Curriculum

 

If you require further information about our curriculum then please contact Sue Campbell, Headteacher- head@stbarnabas.pdet.org.uk  or telephone the school office on 01933 445900

At St Barnabas, we follow Ruth Miskin's ReadWriteInc phonics programme, details of which can be found here.

For information about our Early Years' Curriculum please see the main curriculum tab where the EYFS intent statement will details all the areas of learning.

 

For details of the curriculum in all subject areas please see the main curriculum tab.

 

Key Stage One (Years 1 and 2)
The children in Year 1 and 2 are taught following the National Curriculum. The skills and knowledge they are taught builds on the foundations laid in Reception and within the ethos of Every Child Matters (a national strategy that states that every child has the right to be healthy, stay safe, enjoy and achieve through learning, make a positive contribution to society and achieve economic well-being).

The curriculum is broken down into subject areas, namely the core subjects; English, Mathematics, Science and Computing and the foundation subjects; History, Geography, Design and Technology, Art and Design, Music, P.E. (Physical Education).

For many subjects, the National curriculum does not specify what should be taught in years one and two. More information can be found on the curriculum newsletters which will show you what each year group is covering each term in all curriculum areas. Curriculum newsletters can be found on the class pages under the parents' tab.


English
The overarching aim for English in the national curriculum is to promote high standards of literacy by equipping pupils with a strong command of the written and spoken word, and to develop their love of literature through widespread reading for enjoyment. The national curriculum for English aims to ensure that all pupils:
- read easily, fluently and with good understanding
- develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information
- acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language
- appreciate our rich and varied literary heritage
- write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences
- use discussion in order to learn; they should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding and ideas
are competent in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, demonstrating to others and participating in debate.

Maths

The national curriculum for mathematics aims to ensure that all pupils:
- become fluent in the fundamentals of mathematics, including through varied and frequent practice with increasingly complex problems over time, so that pupils have conceptual understanding and are able to recall and apply their knowledge rapidly and accurately to problems
- reason mathematically by following a line of enquiry, conjecturing relationships and generalisations, and developing an argument, justification or proof using mathematical language
- can solve problems by applying their mathematics to a variety of routine and nonroutine problems with increasing sophistication, including breaking down problems into a series of simpler steps and persevering in seeking solutions.

AS a school, we teach these statements through mastery teaching and daily maths meetings to improve fluency of key concepts.


Science
The principal focus of science teaching in key stage 1 is to enable pupils to experience and observe phenomena, looking more closely at the natural and humanly-constructed world around them. They should be encouraged to be curious and ask questions about what they notice. They should be helped to develop their understanding of scientific ideas by using different types of scientific enquiry to answer their own questions, including observing changes over a period of time, noticing patterns, grouping and classifying things, carrying out simple comparative tests, and finding things out using secondary sources of information. They should begin to use simple scientific language to talk about what they have found out and communicate their ideas to a range of audiences in a variety of ways. Most of the learning about science should be done through the use of first-hand practical experiences, but there should also be some use of appropriate secondary sources, such as books, photographs and videos.

Computing
Pupils should be taught to: 
- understand what algorithms are; how they are implemented as programs on digital devices; and that programs execute by following precise and unambiguous instructions 
- create and debug simple programs 
- use logical reasoning to predict the behaviour of simple programs 
- use technology purposefully to create, organise, store, manipulate and retrieve digital content 
- use technology safely and respectfully, keeping personal information private; know where to go for help and support when they have concerns about material on the internet 
- recognise common uses of information technology beyond school.

Religious Education
Children are taught to understand their own culture and faith and that of others. We follow The Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education in Northamptonshire.

In Foundation Stage, the units of work covered are:
Ourselves, Our Families and Our Communities: Where do we belong?
Celebrations and Special Times: What happens at a festival?
Celebrations and Special Times: What happens at a wedding or when a baby is born?
Special Books: What can we learn from stories from different religions?

In Key Stage 1, the units of work covered are:
Places in Christianity: What makes a place special for Christian people?
People in Christianity: What can we learn from Jesus and St. Francis?
Books and Stories in Christianity: What do Christians learn from the Bible?
The Family in Judaism: How does being Jewish make a difference to family and celebration?
The Torah: How does the Torah influence the lives of Jewish people?


Art and Design
Pupils should be taught: 
- to use a range of materials creatively to design and make products 
- to use drawing, painting and sculpture to develop and share their ideas, experiences and imagination 
- to develop a wide range of art and design techniques in using colour, pattern, texture, line, shape, form and space 
- about the work of a range of artists, craft makers and designers, describing the differences and similarities between different practices and disciplines, and making links to their own work. 

Design and Technology
Through a variety of creative and practical activities, pupils should be taught the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to engage in an iterative process of designing and making. They should work in a range of relevant contexts, such as the home and school, gardens and playgrounds, the local community, industry and the wider environment.

Geography
Pupils should develop knowledge about the world, the United Kingdom and their locality. They should understand 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. 

History
Pupils should develop an awareness of the past, using common words and phrases relating to the passing of time. They should know where the people and events they study fit within a chronological framework and identify similarities and differences between ways of life in different periods. They should use a wide vocabulary of everyday historical terms. They should ask and answer questions, choosing and using parts of stories and other sources to show that they know and understand key features of events. They should understand some of the ways in which we find out about the past and identify different ways in which it is represented. 

Music
Pupils should be taught to: 
- use their voices expressively and creatively by singing songs and speaking chants and rhymes 
- play tuned and untuned instruments musically 
- listen with concentration and understanding to a range of high-quality live and recorded music experiment with, create, select and combine sounds using the inter-related dimensions of music. 

P.E. 
Pupils should develop fundamental movement skills, become increasingly competent and confident and access a broad range of opportunities to extend their agility, balance and coordination, individually and with others. They should be able to engage in competitive (both against self and against others) and co-operative physical activities, in a range of increasingly challenging situations.

Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) and Citizenship 
We place great value on developing the children's sense of themselves as a valued individual, member of the school community and encouraging the development of a healthy, safe lifestyle and respecting the differences between people.


For more information, please click here


Enriching the curriculum 
We use our local environment, visiting our local park, shops, church and businesses to enrich the children's learning and understanding. We also invite visitors from the community, such as fire fighters, nurses, theatre groups and local artists, to talk to the children in relation to our topics. We undertake visits further a field, including to farms, environmental centres, the seaside and museums.
As a school we also celebrate many events in the Christian calendar, learn about other religious festivals (such as Diwali, Chinese New Year and Holi), hold fund-raising events such as Comic Relief and activity days such as World Book Day and many, many more...
And finally...

The most important aspect of learning at St. Barnabas is to foster an environment where all children feel safe, secure and valued, to become active, confident learners who are keen to challenge themselves, work with others, be creative and imaginative, persevere and fulfill their potential.