divided into substantive knowledge (the scientific knowledge) and disciplinary knowledge (how scientific knowledge is obtained, and this is covered in the Working Scientifically aspect of the curriculum). We are of the view that these two types of knowledge go hand in hand, and children not only need to learn scientific knowledge, but need to have an understanding of how scientists come to reach this knowledge. The children are exposed to the five different enquiry types, and the working scientifically skills are explicitly taught and modelled regularly to allow children to acquire this disciplinary knowledge over time. Scientific enquiry is heavily scaffolded, with the teacher taking the lead for most of the enquiries to teach children how these are carried out. This will prepare them for KS2, when they have more opportunities to work independently.
Every Science lesson follows our agreed teaching sequence, with every lesson providing the opportunity to retrieve and revisit prior learning, specifically designed for children to think back to what they have already learned so their knowledge becomes more embedded in long term memory. This includes regular quizzing to help children retrieve the things they may have forgotten and is a tool for teachers to assess any gaps and address these before moving on to new content. Through this cumulative approach and reference back to prior learning, we enable children to make links and retain more scientific knowledge. We ensure scientific knowledge is taught in small steps to avoid children becoming overloaded with new information, and have the opportunity to apply what they have been taught before. Additionally, we aim for our Science learning to be as collaborative as possible, and lessons are planned to provide children with the opportunity to work with others and to discuss their ideas. Planned Science lessons are always purposeful, exciting and sufficiently challenging to keep pupils engaged in their learning. Within our teaching sequence there are always planned opportunities for scientific knowledge to be deepened and for children to apply their learning to different contexts. Our teaching sequence allows for teachers to use both formative and summative assessment of what pupils know and remember. Children complete science assessments on a half-termly basis to check any gaps so these can be timely addressed. This is combined with regular quizzing , and may also include pupil conferencing. All teachers report Science data termly and this is checked by the Science subject leader so progress for all children in Science can be closely monitored and gaps identified to inform knowledge that needs to be revisited, for individuals and groups.
In EYFS, scientific phenomena is explored primarily through the Understanding the World area of learning. From the start of their school journey at Sholing Infant School, children are encouraged to explore the natural world around them and the provision always ensures children have lots of interesting things to observe and get actively involved with. A key focus for EYFS is to develop children’s vocabulary by creating a language-rich environment, alongside skilled adults who encourage children to communicate what they experience in the world around them.
At our school, we want children to be as active as possible in their Science lessons in Key Stage One, and their provision in Early Years. We therefore ensure that they have plenty of opportunity to use hands-on science equipment such as microscopes, magnifying glasses and stopwatches, as well as doing practical activities such as planting seeds and tracking how plants grow over time and observing the life cycle of different animals like ducklings and caterpillars. Children are taught a variety of units during Key Stage One Science such as learning about plants, animals (including humans) and their habitats, materials and seasonal changes, and these units are supported by investigations where children can apply their scientific knowledge and their ability to work scientifically. In Early Years, children are encouraged to constantly make observations of what they see, including that of animals, plants, the weather (and how this changes throughout the seasons) and changing states of matter.
Regular monitoring is undertaken by the subject leader to check that our pupils know more, remember more and can do more. Children’s books are scrutinised frequently to ensure their scientific knowledge is strong and the planning is effectively being implemented. In addition, the subject leader carries out termly pupil conferences with a range of children. This enables a good insight into what the children know and remember, and the scientific understanding they have gained. At Sholing Infant School, we strive for all children to achieve highly in Science and data is monitored carefully by teachers and the subject leader to ensure that any gaps, whether for individuals or groups, are plugged.
From the very start of their school journey in the Early Years setting, we encourage children to take a keen interest in the world around them, make observations of what they see and ask questions about things they would like to know more about. Through our high-quality approach to the teaching of Science throughout Key Stage One, we know that all children will enjoy lessons and make good progress in their knowledge of a range of different scientific phenomena that they would have learnt in an engaging way. To be a scientist is to be inquisitive and apply what you have learnt to aid your understanding of the world. By the time children leave Sholing Infant School, we hope to have instilled these qualities in them and have taught them the necessary knowledge that will equip them to be successful scientists in the next Key Stage, as well as for their futures.
If you would like to find out more about the curriculum at our school then please contact us.