Our aim is to provide a broad and balanced curriculum suited to the needs of the individual children. We consider our curriculum to be part of a child's life long learning journey. We acknowledge and build upon learning which has taken place before children enter our school and we lay foundations which will enable all our children to make the best possible use of the educational opportunities and become life long learners.

This curriculum is based on the programmes of study incorporated in the National Curriculum core subjects English, Maths and Science and foundation subjects History, Geography, Technology, Music, Art, ICT and P.E. together with the agreed Northants syllabus for Religious Education and PSHE.

English

Speaking & Listening

We aim to encourage children to express themselves and to communicate fluently and articulately, with clarity and purpose, in an interesting and varied manner. Similarly, they are encouraged to listen and to appreciate other speakers with all their variations of tone, vocabulary, dialect and content.

Activities will build upon the oral language and experiences, which pupils bring from home. We aim to develop the children's skills to be able to read for both pleasure and retrieving  information. Teaching will cover a range of inspiring literature, both fiction, non-fiction and poetry and should ensure that pupils regularly have the opportunity to hear and share stories and poetry.

Reading & Writing

Success in reading is achieved through partnership between home and school. Therefore, we encourage children to take an independent reading book and an individual reading record, which we ask you to sign when you hear them read. Positive parental comments in this booklet will be much appreciated. We ask that parents accept the responsibility for the care and return of all books. Book bags are available for purchase from the school office.

We offer a huge variety of books for your children to read, including those from high quality reading schemes and a variety of ‘real books’ that can be found in the school library. We ask parents to share in the teaching of reading both at home and in school.  We also recommend  https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/

  which has over 250 free ebooks you can share with your child.

Read Write Inc. Phonics is taught daily in EYFS and  year 1 and some year 2 children will also follow the programme. The children are taught in differentiated groups, to allow us to meet their needs successfully. Our English teaching is based on the objectives from the National Curriculum. We teach different genres of fiction writing, including poetry and a variety of non-fiction text types.  English lessons are based on  inspirational  books, texts and poems and the skills of writing are taught through carefully scaffolded modelling by the teacher,  working through each year group's end of year expectations.  There are also whole school English units based on  specific books with each year group working at their level. All children in Years 1-6 will be given a weekly spelling list to learn as homework and will be tested weekly.

What is RWI phonics?

Read Write Inc (RWI) is a phonics based programme which helps children learn to read whilst also developing a wide range of vocabulary and encouraging a love of stories. It was developed by Ruth Miskin and more information on this can be found at www.ruthmiskinliteracy.com .   
Who is Read Write Inc. for?  The Read Write Inc. programme is for primary school children learning to read. Children will begin the programme in Year R and will remain on the programme until they are reading at expected year 2 level. 

http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/resources/parent-tutorial-1-understanding-read-write-inc-phonics/

http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/resources/information-parents-spelling/

http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/resources/information-parents-reading-bouncy-sounds-your-child/

http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/resources/information-parents-reading-digraphs-your-child/

http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/resources/sound-pronunciation-guide/

http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/resources/parent-tutorial-phonics-screening-check/

http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/resources/parent-tutorial-teaching-sound-blending/

How will it work? 

Year R 

Children will be taught a sound a day and will be assessed regularly by their class teachers.  When they have reached an appropriate level they will be grouped according to their reading level, and will be taught for up to an hour, when they will start reading and writing alongside learning the new sounds.

Years 1 - 2

All children who are working at or below a National Curriculum level will be assessed regularly. The children will complete reading and writing activities for an hour each day, grouped according to their reading level.  Children will be grouped according to their stage not their age, so classes will be mixed and taught by different teachers/teaching assistants.  Three times a week the children  will receive an extra 15 minutes a day working purely on identifying sounds and  blending.  

How do we know RWI works? 

Schools embedding this programme have been recognised by OFSTED in the HMI ‘Reading by Six Report’ (November 2010) as an example of how the best schools teach reading.

What does the RWI teaching process look like? 

Children are first taught the pure ‘set 1 sounds’ so that they will be able to blend the sounds in words more easily. In School we call this ‘Fred Talk’. We do not use letter names at this stage; we simply focus on the sounds that are used to sound out words. At this stage, the children are not only taught the ‘sound’ the letter makes, but also how to form the letter, using a rhyme and picture prompt.

To view correct pronunciation of the sounds, please watch the video below. 

How can I help my child at home?

• Establish a routine to include reading regularly throughout the day and the week  o Have fun with Fred Talk at home e.g. Where is your c_oa_t? Time for b_e_d!
• Encourage your child to ‘Fred Talk’ or ‘sound out’ any unfamiliar words  o Recognise ‘red words’ together – remember ‘you can’t Fred a red!’
• Fill in the ‘Comments’ box in your child’s reading record / planner to keep a dialogue with the class teacher.
• Read as many stories to your child as you can. Traditional tales, stories from other cultures, poetry, their favourite story - talk about the stories with them. 
• Explain the meaning of new words. Most importantly though, show the fun that can be gained by listening to stories.

