Our Curriculum

Curriculum Aims

The curriculum is the means by which we develop the potential of all the pupils at Kirkoswald C of E School.

We pride ourselves upon our creative curriculum using contexts for learning to deliver the National Curriculum. Staff have an in depth knowledge of the programmes of study for each curriculum area and the curriculum is mapped to ensure coverage. We operate a two yearly cycle of topic themes, to cater for mixed aged classes, delivering the curriculum through themes such as, World War II, Solve It and Get Going. Thought is given to themes so that they link to occasions happening on a local, national and global scale and the children are involved in establishing the emphasis and focus in order to ensure their involvement from the onset.

We are continuously developing our curriculum and customising it to meet the needs of our learners. We think that all children should be offered opportunities to study in depth across the curriculum to avoid a narrowing of focus and an over emphasis upon English and Maths and attainment in tests. We believe that when children are engaged in rich learning across the full range of curriculum subjects they will see the importance of striving to be the best they can be at English and Maths, as tools to promote their learning across the curriculum.
We place a great emphasis upon learning to read using Letters and Sounds to teach phonics and The Oxford Reading Tree Scheme is linked to the phonic stages the children are on. It is also key that children develop mathematical concepts and we do this in as meaningful way as we can. With this in mind we find that the children here discover an area of the curriculum where they can excel, be this English, Maths, Art, Music or PE.

We therefore provide opportunities for all children to develop skills and competences across the full range of curriculum subjects. The foundation subjects are introduced through our contexts for learning and we feel that it is important that children know what subject they are studying so that we can support their growing depth of learning in that particular subject area and enable them to build on previous skills and knowledge in a well planned and considered context.

Children are familiar with working practically in mathematical and scientific situations to maximise their enquiry and problem-solving skills. Independence is encouraged and children are responsible for accessing their own equipment which is stored in clearly labelled and colour coded containers for ease of use. They have ownership of and file their own work developing a keen sense of pride in what they do. They are then actively involved in the selection of work for their Record of Achievement which is used to celebrate all childrens’ successes and is built upon throughout their entire primary experience, providing a detailed record of the progress of each child.

Children are taught in a variety of groups, have established talk partners and different teaching styles are adopted to suit the needs of classes, groups and individuals. Lessons have focused objectives and success criteria for learners are established.

Contexts for Learning 2022 - 2024

Curriculum Subjects

Subjects covered within our curriculum are:

• English
• Maths
• Science
• Computing
• History
• Geography
• Languages (KS2 only)
• Design & Technology
• Music
• Art & Design
• PE/Games
• R.E.
• Personal, Social & Health Education
• Citizenship

These follow the guidelines from the National Curriculum Document. Teachers adapt and invent new schemes or work to fit the chosen contexts for learning keeping teachers and children interested.

Computing Facilities

The School currently has the facility of ten wireless laptops with Broadband Internet Access. The School has also recently upgraded its Information Technology (IT) to incorporate ten new computers and a library/resource area. The children have received the Cumbrian Gold Standard for their computing work. Interactive whiteboards are installed in all teaching spaces and staff are trained in their use. We have a suite of 20 iPads for classroom use.