The Curriculum at Friars
The curriculum at Friars is underpinned by our core values of Compassion, Creativity, Endeavour, Resilience, Respect and Responsibility . It is best understood by answering the following questions:
- Why do we teach what we teach? (Intent)
- How do we teach what we teach? (Implementation)
- How do we know what pupils have learnt and how well have they learnt it? (Impact)
Why do we teach what we teach? (Intent)
Our rationale for the design of our curriculum is simple. We aim for all pupils to acquire a body of knowledge and skills that are specific to individual subjects, can be applied across subjects and that prepare the children for the next stage of their education and life in modern Britain.
For our curriculum intent in the early years please see our EYFS framework for further detail.
We follow the English National Curriculum and each subject is taught progressively and in depth in every year from Year 1 -6. Our curriculum has been designed into individual subject units by curriculum leaders who have worked collaboratively. For certain subjects (PE, Music, RE and RSHE) where we have established local relationships (i.e. the Southwark music service and SACRE), we have adopted existing curricula that are all progressive, sequential and cover the subjects in depth. We have ensured that these subjects connect with the rest of the curriculum and have been through the right level of scrutiny to ensure they are fit for purpose.
Curriculum leaders have ensured that wherever possible, subjects “hold hands” thus enabling children to make meaningful connections and their learning journey relevant and engaging.
Broadly speaking our curriculum progression’s intent as a whole relates to different stages of cognitive development and can be characterised by a series of concentric circles:
Each subject other than English and Maths, is planned for in unit plans.
Principles of Acquisition
The following principles of acquisition are in place in order of priority in every unit plan for every subject:
Transferable and progressive skills – each unit details the skills to be acquired that have been taught before and will be taught again. It specifies where and when those skills have been taught previously and where and when they will be revisited. This ensures a clear sequencing of skills and enables children to connect their skills acquisition meaningfully.
Transferable and progressive knowledge – each unit details the knowledge to be acquired that has been taught before and will be taught again. It specifies where and when that knowledge has been taught previously and where and when it will be revisited. This ensures a clear sequencing of knowledge and enables children to connect their knowledge acquisition meaningfully.
Stand alone knowledge and skills – each unit details the knowledge and skills to be acquired that are specific to the unit in question and may not be explicitly revisited at any other time.
Vocabulary – each unit details the tier 2 and tier 3 vocabulary that is to be acquired. Tier 2 vocabulary refers to words and terms that are specific but can be applied across a range of disciplines. Tier 3 vocabulary refers to words and terms that are specific to the unit and discipline in question.
Activities and outcomes – each unit details the children’s actual learning experiences which enable them to learn the specified knowledge, skills and vocabulary for each unit. This includes what we will see in children’s books and also cross curricular opportunities. There is flexibility with this aspect and the unit plans act as a starting point for class teachers to plan activities in more detail and in a way that suits the individual teacher’s style. (see section 2 for further detail)
Cross curricular opportunities – Because reading, writing and mathematical fluency and confidence are key to children’s overall achievement each unit in each subject make specific reference to the available opportunities.
SMSC themes – each unit specifies the spiritual, moral, social and cultural themes that are relevant and to be experienced and understood. Please click here to see our whole school SMSC tracker that shows how the themes are developed across time and the curriculum.
Assessment criteria – at the end of each unit we assess the children’s acquisition of knowledge and skills using clear, straightforward criteria.