‘Oh the Places You’ll Go’
Further Information about our curriculum can be found on our Curriculum Intent Pages
Our wish is for Willows children, regardless of their background, abilities or individual needs, to be aspirational in all aspects of their lives, both now and in the future.
At Willows, we break down barriers both socially and academically to ensure that all of our children have the ambition, opportunities, knowledge and skills required to achieve the best outcomes in life. Our children will leave our school with a high academic understanding, treasured memories, and ultimately a life-long love of learning.
Equally as important is that our children are well-rounded individuals with a clear sense of identity and individuality. We want them to have positive self-esteem, great ambition for themselves and a strong internal motivation to embark upon any path in life they wish to. We want them to make good choices and to be intrinsically driven to do the right thing, even when they face adversity.
When Willows children enter secondary school, we want them to have the confidence, motivation and skills to thrive within a new setting. The lessons we have taught them at Willows will extend far beyond our classroom walls. Within their journey into the wider world, we want our values to shine through so that our children can make a positive contribution to society and have the capability to achieve social mobility.
Our children will recognise themselves as change makers in their own lives who are empowered to steer themselves in any direction they choose!
We have designed our curriculum around our children and our community. We have considered the experiences our children bring from outside of school, the interests and aspirations they hold and have thought carefully about how we build on these.
We recognise that a curriculum has to be broad, balanced and offer pupils opportunities to grow as individuals as well as learners. We place importance on developing the whole child. Learning and the curriculum not only focuses on academic achievement but also on skills and values which will support them in their wider life. For example living a healthy life style, ambition, empathy, resilience and independence.
We ensure that fundamental skills and concepts are mastered and children are given the chance to apply these across a range of contexts. Children are provided with high quality vocabulary to support their learning but also to develop their ability to articulate further in life beyond the classroom. Alongside this we ensure that children develop a love of learning through an inspiring, creative curriculum. Children are encouraged to see the links between their learning and to understand how everything fits together.
How we Do It
We develop our children through a combination of what is taught, how it is taught and all daily interactions we have within our school. Staff are guided by our Willows principles and always behave with these in mind to ensure that everything we do reflects these and grows our children. The Willows Way embodies our school values which are embedded throughout all aspects of school life.
We use many teaching and learning strategies throughout the school to help children achieve their goals.
We recognise the importance of reading. Once a child can read fluently other areas of learning are accessed more readily. With this in mind, the development of reading is key throughout EYFS and KS1. We aim for all children to be reading fluently by the end of year 2. Alongside this, we place importance on vocabulary development in order for our children to be able to speak widely and confidently by the time they leave us.
Across the school, learning is exciting. This is to inspire our children to become life-long learners. The curriculum is delivered through mini adventures. These begin with a ‘fascinator’ which hook children into their learning journey. First hand experiences are very important to us. All children will go on a trip or invite a visitor into their classroom at least once each half term. Children are always actively involved in their learning and are encouraged to take ownership over their learning. Children are taught resilience and problem solving. They accept that they may not be able to do something first time and use strategies to problem solve and persevere until they get there.
The sequence of learning has been carefully thought out. All lessons take into account previous learning to ensure that new learning builds up progressively. Learning is chunked into small steps so the progression is seamless. Children are given the chance to revisit previous learning through lesson warm ups. This allows them to practice and consolidate skills or retrieve knowledge in order to keep it fresh and easily accessible to the child.
Teaching is always to mastery. This means that all children achieve a high level of understanding before moving on. This allows children to develop secure foundations in all concepts which makes new learning easier. Teaching is explicit. Teachers model expectations to children who then are actively involved with applying their learning. They are both supported and challenged within every lesson. This may be with resources, adult support, questioning or outcomes.
The personal development of our children is of huge importance at Willows. Our curriculum is designed so personal development is an intrinsic part. Personal Development is structured into four areas; Health and Well Being, Cultural Capital, The Willows Way (character curriculum) and Living in the Wider World. Personal Development is within all areas of school life as well as being carefully been placed alongside and within other subject areas and stand-alone lessons where applicable. Well thought out progression documents ensure that personal development is continually referred to and built on across a child’s time at Willows.
As part of our Personal Development curriculum and the desire for all children to achieve social mobility, we commit to ensuring we grow the cultural capital of our children. This is through many parts of the curriculum. Our high academic expectations ensure children have the skills and knowledge to succeed but we recognise children need more than this. We also strive to give children the cultural knowledge to enable them to thrive in society. For example children are exposed to the ‘Greats’ in music, art and sport. Educational visits take them to places which will expand their cultural awareness for example galleries, museums and places of worship. This is embed within the curriculum.
The social and emotional needs of our children takes prominence within our curriculum design. School is a safe place where all children are valued and nurtured. Staff know the importance of developing strong relationships with children and they know they are listened to and their opinions are respected. Our nursery and reception classes have a focus on the prime areas to ensure children are ready to learn. Activities are designed to take needs into account. Lots of early intervention takes place to support children in the gaps they are missing. Once in KS1, the focus on good mental health and well-being continues to grow through a focus on positive relationships as well as ensuring all mini adventures have a SMSC element to them. Those children who still struggle may access nurture provision within the school to help further. Our Inclusion Team support these children as well as their families to ensure that all basic needs are met so children can fully access the curriculum. We value the importance of parental engagement and include this within the curriculum. Family members are given opportunities across the year to visit school and play a part in their child’s learning.
Children’s self-esteem is grown through positive language and interactions with adults as well as other children. Children are taught to respect themselves and others. Throughout our curriculum, children have the chance to consider the diversity of both Britain and the world in order to develop both a curious and respectful mind.
We offer a huge range of extra-curricular activities to enhance our children’s learning experience and perhaps spark an interest which they may wish to pursue as they get older. The activities cover a wide range to ensure that everyone can find something that interests them. As part of this, we aim for all children within KS2 to have the opportunity to compete outside of school.
If you wish to know more about our curriculum, please browse our website or contact the school.