Our Curriculum
Intent
Our curriculum gives children the right skills to succeed in the next stage of their education, to be interested and ask questions about the world around them and to have a moral standpoint which reflects the Christian foundation of the school and that will enable them to be able to contribute in a positive way to our society.
Rationale
At the heart of our curriculum are the needs of our pupils and families. We want learning to be meaningful and memorable so that our pupils are ready for the next step in their journey. Our aim to create well-rounded, life-long learners, who nurture kindness and respect in others in the world and who are prepared for the challenges and adventures that await them.
Our Curriculum Includes:
Our curriculum gives children the right skills to succeed in the next stage of their education, to be interested and ask questions about the world around them and to have a moral standpoint which reflects the Christian foundation of the school and that will enable them to be able to contribute in a positive way to our society.
Rationale
At the heart of our curriculum are the needs of our pupils and families. We want learning to be meaningful and memorable so that our pupils are ready for the next step in their journey. Our aim to create well-rounded, life-long learners, who nurture kindness and respect in others in the world and who are prepared for the challenges and adventures that await them.
Our Curriculum Includes:
Our curriculum is underpinned by the National Curriculum, which has been adapted so that learning is put into meaningful contexts that will be built upon each other as children progress through school.
In Key Stage One, foundation subjects are taught through a cross-curricular termly topic that combines History, Geography, Music, Design Technology and Art and Design. These topics are centre around an enquiry question and the focus is to immerse the children fully in the themes so that it captures their imaginations and brings the topic to life in a meaningful way. This progresses in Key Stage Two, in that History and Geography are combined into termly topics based on an enquiry question that incorporates overview and depth studies of National Curriculum subject content. Across KS1 and KS2, these topics are taught for an entire term to ensure that children are learning the appropriate skills, developing a deeper knowledge of the subject content and being challenged to apply this knowledge to different contexts. Also, this approach provides the opportunity for mastery of these foundation subjects, as well as the potential to achieve a greater depth understanding beyond that level. Through the ‘Arts’, we want to ensure that children are provided with cultural capital and experiences that go beyond their everyday life. Art and Design, Design Technology and Music are alternated each term to ensure that these subjects are given more focused time each week to allow for the emphasis on skills and understanding in a creative way, these subjects are taught as part of a topic in KS1 and as separate subjects in KS2. The ‘Arts’ will also be celebrated through theme days, trips, workshops in school and links with Manchester Grammar School and Manchester High School for Girls. Across the school, Science is given the same prominence as Maths and English and is taught for a minimum of 90 minutes each week. Our science curriculum places emphasis on ‘Working Scientifically’, as well as ensuring that given time, children will develop a high level of understanding by applying practical enquiry skills and building on prior learning. Religious Education lessons are taught weekly following the Blackburn (Manchester) Diocesan Board of Education ‘Questful RE’ and ‘Understanding Christianity’, which focuses on children being on a quest to discover more about themselves, others, the world and God. Christianity is the main focus as our school is Church of England with a Christian Ethos. Themes include ‘The life of Jesus’; ‘The Church and ‘The Christian way of life’. There is also an emphasis on the coverage of non-Christian faiths, such as Judaism, Islam and Hinduism, which are significantly represented in the school community. This highlights the importance of ensure that wide-ranging cultures in our school are celebrated and that there is an emphasis on global diversity. In our world today, computers are part of everyday life. Technology is vital to our lives, at home and at work. Our computing curriculum puts ‘Computational thinking’ at the centre and provides children the practical skills they need to participate and succeed in today’s digital world. Computing is taught for 60 minutes per week across Key Stage One and Two. Children build the foundational skills, knowledge and understanding of Computer Science, Information Technology and Digital Literacy with continued focus on E-Safety. Schools are an ideal environment for promoting good health and emotional wellbeing practices. At St James’ we ensure children are equipped with the knowledge, skills and experiences to maintain healthy bodies and minds throughout their lives. In Key Stage One and Two, children have three 60 minutes sessions of Physical Education per week (outdoor games, gymnastics, dance or swimming). There are two additional shorter sessions of Physical Activity per week (aerobics and weekly mile run). We promote active playtimes through Year 5 and 6 Play Leaders who run activities for younger children. Each year group has the opportunity to take part in Forest School sessions for 6 weeks per year. Children also take part in Philosophy for Children in standalone lessons as well as through opportunities for purposeful cross curricular links as part of subjects across the curriculum. P4C promotes an enquiry based curriculum where pupils are encouraged to ask questions and find the answers through discussion of social values. Therefore, children develop the ability to recognise differences and explore these constructively. Our Modern Foreign Languages curriculum, encourage children to develop an interest in learning other languages by stimulating their curiosity in a fun and enjoyable way that extends beyond mother tongue learning. Spanish is taught from EYFS through to KS2, with Mandarin being introduced in KS2. Our curriculum, is varied, creative and has our children at its heart. It ensure that children develop the skills and knowledge that prepares them for future learning, as well as preparing them for their future. It adapts to the needs and interests of our children, our community and the wider world we live in. We are continually changing and moving forward, to ensure we give our children the very best start in life. As a Voluntary Aided school, St James' follows the new Primary National Curriculum, including the English and Mathematics curricula, which can be found here. All of our curriculum maps have been designed to deliver this curriculum. Information regarding the Church of England's Statement of Entitlement for Religious Education in Church Schools can be found here. Our EYFS CurriculumWatch this space for more information! |
What are our Curriculum AIMS? Our curriculum has been designed to:
Our curriculum is designed to enable every child to: achieve well in all areas of the curriculum.
Subject Intents
Curriculum MapsOur curriculum is continually changing and is adapted for each cohort, therefore please look at our class pages for a more detailed overview of what is currently being covered.
Diversifying our CurriculumAt our school we have worked hard to ensure our curriculum is diverse, relevant and reflects our community. Diversity is celebrated and woven throughout lessons in all subjects across the our curriculum. Our aim is that every child feels represented and valued through an ever changing curriculum. Diversity is reflected in all aspects of our KS1 curriculum, from exploring the work of Helen Keller in Science; discovering the British Saxophonist Yolanda Brown in music to be introduced to the works of Pakistani artists Medhi and Bakre in art. Not to forget, learning about the intrepid explorers Mae Jemison and Matthew Henson in the topic 'What a Wonderful World'. In Lower Key Stage Two, rock and soils is brought to life in science by learning about visually-impaired paleontologist Geerat Vermeij. Diversity continues to be interwoven in the curriculum by exploring immigration in Stone Age Britain, as well as discovering the works of 21st Century Female Composer Kerry Andrews in music. Furthermore, disability activism and protests are researched inspired by our local area study on the Peterloo Massacre. This celebration of diversity continues in Upper Key Stage, when discovering the significant role BAME troops in World War Two , as well as, the significance of code breaker Alan Turing in the Battle of the Atlantic in this fascinating history topic. Furthermore in science, female astronomer Jane X Luu is researched in the topic on Earth and Space, where children will also find out about the asteroid named after Malala Yousafzai, who is an modern activist for female education. A further local area history study on the Suffrage Movement in Manchester empowers the next generation to have their voices heard and not forgetting the British Composer Daniel Kidane, whose Dream Song uses fragments of Martin Luther King's 'I have a dream' speech is studied in music. Responsive CurriculumAlthough teachers are expected to meet the demands of the National Curriculum, including knowledge content and skills, we still considers our curriculum to have ‘space’ for taking opportunities, addressing current affairs. world events and celebrations of culture, meeting identified needs or engaging the interests of particular classes within its approach. 
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