CURRICULUM VISION
Our Curriculum Vision is to provide an inspiring education that sets all children up with the knowledge, skills and motivation needed to become learners for life – in the classroom and beyond. Through the curriculum and wider experiences, our children will become caring, responsible future citizens that the community are proud of.
Our curriculum aims can be grouped into 5 broad themes:
At Moston Fields, we use the Cornerstones curriculum as a basis for curriculum planning, allowing children to learn within a coherent and progressive framework. Knowledge, skills and understanding are developed through the four cornerstones approach: Engage, Develop, Innovate and Express.
As a result, ALL children access a broad and balanced curriculum through knowledge-rich learning projects which focus on developing creativity and interest within the arts – which we believe is essential for our children.
All teaching aims to ensure that children are engaged and inspired through stimulating activities that have purpose and challenge, making use of the environment and the community.
Children are able to develop their knowledge, skills and understanding in all subjects, using and applying what they have learnt in a creative way and having the opportunity to see clear links between different aspects of their learning.
Children are also given opportunities to share their knowledge and learning in a way that is meaningful for them and encourages parents and the community to be involved with the school.
When possible, links are made with the local community and to global events to enhance learning and to bring learning to life.
CURRICULUM CONTENT
Through Cornerstone’s imaginative Knowledge Rich Projects (KRPs), we have organised our curriculum content into a range of exciting themes and projects. These are designed and planned to excite, promote and sustain children’s interest, whilst also promoting innovation, problem solving, creativity and communication – key skills which will be essential to our children’s futures.
Children are also able to see how their learning links from one KRP to another, and across year groups and phases, by the use of ‘Big Ideas’. These are 10 themes that run throughout the curriculum, allowing children to see broader concepts and make links in their learning. The 10 ‘Big Ideas’ are:
Comparison; Nature; Materials; Humankind; Significance; Creativity; Investigation; Processes; Change; Place
Each curriculum subject is also split into ‘aspects’. This allows children to understand and organise subject specific knowledge and skills that they will revisit and build upon each year.
At the end of each KRP, children have the opportunity to ‘express’ their learning. These express events can take many forms but will always have two main aims:
- provide an opportunity to demonstrate, reflect on and evaluate their learning from the project they have completed
- use their learning in a meaningful way to make a positive contribution at a local or global level. In this way it will develop the children into positive change-makers in school, in their local community and also allow them to see themselves as global citizens
ENRICHMENT
Each KRP is launched with an ‘Engage’ event. This is a ‘hook’ to grab the children’s interest and excite them about the new project. It may take the form of a trip, a visitor into school or a themed day – something out of the ordinary!
To allow children the opportunity to share their knowledge and learning in a way that is meaningful for them, each KRP ends with an ‘Express’ event. Out of the 5 KRP’s, each class plans for two Express events that involve parents/wider community.
However, at Moston Fields, we understand that a broad and balanced curriculum goes far beyond the National Curriculum subjects. That is why we offer the following, as part of a planned and rigorous enriched curriculum, which also allows children at MFPS to further develop, use and apply key skills and knowledge (as well as support them to be the best that they can be):
- Rights Respecting approach
- Forest School
- Programme of Outdoor Adventurous Activities delivered by NACRO
- Place2Be
- Chicken Caring
- School therapy dog
- Gardening and Allotment
- Lunchtime and After School clubs
- Promotion of skills for life – communication, problem solving, self-belief, self-management and teamwork
- Year 6 Life-skills curriculum
- Themed days and Events (such as ‘Proud to Be . . .’, Creative Writing weeks, Family Learning Workshops)
WELL-BEING AND PUPIL VOICE IN THE CURRICULUM
A guiding principle at Moston Fields is that the curriculum must support the well-being of all pupils and allow children to have a clear say in their education. This runs through-out the curriculum in many different ways. However, for clarity, our curriculum will give children the opportunity to:
In addition, children will develop the ability to make a positive contribution to the school and local community, explore ways of becoming an active citizen and express their opinions on a range of different topics and issues, including making choices about things
that are important to them.
Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural development (SMSC) and Fundamental British Values (FBV) IN THE CURRICULUM
The curriculum provides children with the opportunity to develop the following:
Spiritual - Explore beliefs, experience and faiths, feelings and values; enjoy learning about oneself, others and the surrounding world; use imagination and creativity and reflect on experiences
Moral - Recognise right and wrong and respect the law; understand consequences; investigate moral and ethical issues and offer reasoned views
Social - Use a range of social skills to participate in the local community and beyond; appreciate diverse viewpoints; participate, volunteer and cooperate; resolve conflict
Cultural - Appreciate cultural influences; appreciate the role of Britain’s parliamentary system; participate in culture opportunities; understand, accept, respect and celebrate diversity
Children will also explore and understand the ideas of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and tolerance and respect.