Curriculum for Children in Years 1 and 2
For children in Years 1 and 2 there are six themed areas of learning:
- Understanding English, Communication and Languages
- Mathematical Understanding
- Scientific and Technological Understanding
- Historical, Geographical and Social Understanding
- Understanding Physical Development, Health and Well-being
- Understanding the Arts
We offer a broad, balanced, relevant and well matched curriculum to all children. The class teacher assesses each child's progress carefully and our aim is for each child to achieve his or her personal best.
We plan our curriculum mainly through themes, through which we teach basic skills, knowledge and understanding. We base the themes on the children's immediate environment and community. We believe this is the most effective way of implementing the curriculum for them. The community is seen as a key resource and integral to the work of our school in developing children's skills, concepts and attitudes.
We teach the children as a class or as a smaller group, and at times, individually. We also encourage them to work independently and collaboratively.
Understanding English, Communication and Languages
We aim for children to read fluently, accurately and for pleasure. We encourage them to use their acquired skills for reading fiction and for obtaining information.
The school operates a 'reading group' system in which we divide the children into groups according to their reading ability and they attend a daily reading group for 15 minutes immediately after assembly. We operate a 'split break' system whereby half of the children go out to play whilst the other half attend reading group. This is then reversed, so that all children have an opportunity to both read and to enjoy their break.
In the reading group, each child takes a turn to read whilst the others follow the text in their own copy of the book. As the children read, the teacher takes opportunities to develop discussion about vocabulary, grammar and the meaning of the text; the members of the group also explore their views about the author, the illustrator, and so on. The group situation provides an opportunity for reading aloud, practising expression and inflexion and for developing the higher-order reading skills of inference, deduction and comprehension.
The children read with a teacher, a teaching assistant or a parent/guardian, all of whom are clear about their role in the reading groups. It has been found that in addition to the 'reading group' system being an efficient way of teaching young children to read and raising reading standards generally, it has other advantages, notably confidence building and enjoyment. The groups rotate regularly, so that the children have the opportunity of reading with a variety of adults; moreover, teachers now have longer to devote a considerable part of their time in the afternoon to listening to their children read and can therefore spend time giving quality teaching in other curriculum areas.
Speaking, reading and listening skills are an integral and increasingly important part of the English curriculum too and are an area that we plan to teach very carefully. We aim to develop communication skills so that children can give and receive instructions confidently and converse freely with their peers and fulfilled with verbal communication. We aim to develop children as writers using a broad and balanced curriculum as a vehicle. We teach them to write accurately, neatly and legibly for a variety of purposes using correct form, punctuation and spelling.
The Library
The school library contains a wide range of fiction, non-fiction and reference books. In addition, the school borrows a considerable number of books from the County Librarian, which are exchanged three times a year. We encourage children to borrow books from the school library to take home and share with their parents/guardians. Each class also has its own library or book area which is stocked with topic-related non-fiction material as well as a range of fiction and poetry books. The school employs a part-time library assistant who ensures the library is well-resourced with good quality books.
Mathematical Understanding
We hope that children will enjoy maths and the exciting challenge it offers. Through practical first hand experience, we develop the children's knowledge, understanding and use of number, algebra, measurement, shape, space and data handling. We also hope to develop a positive attitude to maths, an ability to follow new steps in logical thinking and the confidence to apply mathematical knowledge to everyday situations.
To achieve these aims, we teach basic mathematics separately from the class topics, although we still use mathematical concepts within the topics wherever possible.
Scientific and Technological Understanding
We aim to provide experiences for children to learn how to observe, classify, measure, predict, experiment, communicate and explain. We hope that through the exploration of living things, materials and forces, children acquire knowledge and understanding of basic scientific ideas and develop a caring and enquiring attitude to life.
Through Design Technology children face the challenge of designing and making artefacts for their environment in response to an identified need. We encourage them to work from plans, evaluate their models critically and have fun.
Children also find out how things work by experimenting, building and discovering and so can gain understanding, not only in Science and Technology but also in Geography and History.
Historical, Geographical and Social Understanding
Children learn of other cultures, of past events, of the work that people do, of the use of money, of the environment and of animals and other living things.
Understanding Physical Development, Health and Well Being
Physical activity includes gymnastics, dance and games. There are regular lessons in all three. The school hall is easily converted into a gymnasium with apparatus suitable for the needs of young children. We also use our large playground to develop games skills.
Personal, Social, Health and Citizenship Education encourages a holistic approach to the child's own life style.
We emphasise the importance of eating good food, keeping warm and clean and recognising that our bodies are precious and need looking after. Simple life cycles are taught in the science curriculum and these form the basis of our sex education programme. Teachers always answer children's questions on this subject as and when they arise, as openly and as honestly as they can, and simple books are available in the school library. We ask you to develop an honest and age appropriate response when talking to your child about sex and relationships.
Understanding the Arts
We aim to develop children's creative ability by encouraging experimentation with a wide range of materials, followed by the teaching of technique. We also aim to develop their aesthetic appreciation by observing and discussing the work of great artists and through evaluation of their own work and time to experiment and learn about different techniques and skills.
Through Design Technology children are challenged to design and make artefacts for their environment in response to an identified need. They are encouraged to work from plans and critically evaluate their models and have fun.
Music
This is not only part of the arts but also a practical subject to be enjoyed by all. We encourage children to take part in music-making in a variety of ways: singing, playing tuned and untuned instruments, listening and responding to extracts of different music from their own and different cultures. Singing is one of the strengths of our school and as a community we value the contribution music makes to our world.
Information Communication Technology (ICT)
ICT is an essential part of all our lives. We aim for each child to have experience in the following areas: word processing, using a database, graphics packages, problem solving games to develop higher-order thinking skills and to use control technology. All classes have Interactive Whiteboards. Every class has three computers and access to the 'laptop bus' which is a workstation containing several laptops for pupil use.
We have a 'Responsible Use' Policy that clearly stataes how the children and adults make good use of ICT in a safe and responsible way. We hope that you will support the school by ensuring that your child develops a responsible approach to using the computer at home. This encompasses the amount of time your child spends on a computer, the sort of activities they are engaged in and clarity about how to use a computer effectively.
Religious Education
We base Religious Education on the major world religions such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Hinduism. We encourage the children to learn tolerance towards people of other cultures through an understanding of their rituals and beliefs. We plan the work through multi-faith which will include Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism in relation to festivals, rites of passage and places of worship.
We hold our daily assemblies to help each child realise that school is an extended family to which they belong. We aim to promote a caring environment where children are sensitive to the needs of others and the world around them. We do this through selected themes, stories and poetry and by inviting members of the community into assembly. The daily assembly is our collective act of worship. We attempt to respond to the needs of children who have a religious commitment and for those whose experience of worship is based on the awe and wonder of our world.
Whilst parents/guardians have the right to withdraw their children from these daily acts of worship, we encourage them to allow their children to attend, if only as observers, in order that no child is excluded from the corporate ethos of the school. We ask children who are withdrawn from assembly to read a book during this time. We encourage local faith leaders to contribute to our assemblies and we enjoy presentations from 'Ready Assembled' who portray Bible stories through puppet shows.