Our Learning

Christ Church C of E (VA) Curriculum Statement: “Let Your Light Shine” 

What Is Our Curriculum Intention?

At Christ Church C of E (VA) Primary School, our curriculum is structured to enable our children to embody our school values and let their light SHINE - where every child is developed to be:                                                                  

                                                                 Successful        Happy         Included        Nurtured       Enriched

Let Your Light Shine

Matthew 5:16

We help children to achieve success. Our children are shining lights and we give them the confidence to shine in whatever direction and however they choose. As Peter was Jesus' rock, we are the rock upon which our children build a firm foundation.

All our children have access to a broad, balanced and exciting curriculum which builds on the knowledge, understanding and skills of all children, whatever their starting points, as they progress through Christ Church. Our curriculum is unique to us, because we are continually shaping and adapting it for the diverse range of needs of the children in our care, who make up our wonderful school. We provide our children the foundations they need to continue to grow and SHINE - sending them out into the world with confidence, independence, a wealth of experiences and a developed range of skills to become responsible citizens who can reach their full potential.

Our curriculum aim is to ensure that all of our children experience a wide breadth of study and have, by the end of each key stage, long term memory of an ambitious body of knowledge and understanding of all subjects studied. Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of our pupils and their understanding of the core values of our society are woven throughout the curriculum.

By giving children a wide variety of learning opportunities and cultural experiences, we ensure our curriculum develops children’s cultural capital. These include: providing children with a wide range of texts to read across school; prioritising the teaching of vocabulary in every subject; frequent learning outside the classroom and the provision of a broad range of visits and visitors to engage and inspire. 

How Is Our Curriculum Implemented?

Our curriculum follows the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum and then the National Curriculum. Our curriculum challenges children and encourages them to develop into independent, motivated learners and thinkers, full of curiosity about the world around them within a fun, happy and secure environment.

Our Focus Provision curriculum has been specifically adapted to meet the needs of our children with ASD. We do not set a limit on what our children can do or achieve, allowing them to explore the activities and experiences, encouraging them to take their learning as far as they are able.

The Learning Challenge Approach

Although subjects are taught individually through a progression model, in an attempt to make learning more interconnected for our children our curriculum is taught through engaging learning challenges. These give children opportunities to develop their interpersonal skills, make meaningful connections with the world around them as well as grow and achieve personal and shared goals and aspirations. Each year group studies a topic over a term to enable them to solve the ‘learning challenge question’ which has been posed, giving opportunities to develop relationships within and between subjects to start to connect learning together.

 Our Learning Challenges are shaped by our curriculum drivers and are based around the following questions:

• Who am I and who do I want to be?

• How have people left their mark on our world and how have these changes affected us?

• How can I have a positive impact on my world/our world by making a positive change to the environment and/or people who live there?

This approach enables our children to make meaningful contributions to society. It also provides opportunities to apply content from one subject into other subjects. In this way, we increase the amount of times we can cover and repeat concepts in other subjects and contexts to develop children's depth of knowledge and understanding, whilst harnessing and building upon every child’s personal development and growth.

What Is the Impact of Our Curriculum?

We assess the impact of our curriculum in terms of providing a successful, happy, inclusive, nurturing and enriched education for our children. We measure this through pupils' achievements and progress from their relative starting points.  Through thinking about and answering a variety of learning challenges our children have also gained an insight into their impact on the wider world. They have regularly shared and evaluated their learning with each other, parents/carers and the wider community through learning showcases (school-based and external exhibitions, performances, competitions and events) and will have had the opportunity to experience success in a range of fields to know where their light shines brightest. They are able to articulate where they need to improve, why and how they will do so, enabling them to continue to grow and flourish.