Curriculum overview
Mrs Foster -Deputy Head Teacher has leadership overview of the school's curriculum.
OUR CURRICULUM
INTENT
At West Heath there is a collective understanding that children learn best when they are inspired by their learning; when they are active and when they are physically and emotionally healthy. We have worked hard to develop an inspiring curriculum that equips our children with the skills and knowledge necessary to live as responsible citizens in modern Britain, we truly want our pupils to believe that anything is possible!
Our curriculum is mapped to include coverage of the National Curriculum and provides a range of experiences for our children. At West Heath we champion every child to, ‘Be a Star Shine Bright!’
IMPLEMENTATION
At West Heath we have three curriculum drivers. These are the things that underpin our curriculum; the things we believe give our school its unique identity.
Our first curriculum driver is Physical Activity, which we passionately believe can play a crucial role in child development. We offer our children as many opportunities as possible to take part in an extensive range of sports, whilst also seeking out opportunities to include active elements in lessons across the entire curriculum.
Our second curriculum driver is Values Education, which also permeates everything we do. We believe that helping our pupils to develop strong values will give them the platform to go on and make a success of their future lives. As a school, we have seven values: collaboration, honesty, empathy, respect, resilience, determination and excellence. We teach children how to use and understand these values, so that they can grow into reflective individuals who make positive contributions to society and enjoy all the world has to offer.
Our final curriculum driver is Reading. As a school we have made a commitment to ensuringthat every child will leave our school as a competent reader, regardless of their ability. This commitment to reading is evident in all aspects of school life.
These curriculum drivers are at the heart of our curriculum, along with the core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science. However, we also value our wider curriculum, and our curriculum covers all other National Curriculum subjects. We are committed to ensuring that our children are exposed to a wide and varied range of learning experiences. Our curriculum is designed so that specific knowledge and skills are scaffolded within a topic each half term. These topics are linked to a specifically chosen novel, upon which the children’s work in English is based. In order to ensure that progression and balance is maintained, the programmes of study have been developed into comprehensive curriculum maps, which clearly outline the skills and knowledge our children should gain. Teachers use these to generate medium term plans which clearly highlight the learning objectives, assessment opportunities, tasks as well as links to other subjects. Teachers translate these plans into daily lessons where the specific needs of the learners are addressed.
IMPACT
We aim for all of our children to leave West Heath:
- Equipped with the skills and knowledge needed to be lifelong learners
- Believing that with hard work and determination, anything is possible
- To be respected citizens ready to make valuable contributions to social capital
- To understand the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle through physical activity and emotional wellbeing
- To read with fluency