Curriculum Rationale

Curriculum Intent

Our curriculum puts the child at the centre of our caring, sharing, achieving school, where positive relationships,
based on mutual trust and respect are at the heart of everything we do.  We are a family of learners, journeying through life.  Our ambitious curriculum has been designed to take account of the newly evolving the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum and the Primary National Curriculum.  Through a thematic curriculum model, it exposes our children to enriching experiences, immersing them in progressive knowledge and skills; equipping them with personal characteristics required to succeed in life. The locality of the school allows for the local context to weave into the curriculum, enriching cultural capital and capturing diverse narratives. Storytelling, the creative and performing arts are pivotal to our curriculum delivery and ensure that our pupils are immersed in vibrant experiences, allowing each of them to express themselves as an individual.

The key principles behind the design of our curriculum are for our pupils to:
•    be confident, independent and resilient; displaying a thirst for learning
•    be kind; showing empathy and compassion whilst valuing diversity and multiple identities
•    achieve academically across the entire curriculum, meeting at least the national expectation by the end of their primary education
•    be culturally knowledgeable about our country and our world
•    aspire for the future and know that these can be reached through hard work and determination
•    be well prepared for the challenges of the secondary school curriculum
•    Ultimately, we want all of our pupils, to be the best they can be, making a positive contribution to the world they live in.

Curriculum Implementation

Pupils are expected to work hard and demonstrate positive learning behaviours to both maximise their own individual learning potential as well as contribute to the school and wider community. Our school House Points system allows us to reward the behaviours we strive to develop. We have high expectations of attendance, academic achievement and pupil behaviour. We are committed to working in partnership with parents as we believe that when home and school work closely together we get the best outcomes for our pupils. 
PSHE lies at the heart of the curriculum we deliver to closely meet the needs of our pupils. Our bespoke and context driven PSHE framework, focusing on well-being, positive self-awareness, relationships and the wider world, was written after extensive consultation with the whole school community. Our pupils have access to a wide range of opportunities which promote personal safety and pupil voice with all pupils being actively involved in whole school decision making through the School Council and many positions of responsibility. Our curriculum recognises the importance of pupils’ physical and mental well-being in shaping their long-term lifestyle choices.
We believe that our fundamental task is to teach our pupils to speak clearly and articulately and to read and write effectively. Language acquisition underpins all that we strive for at Pippins.

Reading across all curriculum areas is a priority to extend and deepen pupils understanding and use of vocabulary. We want pupils to develop a love of, and for reading during their time at Pippins School and be exposed to a range of classic, international and contemporary literature. The use of the school library and class shared texts are pivotal to this. In order to raise aspirations and equip pupils with a real belief that they can achieve anything if they are prepared to work hard, it is imperative that we prioritise experiential learning within our curriculum, encased in cultural capital.

Visitors are regularly invited into school; educational and residential visits are carefully chosen to deepen understanding and we make the most of our outdoor learning environment to enhance hands-on learning experiences.

Curriculum Impact

The impact of the curriculum is monitored though triangulation of outcomes: pupil voice, test/data outcomes, planning, monitoring of books and displays, lesson learning walks, discussions with teaching staff, pupils and parents. Pupils, parents and staff are consistently and regularly consulted about the curriculum and the impact that it makes. 
The desired outcomes of the curriculum will ensure that pupils are well rounded learners, ready to embark on high school education leading to lifelong learning. They will be equipped with the foundations and skills to achieve success in later education. Pupils will have a secure understanding of what they are good at, and have developed skills to face challenges.  They will be self-regulating reflective thinkers and learners, all the while conscious of their multiple identities and be appreciate of celebrating differences, wherever they may live, work and play.
The greatest impact will allow for every Pippins pupil to leave our school, as a:

• Global citizen of the world
• A unique individual, and
• A self-motivated learner.