Our curriculum map shows the learning undertaken from the Early Years through to Year 6 at Brecknock. In the Early Years we follow the Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework. For KS1 and KS2 (Years 1 – 6) we follow the National Curriculum.

Subjects are taught in units that are planned to enable the development of knowledge and skills, enabling the children to make connections.  Each subject is valued as its own discipline. Links are made to ensure there are connections in learning, deepening understanding. Learning is purposefully planned to build upon prior learning.

These units are subject led through history, geography or science. The history units are broadly chronological, encompassing local, British and global themes. The geography units access a range of thematic and regional studies, placing identity and locality at the heart of learning. Science led units are taught in the summer term in order to elevate science as a subject discipline within the curriculum.

Year Group Overviews – connections, links and progression within year

• In KS1 and KS2, following the national curriculum, and where possible, skills and knowledge are taught through half-termly subject-led topics. Teachers weave together the component parts on a curriculum map from each subject’s progression document ensuring skills and knowledge are taught allowing for connections and retrieval of prior learning. See a Year 1 example here.
• Some areas of learning remain discrete due to the nature of their content.
• The EYFS curriculum has a clear progression of skills and knowledge, as the foundation of all subsequent learning.

Skills Progression: Planning

Each subject area has its own discrete progression document, detailing how skills are built up and connected over the years. Teachers and subject leaders use these documents to ensure there is appropriate challenge and progression in medium term plans.  Skills progression documents can be found on the relevant subject page. Click here to see an example.

Medium Term Planning

Subject leaders offer support with medium term planning to ensure there is sufficient coverage, there is clear, coherent sequencing of content. They question and probe teachers about choices, e.g. ‘why this, why then?’. This element of challenge is important in driving improvements in the quality of teaching and learning in the wider curriculum. They also gather pupil voice and feedback on their subject area.

This also allows subject leaders to have a clear understanding and awareness of what is being taught across the school and to assess whether the skills and content required for each year group is appropriate and is building on what has been learnt previously.

Written Outcomes

Teachers use links between subjects to add further learning opportunities and to show learning is connected. As much as possible, literacy work relates to children’s learning within the wider curriculum. Each term, children produce a writing outcome for History, Geography, Science and R.E. For example, in the Autumn term, Year 6 may write a historical fiction outcome linked to their work on the First World War using the key vocabulary and knowledge they have built up and an explanatory text linked to their Science unit on living things and habitats. Some areas of the curriculum are better taught discretely, and topic links are never forced. However, where links can be exploited they are, in order to motivate and immerse the children in a connected, engaging and memorable context. It is recommended that teachers plan in blocks to ensure lessons are closer together. This helps children build up vocabulary, knowledge and understanding to aid them in their final outcome.

IMPACT OF THE CURRICULUM

The children at Brecknock are proud of their work and their achievements, using their oracy skills to share and communicate this with others. We regularly review our curriculum with a range of stakeholders to ensure sequential, layered knowledge acquisition and check that pupil outcomes are of a very high quality.

We measure the impact of the curriculum against various outcomes through :

●     Pupil Progress meetings: triangulating teacher assessments, outcomes in books and summative assessment scores.

●     Internal audits and learning walks carried out by senior and middle leaders and governors: sampling children’s learning across subjects, collating pupil voice, book conferencing and surveys.

●     Reporting to governors regularly.

●     Parent surveys, working groups and meetings.

●     Professional development meetings with all staff.

●     Local Authority standards meetings: including the annual tracking of standards across the curriculum.

●     External reviews, including the Local Authority.

●     Comparative reviews and moderation within the Federation and other Local Authority schools.

To find out more information about our curriculum, please contact admin@brecknock.camden.sch.uk