Curriculum Organisation

At Upottery we follow the National Curriculum 2014 in accordance with statutory requirements. Upottery prides itself on teaching a broad and balanced curriculum so that children with talents in any area can excel. Through the delivery of the curriculum we ensure that children are well-rounded citizens with a promotion of British values.

When children first enter school they will be taught in accordance with the framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. This is the first part of the National Curriculum focusing on children from birth to the end of reception year. The philosophy underpinning the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum is that learning is planned and structured with an emphasis on fun, relevant and motivating activities. Our school has a large, purpose built outside area to complement the range of learning we offer.

Foundation Stage Reception    

Key Stage One (Year 1 and Year 2)

Key Stage Two (Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6)

Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is the statutory framework published by the Department of Education that sets the standards for the development, learning and care of children from birth to five. There are three prime areas of learning: Communication and language; Physical development and Personal, social and emotional development. There are four specific areas of learning: Literacy, Mathematics, Understanding the world and Expressive Arts and design. The three learning characteristics are: playing and exploring; Active learning and Creating and thinking critically. Our provision for the pupils is underpinned by this framework and learning occurs in a safe, creative framework led by an experienced team of staff.

English

Key Stage One

Children learn to speak confidently and listen to what others have to say. They begin to read and write independently and with enthusiasm. They use language to explore their own experiences and imaginary worlds. All children in Key Stage 1 have high quality direct phonic teaching through systematic and high quality phonic sessions based on Letters and Sounds Six Phase teaching system from the Primary national Strategy and Jolly Phonics~ a multi-sensory synthetic phonics programme. We use a variety of high quality books which are banded for individual and guided reading including two core series (Oxford Reading Tree and Rigby Star) supplemented with titles from other series for diversity, breadth and relevance to specific topics.

Key Stage Two

Children learn to change the way they speak and write to suit different situations, purposes and audiences. They read a range of texts and respond to different layers of meaning in them. They explore the use of language in literary and non-literary texts and learn how language works.

Mathematics

Key Stage One

Children develop their knowledge and understanding of mathematics through practical activity, exploration and discussion. They learn to count, read, write and order numbers to 100 and beyond. They develop a range of mental calculation skills and use these confidently in different settings. They learn about shape and space through practical activity, which builds on their understanding of their immediate environment. They begin to grasp mathematical language, using it to talk about their methods and explain their reasoning when solving problems.

Key Stage Two

Children use the number system more confidently. They move from counting reliably to calculating fluently with all four number operations. They always try to tackle a problem with mental methods before using any other approach. Children explore features of shape and space and develop their measuring skills in a range of contexts. They discuss and present their methods and reasoning using a wider range of mathematical language, diagrams and charts.

Science

Key Stage One

Children observe, explore and ask questions about living things, materials, electricity, forces, light and sound. They begin to work together to collect evidence to help them answer questions and to link this to simple scientific ideas. They evaluate evidence and consider whether tests are fair. They use reference materials to find out more about scientific ideas. They share their ideas and communicate them using scientific language, drawings, charts and tables.

Key Stage Two

In addition to the above, children begin to make links between ideas and to explain things using simple models and theories. They apply their knowledge and understanding of scientific ideas to everyday things and personal health. They begin to think about the positive and negative effects of scientific and technological developments on the environment and in other contexts.

Design and Technology

Key Stage One

Children learn how to think imaginatively and talk about what they like and dislike when designing and making. They build on their early childhood experiences of investigating objects around them. They explore how familiar things work and talk about, draw and model their ideas. They learn how to design and make safely. They may use computers as part of their designing and making.

Key Stage Two

Children work on their own and as part of a team on a range of designing and making activities. They think about what products are used for and the needs of the people who use them. They plan what has to be done and identify what works well and what could be improved in their own and other people's designs. They draw on knowledge and understanding from other areas of the curriculum and use computers in a range of ways.

Information Communication Technology [ICT]

Our school has a network which allows pupils to access their files of work from anywhere in the school. Our classroom based computers mean they are used as cross-curricular tools, integral to learning every day.

Key Stage One

Children explore ICT and learn to use it confidently and with purpose to achieve specific outcomes. They start to use ICT to develop their ideas and record their creative work. They become familiar with computers and a range of programs.

Key Stage Two

Children use a wider range of ICT tools and information sources to support their work in other subjects. They develop their research skills and decide what information is appropriate for their work. They begin to question the plausibility and quality of information. They learn how to amend their work and present it in a way that suits its audience. Our laptop trolleys allow cross curricular access.

History

Key Stage One

Children learn about people's lives. They find out about people and events from the recent and more distant past, including those from both Britain and the wider world. They listen and respond to stories and use sources of information to help them ask and answer questions. They learn how the past is different from the present.

Key Stage Two

Children learn about change and continuity in their own area, in Britain and in other parts of the world. They look at history in a variety of ways, for example political, economic, technological and scientific, social, religious, cultural or artistic. They use different sources of information to help them investigate the past both in depth and in overview, using dates and historical vocabulary to describe events, people and developments. They also learn that the past can be represented and interpreted in different ways.

Geography

Key Stage One

Children investigate their local area and a contrasting area in the United Kingdom or abroad, finding out about the environment in both areas and the people who live there. They also begin to learn about the wider world. They carry out geographical enquiry inside and outside the classroom. In doing this they ask geographical questions about people, places and environments, and use geographical skills and resources such as maps and photographs.

Key Stage Two

Children investigate a variety of people, places and environments at different scales in the UK and abroad, and start to make links between different places in the world. They find out how people affect the environment and how they are affected by it. They carry out geographical enquiry inside and outside the classroom. In doing this they ask geographical questions, and use geographical skills and resources such as maps, atlases, aerial photographs and ICT.

Art

Key Stage One

Children develop their creativity and imagination by exploring the visual, tactile and sensory qualities of materials and processes. They learn about the role of art, craft and design in their environment. They begin to understand colour, shape, space, pattern and texture and use them to represent their ideas and feelings.

Key Stage Two

Children develop their creativity and imagination through more complex activities. These help to build on their skills and improve their control of materials, tools and techniques. They increase their critical awareness of the roles and purposes of art, craft and design in different times and cultures. They become more confident in using visual and tactile elements and materials and processes to communicate what they see, feel and think.

Music

Key Stage One

Children listen carefully and respond physically to a wide range of music. They play musical instruments and sing a variety of songs from memory, adding accompaniments and creating short compositions with increasing confidence, imagination and control. They explore and enjoy how sounds and silence can create different moods and effects.

Key Stage Two

Children sing songs and play percussion instruments with increasing skill, confidence and expression, showing awareness of their contribution to a group performance. They improvise and develop their own musical compositions, in response to a variety of different stimuli with increasing personal involvement, independence and creativity. They also are encouraged to bring in ‘home’ instruments for use in class lessons where appropriate. They explore their thoughts and feelings through responding physically, intellectually and emotionally to a variety of music from different times and cultures.

Physical Education

Key Stage One Children build on their natural enthusiasm for movement, using it to explore and learn about their world. They start to work and play with others. By watching, listening and experimenting, they develop skills in movement and co-ordination, and enjoy expressing and testing themselves in a variety of situations.

Key Stage Two Children enjoy being active and using their creativity and imagination in physical activity. They enjoy communicating, collaborating and competing with each other. They develop an understanding of how to succeed in different activities and learn how to evaluate and recognise their own success.

Religious Education

The school follows the agreed Devon Syllabus. Children learn about Christian and other world faiths. Parents may exercise their right to withdraw their children from Religious Education and Collective Worship. The school curriculum allows us to promote children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.