Curriculum Overview
At Linton Mead, we believe in providing a creative, stimulating and challenging curriculum where our children feel safe to take risks. We believe in helping children develop their resilience and preparing them for a successful, happy life. We believe in all our children becoming higher-order thinkers and problem solvers who have strong autonomy and control over their actions and choices. Our curriculum reflects this: we use an investigative approach to maths learning with mastery and depth of understanding being paramount. We plan high-quality English Learning journeys including teaching reading based on use of high-quality texts, talk, higher-order questioning, modelling and scaffolding and principles from ‘Let’s Think’; our science is focussed around enquiry; our creative curriculum is based on challenge, building on prior knowledge and quality learning experiences; we invest in quality learning in music, drama, art and PE. We believe we are part of a ‘Professional Learning Community’ where professional dialogue and research-based development will inform and challenge our practise.
Our curriculum is designed to ensure our children receive their statutory entitlement as set out in the National Curriculum. The delivery of this curriculum is done through our constructivist pedagogy. We have designed a curriculum which builds on prior knowledge, is concept based and progresses across the key stages. Knowledge, skills and knowledge retention are key to our aims.
Aims
Our curriculum enables all children to become:
- Motivated, successful learners
- Resilient, problem solvers keen to transfer their knowledge and skills to new challenges
- Confident and aware of their own potential and how to achieve it
- Happy and fulfilled
- Responsible citizens who can make a positive contribution to society aware of their roles and responsibilities
- Individuals who understand the value of learning and who continue that process throughout their lives
- Autonomous and in control of their actions and choices
- Respectful of themselves and the lives, beliefs and cultures of others
- Aware of their roles and responsibilities in a free-thinking, democratic society
- Creative and inspired
Context
Effective communication is key to the success of the children in our school context. We have extremely high expectations of communication, manners and mutual respect. Our children are taught to express themselves sensitively and eloquently and demonstrate the utmost respect to each other, the wider school community and visitors to our school. Our curriculum is designed to embed these skills and abilities.
Purpose
Our curriculum will:
- Promote high standards within English, mathematics and all subjects across the curriculum
- Provide continued entitlement from early years to a coherent, broad and balanced curriculum
- Align with the 'Let's Think' philosophy
- Promote awareness of mental health and well being
- Reflect the diverse communities and backgrounds represented in our school community
- Promote democracy, freedom of speech and responsibility in our society
- Encourage depth of thought through concept-based learning
- Be rooted in high-quality input: texts, visitors, projects, end goals, art, poetry, music and concepts
- Be relevant to our children and challenge them
- Instill a sense of awe and wonder in our children
Curriculum Framework Map
Our curriculum framework map incorporates all aspects of the statutory entitlement set out in the National Curriculum. It has been designed as a series of termly concepts for the children to explore underpinned by a lead subject:
Lead subjects
Autumn 1: History
Autumn 2: Geography
Spring 1: The Arts
Spring 2: STEM learning (lead subject, science)
Summer 1: Philosophy (lead subject, RE)
Summer 2: Health (lead subject, PE)
Please click below to see our whole school curriculum map
Linton Mead Concept-Based Curriculum Whole School Map
Spring Term whole school projects
Every Spring, we design learning for the whole school based on a theme or text. We aim for these projects to follow a collaboration or work with a creative partner. Examples are:
'Polar Worlds: Extreme Survival' following our collaboration with the National Maritime Museum.
'A Midsummer Night's Dream' following our collaboration with the Royal Shakespeare Company
'The Place Between' following our collaboration with 'Punchdrunk Theatre Company'
Please click below to see images from our Spring Term Exhibitions and to read about our partnerships
UKLA Literacy School of the Year Award
Concept-based Learning overviews
We believe that children can have an enriching, deep learning journey through exploring concepts.
R.E. teaching is taken from the Royal Borough of Greenwich scheme of work: Windows on Faith. Units have been allocated to fit in with the overall theme where possible. The National Curriculum attainment targets for all aspects of English and mathematics are provided separately. We use the 'White Rose' materials to structure our progressive maths learning. It is expected that the skills and understanding in English (and mathematics where appropriate) will be developed and taught through the other subject areas as part of the unit of learning. The school uses the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised programme to deliver phonics teaching in EYFS and KS1. We do not follow a reading scheme in KS1 as we believe it is important for children to enjoy a broad range of texts. Whole class approaches to reading take place daily across KS2.