Please click on the link to open.

http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/resources/sound-pronunciation-guide/

Articulation of phonemes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqhXUW_v-1s&list=PLb-oAd3OfeVOub3F83Ef0yOCy32VFoOBrhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqhXUW_v-1s&list=PLb-oAd3OfeVOub3F83Ef0yOCy32VFoOBr            

Sentence creation.

http://www.sentenceplay.co.uk/DroppingIn.html    

Mathematics

Mathematics is essential to everyday life, critical to science, technology and engineering, and necessary for financial literacy and most forms of employment. A high-quality mathematics education therefore provides a foundation for understanding the world, the ability to reason mathematically, an appreciation of the beauty and power of mathematics, and a sense of enjoyment and curiosity about the subject.

In the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), we relate the mathematical aspects of the children's work to the Early Years Outcomes document and the Early Learning Goals (ELG).

Mathematical development involves providing children with opportunities to practise and improve and master their skills in arithmetic and mathematical reasoning. Children are encouraged to access a wide range of mathematical resources to support their learning.  

Science

Science plays an important part in all aspects of life today. As a school, we feel that good scientific knowledge and understanding will prepare our children for adulthood. Science can further children’s natural curiosity and give them ways of working and thinking to explore the world in which we live. In accordance with the school policy on teaching and learning, staff aim to teach science in ways which make it relevant and meaningful, drawing whenever possible on examples taken from the real world. The school runs a rolling programme of science study.

Geography

Enquiry will form an important part of our work and involve direct practical experiences within the local area. We aim to develop the children’s knowledge of places and environments throughout the world; an understanding of maps and their range of investigative and problem solving skills both inside and outside the classroom. Field visits are arranged to enhance geographical study.

Design Technology

We aim to give children the skills to identify the opportunities and need for design and technology activities, investigate these and where appropriate generate design plans and make prototypes, evaluating the finished product. Pupils will be given opportunities to work with a range of materials, including food and fabric.

Computing

We aim to produce learners who are confident and effective users of ICT, communicating and handling information across the whole range of the curriculum. This will include the use of computers and cameras to store, retrieve and sort information. The school is well equipped with computer equipment. All classrooms are equipped with a projector, interactive whiteboard and visualiser. We also have pupil laptops and i-Pads for use by the children. 

History

When teaching history, we aim to fire the children’s imagination about the past in Britain and the wider world.  Stressing the importance of how the past influences the present, we teach children about past societies, developing their sense of chronology and understanding of significant events and people. During historical study, children are encouraged to find evidence, evaluate it and draw their own conclusions. History gives children an opportunity to research.

Religious education and collective worship

At St Mary's Primary Academy, there is a daily act of collective worship, the children will gather for an assembly as a whole school, key stage or class. Many of the assemblies are based on our school values Friendship, aspiration, hope, forgiveness and justice. We also celebrate festivals and special events from all major world religions. Each assembly allows time for prayer and quiet reflection and is of a broadly Christian character. 

Our program of study for Religious Education follows the County’s Agreed Syllabus and covers a wide range of world religions and faiths and promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, social, mental and physical development of the child. We encourage the children to develop mutual respect and tolerance for other people’s values and beliefs. Opportunities for visits to places of worship are provided and we have visitors to lead worship in school from time to time. Parents may request that their child be withdrawn from all or part of our Religious Education program or collective worship and we will make available details of the content to help parents with this decision.

Arts

We aim to give the children the skills and opportunities to express themselves in a variety of media and forms. Through this we hope they may develop aesthetic awareness and appreciation and satisfy their creative instincts and needs.  The children have the opportunity to learn different  skills to  develop drawing, painting and creating skills whilst learning about a range of  artists and their styles. The children are given the opportunity to participate in singing and music making and learn to appreciate a range of forms and styles of music. We aim for music making to be fun and enjoyable, both through actively taking part and enjoying the performances of others.

Physical education

We value the importance of regular physical exercise to promote the health and physical well-being of every child. All children receive regular PE lessons teaching games skills, gymnastics, dance and athletics.

Personal, Social and Health Education

The school covers aspects of personal, social and health education as integral parts of other areas of the curriculum. Pastoral care is embodied within the school ethos and all staff are responsible for monitoring the care and well being of the pupils in their class. PSHE is taught weekly  using  both Go- givers resources and  Philosophy for Children.

The Foundation Stage

In Reception classes, we follow the Early Years Foundation Stage. Learning is organised in these areas:

• Communication and Language
• Physical development 
• Personal, social and emotional development
• Literacy
• Mathematics
• Understanding the World
• Expressive Arts & Design 

Learning is through play and through direct teaching of foundation skills. In all areas of the curriculum, children work on carefully planned activities to meet their needs. The staff spend time observing the children to gain evidence of their development and to inform future planning. Children particularly enjoy the exciting activities planned around a shared theme.